Allan Stewart (1865–1951) was a Scottish painter who built his reputation on romantic, historical and particularly military paintings as well as landscapes and portraits.

Life and work

Born in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...

on 11 February 1865, his father being the postmaster at

Leith Leith (; gd, Lìte) is a port area in the north of the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, founded at the mouth of the Water of Leith. In 2021, it was ranked by ''Time Out'' as one of the top five neighbourhoods to live in the world. The earliest ...

, Stewart was educated at the Edinburgh Institution. He studied art at the Royal Scottish Academy Schools where he was awarded several prizes, and also in Spain and France. He showed paintings at the RSA, at the Royal Academy, at Glasgow and Liverpool, and at other provincial exhibitions. The paintings included a number depicting military events, including ''To the memory of brave men: The last stand of Major Allan Wilson at the Shangani, 4 December 1893'', exhibited in 1896, ''The Mazoe relief, June 1896, an incident in the Matabele Rebellion'' in 1899, and in the following year, ''The Charge of the 21st Lancers at Omdurman''. Another contemporary battle scene by Stewart was ''The Charge of the Gordon Highlanders at

Dargai Dargai ( ps, درگئی; ur, ) is one of the tehsils of Malakand District (the other being Batkhela) in Pakistan's northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. It located on the main highway from Peshawar to Swat, Dir and Chitral. The town of ...

'' painted in 1898 and exhibited at the

Fine Art Society The Fine Art Society is a gallery based in both London and in Edinburgh's New Town (originally Bourne Fine Art, established 1978). The New Bond Street, London gallery closed its doors in August 2018 after being occupied by The Fine Art Society si ...

. In his paintings of contemporary military scenes, he often called upon veterans who had been present at the actions. For his painting of ''Rally the Greys'' for instance, he interviewed veterans of the battle then living in

, one of whom lent the artist a rare shell jacket worn during the charge. Others provided him with photographs of some of the officers and copies of letters. When Stewart began work on his painting of ''Dargai'', he was assisted by Lieut.-General W.H. Dick-Cunyingham VC. Besides his oil paintings, he also illustrated many books on travel including works on Ceylon and British North Borneo, and history. Stewart served on the staff of the

Illustrated London News ''The Illustrated London News'' appeared first on Saturday 14 May 1842, as the world's first illustrated weekly news magazine. Founded by Herbert Ingram, it appeared weekly until 1971, then less frequently thereafter, and ceased publication i ...

for a number of years and in this capacity, went to

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

as a 'special' artist during the

Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the Sou ...

. One picture from this period was ''The

Yorkshire Regiment The Yorkshire Regiment (14th/15th, 19th and 33rd/76th Foot) (abbreviated YORKS) is an infantry regiment of the British Army, created by the amalgamation of three historic regiments in 2006. It lost one battalion as part of the Army 2020 defence ...

and

New Zealanders New Zealanders ( mi, Tāngata Aotearoa), colloquially known as Kiwis (), are people associated with New Zealand, sharing a common history, culture, and language (New Zealand English). People of various ethnicities and national origins are citiz ...

repulsing the Boers near Colesberg, Cape Colony''. He also accompanied King

Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910. The second child and eldest son of Queen Victoria and ...

on his Mediterranean tours During the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, He served as a captain in the Royal Engineers and for some time was attached to the Australian and American forces. Two of his paintings of the war are ''The Charge of the Scots Greys at Quenlin'' and ''The road back, Templeux-le-''Guérard'', 30 September 1918''. He worked at

Kenley Kenley is an area within the London Borough of Croydon. Prior to its incorporation into Greater London in 1965 it was in the historic county of Surrey. It is situated south of Purley, east of Coulsdon, north of Caterham and Whyteleafe and w ...

