COST OF REVOLUTION. The Life and Death of an Irish Soldier at theMuseum of the American Revolution: Review By Polly Guerin

COST OF REFOUUTION EXHIBIT 

The American Revolution and its fight to be free of British rule is an inspiring battle cry that also
spirited on the cause for rebellion in other countries, particularly  Ireland. 
COST OF REVOLUTION: THE LIFE AND DEATH OF AN IRISH SOLIDER at the Museum of the American Revolution in Philadelphia tells the untold story of RICHARD ST. GEORGE, an Irish soldier and artist, whose personal trauma and untimely death provide a window into the entangled histories of the American Revolution and the ensuing Irish Revolution of 1798. "You may not have heard the name Richard St. George before, but you'll be astonished by what his life can tell us about America and Ireland during the Age of Revolution," said Dr. R. Scott Stephenson, President and CEO of the Museum of the American Revolution. "This exhibit extends the Museum's internationally acclaimed, story-driven approach into the global stage to examine the broader influence of the American Revolution through St. George's remarkable personal journey."   On view through March 17, 2020.   

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Richard St. George by Thomas Gainsborough

        St. George, mind you, did not fight on the American side, yet his story is a compelling reference to the time and place when history took on the monumental cry for liberty. As a young officer in the British Army, Richard St. George crossed the Atlantic in 1776 to try and stop the growing American Revolution. He returned home to Ireland after surviving a severe head wound at the Battle of Germantown, near Philadelphia in 1777. Back in Ireland he found his native country roiled by the effects of the revolutionary spirit sweeping across America and Europe. Inspired by the rally call for freedom St. George became an outspoken critic of the growing movement to establish an Irish republic, independent of the British Empire in the late 1790s. Sadly, a few months before the outbreak of the Irish Revolution of 1798, St. George was ambushed and killed by a group of Irish tenants in County Cork who were influenced by the United Irishmen and the Defenders. He was eulogized at his funeral in 1798 at St. Mary's Church in Athlone, Ireland for having devoted his life to defending the British Crown. 
         American Revolution history buffs will appreciate the KEY ARTIFACTS ON DISPLAY: The 1775 bound maps of the estate of Richard St. George in County Galway, on loan from the Galway County Council Archives, Galway, Ireland. A rare silk flag carried by the Delaware militia tha the British light infantry captured during the Philadelphia campaign of 1777, on loan from the Delaware Historical Society, Richard St. George's personal sketches from the American Revolutionary War, on loan from a private collection. One sketch depicts St. George being carried off the battlefield following his wounding at the Battle of Germantown in 1777.  Image: A portrait of Richard St. George by English artist Thomas Gainsborough (1776) that depicts him just before he shipped out for New York to fight against the growing American Revolution, on loan to the Museum from Australia's National Portrait Gallery of Victoria (Melbourne).        

Exhibition Display COST OF REVOLUTION

Five portraits of Richard St. George, created over a span of 25 years, are known to survive and are reunited in the exhibit for the first time since they left the possession of St. George's descendants more than a century ago. Every piece of surviving artwork by St. George himself, including cartoons, sketches from his military service in America, and a self-portrait are also assembled for the first time in this exhibit. Together, the portraits, cartoons and sketches reveal the physical and emotional toll of revolution. Among the other portraits are paintings of the Battles of Paoli and Germantown by Italian artist Xavier della Gatta that St. George helped to create in 1782 to reflect on St. George's participation in those battles. The paints are in the Museum's permanent collection. SPECIAL PROGRAMMING HIGHLIGHTS: The Museum's monthly History After Hours Series includes COMIC RELIEF on November 19; CAMPED OUT on December 10, and A WINTER'S BALL on January 21, 2020.   For more information visit www.amrevmuseum.org/exhibits/special-exhibitions. Or call 215.253.6731.
MUSEUM of the AMERICAN REVOLUTION, 101 S. Third Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106
       Ta Ta Darlings!!! Even if you are not an aficionado of historical research COST OF REVOLUTION reminds us to remember that the American Revolution is the birth of our
nation with Freedom and Liberty at the core of our fundamental beliefs. Fan mail always
welcome at pollytalknyc@gmail.com. Visit Polly's other Blogs at www.pollytalk.com.