Boadicea Haranguing the Britons

Boadicea Haranguing the Britons is a 1793 history painting by the British artist John Opie. It depicts the Boudica the queen of the Ancient British Iceni tribe who led an ultimately unsuccessful uprising against the Roman Empire during the first century. She is portrayed in a white robe and red cloak, a bright figure in a dark composition. Her two daughters shelter behind her for protection as she rallies her supporters.^[1] Her poised aristocratic manner contrasts to the depiction of her as a battlefield warrior in Henry Courtney Selous's 1840 painting of the same title.^[2]

Boadicea Haranguing the Britons
Artist	John Opie
Year	1793
Type	Oil on canvas, history painting
Dimensions	216 cm × 162.5 cm (85 in × 64.0 in)
Location	Private collection

An engraving based on Opie's painting produced by William Sharp is now in the National Portrait Gallery.^[3]

References

1. Gillespie p.IX
2. James L. & Dillon p.469
3. https://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/portrait/mw56792/Boadicea-Haranguing-the-Britons-called-Boudicca-Boadicea

Bibliography

• Gillespie, Caitlin C. Boudica: Warrior Woman of Roman Britain. Oxford University Press, 2018.
• James, Sharon L. & Dillon, Sheila. (ed.) A Companion to Women in the Ancient World. John Wiley & Sons, 2015.