Gillray, James

James Gillray, (born Aug. 13, 1756, Chelsea, near London, Eng.—died June 1, 1815, London), English caricaturist chiefly remembered for lively political cartoons directed against George III of England and Napoleon I. Often scurrilous and violent in his criticism, he brought a highly dramatic sense of situation and analogy to cartooning.

Gillray learned letter engraving and in 1778 was admitted as a student to the Royal Academy. The first caricature that is certainly his is “Paddy on Horseback,” published in 1779. The name of Gillray’s publisher and printseller, Miss Hanna Humphrey, is inextricably associated with his; he lived in her house during all the years of his fame, and his prints were shown in the windows of her shop.

political cartoon: William Pitt, the Younger

Gillray’s caricatures may be divided into two classes: political and social. The political caricatures form a historical record of the latter part of the reign of George III, whom Gillray called “Farmer George.” They were widely circulated throughout Britain and Europe. In this series George III, the Queen, the Prince of Wales, Charles James Fox, Edmund Burke, William Pitt, and Napoleon are trenchantly satirized; the latter two are featured in a celebrated cartoon, “The Plum Pudding in Danger.” Among Gillray’s best satires on the king are “The Anti-Saccharites,” in which the king and queen propose to dispense with sugar to the great horror of the family, and the companion plates of Farmer George and his wife “Frying Sprats” and “Toasting Muffins.” After 1807 Gillray declined mentally and eventually became insane.

Gillray’s plates were executed in etching with stipple and coloured by hand. They were produced in broadsheets for popular consumption, and perhaps this is one of the reasons for the spontaneity that makes them so lively and timely.