William Hogarth, The March to Finchley

Ian Gordon (Anglia Ruskin University)

The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.2.1.05: English Writing and Culture from the Glorious Revolution to the French Revolution, 1689-1789.
Vol. editors: Paul Baines (University of Liverpool), Daniel Cook (University of Dundee), Pat Rogers (University of South Florida), Nicholas Seager (University of Keele)

Dates

First circulation or publication 1750 - 1761

Places

England (Country of Origin)

Genres and Modes

Burlesque
Comedy
Satire

Resources

Save to Bookshelf

The March to Finchley

is based on a particular historical moment, probably witnessed by Hogarth himself, but portrayed in the painting from a four-year perspective. It depicts British troops being marched out of London to their place of rendezvous on Finchley Common, about ten miles to the north, in December 1745, to defend the city against the threat of a Jacobite invasion. Charles Edward Stuart (1720-88), the Young Pretender, or ‘Bonnie Prince Charlie', as he came to be known, had landed in Scotland on 23 July 1745 and defeated government forces at the battle of Prestonpans, just east of Edinburgh, in September, before marching south into England. By December he had reached Derby, only 120 miles north of London, virtually unchallenged. It was to be the furthest point of his advance,…

Please log in to consult the article in its entirety. If you are a member (student of staff) of a subscribing institution (see List), you should be able to access the LE on campus directly (without the need to log in), and off-campus either via the institutional log in we offer, or via your institution's remote access facilities, or by creating a personal user account with your institutional email address. If you are not a member of a subscribing institution, you will need to purchase a personal subscription. For more information on how to subscribe as an individual user, please see under Individual Subcriptions.

2290 words

Citation: Gordon, Ian. "The March to Finchley". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 01 October 2003 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=229, accessed 28 April 2024.]

Save this article