Conversation across the Water

Artist Thomas Tegg (British, 1776 - 1845)

Date1807

Object number00054714

NameCaricature

MediumInk on paper

DimensionsOverall: 260 × 363 mm
Mount / Matt size: 407 × 560 mm

ClassificationsArt

Credit LineANMM Collection

Terms

DescriptionA a hand-coloured etching published by Thomas Tegg in January 1807 of a caricature titled 'Conversation across the Water'. It depicts a diminutive Napoleon in oversized bicorn hat and boots shouting across the Channel to John Bull who is seated on the edge of the cliff, under a tree, smoking a churchwarden pipe. In between the men, a fleet is visible. Napoleon says "Hallo you Jean Bull – take notice I have got on my seven League Corsican Boots that never fails me depend on it Ill step across the Water one of these days and Pay you a visit master Bull." John Bull replies "D–n your boots and your shoes too – where I sit is my own little land in the ocean – and if you attempt to stir a foot – there’s a few of my wooden walls in the offing shall give you a Pretty Peppering."HistoryThis caricature is one of a collection of seventeen created during the Napoleonic wars and highlights the fortunes of the French Emperor during his rise and fall. It was during this period that the character of John Bull was created as a representation of the solid English yeoman and the caricatures reflect the attitudes common in England at the time.SignificanceThe collection is significant as a contemporary expression of popular British attitudes towards Napoleon and his era. The collection includes works by noted artists James Gillray, Isaac Cruikshank and Thomas Rowlandson and are all original works dating to the first quarter of the 19th century. They are significant in providing a political context for the early years of British settlement in Australia.