It is thought that the monarch depicted in this painting is King Charles II (1630-85): his characteristic long black wig is visible in the coach window and a later inscription on the back of the canvas names him as the subject. Although his primary residence was the Palace of Whitehall, King Charles II spent much of his leisure time at Hampton Court in the early 1660s and hosted extended celebrations there after his wedding to Catherine of Braganza in 1662.

The palace façade dominating the background of the painting renders with some precision the east front of Hampton Court as it appeared in this period. A similar architectural impression can be found in Hendrick Danckerts’s painting of the palace.

The artist responsible for this painting remains uncertain. Although the later inscription on its back attributes the work to renowned court painter Peter Lely with the date of 1675, stylistically this is unlikely. It was painted at least ten years earlier, it is thought, and is close in quality to the work of Dutch painters Jacob Esselens and Jan Loten, both of whom were working in England at the time.