, Surrey until around 1925 before moving to Rose Cottage in

St John's Town of Dalry St John's Town of Dalry ( gd, Clachan Eòin), usually referred to simply as Dalry ( / 'dal-RYE'), is a village in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, in the historic county of Kirkcudbrightshire. Location St Johns Town is located close to the ...

near Castle Douglas, Kirkcudbrightshire, where he died on 29 January 1951, aged 85 leaving his wife and three children. He is buried in Dalry Churchyard.

Paintings

* ''Queen

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...

going to her execution'' * ''Prince Charles's Last look at Scotland'' * ''

Royal Company of Archers The Royal Company of Archers, The King's Bodyguard for Scotland is a ceremonial unit that serves as the Sovereign's bodyguard in Scotland—a role it has performed since 1822 during the reign of King George IV when the company provided a per ...

'' (portrait group) Holyrood Palace, Edinburgh) * ''"Rally the Greys!"

Balaklava Balaklava ( uk, Балаклáва, russian: Балаклáва, crh, Balıqlava, ) is a settlement on the Crimean Peninsula and part of the city of Sevastopol. It is an administrative center of Balaklava Raion that used to be part of the Cri ...

, 25 October 1854'' (1895 –

Royal Scots Dragoon Guards The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards (Carabiniers and Greys) is a cavalry regiment of the British Army, and the senior Scottish regiment. The regiment, through the Royal Scots Greys, is the oldest surviving Cavalry Regiment of the Line in the British ...

) * ''To the Memory of Brave Men: The Last Stand of Major Allan Wilson at the Shangani, 4 December 1893'' (1896 –

Bulawayo Bulawayo (, ; Ndebele: ''Bulawayo'') is the second largest city in Zimbabwe, and the largest city in the country's Matabeleland region. The city's population is disputed; the 2022 census listed it at 665,940, while the Bulawayo City Council ...

Museum, Rhodesia (today Zimbabwe)) * ''To the Memory of Brave Men: The Last Stand of Major Allan Wilson at the Shangani, 4 December 1893'' (1896 –

Russell-Cotes Art Gallery & Museum The Russell-Cotes Museum (formally, the Russell-Cotes Art Gallery & Museum) is an art gallery and museum in Bournemouth, England. A Grade II* listed building originally known as East Cliff Hall, it is located on the top of the East Cliff, next ...

, Bournemouth) * ''The Charge of the

Gordon Highlanders Gordon may refer to: People * Gordon (given name), a masculine given name, including list of persons and fictional characters * Gordon (surname), the surname * Gordon (slave), escaped to a Union Army camp during the U.S. Civil War * Clan Gord ...

'' (1898 –

48th Highlanders of Canada , colors = , march = " 48th Highlanders Slow March"; Quick – "Highland Laddie" , mascot = , battles = Second Boer WarFirst World WarSecond World ...

Officer's Mess,

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

) * ''The Charge of the

21st Lancers The 21st Lancers (Empress of India's) was a cavalry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1858 and amalgamated with the 17th Lancers in 1922 to form the 17th/21st Lancers. Perhaps its most famous engagement was the Battle of Omdurman, where Wins ...

at Omdurman'' (1899 – Cavalry & Guards Club, London) * ''A royal fugitive, 1746'' (1906) * ''The Charge of the

Scots Greys The Royal Scots Greys was a cavalry regiment of the British Army from 1707 until 1971, when they amalgamated with the 3rd Carabiniers (Prince of Wales's Dragoon Guards) to form the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards. The regiment's history began in 167 ...

at Quenlin'' * ''The Road Back, Templeaux-Le-Guérard, 30 September 1918'' (1925 – Australian War Memorial, Canberra)

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Stewart, Allan People educated at Stewart's Melville College 19th-century Scottish painters Scottish male painters 20th-century Scottish painters 1865 births 1951 deaths Artists from Edinburgh 19th-century war artists World War I artists British war artists Magazine illustrators 19th-century Scottish male artists 20th-century Scottish male artists

Life and work

Paintings

Further reading

External links