Charles Stanhope, third Earl of Harrington and Marcus Richard Fitzroy Thomas

Charles Stanhope, third Earl of Harrington and Marcus Richard Fitzroy Thomas

Joshua Reynolds, 1782

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Artist: Joshua Reynolds (British, 1723–1792)
Medium: Oil on canvas
Size: 93 x 56 inches (236.2 x 142.2 cm)
Museum: Yale Center for British Art
Rights: CC0 — no rights reserved

In the final years of the war, France allied with the United States against Britain, expanding the conflict beyond North America. This portrait commemorates the role of the central figure, Charles Stanhope, in defending the island of Jamaica from the French. The young man standing beside him is Marcus Richard Fitzroy Thomas, whose names signal his ties to the aristocratic family that brought him to Britain from Jamaica. A 1772 court ruling had prohibited slavery in Britain, meaning Thomas could not legally be enslaved again, though he still faced racism and discrimination. He later left Stanhope’s service, pursued a career as a musician in the army, and established his own family in England.

Text: Yale Center for British Art.

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