NAM.1956-02-598-1

Francis Rawdon Hastings, Earl of Moira (later Marquess of Hastings) (1754-1826), 1804 (c). Oil on canvas, signed lower right ‘Sir M A Shee PRA fecit’, by Sir Martin Archer Shee (1769-1850), 1804 (c), exhibited at the Royal Academy 1804 No. 138. Full-length, in General Officer’s uniform, standing before a table and holding a rolled document in his right hand, sword in left hand. This portrait was painted before 1812 when Hastings, 2nd Earl of Moira, was appointed Governor General of Bengal and created Marquess Hastings. He had distinguished himself during the American War of Independence (1775-1783), notably at Hobkirk’s Hill in 1781. As Governor General in India, he established British supremacy in central India, secured the cession of Singapore in 1819, and opened relations with Siam (Thailand).

Bunker Hill, Battle of, 1775 (American War of Independence 1775-1783)