Colonel William Fitch’s Horse in a landscape

Since 1799, Copley had undertaken a series of major portrait commissions including those of George John, Second Earl Spencer; John, Second Viscount Dudley and Ward and The Knatchbull Family. The present work relates to Copley’s portrait Colonel William Fitch and His Sisters Sarah and Ann Fitch (Washington, D.C., National Gallery of Art) which was exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1801. In a letter to her daughter Mrs. Copley wrote of the Fitch family portrait, ‘If I dare to give an opinion before the connoisseurs, I should say it was very fine.’ (Prown, 1966, p. 362). Whilst not universally praised by the critics, the Oracle did indeed give it a favorable review as, ‘One of the finest groups of family portraits we have seen.’ (May 7, 1801). Fitch died soon after the group portrait was finished, and it was sent to the patron Mr. Lloyd, an uncle in Boston.