In the study of English history the teacher finds rich illustrative material in the noble old buildings of England,—cathedrals, abbeys, and castles,—about which cluster the memories of so many epoch-making events. These views, together with the countless number of historical portraits from the English portrait painters, make a far better showing than the rather scarce and inferior anecdotic paintings of English historical events. In recent years an admirable contribution to English historical art for school use is the series issued by Longmans. There is one set of pictures in black and white, and another in color designed by H. J. Ford, intended for wall decorations. These are in use in the library and schools of Brookline, Massachusetts.
In our zeal for illustrating the history of our own nation, a good many pictures are often collected which have little or no artistic merit. The following list of subjects can be recommended to teachers:—
Washington and Lafayette at Mount Vernon (Rossiter).