Satire on Lord Bolingbroke
by an unknown artist
1713
British Museum 1868,0808.3457
This unidentified book illustration alludes to an incident in which Bolingbroke, as Secretary of State, was said to have used the naked backside of his mistress, Anna Maria Gumley, as a writing desk when signing papers connected with the Treaty of Utrecht. Bolingbroke is seated at a table with the devil speaking in his ear while he conducts business with secretaries. Two fool's caps hang on the wall and another lies in the foreground. The aforesaid incident is shown in a picture on the wall behind Bolingbroke. (British Museum)
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