Rowlandson the Caricaturist; a Selection from His Works. Vol. 2 by Joseph Grego
1810. The subject is treated allegorically by Rowlandson. _The Sun of
3319 words | Chapter 144
Tyranny_ is setting on the deep; the fleets of the allies are riding on
the seas, which are once more free, and the Dutch are helping to push
off the Texel fleet to join the common cause. As the Allies marched
against France after Napoleon's defeat at Leipzig, a combined force
was sent against Holland, which had been incorporated with the French
Empire in 1810, and placed under the constitution of Jan. 1, 1811, the
seventeen provinces of the Netherlands being united under the dominion
of France. The Prussian and Russian forces, under General Bülow, were
joined by a detachment from England under General Graham; the old
Orange party once more came into activity, and on November 30, 1813,
the hereditary Stadtholder arrived at the Hague. The caricaturist has
simplified his view of the situation by ignoring the change of affairs
that had intervened since 1810, when the Duke of Piacenza became the
Emperor's representative in Amsterdam until 1811, when the State was
merged into the French Empire. The artist has assumed that the kingdom
had remained as administered at the resignation of Louis, July 1, 1810;
and accordingly the abdicated monarch, without his crown, is pictured
dancing about in a distracted state on the soil of Holland, deploring:
'Oh! Brother Nap, Brother Nap, we shan't be left with half a crown
a-piece!' Napoleon is represented, according to the usual fashion of
the satirists, flying about in an ungovernable frenzy as he views the
receding fleet and recognises the revolt of the Netherlanders: 'Oh!
Brother Joe, I'm all fire; my passion eats me up! Such unlooked-for
storms of ills fall on me! It beats down all my cunning; I cannot
bear it! My ears are filled with noise, my eyes grow dim, and feeble
shakings seize every limb!'
The _Long Pull, Strong Pull, and a Pull all together_ is taking place
on the mainland. The weight and persevering force of John Bull is
telling on the towing-line; the Don Spaniard is hand-over-hand with the
national prototype, a condition of things marvellously altered since
the days of the caricature. A Russian, in furs, is the next in energy;
an Austrian huzzar has the rope well over his shoulder; a Prussian and
others are throwing their exertions into the haul; and all is moving as
merrily as could be desired.
_November 27, 1813._ _The Corsican Toad under a Harrow._ Published by
R. Ackermann, 101 Strand.--The Corsican, who is represented as both
prematurely aged and haggard, is sprawled, spread-eaglewise, on the
ground; upon him is a formidable harrow, which is kept in its place by
the obese figure of a traditional Hollander, who is leisurely smoking,
with his hands in his pockets and an Orange favour in his hat, in
philosophic indifference to the situation and sufferings of the victim,
who is exclaiming, 'Oh! this heavy Dutchman! Oh! had I not enough to
bear before!!!'
A Cossack is goading on the prostrate leader of the French with his
lance; and a bird of prey is swooping down, attracted by the smell of
carrion. The harrow is in vigorous hands, representatives of Austria,
Prussia, and other German Powers; Spaniards, Portuguese, and a British
tar are tugging away with hearty good-will.
_November 27, 1813._ _The Execution of two celebrated Enemies of Old
England, and their Dying Speeches, November 5th, 1813._ Published by
R. Ackermann, 101 Strand.--The effigy of Guy Faux, with his lantern,
is suspended by a rope round his neck to a gallows, and facing him, on
another gallows, is the figure of the Emperor Napoleon, in his uniform
as general of the French army. A bonfire is blazing up bravely, and a
party of schoolboys and villagers are the delighted spectators. A note
informs us that the scene is not an imaginary one, but is a faithful
representation of a 'bonfire at Thorpe Hall, near Louth, Lincolnshire,
on 5th November, 1813, given by the Rev. W. C---- to the boys belonging
to the seminary at Louth, in consequence of the arrival of news of the
decisive defeat of Napoleon Buonaparte by the Allies, at 11 o'clock
P.M. on the 4th, and Louth bells ringing all night.'
_Guy Faux's Dying Speech._
I, Guy Faux, meditating
my country's ruin by the
clandestine and diabolical
means of Gunpowder Plot, was
most fortunately discovered
and brought to condign
punishment by Old England,
and here I bewail my fate.
_Napoleon Buonaparte's Dying Speech._
I, Napoleon Buonaparte, flattered by all the French
nation that I was invincible, have most cruelly and most
childishly attempted the subjugation of the world. I have
lost my fleets, I have lost the largest and finest armies ever
heard of, and I am now become the indignation of the
world and the scorn and sport of boys. Had I not spurned
the firm wisdom of the Right Hon. William Pitt, I might
have secured an honourable peace, I might have governed
the greatest nation; but, alas! my ambition has deceived
me, and Pitt's plans have ruined me.
