The Rhodes Colossus
Overview
Editorial cartoon
An editorial cartoon, also known as a political cartoon, is an illustration containing a commentary that usually relates to current events or personalities....
of the Scramble for Africa
Scramble for Africa
The Scramble for Africa, also known as the Race for Africa or Partition of Africa was a process of invasion, occupation, colonization and annexation of African territory by European powers during the New Imperialism period, between 1881 and World War I in 1914...
period, depicting British colonialist
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
Cecil Rhodes as a giant standing over the continent.
The cartoon was drawn by Edward Linley Sambourne
Edward Linley Sambourne
Edward Linley Sambourne was a cartoonist for Punch. He was born in Pentonville, London, the son of Edward Moot Sambourne....
, and first appeared in Punch
Punch (magazine)
Punch, or the London Charivari was a British weekly magazine of humour and satire established in 1841 by Henry Mayhew and engraver Ebenezer Landells. Historically, it was most influential in the 1840s and 50s, when it helped to coin the term "cartoon" in its modern sense as a humorous illustration...
magazine in 1892. It was widely reprinted in its time, and has since become a standard illustration in history texts.
The cartoon was published in the 10 December 1892 edition of Punch, appearing beside a recent excerpt from The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
about a Rhodes plan to extend an electrical telegraph
Electrical telegraph
An electrical telegraph is a telegraph that uses electrical signals, usually conveyed via telecommunication lines or radio. The electromagnetic telegraph is a device for human-to-human transmission of coded text messages....
line from Cape Town
Cape Town
Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...
to Cairo
Cairo
Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
.
It was led by a piece of satirical verse on the character and ambitions of Rhodes.
Rhodes is shown in a visual pun
Visual pun
A visual pun is a pun involving an image or images .Visual puns in which the image is at odds with the inscription are common in Dutch gable stones as well as in cartoons such as Lost Consonants or The Far Side...
as the ancient Greek statue the Colossus of Rhodes
Colossus of Rhodes
The Colossus of Rhodes was a statue of the Greek Titan Helios, erected in the city of Rhodes on the Greek island of Rhodes by Chares of Lindos between 292 and 280 BC. It is considered one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. It was constructed to celebrate Rhodes' victory over the ruler of...
, following the traditional (and architecturally unlikely) depiction of the Colossus with wide-set legs across Rhodes harbor (above).
Rhodes measures with the telegraphic line the distance from Cape Town
Cape Town
Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...
(at his right foot) in South Africa to Cairo
Cairo
Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
(at his left foot) in Egypt, illustrating his broader "Cape to Cairo
Cape To Cairo
Cape to Cairo may refer to:* the Cape to Cairo Railway* the Cape to Cairo Red Line, the 19th century concept of a British-dominated Africa, promoted by Cecil Rhodes* the Cape to Cairo Road...
" concept for British domination
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
of Africa.
The cartoon is recognised today as a standard illustration in history texts of the Scramble for Africa, and of Colonialism as a whole.
Unanswered Questions
