The vigor of the work of Thure de Thulstrup is known to the reading
public mainly through his illustrations in metropolitan magazines,
but he has also painted a number of canvases which show that he is as
much at home with the brush as with the crayon or pencil. Thulstrup
was born in Stockholm, Sweden, and, after graduating from the Royal
Swedish military academy, was commissioned a lieutenant of artillery
in the army of that country. But being of an adventurous spirit, he
went to Algiers, where he enlisted in the First Zouave Regiment of the
French army, saw some service in Northern Africa, and was afterward
given a commission in the Foreign Legion. While a member of that body,
he took part in the Franco-German war of 1870-’71, and also assisted in
crushing the Commune in Paris. In 1872 he set sail for Canada, where
he obtained a position as civil engineer. From his boyhood he had
delighted in sketching, and it was about this time that he determined
to put his artistic gifts to practical use. His début as an illustrator
was with the New York Daily Graphic in the 70’s. Subsequently he became
connected with the Frank Leslie Magazine and with Harper & Brothers,
and it was his work with the last named firm that established his
reputation as an illustrator. He has painted a number of military
pictures, including a series of twelve which have to do with stirring
events of the Civil war in this country. Recently he has been engaged
on canvases which illustrate cavalier life in Virginia in the middle of
the eighteenth century. He has drawn the pictures of a number of books.