Analysis Of Francis Wheatley's 'Volunteers In College Green'

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The work of art I have chosen is 'The Volunteers in College Green' painted by Francis Wheatley in 1779 in Dublin, Ireland. It was painted with oil on canvas.1 In this image, The Dublin Volunteers (a self-governing militia) formed by the Protestant Ascendancy are shown assembling around Grinling Gibbon's bronze statue of the King William III In College Green, on November 4th 1779.2 The Volunteers of the county and city of Dublin are seen firing a salute in celebration of King William III's birthday and his landing in England, under the command of William Robert, 2nd Duke of Leinster.3 The various corps and their officers are represented including 'including William Robert, 2nd Duke of Leinster, Colonel of the Dublin Volunteers; Sir Edward Newenham, Luke Gardiner, John Fitzgibbon, afterwards Earl of Clare, riding as a trooper in the ranks; David La Touche and others.'4 The Russian Princess Daschkow can also be seen in a window, who was then visiting Ireland and Sir Alexander Schomberg, captain of the Royal yacht the "Dorset".5 …show more content…

Here volleys were fired by two cannons, leaving the statue much abused before it was eventually destroyed in 1929.8 The 2nd Duke of Leinster stands at the centre, one of the few figures to be identified in a published key.9 The main building shown in this picture is the Parliament House by Edward Lovett Pearce.

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