Джон Трамбулл: Художник и герой Революции

American artist (1756–1843)

John Trumbull (June 6, 1756November 10, 1843) was an American painter and military officer best known for his historical paintings of the American Revolutionary War, of which he was a veteran. He has been called the "Painter of the Revolution". Trumbull's Declaration of Independence (1817), one of his four paintings that hang in the United States Capitol rotunda, is used on the reverse of the current United States two dollar bill.

Trumbull was born in Lebanon in Connecticut Colony in 1756, to Jonathan Trumbull and Faith (née Robinson) Trumbull. His father served as governor of Connecticut from 1769 to 1784. Both sides of his family were descended from early Puritan settlers of Connecticut. He had two older brothers, Joseph Trumbull, the first commissary general of the Continental Army in the Revolutionary War, and Jonathan Trumbull Jr., who became the second Speaker of the House of Representatives. Trumbull entered the 1771 junior class at Harvard College at age 15 and graduated in 1773. Due to a childhood accident, Trumbull lost the use of one eye, which may have influenced his detailed painting style.

As a soldier in the American Revolutionary War, Trumbull rendered a particular service at Boston by sketching plans of the British and American lines and works. He witnessed the Battle of Bunker Hill. He was appointed second aide de camp to General George Washington, and in June 1776, deputy adjutant general to General Horatio Gates. He resigned from the army in 1777 after a dispute over the dating of his officer commission. In 1780, with funds depleted, Trumbull turned to art as a profession and traveled to London, where he was introduced to Benjamin Franklin. Trumbull studied under Benjamin West. At West's suggestion, Trumbull painted small pictures of the American Revolutionary War and miniature portraits. He painted about 250 such portraits in his lifetime. He also painted the portrait of Washington from memory during this time.

On September 23, 1780, British agent Major John André was captured by Continental Army troops in North America; he was hanged as a spy on October 2, 1780. After news reached Great Britain, outrage flared and Trumbull was arrested for treason, since he was known to be an officer in the Continental Army and of similar rank to André. Trumbull was imprisoned for seven months at Tothill Fields Bridewell in London.

After being released, Trumbull returned to the United States on a voyage that lasted six months, arriving in late January 1782. He then joined his brother David in supplying the army stationed at New Windsor, New York, during the winter of 1782 and 1783.

In 1784, following Britain's recognition of United States' sovereignty and independence, Trumbull returned to London to study painting under West. His first major work, The Deputation from the Senate Presenting to Cincinnatus the Command of the Roman Armies, was accepted and displayed by the Royal Academy of Arts in that year. In this work, Trumbull painted Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus in the likeness of George Washington. The painting's current location is unknown. While working in his studio, Trumbull painted Battle of Bunker Hill and Death of General Montgomery in the Attack on Quebec; both works are now housed at the Yale University Art Gallery in New Haven, Connecticut. In July 1786, Trumbull traveled to Paris, where he made portrait sketches of French officers, including Surrender of Lord Cornwallis. With assistance from Thomas Jefferson, who was then serving in Paris as the American minister to France, Trumbull began the early composition of the Declaration of Independence.) and John Jay. Trumbull was elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1791 and elected as a member of the American Philosophical Society in 1792. He painted portraits of John Adams (1797), Jonathan Trumbull, and Rufus King (1800); Timothy Dwight and Stephen Van Rensselaer (both at Yale), Alexander Hamilton (one in the Metropolitan Museum of Art and one in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, both taken from Ceracchi's bust), a self portrait (1833), a full length of Washington, held at Charleston, South Carolina; a full length of Washington in uniform, General George Washington at Trenton, (1792, at Yale); and portraits of President and Mrs. Washington (1794), in the National Museum of American History.

Trumbull was appointed president of the American Academy of the Fine Arts in New York City, serving from 1816 to 1836. Emphasizing classical traditions, Trumbull did not get along with the students. At the same time, his painting skills declined. In 1825, many of the students withdrew, founding the National Academy of Design. Unable to accommodate to changing tastes, the American Academy later closed in 1839 after a second fire destroyed its collections. Trumbull wrote his autobiography, which he published in 1841. He died in New York City at the age of 87 on November 10, 1843.

Trumbull was originally interred (along with his wife) beneath the Art Gallery at Yale University, which he had designed. In 1867, the collection of his works was moved to the newly built Street Hall. His wife and his remains were reinterred on those grounds. The Trumbull Gallery was later razed. 1965, the John Trumbull Birthplace in Lebanon, Connecticut, was declared a National Historic Landmark. 1968, a John Trumbull commemorative postage stamp was printed.

Actor Buzz Bovshow played John Trumbull in the television miniseries John Adams. "No John Trumbull" is a deleted song from the musical Hamilton.