The Whore's Revenge

Statue in London of John Wilkes

Nigel Bruce

• 1 min read
Statue in London of John Wilkes
Cropped detail from "John Glynn, John Wilkes and John Horne Tooke," given to the National Portrait Gallery, London in 1922.

It even preserves Wilkes' squint!

Statue in London of John Wilkes

There are many stories about Wilkes - his libertinism, his political agitating, his ability to offend everyone, and his wit. When the Earl of Sandwich told him he would die either on the scaffold or of the pox, Wilkes replied: "That must depend on whether I embrace your lordship’s principles or your mistress." He eventually died of an obscure wasting disease called marasmus, which seems to be caused by malnutrition.

In his 1754 'Essay on Woman' Wilkes wrote:
'Life can little more supply
than just a few good fucks and then we die.'

Below is Hogarth's unflattering portrait, squint and all.