Cartoon lampooning policies and politicians of the Liberal government of Stanley Baldwin (1867-1947)
Drawing
| Artist/Maker |
The cartoonist Sidney Strube (1892-1956) uses characters from Gibert and Sullivan operas Patience, The Sorcerer, The Pirates of Penzance, The Gondoliers, and H.M.S. Pinafore and their adapted lyrics to lampoon policies and politicians of Stanley Baldwin's government. Baldwin appears as the milkmaid Patience (top right) smoking his trademark pipe.
Strube, the son of a German wine merchant, was born in London and studied art at St. Martin's Art School and the John Hassall School of Art. Encouraged by the artist John Hassall to take up a career as a cartoonist, Strube had his first cartoons published in 1910 and worked as a freelance cartoonist, producing work for The Bystander and The Evening Times. He joined The Daily Express as a freelance cartoonist in 1912 with an exclusive contract, and became their house cartoonist until his retirement in 1948. Strube's political cartoons caricatured the British government as well as international affairs, and often featured his little bowler-hatted man with pince-nez glasses, bow tie and an umbrella as the typical Englishman, stoical in the face of misfortune. Strube's understated humour made him one of the most popular and highly-paid cartoonists of the day, and even Stanley Baldwin declared: 'Strube is a gentle genius. I don't mind his attacks because he never hits below the belt.'
Strube, the son of a German wine merchant, was born in London and studied art at St. Martin's Art School and the John Hassall School of Art. Encouraged by the artist John Hassall to take up a career as a cartoonist, Strube had his first cartoons published in 1910 and worked as a freelance cartoonist, producing work for The Bystander and The Evening Times. He joined The Daily Express as a freelance cartoonist in 1912 with an exclusive contract, and became their house cartoonist until his retirement in 1948. Strube's political cartoons caricatured the British government as well as international affairs, and often featured his little bowler-hatted man with pince-nez glasses, bow tie and an umbrella as the typical Englishman, stoical in the face of misfortune. Strube's understated humour made him one of the most popular and highly-paid cartoonists of the day, and even Stanley Baldwin declared: 'Strube is a gentle genius. I don't mind his attacks because he never hits below the belt.'
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Cartoon lampooning policies and politicians of the Liberal government of Stanley Baldwin (1867-1947) (generic title) |
| Materials and techniques | Pen and ink |
| Brief description | Cartoon lampooning policies and politicians of the Liberal government of Stanley Baldwin (1867-1947), showing politicians dressed in costumes from the D'Oyly Carte Operas. Pen, ink and coloured pencil by Sidney Strube (1892-1956) |
| Physical description | Pen and ink cartoon showing Stanley Baldwin smoking his pipe as Patience, and members of his cabinet as John Wellington Wells, The Pirate King, The Duchess of Plaza Toro, and Ralph Rackstraw, with lyrics from the operas of Gilbert and Sullivan altered to lampoon Liberal financial policy. |
| Dimensions |
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| Marks and inscriptions | Signed STRUBE |
| Credit line | Bequeathed by Peter Parker |
| Object history | This drawing was inherited by Peter Parker, who bequeathed it to the museum, from his father Stanley H. Parker (d.1960) who was employed by the Savoy Hotel as a junior clerk in May 1909, straight from school. From that job, on the death of Helen D'Oyly Carte in 1913, he was appointed by Rupert D'Oyly Carte to understudy George A. Richardson who managed the theatre from November 1911 to February 1915. In 1913 Stanley H. Parker became Rupert and (later) Bridget D'Oyly Carte's private secretary, also secretary of both the Savoy Theatre Ltd., and the Opera Company. He worked for the company for 51 years, until his death in 1960. |
| Summary | The cartoonist Sidney Strube (1892-1956) uses characters from Gibert and Sullivan operas Patience, The Sorcerer, The Pirates of Penzance, The Gondoliers, and H.M.S. Pinafore and their adapted lyrics to lampoon policies and politicians of Stanley Baldwin's government. Baldwin appears as the milkmaid Patience (top right) smoking his trademark pipe. Strube, the son of a German wine merchant, was born in London and studied art at St. Martin's Art School and the John Hassall School of Art. Encouraged by the artist John Hassall to take up a career as a cartoonist, Strube had his first cartoons published in 1910 and worked as a freelance cartoonist, producing work for The Bystander and The Evening Times. He joined The Daily Express as a freelance cartoonist in 1912 with an exclusive contract, and became their house cartoonist until his retirement in 1948. Strube's political cartoons caricatured the British government as well as international affairs, and often featured his little bowler-hatted man with pince-nez glasses, bow tie and an umbrella as the typical Englishman, stoical in the face of misfortune. Strube's understated humour made him one of the most popular and highly-paid cartoonists of the day, and even Stanley Baldwin declared: 'Strube is a gentle genius. I don't mind his attacks because he never hits below the belt.' |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | S.1048-2021 |
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| Record created | September 6, 2021 |
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