Artwork
The Prince Regent as a Hussar
The Prince Regent as a Hussar is a chalk drawing by the Romanticist artist John Singleton Copley. It dates from 1806 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art.
About this work
Overview
John Singleton Copley’s 1806 drawing, titled The Prince Regent as a Hussar, portrays a mounted figure in motion. Executed in black chalk with white highlights and overlaid with red squares on a blue paper ground, the work captures a fleeting, dynamic scene of a rider on a galloping horse.
Subject & Meaning
The figure depicted is the Prince Regent, dressed in a tall fur hat, an ornate jacket, and a chest sash, evoking the fashionable hussar uniform of the period. The composition emphasizes the energy of the horse’s stride and the aristocratic bearing of the rider, suggesting both martial vigor and regal presence.
Technique & Style
Copley employed a rapid, gestural approach, rendering the horse’s musculature and flowing mane with confident, sweeping chalk lines. White chalk serves to accentuate highlights, while a network of red squares—likely a scaling guide—lays over a dark blue background, revealing the artist’s preparatory process.
History & Provenance
Created in 1806, the drawing belongs to Copley’s later period, after his relocation to England. It reflects his continued interest in portraiture and historical subjects, though the work remains a study rather than a finished painting, indicating it may have been intended for a larger composition.
Artist & collection
Artist
John Singleton Copley (July 3, 1738 – September 9, 1815) was an American-born British painter active in both the Thirteen Colonies and England.
