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Insight into the era
Third of may, 1808 by Francisco Goya is an artistic work which was developed in 1814 as a commemoration of the resistance of the Spanish citizens towards Napoleon’s rule whose result was the Peninsula war. This happened in 1808 and mainly involved the Spanish and French people, lasted till 1814 and it came to an end when the Napoleon government was overthrown.
The people of Spain consider this to be the year in which they gained their independence, having been in war for six years. After this war, many other uprisings came up and most of which were more severe than the Peninsula war as a result of many nations seeking freedom from their colonial powers.
This anti napoleon revolution is what led to the development of the Spanish constitution in the year 1812, but it left the country in a skeleton state economically, socially and politically.
Besides these negative consequences, this war is considered to be one of the most adherent wars over the years. It involved a number of partisan individuals all of which had their personal interest such as getting power, wealth and even getting the chance to indulge in unlawful activities.
In the year 1812 however, Napoleon felt like he was being overpowered by the Russians and French and hence decided to withdraw his troops (Cole 1999, p. 72). Prior to this however, the war had caused the death of so many people from all sides of defense and many others were left maimed. This is what Francisco Goya highlighted in his art work hence creating a piece that has remained a national heritage over the years.
Peninsular war
The peninsular war took place between 1808 and 1814 and by the time it was coming to an end, over half a million people had lost their lives. The main cause of this war is considered to have been ignorance and miscalculation on the part of the government, since they initially invited the French army to assist them in preventing Portugal traders from penetrating their market.
At this point, there was little or no resistance and everything was going as per Napoleon’s expectation. At the beginning of 1808 however, Napoleon made a major mistake of making an intervention in a political court case in the Spanish court out of opportunism, and the thought that this would cement his relationship to the Spanish government. This however failed since there was a coup that overturned the government of that time.
The French government decided to intervene since they had already been involved in state issues and this is what struck the first wave of unrest. Revolts came up in different part of the country though at the time most of the people did not understand what the unrest was all about.
This war is considered to be one of the most complicated of its kind since the reason that initiated it is not the same reason as to why it continued over the years. The French militia made claims that they were being mishandled by the Spanish troops hence the need to defend themselves.
The British forces on the other hand took advantage of this situation and captured Portugal since they were more interested with the resources in this country (Cole 1999, p. 89). All this led to a war that lasted for six years and ended up killing masses, both soldiers and civilian.
Francisco Goya
Francisco Goya was born in Spain in 1746 and spent his early years in Fuendetodos in a house that had been the mother’s family house. His father was a gilder and he managed to take him through school at Escuelas Pias. When he reached the age of fourteen, he started studying painting under Jose Luzan’s instructions. Later in life he moved to a different city and got another instructor in Madrid.
They however failed to agree on a number of issues and eventually fell out, an occurrence that had adverse effects in Goya’s career as a painter. Later on in his life, he was able to gain the favor of the royal family and he did their paintings to the point of being given a permanent job in the palace.
He however contacted a deadly disease between 1792 and 1793, which left him deaf and this led to him withdrawing socially. He concentrated on his paintings and developed many genres including some religious portraits.
From this, we can deduce that Goya’s paintings were inspired by his current state and surroundings since after the French invasion in 1808 he sided with the French government and did paintings for its dignitaries and sympathizers. He however did this secretly in a way that he appeared to be non partisan and this enabled him to come out and deny any association with the French government after the war.
His wife died in 1812 and he took refuge in his paintings which at that time were about the war and the effects it had brought along (Cumming 2007, p. 13). Towards the end of his life, he went on exile since he had a lot of misunderstandings with the government and his paintings at that time were of the people he had gone to exile with and later on died in 1828 in France.
Analysis of The third of May, 1808
The third of May is a painting that was developed by a painter of Spanish origin in 1814 as a way of venerating the Spanish revolution towards Napoleon’s rule during the 1808 peninsular war. The painting illustrates the execution of Spanish citizens which happened in Madrid during the ferocious war bringing about a nationwide revolt that resulted in the loss of many lives and property.
The massacre scenes depicted in The third of May were a common occurrence in all parts of Spain, since the French armies were unable to control the killings but made things worse by the day. Earlier on, Goya was a secret supporter to the French militia since they had offered false promises of freedom and enlightenment, two things which were missing in most governments those days.
