Lot 26: David Morier c.1705-1770 , Portrait of Prince William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland

Full length, mounted on his bay charger, wearing a blue coat, and the sash of the Order of the Bath, a view of the Thames beyond oil on canvas

measurements note 100 by 124 cm., 39½ by 49 in.

Marble Hill House, Twickenham, 1968

Frank Davis, 'Furniture for Palaces', Country Life, 7th October 1971, p. 891 illus.

Anon. sale, Christie's, 18th June 1971, where acquired by the present owner

VARIOUS PROPERTIES
William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland was the younger son of George II and Caroline of Ansbach. He entered the army and became a Major-General in December 1742. At the Battle of Dettingen (27th June 1743) George II and the "martial boy" as he became known shared the glory, and Cumberland, who was wounded in the action, was reported as a hero in Britain. He is best known for his role in putting down the Jacobite Rebellion of 1745. After initially failing to overtake the retreating army as they headed north, he was appointed commander of the forces in Scotland, and on 16υth April he fought the decisive Battle of Culloden in which the forces of the Pretender, Charles Edward Stuart, were completely destroyed. On account of the severity with which the fugitives were treated he is still most commonly known to Scottish Highlanders as "Butcher Cumberland". During the ten years of peace from 1748, Cumberland occupied himself chiefly with his duties as Captain-General, the benefits of which were later seen in the Seven Years' War. The death of the Prince of Wales brought the latter's son, a minor, next in succession to the throne. The Duke was not able to secure for himself the regency, which was vested in the Dowager Princess of Wales. The elder Pitt even expressed the view in parliament that to make Cumberland sole regent ?was dangerous not because of his reputation, but because of his ambition to wear the crown.? Cumberland died in London, on October 31, 1765 and was buried in Westminster Abbey.