The History of John Bull

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John Arbuthnot's History of John Bull (1712) is the satirical prose work that gave the English their national symbol: John Bull, an honest but blunt cloth-merchant, representing England in an allegory of the War of the Spanish Succession. Originally in pamphlet form with dialogue passages, it has been adapted for theatrical reading. Swift, Pope, and Gay helped Arbuthnot develop the political satire; the work represents the Scriblerus Club's political humor at its sharpest. John Bull's combination of bluff common sense and gullible stubbornness has defined the English national character in caricature for three centuries.