Edward, Duke of York (1739-1767)

Edward Augustus, Duke of York, is shown in three-quarter-length, in the undress uniform of a flag officer, wearing the Garter. His right forearm rests on a chair and with his left hand he indicates the Colosseum, visible in the background. On the table behind him lie his hat and sword.

In 1763-64 the Duke visited Italy on a Grand Tour. Italian portraiture at this date was dominated by Pompeo Batoni and while in Rome (15 April - 28 April 1764) the Duke sat to Batoni for this portrait. The portrait exists in several versions, three of which are in the Royal Collection (RCIN 405034, RCIN 400503, RCIN 400212). The surprisingly modest composition may be explained by the short period that the Duke was in Rome, or may be because the portrait was conceived with the intention of making several replicas from it. Reference to these was made in James Martin’s ‘Grand Tour Journal MS.’, where an entry dated 20 July 1764 reads: ‘Went to Pompeia Batoni’s saw there several portraits. He has made a copy from that of the Duke of Yorke & rec’d orders for One or Two more.’ Comparison of the three portraits in the Royal Collection shows minor variations in the outlines of the lace at the sitter’s throat and wrists. It is thought that both this work and RCIN 400503 were painted by Batoni himself, but it remains unclear which is the prime original composition. A similar signed and dated original was given by the sitter to Earl Howe, a good version of the composition is at Scholss Marienburg, and copies have been recorded at various auction sales.

This portrait was given by the sitter to Sir Horace Mann, the English Resident in Florence, but the painting’s arrival was clearly delayed. On 22 September 1764 Mann wrote to Horace Walpole while expecting the picture: ‘which he [the Duke] has done me the honour to give to me. It was to be finished by the end of this month, but he [Batoni] never keeps his promise.’ (Walpole Correspondence, vol. XXII (1960), p. 255.

At about this time the Duke also sat for a full-length portrait in Garter Robes by Sir Nathaniel Dance Holland, which is also in the Royal Collection (RCIN 404333).