Napoleonic Broadsides

The Royal Navy's official march, "Hearts of Oak," serves as the musical basis for the lyrics meant to rally British citizens against the French threat. The original music was composed by Dr. William Boyce and the popular 18th-century English actor David Garrick wrote the song's original lyrics. British warships were traditionally constructed from oak and the "heart of oak" refers to the strongest central wood of the tree.

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"Vicar and Moses" was a country dance song whose melody served as the basis for propagandistic purposes. Its popularity as a song meant that it could easily transition into a sing-a-long.

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John Bull is a national personification of Great Britain in general and England in particular. The first appearance of John Bull was in 1712 as the creation of Dr. John Arbuthnot, a friend of Jonathan Swift. He is usually depicted as the type of stout, middle-aged, country dwelling, jolly, matter-of-fact man that would garner mass appeal.

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The British may have been concerned about an imminent homeland invasion, but it was Napoleon's actions in Egypt and Syria that were the primary cause of damage to the British since it impeded their access to India and upset other commerce. Mamluks in Egypt had become a powerful military and ruling caste. This broadside encourages sympathy for these commercial partners as a means to warn against Napoleon's indiscriminate attacks.

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Calling for volunteers to defend England, many broadsides emphasized the local and individual consequences of failure: he will "enrich his soldiers with our property" and allow them to "glut their lust on our Wives and Daughters."

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Volunteer efforts could assume a variety of dimensions. This broadside requests that all who have the facility to bake in significant quantity will be called upon to supply local troops and evacuees with provisions.

With fears that invasion was imminent, some communities used broadsides to publish and announce the evacuation plans that residents should use.

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The broadside is the historical precursor to today's poster. Typically printed on one side of a large sheet of paper, the format was designed to be visible and posted in town squares, taverns, churches, or other public venues. While a wide range of content could be printed on a broadside, it was most commonly used to announce news and events, official proclamations, advertise, or advocate political and social causes.

The threatened invasion of England by Napoleon inspired a flurry of broadsides that ranged from satires to songs to calls for volunteers to defend coastlines to actual plans of evacuation in the event of a French invasion.