Beltways and Braces

I'm coming to the end of my two-week stay in Washington. My work at the Library of Congress has proved much more useful than I was anticipating - the sources I intended to look at were far richer than I had envisaged; moreover I've also managed to get a little bit of a head start on research for my next chapter. So all in all, it's been a very productive trip. But I'd hate you to think that I was over here in Washington and just spending all day in the library; I've also managed to do quite a variety of sight-seeing, too.

The Library of Congress seems a natural enough starting point - although it's essentially intended as a research library for members of Congress and their staff (hence its huge funding), its collection is open to anyone above high school age with a legitimate research interest. Security, naturally, is tight (there was apparently a suspicious package found in one of the rooms today), although this means that my fears of a spontaneously combusting laptop are unfounded. Given that many of my visits here have been to icons of America, it's averaging over one X-ray scan a day!

I mention the Library in particular because the James Madison building is the only tribute in Washington to one of my favourite Presidents. One of the principal movers behind the calling of the Constitutional Convention, Madison was also the co-author of the Federalist Papers, instrumental in ensuring there was a Bill of Rights, and later served in the Jefferson Administration before becoming President in his own right, and declaring war on the British in 1812. Moreover, Jefferson considered Madison perhaps the key intellectual force behind the Revolution. (I was going to say 'looked up to Madison', but Madison is the smallest ever President, standing at just 5 foot 6.) Needless to say, walking past the statue of Madison every morning when going to work gave me a geeky thrill.

As you might suspect, the Library of Congress is situated just around the corner from the Capitol itself - one of the towering landmarks of Washington. Buildings in Washington, indeed, cannot be built above a certain height so as to maintain the sightlines to the National Mall, which contains the Washington Monument and Capitol Hill. Tourists are allowed to visit the building (although with pretty restricted access) provided they turn up early enough in the morning to obtain a ticket, so last week Richard and I decided that this was reason enough to take a morning off work.

The most impressive part of the building is unquestionably the rotunda, which serves simultaneously as a study in how Americans conceive the founding of their nation. The walls contain a series of paintings designed to show thedevelopment of the nation - from the discovery of America by Columbus, to the marriage of Pocahontas to John Smith, through the landing of the Mayflower,the signing of the Declaration of Independence and the surrender of Lord Cornwallis through to Washington's resignation of his military commissions (thus signifying that a republic was to be ruled by a civilian, rather than a military leader). A cynic might suggest that rather than portraying the settlement of Virginia through the 'harmony' of Indian-settler relations, a more realistic take on history might show the avaricious nature of those making their way to the Old Dominion. But I thought better of speaking out.

The Capitol verges worrying close to being a shrine to Washington, in fact. The top of the rotunda has a painting called 'the Apotheosis of Washington', in which he is portrayed in true classical fashion as a true warrior, simultaneously upholding the principles of freedom and justice. The effect of reverence would have been even greater had Congress succeeded in persuading the Washington family to allow his body to have been disinterred, and reinstalled in the crypt of the building, directly underneath the rotunda and with a viewing gallery on the main level.

My main interest in the visit, however, came from seeing the old chambers ofthe House of Representatives and the Senate. The small size of the rooms serves as a reminder to just how much America has grown since the Capitol building was originally completed in 1800 (it has since been massively expanded). Perhaps the most interesting part was the roof of the House of Representatives - unintentionally, there are approximately 20 points in the room where you can whisper, yet be heard clearly on the other side of the room. This caused huge consternation when it emerged that hushed party discussions on one side of the room were being amplified, audible to all and sundry on the other! Despite attempts to rectify this fault, nothing could be done, although it did teach representatives a valuable lesson in discretion.

The rest of the building is largely notable for its collection of statues. (Though the former Supreme Court building also holds the distinction of being the location of the first transmission by telegraph in Morse code: What hath God wrought). Following the movement of the House of Representatives to different chambers, their former dwelling became used as a market. The Representatives, on the other hand, wanted the old chamber to be a place of dignity. So each state was invited to send two statues to what is now the National Statuary Hall, the only stipulation being that the person thus commemmorated had to have passedaway. The result is an interesting study in state self-perception - some have commemorated famous politicians; others have harked back to famous native American figures (such as Sacegawa, for Nebraska), although there is a general preponderance for founding politicians, either because of their involvement in the American Revolution, or the foundation of the individual state. Though perhaps the most incongruous fact to me was the presence of many leading Confederate figures. I wonder how Jefferson Davis or Alexander Stephens (President and Vice-President of the Confederacy, respectively) would feel about being commemmorated in Washington?

