Edward Penny was a noted British
artist of the 18th Century. He was born
in 1714 and died in 1791. He painted
military subjects and was known to be accurate in his details. The Seven Years'
War comprised some of his subject matter.
While fighting raged in Europe and North America, the Seven Years’ War
was also fought in India. During the
war, a young man named Robert Clive rose to command some of the Company’s
troops and scored an important victory at Plassey. Clive’s forces contained regular British
soldiers, Englishmen who served the Company, and natives who served the
Company. These last were known as Sepoys.
This painting is titled “Lord
Clive receiving from the Nawab of Bengal a grant of money for disabled officers
and soldiers.” Edward Penny also painted another canvas about high-ranking military leaders helping sick soldiers. Read about it here:
Robert Clive stands in the center
of the painting, with Mir Jafar, the Nawab of Bengal. The strange looking knife in the Nawab’s sash
is known as a katar (or kattary). Clive
returned to England in 1772, and Mir Jafar died in 1765, so this painting must
be between 1757-1765. In other words, it is set during the era of the Seven
Years’ War. The uniforms of the East
India Company in the Seven Years’ War are poorly recorded, so this painting may
provide several important clues.
The seated man in blue is an
artilleryman of the British Royal Artillery (1). The two soldiers standing in the back of the
group are European infantry raised in Bengal (2). By looking closely behind the
artilleryman’s head, a sepoy’s head and turban can be made out. His jacket is red and his turban is white
with a blue center.
With infantry,
artillery, and sepoys in the painting, the last seated figure is likely to be a
cavalryman. The EIC did raise some units
of European cavalry (3, 4). Furthermore,
his uniform is unlike any known British regular cavalry unit (5). He appears to be wearing short gaiters over
his shoes. His coat is red, with red
lapels and cuffs, and gold buttons, but no lace on the buttonholes. His waistcoat is blue with gold lace edging
the buttonholes. His hat is black with
gold trim. It is quite possible that
Edward Penny painted him to record the uniform of the Company’s European
cavalry.
To the right of the group of soldiers is a European woman and three children. They are likely the family of one of the soldiers.
(1) Uniforms of the Seven Years War by John Mollo
and Malcolm McGregor (Blandford: 1977) pgs. 92, 157-158
(4) Armies of the East India Company 1750-1850 by
Stuart Reid (Osprey: 2010) pg. 23
(5) A History of the Uniforms of the British Army
by C. C. P. Lawson (Kaye & Ward Ltd: 1971) pgs. 107-150, especially pg. 120
No comments:
Post a Comment