Lot 1: Portrait of Prince Charles Edward Stuart (1720-1788), 'Bonnie Prince Charlie', three-quarter-length, in a red coat and blue sash and star of the order of the garter, feigned oval

Follower of Antonio David (1698-1750)
Portrait of Prince Charles Edward Stuart (1720-1788), 'Bonnie Prince Charlie', three-quarter-length, in a red coat and blue sash and star of the order of the garter, feigned oval
oil on canvas
14 x 12 in. (35.7 x 30.5 cm.)

Charles Edward Stuart (1720-1788) was the grandson of the deposed King James II and eldest son of the titular James III or 'The Old Pretender'. He was born and educated in Rome. As a Jacobite leader, he famously landed in the Hebrides in 1745, entered Edinburgh, was victorious at Prestonpans and reached Derby. He was crushed by the Duke of Cumberland at Culloden in 1746 and became a fugitive in the highlands, before escaping to France, and living in exile until his death in Rome in 1788.