PORTRAIT OF JOHN MANNERS, MARQUIS OF GRANBY, IN MASQUERADE HUSSAR'S COSTUME, WITH A SPANIEL AT HIS SIDE, BY A COLUMN IN A LANDSCAPE WITH BELVOIR CASTLE BEYOND

This portrait depicts the famous commander John, Marquis of Granby (d.1770) shortly after his marriage to Lady Frances Seymour in 1750. Commander- in-Chief of British forces under Prince Ferdinand of Brunswick in Germany and Master-General of the Ordnance, in July 1760 at the Battle of Warburg during the seven Years War, he famously led the British Cavalry against the French - losing his hat and wig in the process. His glistening bald pate providing a beacon for his men, he gave rise to the saying 'Going for it Bald Headed'. Passionate about the welfare of his soldiers, he established as innkeepers those of his non-commissioned officers who were wounded or disabled - accounting for the extensive number of 'Marquis of Granby' pubs that survive.