''Cromwell on his Farm'' (1874) is a painting by

Ford Madox Brown Ford Madox Brown (16 April 1821 – 6 October 1893) was a British painter of moral and historical subjects, notable for his distinctively graphic and often Hogarthian version of the Pre-Raphaelite style. Arguably, his most notable painti ...

which depicts

Oliver Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three K ...

observing a bonfire on his farm and thinking of a passage in the Book of Psalms: "Lord, how long wilt thou hide thyself - forever? And shall thy wrath burn like fire?" (Psalm 89). The words are inscribed on the painting's frame along with a quotation from one of Cromwell's speeches, in which he describes his life before entering into politics: "living neither in any considerable height, nor yet in obscurity, I did endeavour to discharge the duty of an honest man."

Historical background

The painting depicts Cromwell as a country squire on his lands in

Cambridgeshire Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a county in the East of England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the ...

, before he became a national figure in the power struggles which culminated in the

English Civil War The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of re ...

. Cromwell's identity as a leading revolutionary had been affirmed by

Thomas Carlyle Thomas Carlyle (4 December 17955 February 1881) was a Scottish essayist, historian and philosopher. A leading writer of the Victorian era, he exerted a profound influence on 19th-century art, literature and philosophy. Born in Ecclefechan, Dum ...

's biograph
''Oliver Cromwell's letters and speeches, with elucidations''
(1845), in which his reluctance to take up the role of leader was emphasised. Carlyle was an important influence on Brown.

Composition

The painting's central theme is that of enforced inertia. In it, Cromwell is portrayed as someone who has the capacity to become a major player on the national stage, but who is restricted to his own small world. It emphasises inertia through the portrayal of the distraction of Cromwell's horse by wayside fodder, which is also being eaten by a lamb from the farm: a reference to the concept of the Christian flock. The wandering piglets following a sow under Cromwell's horse refer to the story of the

Gadarene swine Gadarene may refer to: * Of or relating to Gadara Gadara ( el, Γάδαρα ''Gádara''), in some texts Gedaris, was an ancient Hellenistic city, for a long time member of the Decapolis city league, a former bishopric and present Latin Catholic ...

. Cromwell carries an oak sapling in lieu of a whip, and a copy of the

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts ...

. The farm is a metaphor for the state, a place in which orderly labour is threatened continually by forces of disorder and in which the most everyday details are potentially filled with moral and

eschatological Eschatology (; ) concerns expectations of the end of the present age, human history, or of the world itself. The end of the world or end times is predicted by several world religions (both Abrahamic and non-Abrahamic), which teach that nega ...

significance. While the workers on the left of the composition are getting on with their labours, clearing away weeds, the servant at the right is demanding a response from Cromwell, her shout repeated by the screeching duck she carries. The pigs under the horse and the lamb all create a potential for disruption and instability. Behind the workers clearing weeds, a young farm worker barely controls the large herd of cattle streaming through the gate into Crowmell's farm, separating the latter from his wife and child, visible at the door of the house at the right. A spot of blood can be seen on Cromwell's collar, a reference to a famous description of him by Sir Philip Warwick, and emblematic of a bloodstained future.Warwick wrote "He wore... a plain cloth-suit, which seemed to have been made by a poor tailor; his shirt was plain, and not very clean; and I remember a speck or two of blood upon his collar

Historical background

Composition

Notes

See also