Reginald Heber (1783–1826), Bishop of Calcutta (1822–1826)

Phillips's portrait of Reginald Heber as Bishop of Calcutta from 1822 documents one of the most admired figures in the early Victorian Church of England—the poet and hymn-writer whose Christian Year aspirations were cut short by his sudden death during a confirmation visit in 1826. Heber's appointment as the first Bishop of Calcutta with jurisdiction over the whole of India represented the Church of England's ambitious expansion into imperial territories, and his brief episcopate of four years established pastoral structures and relationships that shaped Indian Anglicanism for decades. The portrait's 1822 date—the year of his consecration—gives it the character of an official episcopal portrait marking his entrance into the highest pastoral role of his career.

Phillips renders Heber with the sympathetic attention appropriate to a widely admired figure. The bishop's features convey the kindness and spiritual conviction that contemporaries consistently noted. The portrait's British Library location connects it to Heber's literary achievements alongside his ecclesiastical career.