A satire of the 1832 Reform Bill, with a see-saw with the Crown as the fulcrum. At the center is William IV, waving the Union flag; to the right is Lord Grey, seated on the lever, helping William balance with a scroll marked 'Union', with John Bull standing underneath, wedging the lever up with the 'Reform Bill'; and to the right the Duke of Wellington tumbles backwards as the lever breaks under the weight of him and two huge scrolls marked 'Anti Reform'.
Description:
Title from text below image., Date from dealer's description., Not in the Catalogue of prints and drawings in the British Museum. Division I, political and personal satires., and Laid on canvas backing.
Publisher:
Pubd. by O. Hodgson, 10 Cloth Fair
Subject (Geographic):
Great Britain
Subject (Name):
William IV, King of Great Britain, 1765-1837, Grey, Charles Grey, Earl, 1764-1845, Wellington, Arthur Wellesley, Duke of, 1769-1852, and Great Britain. Parliament
Subject (Topic):
Reform, Politics and government, John Bull (Symbolic character), Seesaws, Crowns, Flags, and British
A satire of William IV's involvement in the debate leading up to the Reform Act of 1832: A cat with the face of William IV is being persuaded to pull a hot chestnut from a blazing fire by a bewigged monkey (Lord Chancellor Henry Brougham). The fire is labelled with words such as 'rights', 'reform', and 'popularity'. A portrait of Whig Prime Minister Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey, hangs above the fireplace
Description:
Title etched below image., Publication date inferred from the subject matter of the print. Publisher Marianne Humphrey, the widow of George Humphrey, operated her late husband's publishing business from 1831 to 1835; see British Museum online catalogue., Five lines of verse below title: A cat and a monkey tired of play ..., For an 1821 print of similar composition, entitled "The man of the woods & the cat-o'-mountain" and satirizing the relationship between Queen Caroline and Sir Matthew Wood, see no. 14131 in the Catalogue of prints and drawings in the British Museum, v. 10., and Not in the Catalogue of prints and drawings in the British Museum.
Publisher:
Pubd. by Marianne Humphreys, St. James's Stt
Subject (Name):
Great Britain. Parliament, William IV, King of Great Britain, 1765-1837, Brougham and Vaux, Henry Brougham, Baron, 1778-1868, and Grey, Charles Grey, Earl, 1764-1845,
Subject (Topic):
Reform, Cats, Monkeys, Fireplaces, Bookcases, Irons (Pressing), and Portraits
