Robert Stewart, 2nd Marquess of Londonderry (Lord Castlereagh)

Lawrence painted Lord Castlereagh around 1809-10, depicting the Anglo-Irish statesman who as Foreign Secretary (1812-22) would become the architect of the post-Napoleonic European settlement at the Congress of Vienna. Castlereagh was one of the most consequential British foreign ministers, crafting the balance-of-power system that maintained European peace for a generation. His later suicide in 1822, driven by overwork and political persecution, made him a tragic figure. Lawrence's portrait captures the controlled intensity of a man who bore enormous responsibilities during Britain's most dangerous years. Now in the National Portrait Gallery, the painting documents one of the pivotal figures of European diplomatic history.

Lawrence conveys the statesman's formidable intelligence and reserve, the face painted with precision that captures both Castlereagh's aristocratic handsomeness and the contained intensity that contemporaries found both impressive and slightly chilling. The dark, formal treatment suits a man whose emotional reserve was legendary.