Joseph Saunders

William Pitt with His Two Sons

This portrait shows a gentleman in a red coat, a pale waistcoat and a white jabot in front of a background suggesting a grotto. He is playfully offering a peach to two younger children. According to tradition, the portrayed person is considered to be the British statesman William Pitt the Older (1708-1778). Pitt was a member of the British House of Commons. As paymaster and permanent secretary, he determined the British foreign policy as well as the strategies of Great Britain during the Seven Years` War for decades. In 1766, he was raised to the peerage and became the first Duke of Chatham (County Kent). His life data and comparisons with other pictures, however, suggest the portrayed person not to be Pitt himself, but his son, William Pitt the Younger (1759-1806). He became a member of the House of Commons in 1781 and was appointed treasurer one year later. In 1783, he became prime minister under George III. As he died unmarried, it may be excluded that the children represented on the portrait are his own. The bright, rich colours, which allude to the picture being influenced by the work of Joshua Reynolds, and the relatively big format are the striking features of this miniature. Parallel to the background, the group is placed in a sloping diagonal; however, the line, leading from the man to the younger boy sitting on his knee, is broken by the strong movement of the older boy who stretches in order to reach the peach. Apart from the playful gesture, the fruit conveys another message: of all the precious fruits of the south, the pale, white-fleshy peach was considered the most delicous and, moreover indicated a high and luxurious standard of living.

¹ Möglich wäre auch, daß die Miniatur nach dem Tode William Pitts d. Ä. zu dessen Erinnerung angefertigt wurde und daß der Künstler dem Dargestellten - vielleicht um die Familientradition zu betonen - die Züge des Sohnes verlieh.