The 2nd of May 1808 in Madrid or The fight against the mamelukes (sketch)

This sketch, a preparatory drawing for the monumental work The 2nd of May 1808 in Madrid, is housed at the Prado Museum in Madrid. It depicts the violent reaction of the people of Madrid against the mamluk guard, egyptian mercenaries in Napoleon’s service, following the occupation of 1808. The people attack them with knives and sharp objects, trying to unseat them from their horses and kill them.

Set against a background traditionally identified as the Puerta del Sol, the painting features a skewed perspective that clusters figures in the foreground and conveys a frenetic sense of movement, thanks to its dramatic foreshortening and the artist’s fluid brushwork. Certain discrepancies with the final version, can be seen changes that Goya introduced as he worked, such as the replacement of one of the Mamelukes with a french cuirassier, or the civilian who is attacking the horse with a pike.

Goya captured the drama and tension of the events in the scene with a thoroughly romantic style.