The Monster...

In April and May of 1790, women in London were terrorized by a tall, gentleman-like man who would approach them and try to engage them in conversation, sometimes "talking...in a most obscene manner" and then suddenly stab them in the thigh or cut them across their legs.

The newspapers, caricaturists, and the public were quick to take advantage of the situation. Articles, poems, images, and mock preventive measures soon appeared after the first couple of incidents. There was even a "New Musical Piece called THE MONSTER; or The Wounded Ladies" advertised in the May 8th issue of the London World. For once, Isaac Cruikshank beat Gillray to the punch with The Monster Cutting a Lady... published on May 1st with a print that combined reportorial accuracy with his typical crude humor.

The Monster Cutting a Lady... Courtesy of the Lewis Walpole Library, Yale University

[Isaac Cruikshank]
The Monster Cutting a Lady... [1790]
© Lewis Walpole Library, Yale University

But on May 9th, Gillray followed up with his own interpretation of "The Monster," making up for what he may have lost in timeliness with both cruder and more outrageous dramatic effect. Needless to say, this print is one of the "Suppressed Plates" in the Bohn edition.

The Monster Going to Take his Afternoon's Luncheon. Courtesy of the National Portrait Gallery, London

The Monster Going to Take his Afternoon's Luncheon [1790]
© National Portrait Gallery, London

Again, in possible response to Cruikshank, Gillray published a second, alternative version of the print adding his own porridge pot remedy for the situation.

The Monster Disappointed of his Afternoon's Luncheon. Courtesy of the Trustees of the British Museum

The Monster Disappointed of his Afternoon's Luncheon
Porridge Pots Preferable to Cork Rumps [1790]
© Trustees of the British Museum

The man, later identified as Renwick Williams, was apprehended and brought to trial in July, 1790. Gillray followed up with a final, non-caricatured, reportorial sketch, supposedly from life.

The Monster. Courtesy of the Lewis Walpole Library, Yale University

Sources and Reading

Commentary from the British Museum on The Monster Going to Take His Afternoons Luncheon.
Commentary from the British Museum on The Monster Disappointed.
Commentary from the British Museum on The Monster.

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