George III, Queen Charlotte and their six eldest children c.1769-70
Oil on canvas | 27.9 x 41.2 cm (support, canvas/panel/stretcher external) | RCIN 400669
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The German artist Johan Zoffany arrived in London in 1760 and soon established a reputation for informal conversation pieces in which accurate and lively portraits were set in surroundings showing the sitters’ taste and circumstances. John Stuart, 3rd Earl of Bute, commissioned portraits of his children from Zoffany c.1763-4 and probably introduced the artist to the King and Queen. The King nominated Zoffany to the new Royal Academy in 1769. He remained in favour for a further ten years, but after the unfavourable reception of The Tribuna was supplanted by other, younger artists. The sitters in this lively oil-sketch are all in Van Dyck costumes, with, at the centre, George III with his left hand resting on a column and his right hand on his hip; to his left sits Queen Charlotte, holding Princess Augusta as a baby, while Princess Charlotte stands at her knee. The four eldest sons stand at the King's right hand; from left to right they are Prince William, George, Frederick and Edward (the baby a playing with a dog). This is a preparatory or presentation sketch of a full-length group, also in the Royal Collection (OM 1201, 400501). In the transition from sketch to finished work many things are subtly changed, generally making the poses more formal and decorous: the comparison between baby Prince Edward playing with the dog in the loosest drapery in the sketch and sitting fully dressed with a dog in the finished painting gives a clear indication of how much of the charm and freshness of this sketch is lost in the process of creating a royal image.
Provenance
Purchased by Queen Elizabeth II in 1957
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Creator(s)
Acquirer(s)
Subject(s)
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Medium and techniques
Oil on canvas
Measurements
27.9 x 41.2 cm (support, canvas/panel/stretcher external)
41.6 x 54.7 x 6.5 cm (frame, external)
Category
Object type(s)
Other number(s)
Alternative title(s)
George III (1738-1820), Queen Charlotte (1744-1818) and their six eldest children
The family of George III