In 1807 Spain saw King Ferdinand VII relinquish the throne to Napoleon as the Peninsular War tore through the country. During the war, Spanish artist Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes (1746–1828) began The Disasters of War (Los desastres de la guerra). This series served as inspiration for generations of artists, among them Otto Dix and the TASS Window artists.

_{Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes. A Heroic Feat! With Dead Men!, plate 39 from The Disasters of War (Los desastres de la guerra), c. 1812/15, published 1863. Gift of J. C. Cebrian.}