Sir Thomas Lawrence, P.R.A. and Studio* (1769-1830)

Details

Sir Thomas Lawrence, P.R.A. and Studio* (1769-1830)

Portrait of General James Stuart, standing three-quarter length, wearing a red uniform with gold frogging, his hand resting on the hilt of a sword, a landscape beyond

oil on canvas
50 1/8 x 40 1/8in. (127.3 x 102cm.)

Provenance

with Leggatt Bros., London, 1925.

Literature

J. Farrington, The Farrington Diary, ed. J. Greig, March 5, 1801.
Lord R. Sutherland Gower, Sir Thomas Lawrence, 1900, p. 161.
Sir W. Armstrong, Lawrence, 1913, p.165.
K. Garlick, Sir Thomas Lawrence, 1954, p. 59.
K. Garlick, Sir Thomas Lawrence, 1989, p. 270, no. 749.

Exhibited

London, Royal Academy, 1801, no. 62.

Engraved

G. Clint, 1802.

Lot Essay

James Stuart (1741-1815) was the third son of John Stuart of Blairhall and Anne, daughter of Francis, Earl of Murray. In 1757, he abandoned his studies in law and joined the army, serving in the American War of Independence. In 1782, he travelled to India and having been appointed Lieutenant-Colonel, served under Cornwallis in the campaigns of 1791-2. On August 8, 1792, he was promoted to the rank of Colonel and three years later, prior to taking command of the successful expedition against the Dutch possessions in Ceylon, he was appointed Major-General, becoming Commander-in-Chief of the Madras army in 1801. Four years later he returned to England due to bad health, and died without issue on April 29, 1815.

Farrington (loc. cit.) states that the hand and sword were finished by Samuel Lane who also then made a copy of the complete portrait.