The Constitution

This political satire, published in 1770 in The London Museum, is a criticism of John Stuart, the third earl of Bute’s perceived nefarious influence on King George III. It shows Lord Bute throwing off the balance of power of the British Constitution, represented as a tripod of three posts labeled “King,” “Commons,” and “Lords.” Bute holds the king’s little finger down on a scale, easily and artificially outweighing the powers of “Liberty of the Press,” “Freedom of Elections,” the “Magna Charta,” and the “Bill of Rights.” The caption quotes article two of the 1640-41 impeachment of Thomas Wentworth, first earl of Strafford, which reads: “the Justices were all for Law; and nothing would please them but Law; but they should find that the King’s Little Finger should be heavier than the Loines of the Law.”