MARIA COSWAY (BRITISH 1759-1838), PORTRAIT OF CAROLINE

MARIA COSWAY (BRITISH 1759-1838)PORTRAIT OF CAROLINE, PRINCESS OF WALES AND HER DAUGHTER, PRINCESS CHARLOTTEOil on canvas laid to panel59 x 49cm (23 x 19¼ in.)The heads purportedly later touched and altered by Sir Thomas Lawrence in 1801.Provenance: Gifted to Lady Glenbervie by Queen Caroline (then Princess Caroline)The Hon. Frederick Sylvester North Douglas and Harriet Wrightson Thence by descent at Weston Hall. Literature:S. Lloyd, Richard & Maria Cosway: Regency Artists of Taste and Fashion, Edinburgh, 1995, no. 225, plate 72.Catalogue Note:This romantic painting by Maria Cosway (1760-1838) of Caroline of Brunswick, Princess of Wales (1768-1821), consort of George, Prince of Wales (later George IV, 1762-1830), with her daughter, Princess Charlotte Augusta (1796-1817), shows Caroline leaning against a statue of Britannia seated in profile, and Charlotte sitting on a lion couchant, which rests at Britannia's feet; St. Paul's Cathedral, London is in the background. The original giltwood frame is surmounted by the Prince of Wales's crest of the three ostrich feathers. By repute, it was a Royal gift from Princess Caroline to Catherine Anne Douglas, Lady Glenbervie (1760-1817), who was her Mistress of the Robes from 1809-20. A label on the back bears the inscription:'Caroline, Princess of Wales aged 32, and Princess Charlotte her daughter; designed and painted by Maria Cosway (wife of Mr Cosway), around 1800. The heads afterwards touched and altered by Lawrence in 1801. The Princess sat to both the painters. Given by HRH The Princess of Wales, Feb. 1801 to Lady Glenbervie when she was about to embark for the Cape of Good Hope'.Although the painting is unsigned it is the exemplar for a mezzotint ; an example is in the Royal Collection (RCIN 605385), the artist is inscribed to the left: 'Maria Cosway pinxit.'; the engraver to the right: 'S.W. Reynolds sculpt.', and below the publisher 'London, Published May 1 1801, at R ACKERMANN'S Repository of Arts, No.101, Strand'. Another copy is in the British Museum (1902,1011.3809).The choice of Maria Cosway as artist was undoubtedly due to the close friendship that existed between Maria and her husband Richard, a leading portrait painter of the Regency period, with the Prince. In 1785, Richard was appointed Principal Painter to the Prince, and the Prince and the bon ton were frequent visitors at Maria's glittering salons and concerts at Schomberg House, 80-82 Pall Mall, London. That the Princess might ask Sir Thomas Lawrence (1769-1830) to re-touch the faces of this painting because she was unhappy with the original is feasible. Lawrence was the most celebrated portraitist of his age, and patronised by international statesmen and society figures as well as royalty and military leaders. He was a favourite of the Princess, painting her at least three times, including another painting of her and her daughter (1801-2), which survives in the Royal Collection (RCIN 407292). It shows the Princess playing a harp watched over by a shadowy bust of Minerva, patroness of the arts; Caroline tunes her harp and prepares to play the music offered up by her daughter Charlotte. In 1806, the conduct of Lawrence and the Princess while it was being painted was scrutinised during the 'Delicate Investigation'. A commission of Cabinet ministers assessed the allegations that the Princess had had an adulterous affair with, amongst others, Lawrence. The Princess stated that Lawrence 'stayed a few nights, that by early rising, he might begin painting on the picture before the Princess Charlotte (who as her residence was at that time at Shooter's Hill, was enabled to come early) or myself came to sit' (. Accessed 9 August 2021).Catherine Anne Douglas, Lady Glenbervie, is recorded as Mistress of the Robes to Caroline, Princess of Wales from 1809-20 (. Accessed 9 August 2021). Her spouse, Sylvester Douglas, 1st Baron Glenbervie (1743-1823), was offered the prospect of becoming governor of the Cape in September 1796, and again in January 1800, which he initially refused. In October 1800, he was again proposed for the Cape but political circumstances prevented the appointment. Therefore, while the label on the back of this painting mentions Lord Glenbervie and the Cape, it seems more likely that the Princess gifted the painting offered here during Lady Glenbervie's term as Mistress of the Robes. This supposition is reinforced by the Lawrence painting discussed above, which was originally painted for a Mistress of the Robes, Anne, Marchioness Townshend (her appointment between 1795 and 1808).This painting came to Weston Hall through the marriage of Lord and Lady Glenbervie's son, Frederick Sylvester North Douglas (1791-1819), politician and classical scholar, to Harriet Wrightson (d. 1864), eldest daughter of William Wrightson of Cusworth, Yorkshire; Harriet inherited Weston Hall through her aunt, Mary Heber, in 1809.Condition Report: The paint surface is uneven in places and dirty, with some areas of more ingrained dirt. There is a strip of paint loss to the framed edge at the upper left. There are a number of surface scuffs and scratches. UV light reveals scattered retouching throughout. Frame has had some restoration. Losses and regilding to floral swags. Restoration to top left corner and top edge and round the frame edge. Prince of Wales crest has been off and reattached and has old damage and restorations Gilding flaking and worn consist with age Condition Report Disclaimer