by Tim McNeese
among the best of the Spanish painters when it came to creating
likenesses of the young, and he seems to have enjoyed painting
children.
There were times when painting the famous and powerful
made Goya uncomfortable, perhaps caused by feelings of inad-
equacy due to his humble beginnings, or simply because of his
perceived need to please these clients. With children, however,
Goya was relaxed and at ease. In them, “he saw not the heir to
a royal throne or ducal residence, but a real child, with natural
petulance, or a delight in toys.”* Perhaps Goya took emotional
comfort in their presence, since all but one of his own children
died in infancy or while still quite young.
Children may be found in many of Goya’s paintings of
whole families, where those young subjects were typically sec-
ondary figures, posing in the shadows of their important fathers
and mothers. yet some portraits are of children alone. One
of the most famous of Goya’s portraits of a single child is his
painting sometimes referred to as the “little boy in red.”
Don Manuel Osorio de Zuniga was the son of the duke and
Clouds of Revolution
79
the Aragonese artist had first applied for 13 years earlier.
Goya was soon swamped with so much work on behalf of
themonarchythathewouldcomplaininalettertoZapater
ofhavingnotimeforhimselfandhisotherinterests.Yethe
wasmakingmoremoneythanever,andhewassoonlooking
topurchaseahouseinMadrid,readytoplunkdown100,000
realestopayforit.
The importance of changing monarchs in Spain nearly
shrinksbycomparisontothesignificanceofothereventsthat
wouldsoonengulfmuchofEurope.In1789,politicalchange
was beginning to sweep across France. That spring, the first
duchess of Altamira. When the boy was approximately
three or four, Goya was commissioned to paint the boy’s
portrait.
Goya’s canvas featured the small, black-haired child,
dressed in a brilliantly red, one-piece outfit, known as a skel-
eton suit, along with golden slippers, lace collar, and a broad
sash with an oversized gold bow. The child seems uncomfort-
able posing, as most three- or four-year-olds would while being
sketched for a painting. yet Goya has included some comforts
for the boy. At the boy’s gilded feet is a birdcage filled with his
feathered friends. Manuel holds a golden string tied to a magpie
that seems unrealistically unaware of three lurking cats to the
boy’s right. The cats wait, the eyes of one wide open, for their
opportunity to pounce on the pet they view as prey. If symbolic,
the animals represent “the terrors of the world which will all too
soon spring from the shadows and introduce the child to the
anxieties and dreads of adulthood.”**
* Quoted in Jeannine Baticle, Goya: Painter of Terrible Splendor
(new York: harry n. abrams, inc., 1994), 61.
** Quoted in richard schickel, The World of Goya, 1746–1828
(new York: Time-Life Books, 1968), 85.
80
FRANCISCO GOyA
efforts that would extend into the French Revolution were
underway.Soon,thekingofFrance,LouisXVI,becamecon-
cerned about the direction and scope of the ever-expanding
challenge to his power and even to the future of the French
monarchy itself. Although word of the revolution was offi-
ciallykeptfromtheSpanishpeoplethemselves,theroyalcourt
in Madrid watched these events with keen interest. After all,
Louis XVI and Carlos IV were blood relatives, first cousins.
Quietly,LouissentarequesttoCarlos:shouldtherevolution
threatentoovertakehim,hewouldliketoseekrefugeinSpain.
Unfortunately for the French king, he was never given the
opportunity.Hewouldbetakenprisonerbyrevolutionaries,
heldinprison,triedfortreason,convicted,andthensentenced
todiebytheguillotinein1793.
Carlos IV hoped such revolutionary elements would not
findtheirwayintohisconservativekingdom.Whileimmedi-
ate revolution did not spread to Spain, the events in France
would one day threaten Spain in other ways. The revolu-
tioncontinuedfrom1789until1799,duringwhichtimethe
French monarchy was destroyed (Queen Marie Antoinette,
Louis’sAustrianwife,wasbeheadedin1795),evenaspoliti-
cal extremists threatened to destroy even the very fabric of
traditionalFrenchlife.By1799,therevolutionpetered-outas
apatheticfailureforthemoment,onlytobringthemilitary
dictator Napoleon Bonaparte to power. He reestablished a
monarchy of sorts by declaring himself emperor, even as he
pursued his imperial dreams of European domination. As
his armies marched, they found their way to Spain, where
the king was forced off his throne. All would not return to
normaluntil1815,withtheendoftheNapoleonicWarsand
the exile of Napoleon to the remote island of St. Helena in
theSouthAtlantic.Throughthatentirequartercentury,from
1789until1815,GoyaremainedatworkinMadrid,awitness
tothechangesbroughttoSpain,yetalwaysmanagingtoserve
whomevermightbeinpower.
Clouds of Revolution
81
Goya created this cartoon, The Straw Mannequin, as part of a series of
tapestries that were to decorate Carlos IV’s royal palace, El Escorial.
The game of tossing a puppet in a blanket originates in carnival festivi-
ties and has a long history in Spanish art. Many observers believe the
painting can be seen as an allegory of women’s domination over men, a
theme that repeats throughout this series of Goya cartoons.
