''Portrait of Maria Fitzherbert'' is a 1788
portrait painting
Portrait painting is a Hierarchy of genres, genre in painting, where the intent is to represent a specific human subject. The term 'portrait painting' can also describe the actual painted portrait. Portraitists may create their work by commissio ...
by the British artist
Sir Joshua Reynolds
Sir Joshua Reynolds (16 July 1723 – 23 February 1792) was an English painter who specialised in portraits. The art critic John Russell (art critic), John Russell called him one of the major European painters of the 18th century, while Lucy P ...
.
The widowed
Maria Fitzherbert
Maria Anne Fitzherbert (''née'' Smythe, previously Weld; 26 July 1756 – 27 March 1837) was a longtime companion of George, Prince of Wales (later King George IV of the United Kingdom). In 1785, they married secretly in a ceremony that was ...
had entered into a clandestine marriage with
George, Prince of Wales in 1785. Although technically illegal due to the
Royal Marriages Act
The Royal Marriages Act 1772 ( 12 Geo. 3. c. 11) was an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain which prescribed the conditions under which members of the British royal family could contract a valid marriage, in order to guard against marriages ...
, the couple lived together as husband and wife. The issue of this secret earlier marriage became a potentially controversial issue when George entered a
dynastic marriage
Royal intermarriage is the practice of members of ruling dynasties marrying into other reigning families. It was more commonly done in the past as part of strategic diplomacy for national interest. Although sometimes enforced by legal requiremen ...
with his cousin
Caroline of Brunswick
Caroline of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel (Caroline Amelia Elizabeth; 17 May 1768 – 7 August 1821) was List of British royal consorts, Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Queen of Hanover from 29 January 1820 until her ...
in 1796. Despite this and his numerous affairs, George remained emotionally attached to his earlier marriage and was buried with a
miniature
A miniature is a small-scale reproduction, or a small version. It may refer to:
* Portrait miniature, a miniature portrait painting
* Miniature art, miniature painting, engraving and sculpture
* Miniature food, small edible or inedible versions o ...
of Maria Fitzherbert in 1830.
Reynolds was
President of the Royal Academy
Officers of the Royal Academy of Arts
This is a list of the officers of the Royal Academy of Arts
The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House in Piccadilly London, England. Founded in 1768, it has a ...
when he painted Fitzherbert. Today the painting is on display in the
National Portrait Gallery National Portrait Gallery may refer to:
* National Portrait Gallery (Australia), in Canberra
* National Portrait Gallery (Sweden), in Mariefred
*National Portrait Gallery (United States), in Washington, D.C.
*National Portrait Gallery, London
...
in
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
, having been lent from a private collection in 1976.
[https://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/portrait/mw02239]
See also
* ''
Portrait of George IV
''George IV'' is an 1821 portrait painting by the English artist Thomas Lawrence portraying George IV, the reigning monarch of the United Kingdom.Levey p.240
History
George is depicted in the robes he wore for Coronation of George IV, his cor ...
'', portrait by
Thomas Lawrence
Sir Thomas Lawrence (13 April 1769 – 7 January 1830) was an English people, English portrait painter and the fourth president of the Royal Academy. A child prodigy, he was born in Bristol and began drawing in Devizes, where his father was a ...
of Maria Fitzherbert's husband
References
Bibliography
* Baetjer, Katharine. ''British Paintings in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1575-1875''. Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2009.
* Black, Jeremy. ''George III: America's Last King''. Yale University Press, 2008.
* Garfield, Simon. ''In Miniature: How Small Things Illuminate the World''. Simon and Schuster, 2019.
* Irvine, Valerie. ''The King's Wife: George IV and Mrs Fitzherbert''. A&C Black, 2007.
* McIntyre, Ian. ''Joshua Reynolds: The Life and Times of the First President of the Royal Academy''. Allen Lane, 2003.
* Millar, Stephen. ''Lust, Lies and Monarchy: The Secrets Behind Britain's Royal Portraits''. Museyon, 2020
* Postle, Edward (ed.) ''Joshua Reynolds: The Creation of Celebrity''. Harry N. Abrams, 2005.
* Schama, Simon. ''The Face of Britain: The Nation through Its Portraits''. Penguin UK, 2015.
1788 paintings
Portraits by Joshua Reynolds
Paintings in the National Portrait Gallery, London
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