This website presents our knowledge and research on this important aspect of the Royal Collection. As of April 2026 it will not be regularly updated and new research on this topic will sit within the main website.

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Landscape, Nature and Architecture

Technological improvements enabled Prince Albert to collect photographs of places that were significant to him

FRANCIS BEDFORD (1815-94)

'Das weisse Haus'; Weiss Haus, a lodge in the forest around Gotha

1858

Albumen print | 19.2 x 24.6 cm (image) (image) | RCIN 2102969

Photograph of the Weiss Haus, a lodge in the forest around Gotha. It is a single storey wooden building with a stone commemorative plaque in the yard in front of it. A man holding a gun is leaning against the side of the building. There is a dead deer lying on the ground in front of him.

Knowing of Prince Albert's love for his old home, Queen Victoria commissioned a set of photographs of Gotha to be given to Prince Albert as a birthday present on 26 August 1858. They were to accompany the set of Coburg photographs she had given him for his birthday the year before. According to the Queen's journal, Prince Albert was 'particularly delighted' with them.

  • Creator(s)

    Francis Bedford (1815-94) (photographer)

  • 19.2 x 24.6 cm (image) (image)

    31.5 x 38.5 cm (page dimensions)

  • Das weisse Haus

  • Commissioned by Queen Victoria in 1858 as a birthday present for Prince Albert

  • Subject(s)
    • Places
      • Europe
        • Germany
          • Thuringia [Germany]
            • Gotha [Thuringia]
              • Weisse Haus [Germany]
    • Science, Medicine and Technology
      • Agriculture and related techniques
        • Animal husbandry
          • Field sports (hunting, shooting, stalking)
            • Deer hunting
      • Engineering & Technology
        • Military engineering
          • Arms (weapons)
            • Firearms
              • Guns
    Object type(s)
      • visual works
        • photographs
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