The Black Brunswicker

A man in a jet-black uniform announces his departure, while a woman clutches the doorknob tightly, trying to prevent him from leaving.
The lustrous white satin dress and the black military attire, imbued with the scent of death, create a cruel contrast.

The year is 1815, the eve of the historic Battle of Waterloo.

The 'Black Brunswickers,' to which the man belongs, were an elite unit formed under the oath of 'Death or Glory,' bearing a skull emblem on their caps.

Survival from the harsh battlefield they were heading to was almost hopeless.

The painter John Everett Millais depicts a moment that might be an eternal farewell between a man and a woman, torn between their affection for each other and the harsh duty of a soldier.

Contrary to the silent plea of the young woman begging him not to go, the man's calm eyes are already fixed on his duty to the battlefield, and only his loyal dog at his feet gazes up at the poignant scene.

Even in the beautifully depicted background, an ominous code is hidden.

A print of Napoleon by David hanging on the wall hints at the looming threat of war, and the beautiful emerald green wallpaper surrounding the couple is painted with a highly toxic arsenic-containing dye that was common at the time.

As if even the small remaining space of love is already encroached upon by the shadow of death.

A man heading to his death for duty, and a woman trembling with fear of losing her beloved.

Millais thus eternally captured the timeless 'pain of parting' on a single, breathtakingly detailed and dramatic canvas.