82
FRANCISCO GOyA
reVOLUtiONarY eVeNts
Yet even as revolution was unfolding to the north of Spain,
changes were soon rocking the Spanish monarchy and gov-
ernment,someofwhichwoulddirectlyaffectGoya.Forone,
uncertainoftheeventsinFrance,theSpanishcourtseemsto
havebeensodistractedthatitlostinterestincontinuingthe
decoratingoftheroyalpalace.Productionoftapestriesground
toahalt.Goyabeganreceivingfewercommissions,asSpanish
nobles“carefully[guarded]theirincomes.”72 Goyamanagedto
squeezeoutacommissiontopaintaworkforthealtarpieceof
achurchinValdemoro.Duringthistemporarydryspell,some
ofGoya’sfriendsreceivedimportanttitles.Zapaterwasmade
anoblemaninAragoninfall1789,andCabarruswasmadea
count in December. Despite this advancement for Cabarrus,
QueenMariaLuisabeganmakingtroubleforsomeofGoya’s
most important and long-standing benefactors and support-
ers,includingFloridablanca,Cabarrus,andJovellanos.
According to historians, Queen Maria Luisa would hold
> muchoftherealpoweroverSpainalthoughherhusbandheld
thethrone.KingCarlosIVwasuninspiredanduninspiring,“a
dullandloutishfellowwhodelightedinbellowinghiscourtiers
into submission.”73 One of the king’s favorite pastimes was
wrestling with stable servants. Carlos and his new queen had
never been favorites of Carlos III, having “ceaselessly plotted
againsttheoldmonarch,whohadkeptthemonatightfinancial
rein.”74 Thisnewqueendominatedherhusband.MariaLuisais
portrayedasaschemingwomanwithstrongsexualappetites.
Shehadalover,probablyseveral,herfavoritebeingoneofher
bodyguards,ManuelGodoy.Shewouldappointhimandoth-
erstoimportantpositionsintheSpanishcourtasfavors.
ThingsbegantounravelforGoya’sfriendsinlessthana
yearfollowingtheascensionofCarlosandMariaLuisatothe
throne.CabarruswasarrestedonnoobviouschargeonJune
25,1790,andlockedawayinsolitaryconfinement.Jovellanos
hadalreadybeensentawayfromtheroyalcourt,banishedfor
allpracticalpurposes.WhenhereturnedtoMadridtospeak
Clouds of Revolution
83
onbehalfofCabarrus,Jovellanoscouldnotevengainaroyal
audience. For seven years, he was a nonperson to the king
and queen. Goya himself was not safe, and on July 17, was
ordered to “go and breathe the sea air” in Valencia, a veiled
wayoflettingtheartistknowthathewasnolongerneededin
thecourt.75 Thetripmayhavebeenfortuitousbecauseatthat
time,doctorswereadvisingGoya’swife,Josefa,togetoutof
Madridandenjoytheruralair.
ByDecember,however,GoyawasaskedbacktoMadrid.
(During the months he was away from the court, he had
painted a portrait of his friend Zapater.) Yet the court he
returned to had a different climate. The king was uncertain
ofhowtoactwithhim,havingbeentoldthatGoyawasnot
particularlyinterestedinservingthecourtofCarlosIV.That
claim had been asserted in Goya’s absence by another artist,
jealousofGoya’ssuccess.
SoonGoyawasbusywithwork,paintingroyalportraits,
including those of the archbishop of Valencia, the countess
delCarpio,andMariadelRosarioFernandez,anactress.Goya
wasthedarlingoftheroyalcourt,busyasapaintercouldbe.
ThiscausedGoyatoneglecthisworkfortheTapestryFactory.
WhenthedirectorofthefactorycomplainedtoKingCarlos,
however,Goyawassoonbackatworksupplyingcartoonsfor
newwallhangings.
NeW tapestries
ByMay1791,Goyacompletedhiscartoonfor The Wedding,
intendedasahugetapestrythatwastoadorntheking’sstudy
in El Escorial, the palace he much preferred over El Pardo.
The work featured an unfortunate marriage of convenience.
Thebrideisayoungbeauty,whilethegroomiswealthy,but
old and ugly, even grotesque. Goya placed the groom at the
painting’scenter,juxtaposinghisratherdarkskinagainstthe
puffywhitecloudsthataresetagainstaSpanishazuresky.The
entiresceneisframedbyastonebridge,whichispaintedto
appearasifitleadstonowhere.
84
FRANCISCO GOyA
Perhaps the groom is a mixed blood, maybe someone
from Spain’s New World colonies. Yet he is out of place;
dressed in fine clothes, but in a costume that is woefully
out-of-date. The crowd by which the couple passes is not
well-wishers but mockers who smile knowingly and even
jeer at the buffoon whose only fortune is that he is taking
a bride of great beauty. The painting was meant to amuse
CarlosIV,whoenjoyedthosetypesofworks,evenifthemore
rigidCarlosIIIhadnot.YetGoyamayalsohavehadamore
serious intent with the painting. There are three dominant
figures occupying the painting’s foreground: a boy at left,
standingatopacartwheel;theyouthfulbrideatcenter;and
anoldermanontheright.Thethreearerepresentativeofthe
three ages of man—childhood, vibrant youth, and old age.
