John Wilkes
(1725-1797), Journalist, agitator and politician; MP for Aylesbury and MiddlesexMid-Georgian Portraits Catalogue Entry
Sitter associated with 49 portraits
Artist associated with 1 portrait
Radical politician. Wilkes's imprisonment for libel and banishment from the House of Commons brought into question the validity of parliamentary elections. Arrested in 1763 for publishing an attack on the King's speech in his newspaper The North Briton, his case became a popular cause, sparking violent public protests to the cry of 'Wilkes and Liberty'. Finally permitted to take his seat in 1774, he was then elected Lord Mayor of London. With his squint, crossed eyes and long jaw, Wilkes was called the ugliest man in England at the time, but he was well known for his verbal wit and snappy responses to insults.
by James Gillray, published by John Wright
etching and engraving, published 1 December 1798
NPG D13687
by Thomas Cook, published by George, George and John Robinson, after William Hogarth
line engraving, published 1 April 1800 (published 16 May 1763)
NPG D46104
by Thomas Cook, published by George, George and John Robinson, after William Hogarth
line and stipple engraving, published 1 April 1800 (published 16 May 1763)
NPG D8507
by William Strang, after Robert Edge Pine
etching, late 19th century
NPG D16927
by John Sebastian Miller (formerly Johann Sebastian Müller)
line engraving, published 1763
NPG D8328
published by Robert Sayer, after Kitchemer, after Robert Edge Pine
mezzotint, (circa 1763)
NPG D19507
by James Sayers, published by Charles Bretherton
etching, published 17 June 1782
NPG D16925
by William Strang, after Robert Edge Pine
etching, late 19th century
NPG D16926
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