''The Death of General Warren at the Battle of Bunker's Hill, June 17, 1775'' refers to several
oil painting
Oil painting is the process of painting with pigments with a medium of drying oil as the binder. It has been the most common technique for artistic painting on wood panel or canvas for several centuries, spreading from Europe to the rest of ...
s completed in the late 18th and early 19th century by the American artist
John Trumbull
John Trumbull (June 6, 1756November 10, 1843) was an American artist of the early independence period, notable for his historical paintings of the American Revolutionary War, of which he was a veteran. He has been called the "Painter of the Rev ...
depicting the death of
Founding Father
The following list of national founding figures is a record, by country, of people who were credited with establishing a state. National founders are typically those who played an influential role in setting up the systems of governance, (i.e. ...
Joseph Warren
Joseph Warren (June 11, 1741 – June 17, 1775), a Founding Father of the United States, was an American physician who was one of the most important figures in the Patriot movement in Boston during the early days of the American Revolution, ...
at the June 17, 1775,
Battle of Bunker Hill
The Battle of Bunker Hill was fought on June 17, 1775, during the Siege of Boston in the first stage of the American Revolutionary War. The battle is named after Bunker Hill in Charlestown, Massachusetts, which was peripherally involved in ...
, during the
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...
. Warren, an influential
physician and politician, had been commissioned as a general but he served in the battle as a volunteer private. He was killed during or shortly after the storming of the
redoubt
A redoubt (historically redout) is a fort or fort system usually consisting of an enclosed defensive emplacement outside a larger fort, usually relying on earthworks, although some are constructed of stone or brick. It is meant to protect soldi ...
atop
Breed's Hill by
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
troops.
The paintings are iconic images of the American Revolution. Trumbull painted several versions, including the one held by the
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
The Museum of Fine Arts (often abbreviated as MFA Boston or MFA) is an art museum in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the 20th-largest art museum in the world, measured by public gallery area. It contains 8,161 paintings and more than 450,000 works ...
(dated between 1815 and 1831). This was commissioned by the Warren family and passed down through the family before being acquired by the museum. Another, larger version (dated 1834) is held by the
Wadsworth Atheneum
The Wadsworth Atheneum is an art museum in Hartford, Connecticut. The Wadsworth is noted for its collections of European Baroque art, ancient Egyptian and Classical bronzes, French and American Impressionist paintings, Hudson River School lands ...
in
Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was the seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960. It is the core city in the Greater Hartford metropolitan area. Census estimates since the ...
. Trumbull sold the engraving rights for both this painting and ''
,'' which resulted in a highly successful subscription release that greatly enhanced his career.
Event
Artist
John Trumbull
John Trumbull (June 6, 1756November 10, 1843) was an American artist of the early independence period, notable for his historical paintings of the American Revolutionary War, of which he was a veteran. He has been called the "Painter of the Rev ...
(1756–1843) was in the colonial army camp at
Roxbury, Massachusetts
Roxbury () is a Neighborhoods in Boston, neighborhood within the City of Boston, Massachusetts.
Roxbury is a Municipal annexation in the United States, dissolved municipality and one of 23 official neighborhoods of Boston used by the city for n ...
on June 17, 1775, the day of the
Battle of Bunker Hill
The Battle of Bunker Hill was fought on June 17, 1775, during the Siege of Boston in the first stage of the American Revolutionary War. The battle is named after Bunker Hill in Charlestown, Massachusetts, which was peripherally involved in ...
. He watched the battle unfold through field glasses, and later decided to depict one of its central events.
[Tamarkin, p. 137] Joseph Warren
Joseph Warren (June 11, 1741 – June 17, 1775), a Founding Father of the United States, was an American physician who was one of the most important figures in the Patriot movement in Boston during the early days of the American Revolution, ...
, a
politician and member of the colony's
Committee of Safety, volunteered to serve under Colonel
William Prescott
William Prescott (February 20, 1726 – October 13, 1795) was an American colonel in the Revolutionary War who commanded the patriot forces in the Battle of Bunker Hill. Prescott is known for his order to his soldiers, "Do not fire until y ...
in the defense of the
redoubt
A redoubt (historically redout) is a fort or fort system usually consisting of an enclosed defensive emplacement outside a larger fort, usually relying on earthworks, although some are constructed of stone or brick. It is meant to protect soldi ...
which the colonists had constructed on top of
Breed's Hill. This redoubt was the target of three British attacks, of which the first two were repulsed. The third attack succeeded, in part because the defenders had run out of ammunition. Warren was struck by a musket or pistol ball during the evacuation of the redoubt, and killed instantly.
Description
![Self Portrait by John Trumbull circa 1802](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ac/Self_Portrait_by_John_Trumbull_circa_1802.jpeg)
The central focus of the painting is Warren's body, dressed in white, and
John Small, a British major, dressed in a scarlet uniform (holding a sword in his left hand).
