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William WebbThe Duke of Wellington's 'Copenhagen', ridden at the Battle of Waterloo
$102,823.96
£75,000
€87,598.82
CA$143,254.86
A$155,915.57
CHF 81,854.25
MX$1,883,687.70
NOK 1,027,361.51
SEK 968,680.39
DKK 653,917.32
About the Item
William Webb (1780-1846)
The Duke of Wellington's 'Copenhagen', ridden at Waterloo, Sir John Waters' 'Bitter', the Duke of Wellington's chestnut mare, the Duke of Wellington's white Arabican horse, and Lord Fitroy Somerset's bay mare, ridden at Waterloo, in an extensive landscape
Oil on canvas
Canvas Size - 40 x 50 in
Provenance
The Raglan Collection: Wellington, Waterloo and The Crimea and Works of Art from the
Marquesses of Londonderry; Christie's, London, 22 May 2014, lot 48, sold for £56,250;
The Collection of Charlie Watts.
This expansive equestrian group portrait presents five of the most celebrated horses associated with the Duke of Wellington and his circle during the Napoleonic Wars. Dominating the foreground are two powerful bays, painted with a calm authority that speaks to their status and renown. To the left stands Copenhagen, Wellington’s famous charger, remembered as the horse he rode throughout the Battle of Waterloo in 1815. Facing him is Bitter, the mount of Sir John Waters, whose service during the same campaign added to the horse’s fame.
Behind them, three further animals are drawn into the composition with equal care: Wellington’s chestnut mare, his striking white Arabian horse, and the bay mare belonging to Lord Fitzroy Somerset, who also rode at Waterloo. Set against a rolling landscape under a wide, luminous sky, the grouping of these horses not only celebrates their individual qualities but also binds them together as living emblems of courage, endurance, and victory.
The artist’s treatment is calm and deliberate, focusing less on dramatic action than on dignity and presence. Each animal is carefully posed to reveal conformation and character, creating a kind of equestrian pantheon for Wellington’s household and companions. In presenting these mounts as if they were human sitters in a grand group portrait, the painting elevates them beyond mere animals to companions and participants in the making of history.
William Webb, born around 1780, was a British artist best known for his paintings of horses, hounds, and sporting life. Before he turned to painting, he apprenticed as a watchmaker in the 1790s and later set up trade in Staffordshire. By the early nineteenth century, however, he had begun to develop his reputation as an animal and sporting painter.
Webb’s works capture the calm dignity of equestrian life: horses standing poised in quiet landscapes, hounds ready for the hunt, and the occasional maritime scene. His palette was generally soft and muted, giving his compositions a sense of steadiness rather than dramatic flourish. Many of his paintings appear to have been private commissions, intended to preserve the likeness of a beloved horse or to celebrate the country pursuits of his patrons.
Though his personal life remains little recorded, he is remembered as part of the English sporting art tradition that grew in popularity alongside fox hunting and equestrian culture during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. William Webb died in 1846, leaving behind a modest but distinctive body of work that reflects the rural and sporting passions of his time.
- Creator:William Webb (1780 - 1846, British)
- Dimensions:Height: 40 in (101.6 cm)Width: 50 in (127 cm)
- Medium:
- Movement & Style:
- Period:
- Condition:
- Gallery Location:Stoke, GB
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU446316794252
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