Portrait of Lady Frances Carteret, later Marchioness of Tweeddale (1718-1788), three-quarter-length, in a silver gown with an ermine-trimmed blue wrap

Lady Frances Carteret was the youngest daughter of John Carteret, 2nd Earl Granville, by his first wife, Frances Worsley. This particularly fine portrait of her by Ramsay was likely painted to celebrate her engagement to John Hay, 4th Marquess of Tweeddale, whom she married in 1748. The couple had six children, four daughters and two sons; their eldest son died in infancy, so the Marquessate was inherited by the younger, George, who himself died aged thirteen, at which point the title devolved on his uncle.

By the time of the present portrait Allan Ramsay had been working in London for a decade, and had firmly established his position as a leading portraitist of the age, attracting the patronage of some of Britain's most important families. His female portraits in particular were lauded for their elegance and sophistication, elements which are widely attributed to his travels and studies in Italy in the 1730s, where he crossed paths with Pompeo Batoni. Also much remarked upon were his refined technique for depicting fine costume details, and perhaps most importantly, his assured capacity to bring his sitters to life in their portraits.