BBC: "Political cartoons: Britain's revolutionaries"

Link to web site

"Because of Britain's lack of censorship laws in the 18th century - the 'golden age' of political caricatures according to Lord Baker - a 'graphic satire' was able to flourish:

"If you criticised the king or queen of France you were sent to the Bastille - in fact if you criticised Louis XIV you got torn about by four horses, which did rather discourage people.

But there wasn't any censorship here: we laughed at our kings and queens, and we laughed at our prime ministers."

"Not only has the culture of cartooning helped Britain remain a stable country, it was also the beginning of public engagement in politics, making a connection between prime ministers and the people for the first time."