_November 29, 1813._ _Dutch Nightmare, or the Fraternal Hug Returned
with a Dutch Squeeze._ Published by R. Ackermann.--The great Emperor is
stretched, sleepless, on his imperial state bed, with the diadem above
and a row of captive crowns embroidered round the canopy, the fasces
of Roman lictors at the feet, and the furniture powdered with golden
eagles and fleur-de-lis. This luxurious couch is not to be coveted,
since tranquil rest is out of the question. The Emperor is writhing
in agony, saddled with a nightmare which is not to be dislodged.
The Hollanders at this time contrived to shake themselves free from
their fraternal friends the French, who had laid their country under
contributions until the disciples of freedom prayed to be delivered
from their tutors. The example of Holland and the victories ending
with the triumph at Leipzig gained by the Allies, and especially the
successes secured under Wellington, re-encouraged the subjugated and
prostrate Powers to look forward to the recovery of their freedom,
and to take their revenge on the little conqueror. A stout Dutchman,
dressed in his national costume, and wearing the Orange cockade, is,
according to the picture, returning the lesson in fraternity which had
cost him dear at the hands of the French, by showing his instructor the
vigour of a hearty Dutch squeeze. This heavy incubus, with his hands
in his pockets, is smoking his pipe, and puffing the distasteful fumes
full into the face of the powerless and disgusted Corsican, and crying,
'Orange Boven!'
_November 30, 1813._ _Plump to the Devil we boldly Kicked both Nap and
his Partner Joe._ Published by T. Tegg (234).--The heavy Hollander,
still sporting his Orange colours, is finally roused to dispose of the
intruders by the most summary and quickest method possible; with his
pipe in one hand and a squab bottle of Schiedam, or Dutch courage, held
like a mallet in the other, Mynheer is giving Nap a taste of Dutch
weight; one vigorous kick has propelled the little Corsican high into
the air and plump into the arms of the Father of Evil, who is emerging
from his 'Brimstone Lake' to make sure of his friend. In the distance
another Dutchman, provided with a pitchfork, is prodding Napoleon's
brother Louis--who had been created King of Holland--towards the same
refuge for the destitute; the usurper's crown being left behind in the
flight.
_December 4, 1813._ _The Corsican Munchausen--humming the Lads
of Paris._ Published by R. Ackermann, 101 Strand.--The Emperor,
with all the bombast, bravado, and speciousness of which he had an
excellent command, has summoned a meeting of his faithful subjects and
supporters--who, judging from the expression of their faces, appear
but an unwilling and disaffected audience--in order to present his
infant son to the people. The scion of the great captain is dressed
in a miniature uniform, with a long sabre trailing on the ground,
and a gold stick, which he is trying to fancy is a riding-horse. The
Imperial throne, the back of which bears a Medusa's head and a globe of
the world, is capsized by Munchausen's manoeuvrings. The Corsican is
vapouring on a grand scale, trying ineffectually to raise the ardour of
his dupes: 'Did I not swear I would destroy Austria? Did I not swear
I would destroy Prussia? Did I not leave the Russians 1,200 pieces of
cannon to build a monument of the victory of Moscow? Did I not lead
498,000 men to gather fresh laurels in Russia? Did I not burn Moscow,
and leave 400,000 brave soldiers to perish in the snow, for the good
of the French nation? Did I not swear I would destroy Sweden? Did I
not swear I would have colonies and commerce? Did I not build more
ships than you could find sailors for? Did I not burn all the British
produce, bought and paid for by my faithful merchants, before their
faces, for the good of them and of my good people of Paris? Have I not
called my troops from Holland, that they might not winter in that foggy
climate? Have I not called my troops from Spain and Portugal, to the
ruin of the English? Did I not change my religion and turn Turk, for
the good of the French nation? Have I not blown up the corporal for
blowing up the bridge? Have I not robbed the churches of twenty flags
to send to my Empress, for the loss of my own flags and eagles? And
now, for the good of my Empire, behold, O ye Lads of Paris! I have put
the King of Rome in breeches!!!'
_December 6, 1813._ _Funking the Corsican._ Published by R.
Ackermann.--The situation of the Emperor, as pictured by Rowlandson, is
becoming critical; he is elevated on a cask of 'real Hollands Geneva,'
on the top of which he is dancing about in exasperation, unable to
assist himself, and surrounded by his enemies, who are all putting the
great conqueror to his wits' end and revenging themselves by smoking
out the Corsican; each of the representatives of the rebellious States
and Powers being armed with a pipe, and pouring volumes of the fumes
round the person of the tortured general; Spain, Portugal, Hanover; the
Cossack, the Pole, Austria, Sweden, Bavaria, and Prussia, seated on a
cannon, are all assisting; the King of Würtemburg is provided with a
flask of 'Würtemburg drops;' John Bull has his foaming jug of 'brown
stout;' while the Dutch Mynheer, seated on a cask of Dutch herrings,
with his tobacco-pouch and twists of pigtail, is drawing a flagon of
Geneva to drink success to his Serene Highness, sending out a volume
of tobacco-fumes, which are completing the irritation of the badgered
Corsican, who is kicking off the head of the Hollands cask, into which
he will evidently plump head over ears--
The fly that sips treacle is lost in the sweets.
