Lot 342: Portrait of King of Belgians Leopold I, circa 1815, by George Dawe(?)

Antique oil on canvas. Inscription on canvas in the right upper corner: portrait of British General Sir Thomas Picton, killed in action at Waterloo, in 1815. Possible attributions of the artist: 1. Sir Thomas Lawrence (1769 - 1830); 2. Sir William Beechey (1753 - 1839); 3. Jacques-Louis David (1748 - 1825); 4. Sir Martin Archer Shee (1769 - 1850) - high probability. 5. George Dawe (1781-1829) England - highest possibility. Size of the frame: 29 in. x 25 in. = 72.5 cm x 62.5 cm; Size of the stretcher: 24 x 20 in. = 60 cm x 50 cm; Weight of the frame: 15 lb. = 6.75 kg; In the right upper corner there is a message in English: Thomas Picton General Served in Paris under the Duke of Wellington Killed in action and _____________Cavalry 1815. Version 1. This is a portrait of King Leopold I, King of Belgians, by George Dawe. Leopold I (Leopold Georges Chretien Frederic; German: Leopold Georg Christian Friedrich; 16 December 1790 - 10 December 1865) was from 21 July 1831 the first King of the Belgians, following Belgium's independence from the Netherlands. He was the founder of the Belgian line of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. His children included Leopold II of Belgium and Carlota of Mexico, Empress-Consort of Maximilian I of Mexico. He was a maternal uncle and adviser of Queen Victoria. He was born in Coburg and died in Laeken. By birth, he was a Prince of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, later a Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and Duke of Saxony. Leopold was the youngest son of Francis, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, and Countess Augusta Reuss-Ebersdorf, and later became a prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha after Saxe-Coburg acquired Gotha from Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg in 1826 and yielded Saalfeld to Saxe-Meiningen. In 1795, as a mere child, Leopold was appointed colonel of the Izmaylovsky Guards Regiment in Russia. Seven years later, he became a major general. When Napoleonic troops occupied the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg in 1806 Leopold went to Paris. Emperor Napoleon I offered him the position of adjutant, but he refused. Instead, he took up a military career in the Imperial Russian Cavalry. He campaigned against Napoleon and distinguished himself at the Battle of Kulm at the head of his cuirassier division. In 1815, at the age of 25, Leopold reached the rank of lieutenant general in the Imperial Russian Army. Version II. This is a portrait of British General Thomas Picton. Discussion: The portrait was probably made in his younger years. Biography of Thomas Picton: Picton was the younger son of Thomas Picton, and was born in Poyston, Pembrokeshire, Wales. In 1771 he obtained an ensign's commission in the 12th Regiment of Foot, but he did not join until two years later. The regiment was then stationed at Gibraltar, where he remained until he was made captain in the 75th in January 1778, at which point he then returned to Britain. The regiment was disbanded five years later, and Picton quelled a mutiny amongst the men by his prompt personal action and courage, and was promised the rank of major as a reward. He did not receive it, and after living in retirement on his father's estate for nearly twelve years, he went out to the West Indies in 1794 on the strength of a slight acquaintance with Sir John Vaughan, the commander-in-chief, who made him his aide-de-camp and gave him a captaincy in the 17th foot. Shortly afterwards he was promoted major in the 58th foot.
Condition Fine, normal age wear, no defects;

Low Estimate: 100000.0;
High Estimate: 250000.0;
Original: Yes;
Medium: Oil Paint;
Circa: 1800;
Style: Classicism;