Austrian bugaboo, funking the French army

James Gillray

Austrian bugaboo, funking the French army

London, H Humphrey, May 12^th 1792

Etching

Original hand colouring

250 x 350 mm

Neat repairs at top margin

£1250

A monster, representing Austria, puts to flight a disorderly rabble of French soldiers who fall over each other in their haste. He has enormous legs which are joined to his shoulders, probably to indicate that he is ‘nobody’ (cf. BMSat 5570); his head consists of a large military cap, decorated with the Habsburg eagle, from which issue enormous moustaches and two puffs of smoke (from simulated nostrils); he smokes a large curved metal pipe, and from his supposed mouth issues a blast of smoke directed against the French troops. His legs are arrogantly astride, his arms akimbo, he wears a huge sabre and spurred jack-boots. The French soldiers in the foreground are ragged and ill-armed, one holds a pitchfork, those behind have muskets. One holds up a tricolour flag inscribed ‘Liberta[s]’ and cries “La Liberté! La Liberté – de s’enfuir”. In the upper left corner of the design is etched:

‘”While loyal honour warm’d a Fr’enchmans breast,
” The field of Battle was a glorious test;
“Nobly ambitious for his King to fight,
“To die or conquer was a Soldiers Right.
“A strange reverse the Democrats display,
“And prove the “Right of Man” – to run away

The lines are taken verbatim from An Epigram On the pusillanimous behavior of the French National Troops against the Austrians By James Boswell, Esq in the 8 May edition of the London St. James Chronicle. It is likely that both Boswell’s epigram and Gillray’s print were prompted more by the French behavior at Mons than Tournay. According to the 4 May edition of the Evening Mail, the French “to the number of 9000 . . . marched towards Mons and fired on the town.” In response, “Part of the Austrian garrison, consisting all together of only 3600 infantry, and 400 cavalry, sallied out to meet them; and no sooner did they approach and fire, than the whole French army, without firing a second time, or making even a show of resistance, wheeled suddenly about, and took to their heels as fast as their legs could carry them. The cavalry followed their example. The Austrians had not a single man killed or wounded. The French, in their haste to run off, left 500 stand of arms on the ground. The country for some miles was strewed with hats, helmets, and every thing which might accidentally drop off, or impede their flight