Before disappearing condign vengeance is threatened on the heads of his
enemies: 'Oh! you base traitors and deserters! Eleven hundred thousand
Lads of Paris shall roast every one of you alive, as soon as they can
catch you!'
_December 10, 1813._ _The Mock Phoenix!!! or a vain attempt to rise
again._ Published by R. Ackermann.--Holland, in the person of a Dutch
skipper, and Russia, in that of a Cossack, are blowing and stirring
a fire which is to consume the Corsican. Flames are issuing from the
furnace, and, in spite of the exertions of the stokers, the figure of
the Emperor is seen dwarfed, but still intact, in the thick of the
fire, but whether he will rise seems doubtful; his diadem is in full
blaze, while the orb and sceptre are snatched away by certain diabolic
claws, and the phoenix process threatens to prove a signal failure.
Serpents are crawling out of the mouth of the furnace; showers of
snakes, dragons, devils, and all kinds of monsters, kin of the phoenix,
are hovering amidst the smoke, and making hostile demonstrations
against the declining conqueror.
_December 12, 1813._ _Friends and Foes--up he Goes--Sending the
Corsican Munchausen to St. Cloud._ Published by R. Ackermann.--The
Emperor is left, unsupported, in the hands of his enemies, now turned
into tormentors: he is thrown into a blanket and tossed up into the
air, and is suffering worse discomforts than did Sancho Panza under
a similar infliction; crown, sceptre, and sword are shaken off. '_O
misericorde!_' cries the flying Munchausen as he is sent up to the
clouds. John Bull (whose wig and hat have been thrown aside), the
Dutch Mynheer, and Spanish Don are performing wonders with their side
of the blanket; then come the Cossack, the Pope, the Pole, the Prince
Imperial of Austria, the Emperors of Russia and Austria, and the Kings
of Prussia, Hanover, and Würtemburg, who are all lending a hand to
torment the Corsican.
_December 14, 1813._ _Political Chemists and German Retorts, or
Dissolving the Rhenish Confederacy._ Published by R. Ackermann.--A
delicate operation, which has engaged the attention of all the leading
Powers of Europe, is supposed to be proceeding. The colossal power
of the Corsican is undergoing transmutation, and the conqueror is
gradually being resolved into his original elements. A _German Stove_
supplies the furnace, and the fuel is recruited from John Bull's _Coal
Tub_; that patriotic person is assisting the process as one of the
leading experimental chemists; _Dutch bellows_ are furnishing various
powerful blasts; the _Spanish Don_ is pounding some effectually
irresistible chemicals in his famous mortar, _Saragossa_. The Corsican
has been forced into a receiver; Bernadotte is pouring in a portion of
_sulphate of Swedish iron_ before the cover is fixed on; the Emperor,
who has been reduced to mere pigmy proportions, is praying for time:
'Oh, spare me till the King of Rome is ripe for mischief yet to come!'
In various retorts are seen the several elements which entered into
the Imperial analysis, now resolved apart--_Intrigue and Villany_,
_Ambition and Folly_, _Gasconade and Lies_, _Arrogance and Atrocity_,
_Fire and Sword_, _Murder and Plunder_. All the leading States of
Europe are engaged in the operation; the King of Würtemburg is giving
his instructions; Prussia, Austria, Hesse, &c., are all interested
in the success of the operation. The Pope has contributed two potent
agents, _Fulminating powder_, and _Drops from the vial of wrath_.
Russia, Poland, the Emperor of Austria, &c., are seated, as chemists,
at a table dividing out the agents selected to dissolve the structure
raised by Napoleon. From certain tracts at the Cossack's feet we learn
that the 'liberty of Germany' and the 'downfall of Boney' are settled
projects; while the name of Napoleon, as protector of the Rhenish
confederacy, is crossed out, and that of 'Francis, Emperor of Austria,
restored 1813,' is substituted in its old ascendency.
_Napoléon le Grand. Inventée par Dubois; Alex. Tardieu effigiem del.
Deposée à la Bibliothèque Impériale._--A parody of the French plate of
Napoleon's apotheosis--
Astre brillant, immense, il éclaire, il féconde,
Et seul fait, à son gré, tous les destins du monde.-VIGÉE.
