Deborah Hopton and her Son

The painting depicts Dame Deborah as a widow. In 1654 she was married for a second time to Sir Edward Hopton of Canon Frome, Herefordshire. He was an M.P. for Hereford and a Royalist and had been a ‘Yeoman of the stirrup to Charles I’ . The family had split allegiances with one side fighting for the Cavaliers, the other for the Roundheads. Canon Frome Court, their home, was garrisoned during the Civil Wars on behalf of the king. On 22 July 1645, following a siege of two years, it was taken by the Scots.

Edward and Dame Deborah had two daughters, Alice and Deborah, and four sons. Sir Edward died in 1668 and Dame Deborah at the age of 77 in 1702. The painting remained in the family’s possession until 1942 when it was sold as part of the sale of the estate and its contents.

James Gandy (1619-1689) was one of the earliest English painters. It was thought that Gandy was probably from Exeter and he was most likely a student of Anthony van Dyck. The Duke of Ormonde, his patron, took him to Ireland where he remained until his death. He is the father of the artist William Gandy, the portrait painter.