John Bull Peeping into Brest, 1803

Today's etching is a caricature that I confess I'm selecting mostly because the oversized head and exaggerated features reminds me a lot of Hayao Miyazaki's artistic style, and it's a generally kinda weird image.

"John Bull Peeping into Brest". George Woodward. London, 1803. National Maritime Museum.

Our Brobdingnagian John Bull looks down on the French fleet blockaded into Brest, complete with a teeny tiny Napoleon, who cries "mercy on us what a monster - he'll swallow all my ships at a mouth-ful. I hope he dont see me. John Bull himself states, "Upon my word - a very Pretty light Breakfast."

One advantage of John Bull being drawn as a giant is that the image is quite clear about what he's wearing, and the large scale made it easier for a colorist to add details. His striped red trousers alternate between a broad red band and a narrow red stripe. His blue jacket has mariner's cuffs worn unbuttoned with three yellow buttons on the cuff. His blue jacket is worn shut, with five yellow buttons visible. His handkerchief is purple with a pattern of five small yellow spots arranged in an x, a common "spott'd" design created by resist dyeing that was popular in the 18th and early 19th centuries. A similar spott'd handkerchief is worn by a rower in John Singleton Copley's famous 1778 painting Watson and the Shark, and reproductions are available from the retailer Burnley and Trowbridge.

John Bull's brown hair looks almost wiglike, but is worn short and seems somewhat curly. His hat is of the "squashy" type shown in caricatures, with a relatively wide brim, a low crown with a rounded top, and a wide blue hat ribbon with a large blue rosette, facing backwards.

The Glory of Old England, 1803

"The Glory of Old England" (subtitled "Briton's Protection"). London, England: 1803. British Museum. 

Today's image is an interesting detail from a poster that the catalog suggests might be a music cover. The publisher is listed as Laurie & Whittle of London, who produced several broadside ballads of the early 1800s that I've covered in previous posts. Published in August, 1803 after the wake of the end of the Peace of Amiens, the image is a snapshot of the patriotic fervor of the time. It reminds the public of where their protection from the ravages of Bonaparte and his threats to invade England comes from: the might of the Navy (personified not as an officer, but as a common British tar) and the Army.

In the center of the image Brittania sits in a seal inscribed with the caption "My country's supporters". To her left in the sea are ships at sea, and to the right are the tents of an army, while outside the seal, leaning on it, are the sailor and soldier. Supporters is meant in the heraldric sense of figures standing on either side of a shield in a coat of arms, and holding it up.

The Royal Navy sailor at left wears black shoes with square buckles left white. His trousers, tight in the lower leg, showing his calves, and stopping just above the ankle to show white stockings, are a light tan. His blue jacket is worn open with four buttons on his sleeve - worn buttoned shut for once - and looks to be double breasted. His black handkerchief is tied quite loosely around his neck, with his white shirt visible and unbuttoned at the collar. His red waistcoat has four rows of tiny buttons! It's worn almost completely unbuttoned, showing his white shirt beneath.

The sailor's hat is a "squashy" one - though less exaggerated than ones in caricatures - with a small brim and a blue ribbon and rosette. His brown hair is short and straight.

The veteran's address to a young sailor, 1803

"The Veteran's Address to a Young Sailor". London: 1803. Walpole Library.

Today's image is a London print from the team of Woodward and Ackerman. It offers an excellent compare and contrast between the clothes of a senior sailor who did his service in the 18th century, and a young sailor just starting out a life at sea. The veteran says:

"You are now, Young Man, entering on a scene of life the most glorious and enterprising - that of an English Sailor... An imperious and daring Invader threatens to approach your shores." The sailor is commanded to remember Drake, Howard, Blake, and Pocock, Russel, Boscawen, "Duncan, brave Cornwallis, Howe, Warren, Hood, the famed St. Vincent, and the undaunted Hero of the Nile!... Farewell! be vigilant, be bold - true to your God, your Country, and your King!"

The veteran on the left is dressed firmly in the style of the preceding century, with white hair (or a wig?) with a long white queue wrapped in a black ribbon and a long blue coat with white turn-backs. He wears white small clothes, which include a waistcoat that stretches over his prosperous belly, reaching to his thighs, knee breeches, and stockings. His shirt is ruffled, with a black stock, and his shoes are substantial, with large buckles.

In contrast, our young sailor wears all that is fashionable for a young sailor of the early 1800s: delicate pointed-toe pumps, red and white striped ankle-length broadfall trousers that are tight at the ankle, a triple-breasted blue jacket with small buttons and welted pockets cut high, and a large black neck-cloth worn tied loosely around his neck. He has a large round hat with a round crown and a black rosette in the band in one hand, and a thin stick tucked under his arm. His brown hair is curly, and very short.

While sailors had been wearing striped trousers for a long time by the time this print was made, the contrast between the veteran's conservative, traditional naval uniform and the fashionable cut of the youth's clothes in this print make an excellent contrast.