While Richard was here, I also paid a visit to Ford's Theatre. Once the place to be seen in Washington, it is now more famous as the place where Abraham Lincoln was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth. As with so many of the American National Parks Service sites, it is interesting even to those who knew many of the facts before turning up (and certainly much better than the nearby White House Visitor's Center, which is little more than a series of videos and pictures of the rooms you can't get to see unless you write to your Congressman/Embassy months in advance). The trip starts off with a talk from a park ranger, explaining the lengths that Booth went to in order to slip into the theatre (although an actor, he was not performing in the night's performance) - right down to the leaving of a getaway horse.

The highlight, though, is the display in the basement. What is basically a Parks Service site on the basis of one small, if cataclysmic event, holds a display in its basement which explains the political culture of the 1860s, details on the elections of Lincoln, memorabilia from the night of the shooting, including the door of Lincoln's box, a lengthy and judicious account of the trial of those involved in the plot (alongside the assassination of Lincoln, there were also failed attempts to kill Andrew Johnson, the Vice President, and Secretary of State Seward), and a description of Lincoln's funeral trail. It really is a treasure trove of information, and does a very good job of wider public information.

Unsurprisingly, Washington is also home to a huge number of museums - including the gigantic Smithsonian Institution. Unfortunately, I've come here in the wrong year for my interests. The Smithsonian Museum of American History is closed until 2008; the American wing of the National Gallery of Art is similarly closed for renovation. Nevertheless, I was delighted to get to the National Gallery, for it was first created by Andrew Mellon - a man dear to my heart for the good sense of his foundation to fund my doctorate. The building itself is worth visiting - roomy and spacious, it contains several Roman-esque fountains, and (on the upper level at least) is lit primarily through natural light.

The collection is impressive, too - I was especially pleased to see numerous paintings by Turner (without question my favourite artist), Gauguin and Cezanne. There were also some intriguing exhibitions. One showed the development of the use of photography in the early 20th century - while many collages and montages were ultimately quite forgettable, the highlights included seeing how early artists were fascinated by the extra detail that could be gained from close-up photography. The highlight of this collection, though, was the development of a photography of the 'homeland', which was used by many artists arguing for the significance of their home region. Most interesting of all was the exhibition on artistic depictions of travel in the early modern period. I was surprised to see the extent to which travel was depicted as a worrying or disorienting experience. The safety of an EasyJet flight puts our travelling experiences in a totally different perspective!

My other main trip whilst here in Washington was to the Arlington National Cemetery. This was partially exciting because it allowed me to notch up a new state (Virginia); it also afforded me the novelty of walking across state lines. The Cemetery is enormous, and a deeply sombre place. Even though it clearly attracts numerous visitors, you can often feel almost totally alone wandering around the grounds. And although several funerals take place there every single day, I wasn't aware of the presence of a single funeral party.

The sights that attract the majority of the visitors are the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, and the grave of John F Kennedy (his brother Bobby is buried nearby). The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is kept under constant guard; the sentry paces up and down for 21 steps, pausing for 21 seconds at each end, to signify the 21-gun salute. The Cemetery in general is set in quite a stunning location; it affords fantastic views of the Monuments in Washington, and there is a sightline to the Pentagon as well. The land on which it was established was formerly the home of Robert E. Lee, better known as the commander of the Confederate Army; he vacated the estate at the start of the Civil War, whereupon the lands were promptly confiscated by Union troops and used as a garrison for the remainder of the war.

There has been a conscious effort to make the Cemetery as representative of the nation's military history as possible; soldiers who died in the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812 had their graves moved here so as to ensure representation of all conflicts. This is carried still further by attempting to have some reconciliation over the Civil War - Lee's former home is now a National Parks Service memorial; there is also a memorial erected to Confederate Soldiers. This sits among a plethora of other memorials, which includes the mast of the USS Maine (sunk in the Philippines war) and a memorial to astronauts. Wandering to all of these sites took a good two and a half hours; the size of the site brought home both the fact that war and conflict has been too persistent a fact of human existence, and that it brings a vast human cost.

I've also visited the National Archives today, but I think I've rambled on enough already. Tomorrow I intend to visit Mount Vernon, the estate of George Washington, and I hope to update you on my travels again in a couple of days.