Her Most Gracious Majesty, Queen Adelaide.

Fine early nineteenth-century mezzotint portrait of Queen Adelaide (1792–1849), consort of King William IV, issued in the year preceding her husband’s accession to the throne. The Queen is shown half-length in formal court dress, her bearing composed and dignified, emphasising the piety, modesty, and domestic virtue for which she was widely admired. Rich tonal gradations characteristic of the mezzotint process are used to convey the textures of silk, lace, and jewellery, while the dark ground throws the sitter’s face and costume into soft, luminous relief.

Published in London by P. & P. Gally of Exmouth Street, Spa Fields, a district associated in the early nineteenth century with commercial print sellers and popular portrait production, the print reflects strong public interest in the royal family during the final years of George IV’s reign and the transition to William IV. Portraits of Adelaide circulated widely, her reputation for charity and moral rectitude contrasting with the excesses often associated with earlier Georgian court life.

The inscription “Published as the Act directs” refers to the provisions of the Copyright Act, a standard formula in British prints of the period. Such mezzotint royal portraits were intended for domestic display, combining commemorative, decorative, and loyalist functions, and today form part of the visual culture surrounding the reform-era monarchy.

Collections:
British Museum: Registration number 1902,1011.8063
National Portrait Gallery (London): NPG D8134