- Museum number
- 1851,0901.857
- Title
- Object: The French bugabo frightening the royal commanders.
- Description
-
Bonaparte (left), a grotesque figure with a large head, bestrides the neck of a scaly monster which breathes out soldiers (horse and foot), guns, and demons in a cloud of smoke. The Archduke Charles and the Duke of York (scarcely caricatured) run terrified from the advancing cloud, which almost reaches the former's heel. In the background panic-stricken Austrian troops are in flight. On the extreme left the Pope lies prostrate under the monster's body, his key and crozier beside him. He says: "Oh Lord, this Rebel son of mine pays me no homage whathever." Under the monster's fore-paws are a crown, orb, and broken sceptre. Its rider is a 'bugaboo' with gaping mouth and staring eye-balls. He wears a bonnet-rouge inscribed 'Buonaparte' and says: "Egad they run well courez donc Messrs Les Princes!!!" Isolated figures of Bonaparte's army say: "push on"; "keep moving" [cf. BMSat 9010]; "Wont you stop and take your change"; "vive la libertee". From the upper right corner of the design the head of Fox, winged, but with sprouting horns, looks down smiling at the two princes, saying: "Run Frederick, run Charles. Mack. Wurmser, Kell, well done D'Alvinzi now Davidovich." 'Frederick' says: "I wish I was at York come on Charles follow me." 14 April 1797
Etching
- Production date
- 1797
- Dimensions
-
Height: 271 millimetres
-
Width: 499 millimetres
- $Inscriptions
-
- Curator's comments
- (Description and comment from M.Dorothy George, 'Catalogue of Political and Personal Satires in the British Museum', VII, 1942)
These commanders, the Duke of York and Mack excepted, were defeated by Bonaparte (and Kellerman, 'Kell') in the Italian campaign of 1796-7. The Archduke Charles was in command of the Austrian army, having been withdrawn from the victorious army of the Rhine (where he was succeeded by Mack) to succeed Alvintzy, defeated at Rivoli (14 Jan. 1797). Wurmser surrendered Mantua to the French (2 Feb.). Davidovitch, who had been bringing reinforcements to the Austrians before Arcola (15-17 Nov. 1706), was forced to retreat into Tyrol. The imperialists were driven from Italy in Mar., the Archduke retreated towards Vienna, followed by Bonaparte; on 7-8 Apr. he agreed to an armistice. Preliminaries of peace were signed at Leoben on 18 Apr. See BMSats 9057, 9058.
Reproduced, Broadley, i. 101.
- Location
- Not on display
- Exhibition history
-
Exhibited:
1989 May-Sep, BM, Shadow of the Guillotine
1990 Jan-Mar, Manchester, Whitworth AG
1990 Jun-Sep, Vizille, Mus Rev/Francaise
2015 Feb-Aug, BM, Rm 90, Bonaparte and the British
- Acquisition date
- 1851
- Department
- Prints and Drawings
- Registration number
- 1851,0901.857
