Hunting Scene of Windermere Harriers with George Ridehalgh (1835–1892), as Master by John William Bottomley (1816-1900). 1880. Oil on canvas. H 100 x W 135 cm. Accession no. 1519305, on loan from Mr A. Forrest. Credit: National Trust Images, by kind permission. The scene of the three men with a horse and a pack of hounds, all in distinct and naturalistic poses, in the idyllic setting of the Lake District, is entirely naturalistic. The controversy about fox-hunting goes back much further than the Victorian period, but was certainly current then — witness the debate in the Fortnightly Review of 1869, for example (see Pardo and Prato 150). Nevertheless, the artist's skill is not in doubt, and such a painting would have appealed hugely to the landed gentry of the time, who were the chief participants in such events. — Jacqueline Banerjee
Bibliography
Pardo, Italo, and Giuliana B. Prato. “The Fox-Hunting Debate In The United Kingdom: A Puritan Legacy?” Human Ecology Review 12, 2 (2005): 143–55. http://www.jstor.org/stable/24707529.
Hunting Scene of Windermere Harriers with George Ridehalgh (1835–1892), as Master. Royal Collection Trust. Web. 24 April 2023.
Last modified 2 May 2010