William Cowper, 1st Earl Cowper

This 1722 portrait of William Cowper, 1st Earl Cowper, depicts the first Lord Chancellor of Great Britain following the Act of Union between England and Scotland in 1707. Cowper played a crucial role in the early Hanoverian constitutional settlement, managing the legal system through the succession from Anne to George I and the subsequent challenges of the 1715 Jacobite rising. As Lord Chancellor, he presided over the highest court in the land and was a central figure in the legal and political machinery that consolidated the Hanoverian succession. The 1722 portrait captures him near the end of his public career.

The Lord Chancellor is depicted with full judicial gravity, the ceremonial robes and wig of office rendered with Kneller's efficient technique to convey both the dignity of the position and the authority of the man.