On the First of April, Previously Alva Lost His Spectacles

This hand-colored Dutch print satirizes the Duke of Alva's loss of Den Briel in April 1572—a pivotal moment in the Dutch Revolt. Two armored figures face off: one gestures mockingly with spectacles, while the other clutches a lantern, surrounded by numbered markers on the ground. The composition echoes Northern European satirical traditions from Hogarth through Daumier, where caricature and emblematic objects conveyed political meaning to literate publics. The April Fool's framing transforms military defeat into comedic humiliation. This wood-engraved or lithographed print descends directly from the picture-sheet satire tradition that preceded modern comics—using exaggeration, symbolic props, and visual wit to comment on state power and national pride.