Theworkiswonderfullycurious,withitsmismatchedbride
andgroom,jeeringaudience,anddirt-brownstoneworkthat
heavilyframesthemarriageevent.
Anothercartoondoneforthisnewseriesoftapestrieswas
titled The Straw Mannequin.Goyadidtheworkin1791,and
itwouldbeoneofthelastofGoya’sworksintendedforthe
RoyalTapestryFactory.Itwasreminiscentofatraditioncar-
riedoninSpainatthattimeonAshWednesday.Thepractice
wastotakealife-sizeddummymadeofstraw,dressitinstreet
clothes,hangitalongthemainstreetofacommunity,andthen
takeitdownjustbeforesunsetandtossitintheair.InGoya’s
large, vertically-arranged painting, the dummy is dressed in
abluefrockcoat.Hisfaceisawhitemaskpaintedwithared
bow mouth and red cheeks. Finally, the figure is capped off
with a brown wig, complete with pigtail. The mannequin is
flyinglimplythroughtheair,launchedfromapinkishblanket
heldbyfourwell-dressedmajas,eachhighlyamused,enjoying
themselves, even as their hapless, lifeless subject is “humili-
atedbyfoursmilinggirls,anallusiontowomenwhotoywith
men’semotions.”76 Toomuchmaybemadeofthework,but
theresultisawhimsical,lightsetpiecethatanyonewithany
Clouds of Revolution
85
insightregardingthecomingsandgoingsofmenandwomen
mightponder.
By December 1791, Goya had completed seven car-
toonsfortapestriesthathebilledthefactoryforthatmonth.
Professionally, all was well with the artist. He was much
requested for royal and otherwise aristocratic portraits. In a
February1792lettertoZapater,hementionshisintenttohave
agenealogyofhisfamilydrawnup,likelyasafirststeptohav-
ing himself declared a nobleman. In the letter, he described
himselfwithaflatteringreferencetohisimportanceas“giant
Goya.”77 To show how serious he was about becoming aris-
tocracy, he told Zapater he was no longer going to listen to
popular,commonsongs,calledseguidillas,sinceitwasimpor-
tantforhimto“maintainthedignitythatamanshouldalways
possess.”78 Goyawasdefinitelyridingawave.
7
A Disturbing
Turn of Events
Events in France were also riding a wave of their own. In 1789,
theFrenchpeopleturnedontheirmonarch,havingmarched
on his palace at Versailles. They rounded up Louis XVI,
Queen Marie Antoinette, and their son, the Dauphain, and
removedthemtoParis,thetruecenterofthegreatupheaval.
There,revolutionaryleader
scouldkeepaneyeontheroyal
family.
By 1791, the king and queen made a break for safety,
escaping from their captivity at the old Parisian palace of
theTuileries.Undercoverofdarkness,theyheadedtoward
the border, but their large, lumbering carriage was spotted
anddetainedjustshortoftheFrenchfrontieratthetownof
Varennes.ThekingandhisfamilywerereturnedtoParisand
therevolutioncontinued,withthequestionofthefutureof
themonarchyoneveryone’smind.
86
A Disturbing Turn of Events
87
a FearFUL FUtUre
InSpain,therevolutionpetrifiedeverynoblemanandnoble-
woman. Anything that even hinted of French liberalism, of
Enlightened social theory, or a challenge to royal author-
ity was questioned. By February 1792, the liberal-minded
PrimeMinisterFloridablancawasdismissedfromhisservice
tothestateandreplacedbytheagingcountofAranda,who
had served Carlos III nearly 20 years earlier and himself
had promoted an Enlightened Spain. Aranda was removed
within 10 months, only to be replaced by the queen’s lover,
the 25-year-old Godoy. Godoy was a virile, blond guards-
man whom the queen had already promoted in just a few
yearstolieutenantgeneralofthearmy,dukeofAlcudia,and
member of the Council of State. Yet Godoy was incapable
ofalteringtheunfoldinganddisconcertingstateofaffairsin
France.HecoulddonothingtosavetheFrenchroyalfamily,
fellow Bourbons and cousins to Carlos IV. By August 1792,
the French monarchy was dethroned, and by January of the
followingyear,LouisXVIwastakentothescaffoldandguillo-
tined.WhenSpainprotestedandhinteditwouldnottolerate
theactionsbeingtakenbytheFrenchrevolutionaries,leaders
ofthenewFrenchrepublicchosetodeclarewaronSpain.The
next20yearswouldbedarkanddifficult.
Goya’s life was also taking disturbing turns. Little is
known of his comings and goings in 1792. There are no
knownlettersinexistencetodaywrittenduringthatyear.Itis
notevenclearhowhefellsodramaticallyoutoffavor,losing
