Head and shoulders sketch of the Prince of Wales, later King Edward VIII (1894-1972); facing slightly to the right, wearing the naval uniform of a midshipman, medal ribbons; with indication of sea lower right, and cloudy sky above. This painting forms a pair with the portrait of King George V in the uniform of Admiral of the Fleet (dated 1912, RCIN 407301). They both share the same oval format and fresh sky background. A label on the reverse of both paintings records that they were presented to Queen Mary, with part of the money subscribed by the Marys of the Empire as the Coronation gift on June 22, 1911. They were recorded in Her Majesty’s Boudoir at Marlborough House on the Queen’s death in 1952. The Prince of Wales entered the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth in 1909, having previously spent two years at Osborne Naval College. A career in the Royal Navy was planned, however this was curtailed when he became heir to the throne, on his father, George V’s, ascension to the throne. On the 23 June, 1910, his sixteenth birthday, he was created Prince of Wales and subsequently was withdrawn from naval college. He served briefly as a midshipman on the battleship Hindustan and then entered Magdalen College, Oxford. The Prince of Wales presented the Royal Naval College with a painting of King George V as Admiral of the Fleet, by Cope in 1913 (see RCIN 407301).