The head of Napoleon appears as the centre of the constellation, _Polar
Star_, elevated, in this case, like that of a traitor, on a pole, and
surrounded by entwined and hissing serpents. Above is the face of
Satan, wearing a crown of _Damnation_, supported by two escutcheons,
marked _Heart of Tyrant_, and _Vulture_, with scourges and pronged
forks. The pole is elevated on the great globe; in either corner
is a French eagle; above the Imperial ensigns are pikes, axes, and
standards, 'flags manufactured for the Empress,' &c.
The lustre of the constellation, Napoleon, is likely to suffer an
eclipse from the sudden descent of a Dutch comet--a philosophic
Hollander, seated astride on a barrel of Hollands Schiedam, the
contents of which he is ignominiously discharging over the head of
the solitary star of the firmament. The golden rays with which the
_astre brillant_ is illuminating the universe owe their source to the
following luminous achievements:--
Assisting in the assassination of Louis the Sixteenth, my
Benefactor.
Murdering the citizens of Paris under Robespierre.
Murdering the citizens of Toulon.
Insulting the Pope, robbing and plundering the churches, &c., &c.
Poisoning my own sick soldiers at the hospital at Jaffa.
Murdering the Duke d'Angouléme.
Treacherously betraying the King of Spain and his family.
Murdering the inhabitants of Madrid in cold blood.
Murdering Captain Wright in the Temple, at Paris.
Marrying two wives and intriguing with the daughter of one of them.
The murder of Palm, of Hofer, &c., &c.
Leading 500,000 Frenchmen to perish in Russia by the severity of
the season 1812.
Losing another similar army the following year in Germany, 1813.
Writing lying bulletins.
Losing all the colonies, commerce, and shipping.
And for all these brilliant exploits I am now to be sent headlong to
the Devil.
_December 25, 1813._ _Mock Auction, or Boney Selling Stolen Goods._
Published by R. Ackermann, 101 Strand.--Napoleon is pictured, before
his reverses became of a decided character, contemplating realising
the conquests he had in hand, with a possible view of retiring from
the trade. The Emperor has a sale-pulpit, and is himself officiating
as auctioneer; the lot which is being offered is the crown of Spain;
an old general is holding up the diadem, and the auctioneer, impatient
at the indifference of the purchasers, is crying, 'What! no bidding
for the crown of Spain? Then take the other crowns and lump them
into one lot'--referring to a pile of diadems, the crowns of Russia,
Austria, Prussia, the Papal tiara, &c., thrown into a corner, with
bundles of standards, 'lots of useless eagles,' &c. Lot 2, 'Twenty
flags, the property of the Empress,' 'Kingdom of Prussia,' 'Kingdom of
Westphalia,' 'Saxony,' 'United Provinces,' &c. The Empress is standing
behind her husband, with the infant prince in her arms. Napoleon's
heir is dressed in a uniform like his father's; his face is that of a
monkey. 'I suppose daddy will put us up for sale?' he is represented as
saying to the Empress.
The Mock Auction has drawn plenty of company together. The Dutchman
is smoking his pipe with his accustomed philosophy; a British tar is
patting him on the back, as his very cordial ally, and ridiculing
the Corsican's failure. The King of Würtemburg, Russia pictured as a
Cossack, Austria as a huzzar, Prussia, Bavaria, and other Powers are
present. The Spanish Don is making light of Buonaparte's pretence of
offering his crown for sale; 'That a crown!' he is shouting. 'It's not
worth half a crown!'
_December 30, 1813._ _How to Vault in the Saddle, or a new-invented
Patent Crane for the Accommodation of Rheumatic Rectors._ Rowlandson
delin. and publisher.--The incident depicted is taking place at the
door of the rectory, beside the church porch, where a crane has been
erected for the accommodation of the gouty and unwieldy divine. Two
frisky and solidly-built damsels are hauling away at a rope, to
which a sling is attached. The corpulent rector is swinging in mid
air, preparatory to being lowered into the saddle; in his pocket is
shown a discourse on the apposite text--'_He that humbleth himself
shall be exalted_.' A grinning groom is holding the head of a
high-cruppered horse; the minister's steed is a curiously constructed
instance of equine anatomy, fondly reviving the image of the faithful
_Grizzle_, rendered memorable as the _Rosinante_ of Doctor Syntax,
the long-enduring companion of his famous _Tour in Search of the
Picturesque_.
1813 (?). _Witches in a Hayloft._ Woodward delin., Rowlandson
sculp. Published by T. Tegg (226).--Two witches of orthodox type,
with broomsticks, red cloaks, and steeple-crowned hats, are seated
at a cauldron, working incantations, to assist at which serpents,
hobgoblins, and various weird monsters are conjured up. A rustic clown,
with a lantern and hayfork, who has thrown back the trapdoor, and is
ascending to the hayloft for some purpose, is paralysed with horror and
affright at the unholy spectacle suddenly revealed to his sight.
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