Inconveniences of a Crowded Drawing Room

Cruikshank amusingly satirized the comical inelegance of a crowded drawing room, in this instance a royal reception given by Queen Charlotte at Buckingham Palace. He lampooned the participants with their absurd fashions and horrified, snooty expressions as awkward moments unfold. A contemporary had complained of the less-than-exclusive crowd attending the queen's drawing rooms: The crowds are so great and so little decorum attended to, that people's clothes are literally torn to pieces.