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General Sir David Baird, 1757 - 1829. Soldier (Study for Sir David Baird discovering the body of Tippoo Sahib)
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General Sir David Baird, 1757 - 1829. Soldier (Study for Sir David Baird discovering the body of Tippoo Sahib) 1837 - 1838
  • Scottish Art
Baird's most significant achievement was the defeat of the Indian ruler of Mysore, Tipu Sahib, at Seringapatam in 1799. By this action, British ascendancy in southern India was assured and the influence of France diminished in the sub-continent. Ten years later Baird was with General Sir John Moore in Spain; he was injured at Corunna and lost an arm. Sir David's wife considered that her husband had been insufficiently rewarded. After his death, she commissioned Wilkie to paint a heroic picture in which the general is seen discovering the dead body of Tipu Sahib. The painting now hangs in the Scottish National Gallery. This is Wilkie's study for the head which he based on an engraving after a portrait by Raeburn.

Glossary Open

Anglo-Mysore Wars

The Anglo-Mysore Wars were a series of wars fought in India over the last three decades of the eighteenth century. The wars between the Kingdom of Mysore and the British East India Company lead to the dismantling of Mysore removing the single most powerful barrier to British control of southern India.

Commission

When an individual or organisation employs an artist to execute a particular project, the process and the resulting work are termed a ‘commission’.

Engraving

The printmaking technique in which an image is inscribed on a copper plate with a tool that cuts a groove in the surface. This groove holds the ink that creates the print when it is applied to paper. Also refers to the method of making an incision on a material such as glass.

Anglo-Mysore Wars, Commission, Engraving

Details

  • Acc. No. PG 644
  • Medium Oil on canvas
  • Size 75.60 x 62.80 cm (framed: 92.50 x 81.00 x 10.00 cm)
  • Credit Presented by General Stirling 1906

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Scottish Art