Faustin Betbeder
Encyclopedia
Faustin Betbeder was born in Soissons
, France in 1847 and lived until sometime around 1914. He became an artist, noted for his unflattering caricatures of personalities from both sides of the Franco-Prussian war
and its aftermath. He had difficulty in finding a publisher for the first set of these in 1870 and finally published them himself, selling over 50,000 copies. After the war he moved to Britain where he produced a less political series of caricatures of well-known British personalities to be published in The London Sketch-book, "An illustrated newspaper and magazine" published from 1873 until 1874 by James Mortimer
, editor of The London Figaro
. The most famous of these is that of Charles Darwin
as an ape holding up a hand mirror for another ape.
Soissons
Soissons is a commune in the Aisne department in Picardy in northern France, located on the Aisne River, about northeast of Paris. It is one of the most ancient towns of France, and is probably the ancient capital of the Suessiones...
, France in 1847 and lived until sometime around 1914. He became an artist, noted for his unflattering caricatures of personalities from both sides of the Franco-Prussian war
Franco-Prussian War
The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the 1870 War was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia. Prussia was aided by the North German Confederation, of which it was a member, and the South German states of Baden, Württemberg and...
and its aftermath. He had difficulty in finding a publisher for the first set of these in 1870 and finally published them himself, selling over 50,000 copies. After the war he moved to Britain where he produced a less political series of caricatures of well-known British personalities to be published in The London Sketch-book, "An illustrated newspaper and magazine" published from 1873 until 1874 by James Mortimer
James Mortimer
James Mortimer was an American chess player, journalist, and playwright who spent the last 40 years of his life in Britain.-Life:...
, editor of The London Figaro
London Figaro
The London Figaro was a London periodical devoted to politics, literature, art, criticism and satire during the Victorian era. It was founded as a daily paper in 1870 with the backing of Napoleon III but after a year re-established itself as a general interest weekly magazine and is chiefly...
. The most famous of these is that of Charles Darwin
Charles Darwin
Charles Robert Darwin FRS was an English naturalist. He established that all species of life have descended over time from common ancestry, and proposed the scientific theory that this branching pattern of evolution resulted from a process that he called natural selection.He published his theory...
as an ape holding up a hand mirror for another ape.