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| Title | Blockade Against Blockade |
| Subtitle | or John Bull a Match for Boney |
| Creator | [Woodward, George M. 1760-1809; etched by Chas. Williams] |
| Publisher | Tegg, Thomas, 1776-1845 |
| Place of Publication | England--London--Cheapside |
| Date | 1807 |
| Caption Text | Caption on image:
Blockade against Blockade or John Bull a match for Boney.
Pub. Nov. 1807 by Tho. Tegg. No. 111 Cheapside, London
Dialogue and signage:
[John Bull] Now Master Boney we shall se which will hold out the longest, my wall against yours..aye aye I can see you...I have left a peep hole...I believe you will be soon glad to change your Soup Meagre for my Roast Beef.
[Napoleon] Who could have thought that he would build a wall also...I really begin to think I had better have left him alone. I some how don't relish my Soup Meagre.
[sign on John Bull's wall] Boney in a state of Blockade - Gazette.
[Songsheet on the floor by John Bull's feet] The Roast Beef of Old England.
[Sign on Napoleon's wall] John Bull in a state of Blockade - Moniteur.
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| Historical Notes | This drawing refers to a series of blockades enacted by the British and the French in 1806/1807.
The British began in May 1806 by issuing Orders in Council that placed the entire coast of Europe under a naval blockade. France retaliated with a series of decrees collectively known as the Continental System. The Berlin Decrees (Nov 1806) prohibited any vessel coming from Britain from landing at a port under French control. Britain's naval supremacy, however, allowed her to force ships from neutral countries to stop in Britain on their way to the continent, lessening the economic impact of the blockade. Napoleon's Milan Decree (March 1807) authorized any ship coming from Britain to the continent to be confiscated. Ultimately, the blockade hurt France more than it did England, causing widespread food shortages and a general recession.
This caricature shows John Bull, symbol of the average Englishman, gloating because his blockade is causing food shortages in France. The table behind him is heaped with food: a large steak, a tank of ale, and a bottle of Port. Napoleon, still resplendent in his uniform but with a look of chagrin on his face, sits before a simple bowl of soup. The posters on the walls are attributed to two newspapers of the day.
Reference source: George #10773 |
| Subjects (LCSH) | Political cartoons
History--Caricatures & cartoons
Napoleon I, Emperor of the French, 1769-1821
Napoleonic Wars, 1800-1815
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| Geographic Coverage | France |
| Digital Collection | Napoleonic Period Collection
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| Digital ID Number | NAP011 |
| Repository | University of Washington Libraries. Special Collections Division. |
| Repository Collection | Napoleon Collection |
| UW Reference Number | E4 |
| Object Type | Print |
| Physical Description | Etching, hand colored ; plate mark 24 x 34 cm. on sheet 25 x 35 cm. |
| Digital Reproduction Information | Scanned from original drawing in RGB at 200-400 dpi, saved in TIFF format, changed to indexed color, enhanced and resized using Adobe Photoshop, and imported as JPEG2000 using Contentdm software's JPEG2000 Extension. 2006. |
