Mamlouk, et hussard republicain”,- General result of Buonaparte’s Attack upon Ibrahim Bey’s Rear Guard.

James Gillray

Mamlouk, et hussard republicain”,- General result of Buonaparte’s Attack upon Ibrahim Bey’s Rear Guard.

London, H Humphrey March 12^th 1799

Etching

Original hand colouring

260 x 380 mm

£950

A French hussar on a sorry horse flees before a well-mounted Mameluke (cf. BMSat 9272), with a sabre in each hand, who rides him down. The Frenchman (left) turns in his saddle to hold out defensively a sabre whose blade is inscribed ‘Vaincre ou Courir’; he spurs his horse viciously. His enemy rides in heel-less slippers, one rein in his teeth, the other on the horse’s neck, two pistols on cords fly out behind him. The expressions of the horses reflect those of their masters: abject terror and fierce confidence.