National Discourse. (caricature)

A caricature of a British and a French sailor on the seashore. The British sailor wears a crowned hat, a handkerchief around his neck, and knee-length trousers. He holds a club in his right hand and scowls. The French sailor stands facing him. He wears a ruffled shirt and a feathered hat, with his hair styled in an exaggerated pigtail. He grins, saying ‘Ha! Ha! We beata you’. The Englishman responds, ‘you Lie’. Ships and smoke in the distance indicate a battle has recently taken place. Inscribed beneath the image with the title and publication line: ‘M.M. fecit / Published Augt 9th 1780 by W. Humphrey No. 227 Strand / 9 Aug. 1780’.

France and Britain were in conflict with each other during 1778 to 1783, fighting over dominance in the English Channel, the Caribbean, the Mediterranean, and Indian Ocean. This was known as the Anglo-French War but was also part of the American Revolutionary War as France were allies to the Thirteen colonies. This print could be a political commentary on the action of 9 August 1780, in which a Spanish and French fleet captured almost all the merchant vessels in a British convoy.