Small, who had served with colonial general
Israel Putnam
Israel Putnam (January 7, 1718 – May 29, 1790), popularly known as "Old Put", was an American military officer and landowner who fought with distinction at the Battle of Bunker Hill during the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783). He als ...
during the
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War (1754–1763) was a theater of the Seven Years' War, which pitted the North American colonies of the British Empire against those of the French, each side being supported by various Native American tribes. At the ...
, is shown preventing a fellow British soldier from bayoneting Warren. Trumbull wanted to express the poignancy in the conflict of men who had earlier served together.
On the far right of the painting is a colonial officer,
Thomas Grosvenor, with a black man holding a
musket
A musket is a muzzle-loaded long gun that appeared as a smoothbore weapon in the early 16th century, at first as a heavier variant of the arquebus, capable of penetrating plate armour. By the mid-16th century, this type of musket gradually d ...
behind him. The black man was long thought to be
, a freed slave who served in the cause of American independence. Later research identified him as a slave belonging to Grosvenor.
[
The foreground is littered with bodies from both sides of the conflict, and the background includes clusters of colonial and British troops carrying flags. ]Boston Harbor
Boston Harbor is a natural harbor and estuary of Massachusetts Bay, and is located adjacent to the city of Boston, Massachusetts. It is home to the Port of Boston, a major shipping facility in the northeastern United States.
History
Since ...
is also visible in the distance. The sky is partially obscured by smoke rising from Charlestown, which had been torched by the British.
In describing the painting for a catalogue of his works, Trumbull explained why he chose to emphasize the British Major Small's role, saying that Small, whom he had met in London, "was equally distinguished by acts of humanity and kindness to his enemies, as by bravery and fidelity to the cause he served."
People depicted
British soldiers
*Major John Small, the redcoated British soldier stepping over a fallen redcoat soldier to hold back the bayonet of a fellow soldier
*Major John Pitcairn
Major John Pitcairn (28 December 1722 – 17 June 1775) was a Marine Service officer who was stationed in Boston, Massachusetts, at the start of the American War of Independence.
Born in Scotland in 1722, Pitcairn joined the Naval Service at ...
, falling back dying in his son's (Lieutenant Pitcairn's) arms
*General Henry Clinton, bare-headed British officer with raised sword at the rear, center of the painting
* General William Howe, standing to the left of Clinton from the viewer's point of view with his sword pointing forward.
* Lord Rawdon, then a lieutenant, holds the British colour
Color (American English) or colour (British English) is the visual perceptual property deriving from the spectrum of light interacting with the photoreceptor cells of the eyes. Color categories and physical specifications of color are associ ...
, center-right in the painting
*Lieutenant Colonel James Abercrombie, the redcoat soldier laying dead underneath John Small and at General Warren's feet.
Colonists
*Joseph Warren
Joseph Warren (June 11, 1741 – June 17, 1775), a Founding Father of the United States, was an American physician who was one of the most important figures in the Patriot movement in Boston during the early days of the American Revolution, ...
* Thomas Grosvenor, soldier to the far right
*An African-American slave of Grosvenor, shown behind the officer [
*Major ]Andrew McClary
Andrew McClary (1730 – June 17, 1775) was an Irish soldier and major in the Continental Army during the American Revolution. McClary was born in Ulster, Ireland and came to colonial America with his parents at age sixteen where they lived o ...
*A black freeman, possibly , head visible below the flags on the left side of the painting
*General Israel Putnam
Israel Putnam (January 7, 1718 – May 29, 1790), popularly known as "Old Put", was an American military officer and landowner who fought with distinction at the Battle of Bunker Hill during the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783). He als ...
, colonial officer on the far left of the painting
*Thomas Knowlton
Thomas W. Knowlton (November 22, 1740 – September 16, 1776) was an American patriot who served in the French and Indian War and was a colonel during the American Revolution. Knowlton is considered America's first Intelligence professional, ...
, standing over Warren and holding a musket
*Lieutenant-Colonel Moses Parker of Chelmsford
Chelmsford () is a city in the City of Chelmsford district in the county of Essex, England. It is the county town of Essex and one of three cities in the county, along with Southend-on-Sea and Colchester. It is located north-east of London a ...
is depicted sitting wounded to the left of Warren
*Colonel Thomas Gardner lying on ground lower right. Both Gardner and Parker were taken prisoner, and both died in early July in Boston.
*Colonel William Prescott
William Prescott (February 20, 1726 – October 13, 1795) was an American colonel in the Revolutionary War who commanded the patriot forces in the Battle of Bunker Hill. Prescott is known for his order to his soldiers, "Do not fire until y ...
, who allegedly ordered his soldiers not to fire until "you see the whites of their eyes".[''Museum of Fine Arts Boston'']
References
;Notes
;Sources
*
*Masur, Louis P. "Pictures Have Now Become a Necessity": The Use of Images in American History Textbooks." The Journal of American History, March 1998, pp. 1409–24.
External links
Blog on the forensics of Warren's death
{{DEFAULTSORT:Death Of General Warren At The Battle Of Bunker Hill, The
Paintings about the American Revolution
1786 paintings
Massachusetts in the American Revolution
Paintings by John Trumbull
War paintings
Flags in art
Cultural depictions of American men
Cultural depictions of military officers