George Stephenson
4 of 9 portraits of George Stephenson
© National Portrait Gallery, London
George Stephenson
by and published by Charles Turner, after Henry Perronet Briggs
mezzotint, published 7 June 1838
15 1/4 in. x 11 1/2 in. (387 mm x 292 mm) plate size; 17 7/8 in. x 12 1/2 in. (455 mm x 319 mm) paper size
Purchased, 1944
Reference Collection
NPG D21133
Sitterback to top
- George Stephenson (1781-1848), Inventor of the railway-engine. Sitter in 9 portraits.
Artistsback to top
- Henry Perronet Briggs (1791-1844), Antiquary and subject painter. Artist or producer associated with 54 portraits.
- Charles Turner (1773-1857), Engraver. Artist or producer associated with 634 portraits, Sitter in 2 portraits.
Placesback to top
- Place made: United Kingdom: England, London (50 Warren Street, Fitzroy Square, London)
Events of 1838back to top
Current affairs
The Anti-Corn Law league is established in Manchester, led by Richard Cobden and John Bright, aiming to create a fully free-trade economy.The People's Charter is published, demanding many constitutional amendments that would become central to future democratic reform, including universal male suffrage and secret ballots. Despite having one million signatures (and 5 million by 1848), the petition was rejected.
Slavery is completely abolished.
Art and science
Turner's The Fighting Temeraire is exhibited at the Royal Academy. The Temeraire, which had broken the line at the Battle of Trafalgar, was a reflection on the rapid changes of the industrial age. This was demonstrated this year when Isambard Brunel's Great Western crosses the Atlantic, in just fifteen days - a ship under sail could take a month.The London-Birmingham railway is also completed, the line engineered by Robert Stephenson.
International
The first stage in the formation of independent Boer republics in South Africa, as the Republic of Natal is formed in South Africa, following the Boers defeat of the Matabele of Mzilikasi. This comes two years after the Dutch-speaking inhabitants of the British-ruled colony of South Africa set out on the Great Trek, in search of their own independent state.The Central American Federation, an experimental republic formed of several Latin states splits.
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