The learned fellows of that era had become tired of the uncertain attempts by Charles IV and Ferdinand to restructure and develop Spain for their own personal gain. Napoleon, with the assistance of Joseph his brother and the army officials brought to an end the good relations the Spanish government had tried to foster with the French government.
During the six years that the war lasted, Goya lived in Madrid and though it is not clear whether he witnessed the occurrences depicted in his paintings or whether they are mere imaginations, most of these massacres happened within the region in which he resided.
There is however evidence deemed to have been obtained from his gardener stating that he witnessed the killings in Montana del Principe Pio, through his telescope and developed the painting from the scene. It is even purported that the gardener went together with Goya to the scene of the killings the same evening the massacre took place and according to his report Goya was taking notes on a number of things on the ground.
The third of May is considered one of the most important pieces of art in history since it is the main symbol of Goya’s paintings especially in relation to the Spanish uprising and the fighting spirit portrayed by the people.
The painting shows a lot of violence and is considered emotional since it shows an execution of many people who most likely are a collateral damage to the war (Thomas 1973, p. 68).
This specific massacre that was captured by Goya took place on the 3rd of May 1808, hence the name of the painting which was developed years later. The other aspect brought out in this painting is the fact that the French soldiers preferred the silent massacre of civilians other than fighting with the Spanish armies who were on guard in the streets of Spain.
The victims are shown to be helpless people who were trying to beg for mercy while their killers were busy shooting them one by one. Another noticeable feature in this painting is that the faces for the victims are visible while those of the killers are concealed. This is an implication of a society in which mysterious killings took place not just during the war but before and after as well (Cumming 2007, p. 22).
This is a society in which killing especially by the army men was dignified in cases where the victims are from the enemy’s side, irrespective of whether they are innocent civilians or fellow military men. This is not the only killing of its kind, only that the painter was in a position to witness, and felt the need of capturing the act, hence leaving evidence to the generations that followed of the extent to which the Napoleon resistance war went to.
Relevance in understanding history
Third May 1808 is an art of work that carries so many historic memories in relation to the peninsular war. Through this piece of art, the current generation is able to understand the evils that transpired in those days. It also arouses curiosity that leads present day scholars to research into what the cause of this inhumane act was and the events that preceded the massacre.
It gives an insight into the fundamental stylistic movement that acts against the idea of neocolonialism. It brings out the evils that accompanied neocolonialism hence the reasons as to why other governments rejected colonial powers. Colonialism is a very important subject when discussing history since it is what brought civilization and promoted multicultural existence in most parts of the world.
However, most cases of colonialism ended in the same way as the Napoleon way that is with many people dead and economies fallen. Goya is an illustration of the bitterness that went through the Spanish community after witnessing these killings. Such emotional feelings were experienced throughout the land only that Goya and a few others had a way of capturing the whole thing such that it remained as a monument of the dark days.
Implication in the present day
This painting indicates the dark side of war where many innocent lives are lost. It shows that the people who suffer most in wars are the innocent ones. Considering the setting depicted in the painting, chances are that these people who fell victims were hiding. War was raging in the streets and not in the country side as shown in the painting (Thomas 1973, p. 91).
This therefore has an impact of indicating the disadvantages of engaging in war. At the end of the peninsular war, more than half a million people had lost their lives and this is something that no government would want to befall their citizens, hence taking caution when engaging other countries in their internal affairs.
The other major implication of this painting in the present day is the fact that it brings out the dedication that these people had in war. The main aim of the French army was not to get fame for fighting and winning but to finish as many Spanish people as possible such that they would have dominion in their land.
If they had the aim of just winning the war, they would be in the streets fighting with their fellow army men, and not in the country side massacring innocent civilians. This is therefore a lesson that it is important to find out the motive behind any action as this will save a lot of loss in any situation, not necessarily in war.
Works Cited
Cole, Bruce. The Informed Eye: Understanding Masterpieces of Western Art. Chicago: Ivan R. Dee, 1999. Print.
Cumming, Robert. Art Explained. New York: Dk Pub, 2007. Print.
Thomas, Hugh. Goya: the Third of May 1808. New York: Viking Press, 1973. Print.
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