Reform Gallery

The late Mrs. Fry, 1845. Creator: Unknown

The late Mrs. Fry, 1845. Portrait of the excellent and philanthropic lady, British prison reformer Elizabeth Fry, ...who for so many years devoted her time and her purse to ameliorate the miseries of the inmates of our various prisons...She gave much attention to the condition of female convicts and prisoners, at a time when our prison discipline and management were many degrees worse than they are now...About two years ago Mrs. Fry was seized with a pulmonary-complaint, but the proximate cause of her death was paralysis. It will be recollected that when the King of Prussia recently visited this country, his Majesty paid great attention to her, and visited her at her residence at Dagenham, in Essex. The whole of Mrs. Fry's family and the leading members of the Society of Friends were present at a public breakfast upon the occasion'. From "Illustrated London News", 1845, Vol VII

© The Print Collector/Heritage Images

Otto von Bismark, German statesman, 1877. Artist: A von Werner

Otto von Bismark, German statesman, 1877. Prince Otto von Bismarck-Schonhausen, Duke of Lauenburg (1815-1898), was Chancellor of Prussia and architect of modern Germany. His ambition was to unify the various independent German states into a single nation under Prussian leadership. The catalyst to bringing this about was the Franco-Prussian War of 1870, when the other German states fought alongside the Prussians. France was defeated, and in 1871, the German Empire was established, with Bismarck as Chancellor. (Colorised black and white print)

© The Print Collector

The Burning of John Huss by the Council of Constance, July 6, 1415, (1907)

The Burning of John Huss by the Council of Constance, July 6, 1415, (1907). Jan Huss (1369-1415), Czech priest, philosopher, early Christian reformer and Master at Charles University in Prague. Considered the earliest church reformer, a key predecessor to the Protestant movement of the sixteenth century. He was burned at the stake for heresy against the doctrines of the Catholic Church, including those on ecclesiology and the Eucharist. From The World's History, Volume V, by Dr. H. F. Helmolt. [William Heinemann, London, 1907]

© The Print Collector