Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha as Collector, Educator and Cultural Transferant

The contribution that Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (1819–1861) made as a cultural transferant between Great Britain and the German lands has long been undervalued. Historiography has tended to overlook and/or systematically underplay Albert’s role in British political and cultural life, although recent research has challenged this view. This study reassesses Albert’s life and work and utilises cultural transfer theory to re-appraise his contribution to the development of contemporary British society. It analyses Albert’s education, his collecting and working practices and the influences that shaped his role as Prince Consort. Central to the study is Albert’s involvement in the Great Exhibition of 1851 and its aftermath. This study establishes Prince Albert as a major European cultural transferant, as demonstrated especially in the South Kensington complex of museums and other cultural institutions, also known as Albertopolis.