James Gillray
England
1757 - 1815

Monstrous Craws at a New Coalition Feast, 1787
Hand-colored etching and aquatint
14 1/4 x 18 1/4 in
Sweeney Art Gallery Permanent Collection
Gift of Henry W. Coil, Jr.
96.1.12

James Gillray was among the most notable as well as most prolific political cartoonists of late 18th century England. The satirical criticism of political caricature became popular after 1695 when free-press laws were passed. Gillray issued this image in 1787 depicting the British royal family. King George III appears on the right, the Queen is on the left and their son, the Prince of Wales is seated in the middle of the print. He was known as a glutton, spendthrift, womanizer, and liar and, furthermore, accumulated an enormous debt. The Prime minister, William Pitt and Parliament held the majority of political power. As a means of keeping the Royals both loyal and so as to prevent them from damaging the national image Pitt payed them off. The print by Gillray illustrates the mutual and insatiable greed of the Royal family. A craw is the throat or stomach of an animal. He indicates the parents miserly ways through their bulging craws and the spendthrift nature of the Prince with his bottomless "craw."

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