Henry Fox, 1st Baron Holland

This portraitback to top

Fox sat to Reynolds in 1762 and 1764. [1] NPG 2075 is an early copy rather than a studio version of the portrait in the collection of Teresa, Viscountess Galway formerly at Holland House (173). A fine full-face portrait in the same collection (formerly Holland House, 162) was dated by Graves [2] also to 1762, no doubt on the basis of sittings mentioned in correspondence. [3] The painting, however, shows the sitter holding an envelope addressed The Right Hon^ble./Lord Holland, a title received 17 April 1763. The date 1764 which Waterhouse [4] associates with the portrait may well relate to a sitting for finishing. A repetition, also formerly at Holland House (171), belonged to Miss Fox, sister of the 3rd Lord Holland.

Footnotesback to top

1) C. R. Leslie and T. Taylor, Life and Times of Sir Joshua Reynolds, 1865, I, pp 218, 239.
2) Catalogue of Pictures belonging to the Earl of Ilchester at Holland House, 1904.
3) Catalogue of Pictures belonging to the Earl of Ilchester at Holland House, 1904 with Addenda and Corrigenda, 1939.
4) Sir Ellis K. Waterhouse, Reynolds (English Master Painters), 1941, p 54.

Physical descriptionback to top

Heavy slanting eyebrows, grey-brown eyes, full face, grey wig with centre-parting to shoulders; black overcoat, open, over scarlet suit edged with gold lace, white lace cravat and wrist ruffles; an armchair covered in crimson damask, near-matching drapery behind, a grey pilaster, left background; on a table, front left, covered in crimson cloth a standish, and letter, with writing indicated, on which he rests his right hand; lit from top right.

Conservationback to top

Discolourations on the chin and in the left background; small losses in the corners and in the chair, bottom right; the crimson of the tablecloth, except where shielded by the frame, is faded; relined and revarnished, 1925.

Provenanceback to top

Bought (through Leggatts) Phillips Son and Neale, 26 November 1924, lot 459, from St Anne's Hill House, Chertsey, property of the Hon. Stephen Powys. St Anne's was the home of the sitter's youngest son C. J. Fox; by descent through his widow (d. 1842) to the 4th and last Lord Holland who died 1859 leaving everything to his widow; she devised property to the Hon. Leopold William Henry [Fox-] Powys, [1] uncle of the Hon. Stephen Powys, afterwards 6th Baron Lilford.

1) G. E. Cockayne, The Complete Peerage, revised by V. Gibbs (and others), 1910-59, VI, p 545 and note c; Burke, Peerage, 1921, p 1376.


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.

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