Detail View: The AMICA Library: George Washington at the Battle of Princeton
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AMICA ID:
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CMA_.1917.946
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AMICA Library Year:
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1999
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Object Type:
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Paintings
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Creator Name:
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Peale, Charles Willson
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Creator Nationality:
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North American; American
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Creator Role:
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artist
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Creator Dates/Places:
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1741 - 1827
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Gender:
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M
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Creator Name-CRT:
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Charles Willson Peale
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Title:
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George Washington at the Battle of Princeton
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Title Type:
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Primary
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View:
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Full View
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Creation Date:
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c. 1779
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Creation Start Date:
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1774
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Creation End Date:
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1784
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Materials and Techniques:
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oil on canvas
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Dimensions:
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Unframed: 131cm x 121.6cm
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AMICA Contributor:
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The Cleveland Museum of Art
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Owner Location:
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Cleveland, Ohio, USA
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ID Number:
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1917.946
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Credit Line:
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Membership Income Fund
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Rights:
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Provenance:
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[probably James Tilghman (1743-1809), Maryland, by descent] Frisby Tilghman McKaig; (William Macbeth, New York).
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Context:
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In 1779, with the War of Independence still unresolved, an optimistic Supreme Executive Council of Pennsylvania honored George Washington (1732-1799), commander-in-chief of the Continental Army, by asking him to sit for his portrait. This is one of several versions of this composition produced by Peale and his assistants in Philadelphia during a rally of enthusiasm for the American cause. Evoking the colonists' early success at the Battle of Princeton (January 1777), the lower left corner of the painting shows them in blue leading captured redcoats away from Nassau Hall. Curiously, these troops seem to march right into the pocket of the calm, collected leader. Symbolic devices like the horse gazing in adoration at Washington and the contrast at rightbetween the American banner above and the conquered flag below reinforce the patriotic message.
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Related Image Identifier Link:
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CMA_.1917.946.tif
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