Army of the Holy League of the Jesuit Monarchy, Romeyn de Hooghe (attributed to), after Romeyn de Hooghe, 1689

Army of the Holy League of the Jesuit Monarchy, Romeyn de Hooghe (attributed to), after Romeyn de Hooghe, 1689

etching, h 584mm × w 450mm More details

Seated astride an ass, the French King Louis XIV and deposed English King James II lead a bizarre procession into battle against the Protestants. Progress is slow as the donkey baulks, apparently unwilling to go on. Their troops ride snails, turtles and other sluggish creatures. The English confessor Father Petre is seated on a lobster, which was believed to always walk backwards.