Sir Roger L'Estrange

This portraitback to top

One of Wright’s last known paintings. The ledger inscribed Westminster Votes possibly concerns L’Estrange’s election to Parliament in 1685; or, to judge by the apparent age of L’Estrange, NPG 3771 could date from c.1680 at the close of his period as Press Censor.
The attribution to Wright seems sound. It was observed in 1982 that the handling of the drapes and belt wrapped round the sword was ‘vintage Wright,’ but that the odd perspective of the chair was old-fashioned and the sitter’s placement in it not altogether clear. [1]
A version with J. Astley in 1966 shows some differences: his right hand holds a quill, the book is not inscribed down the fore-edge, and the sword and scabbard, belt and armour are differently disposed. A version resembling the Astley pattern, but with the fore-edge inscribed, is with the Norfolk Museums Service (DS.92). [2]

Footnotesback to top

1) S. Stevenson & D. Thomson, Lely, 1982, no.35; Oliver Millar in his review of the exhibition, Burl. Mag., CXXIV, 1982, p 716, inferred his acceptance of the attribution.
2) Illus. The Public Catalogue Foundation, Norfolk, 2006, p 299.

Referenceback to top

Duleep Singh 1927-28
Prince Frederick Duleep Singh, Portraits in Norfolk Houses, 1927-28, II, p 37, no.148.

Piper 1963
D. Piper, Catalogue of the Seventeenth Century Portraits in the National Portrait Gallery 1625-1714, 1963, pp 203-04.

Conservationback to top

Lined; part-cleaning 1953; overpainting in the background areas; the open book marked Westminster Votes on the fore-edge.

Provenanceback to top

[Presumably via Lucy, dau. of the sitter’s gr.nephew Sir Nicholas L’Estrange, 4th Bt. (1661-1724) who m. 1721 Sir Jacob Astley 3rd Bt.; the 6th Bt. Astley cr. 16th Baron Hastings 1841] by descent to the 21st Baron Hastings of Melton Constable; his sale, Sotheby’s, 1 February 1950, lot 101, bt. Leggatt for the NPG.

Exhibitionsback to top

J. M. Wright, Edinburgh, 1982, no.34; Gawthorpe 1987.


This extended catalogue entry is by John Ingamells, one of a limited number of entries drafted in 2010 for the incomplete catalogue, Early Stuart Portraits 1625-1685, and is as written 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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