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0503783 - 1792
Artist:James Gillray. "'A Voluptuary under the horrors of Digestion', 1792. George, Prince of Wales, also known as the 'Prince of Whales', and later Prince Regent and George IV, picking his teeth with a table fork, having demolished a heavy meal and a lot of wine. The Prince wa" © The British Museum
'A Voluptuary under the horrors of Digestion', 1792. George, Prince of Wales, also known as the 'Prince of Whales', and later Prince Regent and George IV, picking his teeth with a table fork, having demolished a heavy meal and a lot of wine. The Prince was notoriously dissolute and spendthrift. His room is littered with empty bottles, pills and unpaid bills. His passion for gambling is indicated by dice, lists of horse races and accounts of his losses at cards. Foreigners could not believe that it was possible to ridicule the morals and manners of the heir to the throne in this way. In their eyes such prints confirmed the British reputation for free speech and liberty. The contrast between the delicate and refined medium and the Prince's gross figure further ridicules him. There is nothing unusual about criticism of the British royal family, though the extravagances of George, Prince of Wales gave particular cause for concern. 'A Voluptuary under the horrors of Digestion', 1792.
Credit: The British Museum / HIP / TopFoto
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