1-150-182 - The Cartoon Collector/Heritage-Images

'Our next Ambassador to Naples.' 1858. A British sailor holding the fuse of a loaded and aimed cannon. The reference is to an ongoing dispute between the British and Neapolitan governments. In 1857, a Sardinian boat, the 'Cagliari', had been seized by mutineers who then sailed to Ponza. They broke into a Neapolitan prison and released the prisoners. Mutineers and prisoners reboarded the 'Cagliari' and sailed to the Italian mainland, landing at Capri in June 1857. They released the captain and surrendered the ship to him before making off. The captain sailed immediately for Naples to report the incident but before he could get there, the ship was boarded by a Neapolitan squadron. Two Englishmen on board were immediately imprisoned. Their treatment in prison had made both men ill, and one became insane. This matter was raised in a number of parliamentary debates. From Punch, or the London Charivari, March 27, 1858.