The Prince of Wales (1683–1760), Later George II

This 1716 portrait of the Prince of Wales, later George II, was painted during the bitter personal conflict between George I and his son that divided the Hanoverian court and created competing political factions around each. The Prince's maintenance of a rival court at Leicester House — filled with politicians and artists in opposition to the king — made him a focus of political opposition, and his portrait circulated among his supporters as an assertion of the succession's continuity. Kneller's ability to serve both courts simultaneously demonstrates his professional neutrality in dynastic matters: like all successful court painters, he served succession rather than faction.

The princely portrait presents the future king with youthful vigor and martial bearing, rendered in Kneller's broad, confident late style with attention to the rich costume that signified royal rank.