Collecting Antique Prints - Military Prints of the Napoleonic Wars

​Interest in armed conflict with stories of campaigns and battles and the continuing assessment of leaders, tactics and their strategy remains ever popular with military history enthusiasts, historical reenactment groups and antique print collectors.

In the coming weeks I'm going to share with you some of the exceptional aquatint prints from Jenkins The Martial achievements of Great Britain and Her Allies from 1799 to 1815 and Jenkins The Naval Achievements of Great Britain, From the Year 1793 to 1817. With each print I'll share a brief extract from the original written account published.

This covers the Napoleonic Wars (May 1803 - November 1815). This series of major conflicts pitted the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European powers formed into various coalitions. It produced a brief period of French domination over most of continental Europe.  Along with the French Revolutionary wars, the Napoleonic Wars constitute a 23-year period of recurrent conflict that concluded only with the Battle of Waterloo and Napoleon’s second abdication on June 22, 1815.

The naval campaigns, operations and battles of the Napoleonic Wars were events during the period between 1802 and 1814 that were undertaken by European powers in support of their land-based strategies.

Above: The Vignette Title from The Martial achievements of Great Britain and Her Allies from 1799 to 1815 by J. Jenkins.
Excerpt from the written account as published: 
REPRESENTS a Rendezvous of those Powers who were engaged in the grand struggle for the independence of nations. A British Soldier, in pointing to the MILITARY ACHIEVEMENTS OF GREAT BRITAIN AND HER ALLIES, alludes to the active part this country has taken in the deliverance of Europe.

At the feet of the British Soldier preposes a French Warrior, tired of the repeated and decisive defeats he has at length met with under an illegitimate master. The broken Flag-Staff and the Imperial Eagle inform us, that the power of the once invincible Buonaparte is no more.

On the left is a Don Cossac, who is coolly stopping his horse to gaze on his vanquished enemy: he is attended by an Austrian and a Swede, who are also contemplating those records, which will, in common with the other Powers of Europe, hand down their deeds to posterity. A Prussian, on the right, seems willing to accede to the share of glory which the British Soldier demands; conscious, that he also has saved his country from the despotism of a tyrannical usurper.

How to Identify the Prints:
The original prints from The Martial achievements of Great Britain and Her Allies from 1799 to 1815 are aquatint engravings on a medium weight wove paper. Plates also exist that were printed on India Paper. They should clearly identify bottom left W. Heath (delt) who did the drawings and bottom right T. Sutherland (sculpt) who produced most of the aquatint engravings with some by D. Havell, M. Dubourg and J. Hill.  Each plate has the date of publication and the name of the publisher beneath the engraved title.  The approx engraved area of the plates are 8.5" x 7.75" (215mm x 195mm) including the engraved title text.  Engraved plate mark area is approx 8.5 x 11.75 (215mm x 300mm).  The large sheet size is approx 11.5" x 14" (290mm x 355mm).

​You can see more prints from Jenkins The Martial achievements of Great Britain and Her Allies from 1799 to 1815 and Jenkins The Naval Achievements of Great Britain, From the Year 1793 to 1817 HERE If you're interested in a specific print and you cannot see it on my website please feel free to message me .