The architectural patrimony of the Middle Ages received greater attention in the Romantic era because of three major factors. The first was the boom of domestic tourism beginning in the 1790s as a result of political tension on the Continent.
Angelica Kauffman was commissioned to paint four allegorical figures representing the four components of painting: design, composition, invention, and color.
George III is portrayed as Prospero the wizard in his long black cloak, holding a book bearing the words “justice” and “integrity” and a long, whip-like wand. He stands on a landmass labeled “Albion,” a tattered French flag under his feet. A gold and blue flag patterned with lions, a harp, and several fleurs-de-lis flies behind him. The sun smiles above his head.
This satirical commentary on the Regency Crisis and the madness of George III portrays the leading government officials of the time—Pitt the Younger, Edward Thurlow, and Henry Dundas—as the the three witches from Shakespeare's Macbeth, parodying Fuseli's own depiction of the "weird sisters."
This political caricature satirizes Fuseli's The Nightmare, utilizing the latter's Gothic theme to combine a fear of the unknown with a critique of government exploitation.John Bull (indicated by the name on the chamber pot under his bed) sleeps under a grey blanket, surrounded by green curtains. His mouth is open as he snores.
