George Canning
ArtistThomas Lawrence
Year1826
TypeOil on canvas, portrait
LocationNational Portrait Gallery, London

George Canning is an 1826 full-length portrait by the British artist Thomas Lawrence of the statesman George Canning, a leading Tory politician. His career had been seriously disrupted by his 1809 duel with his cabinet colleague Lord Castlereagh, until his appointment as Foreign Secretary in 1822 after Castlereagh's suicide led him to a revival. He is shown speaking in the House of Commons. It was painted around the same time as Lawrence was depicting Canning's colleague the Duke of Wellington. Commissioned by Robert Peel, it was one of eight portraits he exhibited at the Royal Academy that year. It received qualified praise from fellow painter John Constable.[1] The following year Canning became Prime Minister in succession to Lord Liverpool, but suffering from poor health died after just 119 days in office. It is now part of the collection of the National Portrait Gallery in London.[2]

A more intimate portrait of Canning, painted around the same time.

References

Bibliography

  • Davies, Huw J. Wellington's Wars: The Making of a Military Genius. Yale University Press, 2012.
  • Levey, Michael. Sir Thomas Lawrence. Yale University Press, 2005.
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