More than a great poster: Lord Kitchener and the image of the military hero

Abstract

Abstract Lord Kitchener was once a great legendary figure but the imagery and iconography used to create the legend is less well known. By using his papers and contemporary literature this article attempts to shed light on how Kitchener was regarded by his peers and the public. Instead of the wholesome English traits attributed to his predecessors, Kitchener's admirers and enemies described him as ‘oriental’, ‘teutonic’, devious, cruel, machine-like and efficient, which made him the ideal champion for a country undergoing a collective crisis of confidence before 1914. Thus Kitchener was, in many ways, a new kind of hero.