Drummond exhibited at the Royal Academy from 1791 until his death in 1844. Initially portraits were his main subject but genre and historical scenes seemed to have become more popular later in his career; some of his most famous pictures, 'The Battle of Camperdown', 'The Death of Nelson', and 'The Battle of Trafalgar' are all in the National Maritime Museum. In 1809, he exhibited 'The Soldier in Peace: "No more the fife, no more the thundering drum, etc."' (no.217), which may be the present picture