A Naive British Painting Depicting the Well at the 'Siege of Cawnpore', Watercolor on Paper, Circa 1857. Inscribed "The well at Cawnpore into which the murdered ladies & children were thrown". Together with a similar naive watercolor landscape depicting the 'Russian post on the Danube. Moonlight.", circa 1850.

The Siege of Cawnpore was a key episode in the Indian rebellion of 1857. The besieged East India Company forces and civilians in Cawnpore (now Kanpur) were unprepared for an extended siege and surrendered to rebel forces under Nana Sahib in return for a safe passage to Allahabad. However, their evacuation from Cawnpore turned into a massacre, and most of the men were killed. As an East India Company rescue force from Allahabad approached Cawnpore, 120 British women and children captured by the Sepoy forces were killed in what came to be known as the Bibighar Massacre, their remains being thrown down a nearby well in an attempt to hide the evidence. Following the recapture of Cawnpore and the discovery of the massacre, the angry Company forces engaged in widespread retaliation against captured rebel soldiers and local civilians. The murders greatly embittered the British rank-and-file against the Sepoy rebels and inspired the war cry "Remember Cawnpore!".

Dimensions: Sight 8 x 12 3/4in; Frame 14 3/4 x 18 1/4in and Sight 7 1/4 x 9 1/2in; Frame 10 3/4 x 12 3/4in.

Provenance: Property from a Local Collection.

Matted, framed and glazed. Neither painting were examined out of the frames. General fading and toning, otherwise appear to be in generally good condition overall.