ALLAN RAMSAY’S CORONATION PORTRAITS
By Mark Watkins
Allan Ramsay's painting life lasted from 1732 to 1770. After developing a successful portrait
painting business in London, he earned a commission in 1757 to paint fellow Scotsman John Stuart, 3rd
Earl of Bute. The job was offered by Lord Bute's student, the Prince of Wales. In return, Bute asked
Ramsay to paint the prince's portrait. When the prince became George III in October 1760, Bute
became the new king's first minister. These two portraits plus Bute's friendship landed Ramsay the
appointment "one of His Majesty's Principal Painters in Ordinary" in 1761. The king married Charlotte in
September of that year, and for 80 guineas a painting Ramsay was commissioned by the royal family to
paint the coronation portraits and by the Lord Chamberlain's office for numerous replications for
ambassadors and governors around the world. More portraits were ordered for royal residences and
by private citizens for their homes.
Ramsay set up a factory style studio on Soho Square. Ramsay told Bute in October 1762 he
(Ramsay) would "give the last painting to all of them with my own hand." He may not have held to that
resolution because an observer later said the studio was "crowded with portraits of His Majesty in
every stage of their operation. The painter could by no means satisfy demands that were made upon
his talent, which is why some pictures were not so highly finished as they ought to be."
In 1764 a second studio was acquired on Harley Street. David Martin was primary assistant. Another
young painter, Philip Reinagle, was said to have painted 90 of the portraits himself. Through the 1760s
Ramsay employed at least seven full-time assistants. Since different hands were used on the
coronation portraits, colors, head angles, torsos, backgrounds, clothing, and jewelry vary. Ramsay varied
canvas sizes, too. Ordinary size, according to Alastair Smart, is 90 by 60 inches. The Mint's George III
and Queen Charlotte are 96 by 63 inches.
Ramsay and his studio worked from a pair of masters (which today are unidentified) painted from at
least two sittings with the king and one with the queen. The first pair of portraits went to the king for
St. James Palace. In 1841 they were moved to Buckingham Palace. Jennifer Scott, a curator for the
Royal Collection, told me "we have two of the prime original versions. We also have one studio of
Ramsay of George III plus two copies (one of George and one of Charlotte) of less standard."
How many full-length coronation portraits of the king and queen were completed? It is unknown
exactly. Smart lists 176 of George and 69 of Charlotte. Historian Graham Hood, formerly with Colonial
Williamsburg, says there were 200 of George. Pat Hardy, assistant curator of the
National Portrait Gallery in London, counts 170 portraits of the king and 150 of the queen.
How many can we locate today? Another good question with no definite answer since some portraits
are in private hands and some in storage. Hardy says "nearly 100" are known at this time.
Where are the portraits? Here is a partial list of the ones NOT
in private collections.
George III:
Glasgow Art Gallery and Museum
Copenhagen State Museum
Oxford University's Examination Schools
Trinity College, Dublin
Somerset House, London
St. John's College, Oxford
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide
Belvedere Hall, Dublin
London Foreign and Commonwealth Office
Philadelphia Academy of Fine Arts
Ringling Museum of Art, Sarasota, FL
George III and Charlotte paired together:
Bishop's Palace, Armagh
Blickling Hall, Norfolk, England
Guildhall Art Gallery, London
State Museum, Hamburg, Germany
National Gallery of Scotland
Colonial Williamsburg, museum
Colonial Williamsburg, Governor's Palace
Royal Hospital, Dublin
Ampleforth College, York
Province House, Halifax, Nova Scotia
Government House, Calcutta
Legislative Council, Hamilton, Bermuda
Herron Museum of Art, Indianapolis
Chelsea Royal Hospital, London
Old Fort St. George Museum, Madras
Milton Hall, Peterborough, England
Government House, Sydney, New South Wales
British Embassy, Washington, D.C.
City Art Gallery, Auckland, New Zealand
McLean Museum and Art Gallery, Greenock, England
National Portrait Gallery, London
Some of the portraits are dated, some are not. Some have detailed
provenance. The history of others is sketchy. Smart calls the Mint's
coronation portraits undated versions. They are listed as circa 1762.
Bibliography
Colonial Williamsburg. <http://www.history.org>
Fordham, Douglas. "Allan Ramsay's Enlightenment: or, Hume and the patronizing portrait." The Art
Bulletin Sept. 2006.
Hood, Graham. "Easy, Erect, and Noble." Colonial Williamsburg Journal Summer 2001.
Ingamells, John. Mid-Georgian Portraits. London: National Portrait Gallery, 2006.
King George III. <http://www.kinggeorgeiii.com>
Millar, Oliver. Later Georgian Pictures in the Collection of Her Majesty the Queen. London: Phaidon
Press Ltd., 1969.
National Gallery of Australia. <http://www.nga.gov.au>
National Portrait Gallery.
<http://www.npg.org.uk/live/search/portrait.asp>
Oxford Portraits. <http:www.odl.ox.ac.uk/oxfordportraits/portrait.php>
Royal Collection, The. <http://www.royalcollection.org.uk>
Simon, Jacob. "Frame Studies II: Allan Ramsay and picture frames." Burlington Magazine Volume
CXXXVI, 1994: 444-455.
Smart, Alastair. Allan Ramsay: A Complete Catalogue of His Paintings. New Haven, CT: Yale University
Press, 1999.