World's Peace Jubilee and International Music Festival (1872 : Boston, Mass.)

The World's Peace Jubilee and International Music Festival was held in 1872 in Boston, Massachusetts. The first Jubilee had been held in 1869. It was to demonstrate music's power to unite peoples of all nationalities and to express the universal hope for peace. The Jubilee was held shortly after the end of the Franco-Prussian War. A specially built Coliseum was erected, seating an audience of 50,000. An estimated 2,000 musicians and 20,000 singers were augmented by members of the Boston Fire Department; 20 cannon used in the climax. Patrick Gilmore, a noted bandmaster of the era, organized both Peace Jubilees.