George IV (1762-1830)

This full-length portrait shows George IV of the United Kingdom wearing the robes he donned for his coronation in July 1821, at a time when court painting aimed to fix a solemn official image of the monarch. Thomas Lawrence, Britain's leading portrait painter of the period, had already depicted George on several occasions during the Regency, before the prince succeeded his father George III to the throne in 1820. The king himself had designed the coronation robes, and he commissioned the picture for the throne room, where it still hangs as part of the Royal Collection. It was shown at the Royal Academy exhibition of 1822 at Somerset House. The following year Lawrence painted the king in a more informal pose, a work now in the Wallace Collection. Together, the two portraits illustrate the range of images the monarchy used, from ceremonial display to a more relaxed presentation.

Painter

Thomas Lawrence

Date

1821

Medium

oil paint, canvas

Dimensions

295 × 205 cm

Museum

Royal Collection

Genre

portrait

Depicts

George IV of the United Kingdom, Coronation Crown of George IV, Golden Fleece, curtain

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