Early Georgian Portraits Catalogue

Louisa, Countess of Albany (1752-1824), Wife of Prince Charles Edward Stuart

Three portraits represent her at about the time of her marriage to Charles in 1772: an engraving, [NPG D10752] three-quarter length holding a rose, by Alessio Giardoni, published 1773 after a painting by the Neapolitan artist Carlo Marsigli, an oil with guitar, at Stonyhurst College, a miniature, pair with her husband, taken in Rome by Ozias Humphry, collection Lord Exeter, [1] and an oil of the first type, Scottish NPG (1520) with a crown behind her left shoulder. [2] A miniature, on the reverse of an order that belonged to Henry Benedict, Cardinal York, is among the Scottish royal jewels, Edinburgh Castle. Other versions are at Holkham and in the Seafield collection. A more neo-classic view of her features, inscribed as from her own hand and painted in 1796 for Lady Webster the year before her marriage to the 3rd Lord Holland, now belongs to Teresa, Viscountess Galway. A pastel in the Musée Fabre, which presumably belonged to the sitter, is attributed to H. D. Hamilton. A youthful portrait by Fabre, signed and dated Florence 1796, exhibited 'Pictures from Ulster Houses', 1961 (3), is in the collection of the Countess of Leitrim and another oil by the same artist in which the sitter appears considerably older, is in the Uffizi.
To avoid confusion with portraits of her contemporary Charlotte, Duchess of Albany (1753-89), Charles' daughter by Clementina Walkinshaw who also sat to H. D. Hamilton and to Giannini, the following is a provisional list of portraits of the Duchess (kindly provided by R. E. Hutchison): by H. D. Hamilton, Musée Fabre, with the same provenance as Louisa's portrait, also in the museum; a similar portrait in the Rosebery collection and another from the Seafield collection, exhibited 'Historical Portraits' 1859 (166) when given to Gavin Hamilton, a contemporary of H. D. Hamilton. The portrait at Waddesdon, [3] with a repetition in the Scottish NPG (623), may represent Charlotte. Another apparently of the same sitter at Powis Castle, is known from an old inscription on the back as Frances Lady Lavington (née Kolbel) by Nicolas Bernard Lepicié. [4] Again this is more likely to be by H. D. Hamilton. An unpublished miniature also at Powis Castle (105) may represent the same sitter.

1) Exhibited 'Northamptonshire Exhibition', 1938 (107), and Charles (95).
2) R. E. Hutchison, letter, 21 October 1970, NPG archives.
3) E. K. Waterhouse, Catalogue of the Paintings at Waddesdon Manor: the James A. De Rothschild Collection, 1967, p 56, and reproduction.
4) J. Steegman, A Survey of Portraits in Welsh Houses, 1957-62, I, p 267.


This extended catalogue entry is from the out-of-print National Portrait Gallery collection catalogue: John Kerslake, Early Georgian Portraits, Her Majesty's Stationery Office, 1977, and is as published then. For the most up-to-date details on individual Collection works, we recommend reading the information provided in the Search the Collection results on this website in parallel with this text.