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Sovereigns No. 1., by CoÏdé , Vanity Fair, 1869 September 4

 Item — Box: 1, Folder: 38

Scope and Content:

From the Collection: The Helen Farr Sloan’s political cartoon collection (1802-1950) contains a variety of prints of political cartoons, illustrations, and caricatures from several different magazines. The collection contains pages from magazines, pages from books, and other prints that were not a part of a publication. The magazines featured include Puck, Judge, Vanity Fair (British, 1868-1914), Vanity Fair (American, 1913-1936), Harper’s Weekly, Gil Blas, Le Charivari, Truth, The New Yorker, The Illustrated London News, The New York Herald, and The Sun. There are other series included like Treagar’s Black Jokes and Le Gens de Paris. There are works from publishers like S.W. Fores, Currier & Ives, and J.Sidebotham. Also included are works by Rowlandson, which are individually published.

The first series contains cartoons from Puck magazine. Its materials are pages and covers from the magazine including the fronts and backs of the pages. The artists that are included are Frederick Burr Opper, Frederich Graetz, Bernhard Gillam, J.S. Pughe, James Albert Wales, and Samuel Ehrhart.

The second series contains cartoons from Judge magazine. The materials are pages and covers from the magazine and include both the fronts and backs of the pages. The artists that are included are Thomas Worth, Bernhard Gillam, Victor Gillam, and Grant E. Hamilton.

The third series contains cartoons, caricatures, and portraits from Vanity Fair (British, 1868-1914) and Vanity Fair (American, 1913-1936) magazines. The materials for the British magazine include the one-sided caricatures and cartoons featured in the publication. The material for the American magazine contains a portrait on the front and a table of contents on the back of the page. The artists that are included are Carlo Pellegrini (Ape/Singe), James Tissot (Coïdé), Thomas Nast, Leslie Ward (Spy), and William Henry Cotton.

The fourth series contains cartoons from Harper’s Weekly magazine. The materials include the front and back side of pages from the magazine. The artists that are included are William L. Sheppard, Charles G. Bush, Thomas Nast, and A.B. Frost.

The fifth series contains cartoons, caricatures, and illustrations from various magazines and publications. The artists and their publications include Théophile Steinlin, from Gil Blas, Sulpice Guillaume Chevalier (Paul Gavarni), from Le Gens de Paris, Thomas Rowlandson, William Summers, from Tregear’s Black Jokes, Charles Williams, William Elmes, George Cruikshank, Isaac Robert Cruikshank, Jules Joseph Georges Renard (Draner), Charles Robinson, from The Illustrated London News, Thomas Worth, Richard F. Outcault, from the New York Herald, Helen E. Hokinson, from The New Yorker, Charles Amédée de Noé (Cham), from Le Charivari, Sydney B. Griffin, from Truth, Oscar Cesare, from The Sun, and William Bruns.

There are a wide variety of themes and events covered in the cartoons and illustrations throughout the collection. There are numerous presidential elections covered including the elections of 1806, 1880, 1884, 1888, 1892, and 1900. The 43rd and 54th Congresses are both represented within cartoons in the series. Other events that are shown in cartoons in the collection are the Chicago World’s Fair/World’s Columbian Exposition, the Spanish-American War, Reconstruction, and the Kansas Exodus. There are also many representations of the Democratic, Republican, Greenback, and Citizens parties as well as Tammany Hall. Other themes included are immigration, Jewish communities, social ambition, weather problems, voting rights, the gold standard vs. free silver debate, diseases, family roles, plantations, white supremacy groups, Communism, financial issues, militaries, pic-nic societies, King George IV’s court, political corruption, and social events and issues. A large number of the cartoons included in the collections are products of their times and therefore many include racist language and depictions. The transcriptions and metadata associated with each cartoon is described as is for the purpose of providing the easiest access to the collection and does in no way reflect the views of Wilkes University or its archive department.

Dates

  • Created: 1869 September 4

Creator

Access:

Anyone may access these political cartoons.

Extent

1 items

Language of Materials

From the Collection: English

Type of Material:

Caricature

Condition Note:

Fair. The material has slight yellowing and also has a large tear on the upper lefthand corner.

Measurements:

9 x 11 in

Title:

Sovereigns No. 1: “Le regime parlementaire”

Description:

The cartoon by James Tissot for Vanity Fair magazine depicts Napoleon III, Emperor of France, hunching over and leaning on a cane that's in his right hand and his left arm is holding onto his wife the empress Eugenie de Montijo. This caricature is a part of the Sovereigns collection in Vanity Fair which commented on political rulers during important times of their rule. Eugenie was known to have influenced her husband’s foreign policy and Napoleon III was often told that he allowed his wife to rule his life and policy. In 1869, France was involved in the construction and opening of the Suez Canal in Egypt. Eugenie visited the Ottoman empire for the opening of the canal, despite Napoleon III being the Emperor. Tissot is arguing that Eugenie was knowingly coercing Napoleon III into policies and actions he wasn’t entirely aware of and that this was the parliamentary system that was making decisions in 1869. He has gray hair, a mustache, and a beard. He is wearing a black bicorn hat, a red, yellow, and white uniform with a black bow, a brown trenchcoat, and black boots. The woman beside him has a white dress on with red and green details. There is a white apron with red details over the top of the dress. She also has white wings and black shoes. She has red hair with a golden crown and a black necklace. She is glancing down at the man and holding her pointer finger to her lips shushing him. The cartoon’s creator, Tissot, was born in France and held an interest in art at a young age. He worked for Vanity Fair under the pseudonym CoÏdé. Aside from cartoons, Tissot did more traditional art as well becoming an Impressionist painter and mentor to Edgar Degas.

Transcription:

The title is written below the image, “Sovereigns, No. 1.” and below that is the caption,”The parliamentary system.”

Repository Details

Part of the Wilkes University Archives Repository

Contact:
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Wilkes-Barre PA 18701 US
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