George iii, with an ass's head, sits on a throne asleep, his wrists shackled. Through a wide doorway a crowd of conspirators is entering led by fox with a fox's head, as guy vaux, holding a dark lantern. The king, in profile to the right, is on a raised dais against the left wall. He wears a fool's cap. Beneath his chair is a barrel inscribed "gun powder". On the wall above his head as a decoration is an ass carrying on its back a huge crown (cf. Bmsat 5669, 5683); this is enclosed in an oval formed of a buckled garter-ribbon inscribed "honi. Soit. Qui. Mal. Y. Pense". On the floor by his side, leaning against the wall is a sack, from which protrude a crown and sceptre. He is perhaps contemplating departure for hanover, cf. Walpole, 'last journals', 1910, ii. P. 494, and the draft message of abdication in the king's hand of march 1782, 'corr. Of george iii', v, p. 425. On either side of fox, and slightly behind him, are shelburne (right) smiling, with a cask under his left arm inscribed "gunpowder", and richmond (left) holding a bundle of faggots. Behind richmond is wilkes. [identified by mr. Hawkins as powys; he has some resemblance to powys in bmsat 5990, but his squint, and his striking resemblance to the wilkes of bmsat 5987, leave little doubt. ] between fox and shelburne is the head of keppel. Behind keppel is burke, wearing spectacles; dunning is in profile to the left, like fox and shelburne he wears a conspirator's cloak. On the wall behind the conspirators, seen through the doorway, is the lower part of the whole-length portrait, inscribed "cataline", of a man holding a sword. C. June 1782
etching. Date: 1782. Dimensions: Height: 250 mm; Width: 354 mm. Medium: paper. Depicted People: Edmund Burke. Collection: British Museum. Guy Vaux. (BM J,3.9)
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