Plate 7 from "The Disasters of War" (Los Desastres de la Guerra): 'What courage!' (Que valor!)

Art Historical Context

In Francisco de Goya *The Disasters of* (Los Desastres la Guerra), a groundbreaking series of 82 prints created between 1810 and 1820 but published posthumously in 1863, Plate 7 titled *'What courage!' ( valor!)* captures the raw ferocity of the Peninsular War (1808–1814). This conflict pitted Spanish forces and civilians against Napoleon's invading army, and Goya, as a witness in Madrid, documented its unspeakable horrors with unflinching honesty. The image likely depicts women amid cannons and corpses, embodying defiant heroism in the face of death—a stark commentary on war's brutality from all sides. Goya's mastery shines through his innovative use of etching for precise lines, aquatint for moody tonal depths, drypoint for velvety textures, and burin for sharp details. These intaglio techniques allowed unprecedented expressiveness in printmaking, blending realism with emotional intensity characteristic of his Romantic style. At just 6 x 8 inches, the plate's intimate scale amplifies its visceral impact, making the viewer's encounter personal and haunting. This work endures as a cultural touchstone, influencing later war artists like Picasso and Otto Dix. Acquired by The Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1922, it reminds us of Goya's prophetic cry against violence, urging reflection on courage amid catastrophe.

About the Artist

Goya (Francisco de Goya y Lucientes) · 1746–1828

Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes (1746-1828) was a Spanish painter and printmaker considered the last of the Old Masters and the first of the moderns. Rising from modest provincial origins to become First Court Painter to Charles IV, Goya's career spanned the Enlightenment's optimism and the brutal Napoleonic invasion that shattered it. A mysterious illness in 1793 left him permanently deaf and ...