General George Augustus Eliot on a Grey Charger: A Study for the "Siege of Gibraltar"

Maker John Singleton Copley (American, 1738 - 1815, active in England)

Collections

American Paintings Selections

ClassificationsPAINTINGS

Dateca. 1787

Mediumoil on canvas

Dimensions19 3/4 x 12 1/2 in. (50.2 x 31.8 cm.)

DescriptionFrontal view of a British officer on a horse in battle.

Credit LineThe Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens. Purchased with funds from the Virginia Steele Scott Foundation in honor of Robert R. Wark

Status

On view

Label TextIn 1783 the City of London Corporation commissioned John Singleton Copley to depict the British victory over the Spanish at Gibraltar, a British colony located at the southern tip of Spain. Spanish forces bombarded Gibraltar for three years in an attempt to drive out the British, until General George Augustus Elliot heroically broke the siege in 1782.

Copley did extensive research on the event and made portraits of key participants, among them Elliot. He also prepared numerous sketches, including this painting, in which he worked out Elliot's position in relation to his horse. The artist created tension between the spooked animal, which turns away from the fierce battle (as seen in the reproduction of the completed painting below), and the resolute Elliott, who confronts the heat and smoke to direct his men.

Object number2001.6

Exhibitions

American Made: Selections from The Huntington's Early American Art Collections