Lot of (4) Four Framed Hand Colored Etchings British Political Satire

An English Hobby Horse; or, Who Pays the Piper?, 1791

An English hobby horse, or, who pays the piper?. Cartoon shows Catherine II, with orb and scepter, seated on the shoulders of Leopold II who is seated on the back of a stumbling bull; seated behind him are George III, Frederick William II and a man representing Holland; in the background, William Pitt is about to strike a British citizen with a rod while chastising him for complaining about having to shoulder the expense of Pitt’s Russian armanment policy. Date 1791 May 11.

An Imperial stride! 1791

A colossal figure of Catherine II steps from ‘Russia’, a rocky mound on the extreme left, to ‘Constantinople’, her toe resting on the horn of a crescent which surmounts a spire on a group of buildings, with a dome and a minaret. Her head is turned in profile to the right; in her left hand is an orb, in her right she holds out a sceptre over Constantinople, at which she looks with a determined frown. Beneath her petticoats, and strung out between ‘Russia’ and ‘Constantinople’ are the heads and shoulders of seven sovereigns, gazing up at her. On the extreme left is a man wearing the cap of the Doge of Venice, saying, “To what a length Power may be carried”. Next is the Pope wearing his triple crown, saying, “I shall never forget it”. Next is the King of Spain, saying, “By Saint Jago, I’ll strip her of her Fur!” Louis XVI says “Never saw any thing like it”. George III says “What! What! What! What a prodigious expansion!” The Emperor says “Wonderful elevation”. The Sultan says “The whole Turkish Army wouldn’t satisfy her”. Below the design is inscribed ‘European Powers’. 12 April 1791
Hand-coloured etching

Boys’ Play, or, the Russian Bear Bait

Catherine II, crowned, but with the body of a bear, crouches on the ground in profile to the left, clutching in her fore-paws a post inscribed ‘Oczakow’. Round her are spaced figures representing the European powers, each flourishing a whip or scourge. The most prominent are ‘Prussia’ and ‘Gt Britain’. Frederick William, a grotesque figure with long floating moustaches and a queue reaching to his heels, stands on the left, raising a scourge to strike, saying, “I’ll give her a Stroke that shall turn to some account”. George III, riding the Hanoverian Horse, gallops towards her from the right, his whip raised, saying, “I’ll give it you home you dissatisfied Thing”. His saddle-cloth is inscribed ‘Expedient’. Behind the King, Thurlow and Pitt run forward; Thurlow raises a scourge, but turns to Pitt, saying, “Why Bill Boy where’s your Tail – why dont you try to do something – she shall find me equal to a Bashaw with three Tails. Damme.” Pitt, on the extreme right, steps on the back of a bull with padded horns, which lies on the ground heavily laden with a bundle of ‘Supplies’; a rope from its head is attached to his arm; he says: “Ah! ah! ah! this is fine Sport – Ride upon her – pray do – never fear her – this is my expedient Treat-y” [cf. BMSat 7871]. The bull says, “I suppose in the end I shall be baited with Taxes”. In the foreground a stout Dutch burgher is seated in profile to the right on a cask of ‘Holland’s’. His whip lies on the ground at his feet; he fills his pipe meditatively, saying, “I’ll have a knock at her by and by – I dont like to be too hasty in a Thing where nothing is to be got by the Issue of the Matter.”
The other figures are on the further side of the Russian bear and on a smaller scale: the King of ‘Po-land’ wearing a crown, stands behind her, his whip raised, saying, “I’ll give her a precious Stroke even if it should break my back and cause a partition of my Parts. A Tartarin Bashaw of three Tails dressed as a Turk”, but with three long pigtail queues, raises a scourge, saying, “I think I can put in a good Stroke or two”. In the upper left corner of the design the representative of ‘Turkey’ runs off, pursued by ‘P—— P–t–n’ (Potemkin) with a large sabre. Potemkin says, “I’ll cut your tail off Mr Plenipo, or drive you into the red Sea before my Mistress shall be thus Turk ridden. He holds the end of a long thick rope attached to the Russian Bear.” 3 May 1791

The Grand Battle betwen the famous English Cock and Russian Hen!

A hand-coloured print of George III and Empress Catherine II of Russia depicted as a fighting cock and hen. Their mutual supporters place bets as to who will win. Among those around the table are: Lord Chancellor Thurlow, Queen Charlotte, William Pitt, the Prince of Wales, Frederick II, King of Prussia, Sultan Selim III and Prince Potemkin. Britain was attempting to stop Russia expanding into Ottoman Turkey (shown at the centre of the spectators). The image is based on Hogarth’s print The Cockpit of 1759. Inscribed in the plate: London Pubd: by Wm Holland No.50. Oxford St. April 25. 1791 / In Hollands Exhibition Rooms may be seen the largest collection of caricatures in Europe admittance one shilling

Each framed piece measures: 24″ x 21″