'Effects of the Arrival of French Eagles in England', 1812

Coloured etching by W H Brooke and the 'Satirist', after W H Brooke, 1812. Published by the 'Satirist', 1 October 1812.

A cartoon satirising the celebrations in London on the nights of 16-19 August, after the arrival of dispatches announcing the victory of Salamanca and the captured French eagles. Salamanca was a great victory of Duke of Wellington during the war waged against the French in Spain and Portugal, known as the Peninsular War (1808-1814).

The subjects in the picture include the reformist politician Sir Francis Burdett, the Whig political faction and the Morning Chronicle newspaper, who were opponents of the war. It also implies that all four nations of the United Kingdom were united in celebration of Wellington and his victories.

The design is divided into two sections. On the right is a street scene at night. In the background a large crowd has gathered for a victory celebration in front of some highly decorated buildings. In the central foreground is an effigy with a mantle reading 'The Mo(u)rning Chronicle'. In the foreground on the right a funeral is being held for the Whigs with weeping mourners and pall-bearers and a coffin covered with a cloth inscribed: 'Hopes of the Party Obiit 22d July 1812'. In the left foreground two scantily clad figures representing Discord and Faction fall to the ground in despair at the rejoicing crowd. Behind them on the left the house of Burdett in Piccadilly is being attacked by a mob.

In the section on the right, four men, representing the nations of the United Kingdom, England Ireland, Scotland and Wales, are drinking a toast under the heading 'The immortal Wellington and his brave fellows in arms'. The four nations are also represented by their national symbols, of the Thistle, the Shamrock, the Rose and the Leek, on a central table, above which flies the Dove of peace. In the corner a British Lion tramples the captured eagles, symbolising Britain's victory over France.