Jackson United Defence Against Aggression

In the compelling lithograph, the allegorical figures of England and France are depicted in medieval dress, valiantly defending against the swooping black eagle of Germany. The artist, F. E. Jackson, son of a printer and former apprentice to a lithographic firm in Leeds, studied art in Paris before becoming an instructor at the Royal Academy School and later Principal of the Byam Shaw School. A key figure in propaganda lithography during World War I, he was instrumental in the production of "The Great War: Britain's Efforts and Ideals."

F. E. Jackson’s "United Against Aggression (England and France, 1914)" demonstrates how "England" was used interchangeably with "Britain" at the time – it would also have been more appealing to a US audience, presenting England as a small country that needed assistance, rather than a global power with an empire. England and France are represented as regal and genteel, batting away the hostile German eagle.