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Primary sourcePainting13 January 1883

The Republic is Peace

Joseph Swain, after John Tenniel · 13 January 1883

An 1883 Punch cartoon showing Bismarck standing before a bust of the recently deceased French politician Léon Gambetta, commenting on French politics.

Shows Bismarck as an onlooker to French politics, reflecting his dominant role in contemporary European affairs.

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Punch magazine cartoon titled 'The Republic is Peace', January 13, 1883. A woman in a helmet, holding a pole, leans on a bust of Léon Gambetta on a pedestal inscribed with his birth and death years. Beside her, a heavyset man with a mustache stands with arms folded. A broken sword labeled Chanzy and two wreaths lie at the base.
Joseph Swain after John Tenniel, 'The Republic is Peace', Punch, 13 January 1883.

About this source

What it is

This cartoon, The Republic is Peace, was published in the British magazine Punch on 13 January 1883. It was engraved by Joseph Swain after a design by John Tenniel. It shows a female figure representing the French Republic mourning beside a bust of the French politician Léon Gambetta, who had recently died, with Bismarck standing nearby.

Why it matters

The cartoon reflects how British commentators viewed the political situation in France after Gambetta's death, and how Bismarck, as the dominant figure in European power politics, was seen as watching French affairs closely. It shows how foreign cartoonists used Bismarck's image to comment on international politics beyond Germany itself.

Look closer

  • Why is Bismarck shown standing with arms folded rather than taking part in the mourning?
  • What does the broken sword near the bust suggest about French military fortunes?
  • How might a French reader have reacted differently to this cartoon than a British one?

This painting is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Otto von Bismarck on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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