Search results

Start typing

Detail from showing paintings hanging on the wall of Buckingham House
Royal Portraiture

The Royal Collection holds royal portraits from visual works to decorative arts

ALLAN RAMSAY (1713-84)

George III (1738-1820)

c.1761-2

RCIN 405307

State portraits were commissioned when a monarch succeeded to the throne, and were designed to present the king or queen to their subjects. This portrait of the newly crowned George III (r.1760–1820) was painted by Allan Ramsay (1713–84), Principal Painter to the King. Ramsay depicts the King in his coronation robes with the crown as the symbol of his royal authority to the right, and with a column to the left, representing strong leadership.

State portraits were copied, reproduced, and issued as the official portrait of the monarch. There was a huge demand for copies of Ramsay's portrait of the King and he described his studio as being ‘crowded with portraits of His Majesty in every stage of their operation’. 


    The income from your ticket contributes directly to The Royal Collection Trust, a registered charity. The aims of The Royal Collection Trust are the care and conservation of the Royal Collection, and the promotion of access and enjoyment through exhibitions, publications, loans and educational activities.