English Caricature and Satire on Napoleon I. Volume 2 (of 2)Ashton, John
History
English Caricature and Satire on Napoleon I. Volume 2 (of 2)
Ashton, John
Napoleon I, Emperor of the French, 1769-1821 -- Caricatures and cartoons
Gillray gives us a veritable caricature in ‘News from Calabria!
Capture of Buenos Ayres! i.e. the Comforts of an Imperial Dejeune at
St. Clouds’ (September 13, 1806), a portion only of which is given in
illustration. Boney is here, terrific in his wrath; poor Talleyrand,
who has brought the news, is receiving grievous punishment from his
Imperial master. Not only is his ear pulled (a favourite trick of
Napoleon’s), but he is being belaboured with the tea-urn, which is made
in the form of the world: his master crying out: ‘Out on ye Owl, noting
but song of Death!!’ Napoleon has kicked over the breakfast-table, and
the scalding contents of the tea-urn are being deposited in the lap
of Josephine, who screams with agony and terror. The maids of honour
and courtiers, though refraining from open demonstration, look aghast
at the imperial violence, which is not diminished by the presence of
a number of messengers, whose news is particularly unwelcome: ‘Spain
in despair for the loss of her Colonies.’ ‘All Germany rising, and
arming _en Masse_.’ ‘Holland starving, and ripe for a revolt.’ ‘St.
Petersburg: refusal to ratify the French Treaty.’ ‘Prussia rousing
from the Trance of Death.’ ‘Swedish defiance. Charles XII. redivivus.’
‘Switzerland cursing the French yoke.’ ‘Italy shaking off her Chains.’
‘La Vendée again in motion.’ ‘Portugal true to the last gasp.’ ‘Sicily
firing like Etna.’ ‘Denmark waiting for an opportunity.’ ‘Turkey
invoking Mahomet.’ Naturally, all this bad news contributes towards
making it a ‘hard time’ for Talleyrand.
Argus gives us (September 1806) ‘The Continental Shaving Shop. Boney
beats Jemmy Wright, who shaved as well as any man, almost, not quite’
(September 1806). As a barber, he is going to shave the Grand Turk,
and, flourishing an enormous razor of Corsican steel, seizes his beard.
This the Turk naturally objects to, saying: ‘By the Holy Prophet, I
must not part with my beard, why, my people will not acknowledge me for
the grand Signor again at Constantinople.’ Talleyrand, as assistant,
is lathering the Turk’s face, persuading him, ‘Come, come, don’t make
such a fuss, my Master _will_ cut away when he catches anybody in his
shop.’ Boney calls out: ‘Lather away Talley. I’ll soon ease him of his
superfluities and make him look like my Christian customers.’
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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