Cromwell's First Appearance in the Parliament, by David Wilkie Wynfield (1837-1887). c.1867-68. Oil on canvas. 46 x 64 5/8 inches (117 x 164 cm). Collection of Looe Guildhall, East Looe, accession no. 2. Image reproduced via Art UK, for purposes of non-commercial research. [Click on the images to enlarge them.]
Wynfield exhibited this work at the Royal Academy in 1868, no. 400. It was accompanied by this quotation from John Forster's book on Cromwell in the catalogue: "Imagine then these two extraordinary men (Hampden, and Cromwell) now for the first time together passing along the crowded lobbies of that most famous assembly. Hampden greeting his friends as he passes… but pushing directly forward towards a knot of active and eager faces that are clustered round a little spot on the right of the Speaker's chair, in the midst of which stand Sir John Elliot [sic], Sir Robert Phillips, and Pym…Hampden introduces his cousin, etc. – Forster." John Hampden was Oliver Cromwell's cousin and an ally of the parliamentarian leader John Pym. Sir John Eliot and Sir Robert Phillips were two English statesmen later imprisoned in the Tower of London by Charles I for advocating for the rights and privileges of Parliament. Eliot, in particular, had been critical of the arbitrary rule and collection of taxes by Charles I.
Closer view of Cromwell being introduced by his cousin, John Hampden.
When it was exhibited at the Royal Academy a critic for The Art Journal felt the composition held together well considering the number of figures portrayed:
Similar praise belongs to Mr. D. W. Wynfield, who once more recurs to the times of the Commonwealth in a solidly painted picture representing Oliver Cromwell's First Appearance in Parliament (410). King Charles, having delivered his speech before the assembled Commons, has just left the House. The mace is on the table, the speaker in his chair. Cromwell, a prominent character, stands firm, evidently ready to hold his own and maintain his ground. In the assembly may also be distinguished Strafford, Pym, Holles, Selden, Eliot, Philips, Hobart, Brooke, Valentine, Strode, &c. The portraits are faithful; the solid, sober character of Puritanical times has been preserved. Hon. members, then as now, were permitted the privilege of keeping hats on, a liberty which favours picturesque effect. The treatment is broad and simple; thus alone, indeed, could the composition escape from being scattered. The light falls on the front figures, while a half-shadow is cast across the middle distance: thus the composition is sufficiently well kept together. The picture perhaps tends a little bit to blackness, and a lighter hand, with more of dexterous play in the touch, might have given to the scene greater sparkle and animation. The artist, however, has the merit of having worked in the spirit of earnestness and truth. [102-03]
The Illustrated London News felt more emphasis should have been placed on the figure of Cromwell: "Mr. Wynfield's representation of Oliver Cromwell's First Appearance in Parliament (410), with portraits of Hampden, Sir John Eliot, and other notables of the Commonwealth, though in many respects creditable, has a certain dull monotony of colour and smoothness of texture which needs enlivening by a focus of effect about the centre of interest" (543).
Tom Taylor in The Portfolio later described the subject of this painting as: "Cromwell's first appearance in Parliament as he is introduced by Hampden to Pym and Holles, Eliot and Selden, and others who were destined to be his helpers or rivals. I remember being struck by this picture, eminently commendable as it was for the painstaking earnestness visible throughout, with certain technical unpleasantnesses, particularly a want of transparency in the colouring, and of ease in the execution, which bespoke of over-labour" (86).
Bibliography
Cromwell's First Appearance in Parliament. Web. 12 December 2023.
"Exhibition of the Royal Academy." The Illustrated London News LII (30 May 1868): 543.
Forster, John. Lives of Eminent British Statesmen: Oliver Cromwell. London: Longman, Orme, Brown, Green & Longman, 1839, Vol. VII.
"Royal Academy." The Art Journal New Series VII (1 June 1868): 101-10.
Taylor, Tom. "English Painters of the Present Day. XXVI – D. W. Wynfield." The Portfolio II (1871): 84-7.
Created 12 December 2023