"Cold on Canadian hills, or Minden's plain,
Perhaps that parent mourned her soldier slain;
But o'er her babe, her eye dissolv'd in dew,
The big drops mingling with the milk he drew,
Gave the sad presage of his future years,
The child of misery, baptiz'd in tears!"

 

These lines from "Country Justice" (1774 –7) by the Somerset poet John Langthorne inspired the painting by Joseph Wright of Derby of which this is a version. It deals with homeless people and argues for better provision for soldiers' widows, both still very topical today.

18th century paintings were marketed as images through engravings (George Washington had this one at his home), and 'The Dead Soldier' was bought from exhibition by James Heath for the considerable sum of £105. Wright helped him market it by enrolling subscribers to fund its publishing but the actual engraving took six years: it sold for 1 guinea a copy (£1.05 –in today's money).

Wright was a skilful storyteller and a master of composition. He had become interested in light while in Italy 1773-5, producing a number of striking paintings of the volcano Vesuvius. The dramatic drapery, strong colour and timeless pose of the figures show neoclassical influence. Details like the interlinking hands, the graceful pose of the mother and the dramatically foreshortened dead body give a grandeur and universal character to this commonplace event.