Prince Edward (1739-1767)

This 1764 portrait of Prince Edward, younger brother of George III, was painted during Dance's Roman period, when the artist was establishing his reputation among British Grand Tour patrons. Prince Edward, Duke of York and Albany, is depicted in military uniform reflecting his rank and the royal dignity that separated him from the ordinary Grand Tour clientele. Dance's access to the royal visitor in Rome documents the importance of British artists in Italy as hosts and portraitists for the steady stream of aristocratic and royal visitors making the Grand Tour. Edward died in 1767 of fever, aged twenty-eight, making this portrait one of the few surviving likenesses of a prince whose early death cut short a potentially significant royal career.

The royal portrait presents Prince Edward with appropriate dignity and youthful vitality, Dance's academic technique rendering the prince's features and military costume with careful precision.