A coat of arms with clysters; representing the reign of Louis-Philippe. Coloured lithograph.

The coat of arms bears a wasp on the left, a turkey at the centre, and a fleur de lys on the right.

'Le juste milieu' was the name given to the political system proposed by the leading insurgents of the July Revolution. Soon, however, the term became debased by the realities of Louis-Philippe's government; it acquired a disappointed, ironic hue. The 'armes' here are also the weapons of the state and the print may refer to events occurring between the 5th and 10th of May 1831, when continued rioting in the Place Vendôme was quelled by spraying water to disperse the throng. This hitherto unknown method of riot control was devised by Georges Mouton, comte de Lobau (sometimes referred to as Lebeau), the état-major général at the time, and Gabriel Delessert, the préfet of police

1 print : lithograph, with watercolour

Armes du juste milieu. Mieux vaut la honte que la guerre. La France n'y...sentira pas ... Left-hand sheet of paper reads: Insultes. Mandem.t de l'Arch.gier de Pe... Manifesté de la Russie. Lettre du Duc de Modene. Sermons des curés. Services pour le duc de Bac. Ades de Don Miguel. Discours de Prues [?]. On right-hand: Police secrete. Gazettes 300,000 de Paris 10000. Espionage de Sp...10,200,000. Débats 100,000. Elections 100,000

Wellcome Collection 16876i