The American Revolution War paved the way of inspiration for a lot of contemporary paintings and artwork. One of these masterpieces is a painting, The Death of General Warren at the Battle of Bunker's Hill, June 17, 1775 by an American artist, John Trumbull. The exact date it was created is unknown, however, historians believe it to be in the fall of 1785 (Lane). This iconic painting gives an insight into one of the most significant battles of the Revolutionary War, the Battle of Bunker Hill.
This painting identifies as historical painting. The medium is oil on canvas. The colors are mostly shades of brown, red, and white. Trumbull captures the tragedy of Joseph Warren’s death, who is dressed in white, as he bleeds to death. Above him stands a British major, John Small in red holding a sword, preventing another British soldier from staking Warren. This represents the collided piteousness of two men that had fought on the same side before. Around him, hysteria is shown by death and destruction. Warren’s heroism dawned upon America and the art world. So much so that about 10 years after
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In the painting, Warren is shown to dramatically descend into the arms of another soldier. Americans and British, the two main sides, are shown to be in hysteria. Among these figures, some key participants are William Howe, Henry Clinton, and William Prescott (St. Germain). Prescott also supposedly ordered American soldiers not to fire until “you see the whites of their eyes”. Two African American soldiers are also shown on the battlefield, representing the importance of black soldiers during the war. According to the Letters of Mrs. Adams: the Wife of John Adams, Abigail Williams claimed that her “blood shivered” when she first saw Trumbull’s original sketch of the painting. Trumbull also created several paintings on the Warren