Object Details
- Artist
- August Benziger, 1867 - 1955
- Sitter
- William McKinley, 29 Jan 1843 - 14 Sep 1901
- Exhibition Label
- Twenty-fifth president 1897–1901
- Like other presidents elected during the post–Civil War era, William McKinley served in the Union army, where he rose from private to major. He then progressed from U.S. representative to governor of Ohio, and finally, to president. In the 1896 election, he defeated the populist Democrat William Jennings Bryan in a landslide victory, thereby cementing the Republican Party’s conservative pro-business platform. The Spanish-American War, which lasted from April to August of 1898, was conducted under the pretext of freeing Cuba. The war guided much of McKinley’s foreign policy and resulted in the United States acquiring the territories of Guam, the Philippines, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico—marking the young nation as a budding global power. After his reelection in 1900, McKinley was assassinated by an anarchist at the 1901 Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo, New York, underscoring the unending social and political unrest of the 1890s. McKinley is remembered for his patience and kindness, and for the dedication he showed his wife, Ida, who struggled with epilepsy and the deaths of their infant daughters.
- 25o presidente, 1897–1901
- Al igual que otros presidentes electos después de la Guerra Civil, William McKinley había servido en el ejército de la Unión, donde ascendió de soldado raso a mayor. Luego pasó de la Cámara de Representantes a gobernador de Ohio y por ultimo a presidente. En las elecciones de 1896 derrotó de manera apabullante al demócrata populista William Jennings Bryan, con lo cual cimentó la plataforma conservadora, pro negocios, del Partido Republicano.
- La Guerra Hispano-Estadounidense, que duró de abril a agosto de 1898, se inició con el pretexto de liberar a Cuba. Esta guerra orientó gran parte de la política exterior de McKinley y como resultado de ella Estados Unidos adquirió los territorios de Guam, Filipinas, Hawái y Puerto Rico, con lo cual la joven nación se perfiló como incipiente potencia mundial. Después de su reelección en 1900, McKinley fue asesinado por un anarquista en la Exposición Panamericana de 1901 en Búfalo, Nueva York —una prueba más de la agitación política y social que plagó la década de 1890—. A McKinley se le recuerda por su paciencia y bondad, y por la devoción hacia su esposa, Ida, que padecía de epilepsia y había sufrido la pérdida de dos hijas pequeñas.
- Provenance
- The artist; his daughter Marieli Benziger, Altadena, Calif.; gift 1969 to NPG.
- Credit Line
- National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; gift of Miss Marieli Benziger
- 1897
- Object number
- NPG.69.34
- Restrictions & Rights
- CC0
- Type
- Painting
- Medium
- Oil on canvas
- Dimensions
- 149 x 99cm (58 11/16 x 39")
- Frame: 162.6 x 110.5 x 6.7cm (64 x 43 1/2 x 2 5/8")
- See more items in
- National Portrait Gallery Collection
- Exhibition
- America's Presidents (Reinstallation September 2017)
- On View
- NPG, West Gallery 210
- National Portrait Gallery
- Topic
- Home Furnishings\Furniture
- Printed Material\Document
- Costume\Jewelry\Ring\Wedding Band
- William McKinley: Male
- William McKinley: Law and Crime\Lawyer
- William McKinley: Military and Intelligence\Army\Officer\Captain
- William McKinley: Arts and Culture\Education and Scholarship\Educator\Teacher
- William McKinley: Politics and Government\Government official\President of US
- William McKinley: Military and Intelligence\Army\Officer\Civil War\Union Army
- William McKinley: Politics and Government\Government official\US Congressman\Ohio
- William McKinley: Politics and Government\Government official\Governor\Ohio
- Portrait
- Record ID
- npg_NPG.69.34
- GUID (Link to Original Record)
- http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm418732de3-6312-4a3f-a2e9-261100e2d2f1
