‘A powerful, illuminating analysis of a forgotten master of political cartooning’? - Times Literary Supplement

This is the first major study of Britain’s pioneering graphic satirist, Sir Francis Carruthers Gould (1844–1925), the first staff political cartoonist on a daily newspaper in Britain, and the first of his kind to be knighted. Written by the distinguished media historian, Colin Seymour-Ure, it is essential reading for anyone interested in cartoons, caricature and illustration and will also be welcomed by students of history, politics and the media. It examines Gould’s career in Fleet Street until his retirement after the First World War. It also discusses his illustrations for magazines and books and there is an analysis of his use of symbolism and literary allusion to lampoon such eminent politicians as Gladstone and Joseph Chamberlain. As Lord Baker says in his Foreword, this book is ‘a major contribution to our knowledge of British cartooning.’