Penang - William Westall (3)

This extract from 'The Raffles Drawings in the India Office' by Mildred Archer & John Bastin (1978), should have come before the Indian blog.

View of Fort Cornwallis, Prince of Wales Island, Penang (Peninsular Malaysia) 1804 by William Westall

Inscribed on the front in watercolour: William Westall 1804. On back in pencil: South view of Prince of Wales Island. Drawn and finished while in vessel off the island in 1804. W. Westall (the entry given has G W. Westall but I know of no relative or descendant of William's that could account for this. I have assumed this must be William.)

This watercolour is one of the earliest extant views of Prince of Wales Island (Penang) before it was elevated to a Presidency Government in 1805. It depicts in some detail Fort Cornwallis, named after Governor-General Lord Cornwallis (1738 - 1805) which was formidable in appearance but (according to Sir George Leith, Lt Governor of the island between 1800 and 1803) was totally incapable of defence. Judging by the inscription on the back, the watercolour was made by William Westall when his ship was anchored off George Town during March 1804...It seems likely that the rather uninspired engraving by Baily of Prince of Wales Island, which was published on 30 Jan 1813 by Joyce Gold for inclusion in 'The Naval Chronicle', XXIX, of the same year, was modelled on the Cadell and Davies engraving (Which was issued between 1811 and 1814 under the title 'Foreign Scenery' with eight others by this artist). Whatever may be the fact, the engraving by Baily is based on the present watercolour or another very like it, which would suggest that the drawing could not have come into the Raffles's possession until after he returned to England fromJava in 1816.

note Westall must have been at Penang some time during March of 1804.