1846 d'Hastrel Panoramic View of Montevideo

This beautiful view of Montevideo, Uruguay, captures the city on the brink of the Great Siege of Montevideo during the Uruguayan Civil War (1839 - 1851). It was drawn and painted by Adolphe d'Hastrel and lithographed in 1846 by Eugène Cicéri. Watercolorist and naval artillery officer d'Hastrel, accompanying the French Rio de la Plata expedition, arrived in Montevideo then under threat of attack: D'Hastel was able to find time - whilst directing the city's French residents' efforts to fortify the city - to draw and paint this, among the dozen views he would publish in the 1846 Album de la Plata.

A Closer Look

The view presents a panorama of Montevideo's Ciudad Vieja, viewed from the east. Prominent in the view is the Catedral Metropolitana. In the distant background, ships can be seen in the harbor. In the foreground, Uruguayans are illustrated on foot and on horseback - indeed, one appears to be riding a ram. An ox-cart carrying butchered cuts of meat rolls towards the city. In the middle ground, a cart drawn by six oxen carries a heavy load - perhaps material for the city fortifications. To the right, a group of women sit in the shade of a simple hovel, perhaps a laundry or a dyers. We can see another woman laboring at a fire under cloth drying on a line. Such scenes are characteristic of d'Hastrel, who had an eye for daily life.

The Great Siege of Montevideo

The newly independent nation of Uruguay was wracked by civil war from 1830 to 1851. Opposing presidents, Fructuoso Rivera and Manuel Oribe, formed opposing political parties: the Colorados and the Nationals, respectively. Oribe's Nationals, wearing white armbands, came to be known as Blancos. Rivera's, with red armbands, were dubbed Colorados. Following the defeat of the Colorados at the battle of Arroyo Grande, the Blancos moved to swiftly take Montevideo. The Colorado defense of the city had substantial support from a large community of foreign exiles (including not only the French but also the famous Italian revolutionary Giuseppe Maria Garibaldi) and a contingent of 5,000 free slaves. This defense forced a 9-year siege. It ended when the British navy opened a supply line for Montevideo, effectively breaking the siege.

Publication History and Census

This lithograph was prepared in 1846 in Paris by Étienne Eugène Cicéri for publication in d'Hastrel's Album de la Plata, published by chez Gihaut. The Album is rare: we see only one institutional example at the Bibliothèque National de France. We see a sole example of the separate view in the same institution.