1-150-369 - The Cartoon Collector/Heritage-Images

'English Assassin Painted by France', 1864. The distance between France and Britain at this time is illustrated by the comment made by M Le Verrier. In this cartoon, a benign and jocular John Bull is posing for a portrait that France is painting. The depiction of Mr Bull, though, shows him as a heavily armed brigand. This actually relates to two different stories. The first relates to a trial taking place in France of a man involved in some assassination plot during the course of which it had been alleged that an English MP had been in some way involved in the plot - an allegation furiously rejected by the House. The other part relates to a story in the French journal Le Sport alleging that Britain was planning to present an exhibition of ballet girls. From Punch, or the London Charivari, March 12, 1864.