Artist: Frederick Henry Townsend (1868 – 1920)
Artist and art editor of Punch Magazine.

A delightful, original pen-and-ink drawing/cartoon published in Punch, April 26, 1916, showing Churchill, in uniform, arriving at the House of Commons, and addressing a police constable on duty at the entrance.

Caption in Punch magazine in 1916:

‘Colonel Churchill (arriving post-haste from the front – at the House of Commons on April 18), “Come I too late for the Premier’s statement?”

Punch commented, on the same page as the cartoon, in its Essence of Parliament column:

‘Tuesday April 18th. When one has at last screwed up one’s courage to have a tooth out, there is nothing more unnerving than to be told by the dentist that he cannot operate today and that one must come again tomorrow. The House of Commons felt like that this afternoon. Members had flocked from all parts of the Kingdom to hear the Prime Minister’s promised statement [on military recruitment policy: a burning issue of the day, a strong lobby having built up for conscription, not yet in operation]. Colonel Churchill…. And other warrior-statesmen had reluctantly tor themselves from the attractions of the trenches to do their duty at Westminster…. Then the ominous word went round. “No statement today”.

A statement was promised for the next day, but recruitment policy was not in the end debated until a Secret Session on April 25th.

Churchill was (at the time) serving in France, commanding the 6th battalion of the Royal Scots Fusiliers in the IXth (Scottish) Division. He was also M.P. for Dundee, a seat he held for 15 years (1908 – 1922).

Professionally matted and framed under glass.
Frame measures approx.  20″ x 16″
Print size in frame approx. 13″ x 6.5″

Item #966