In this miniature the king wears the uniform of a general officer and the star of the Order of the Garter. The painting is a companion to the miniature of Queen Charlotte (RCIN 420657) by the same artist. Both are derived from full-length portraits (RCIN 405422 and RCIN 405423) by Sir William Beechey (1753-1839) for George III, who hung them at Kew. Beechey’s portrait of the king was probably undertaken between 1799 to1800. The image was extremely popular and there are many copies in miniature in the Royal Collection. Most of these are of just the head and shoulders of the king and give no indication of the military background in Beechey’s painting. This image gained a wide circulation as a stipple engraving by Robert Mitchell Meadows, published by William Grimaldi (1751-1830), the artist himself, in 1804.

Grimaldi was the son of the 7th Marquess Grimaldi and the grandson of Alessandro Maria Grimaldi, a Genoese nobleman and artist who had settled in England after the bombardment of Genoa in 1684. He succeeded to the title in 1800. Grimaldi was trained by his uncle Thomas Worlidge and worked for several years in Paris (1777-83), although he exhibited regularly in London from 1768 to 1830. He was appointed miniature painter in turn to the Duke and Duchess of York in 1791, and to George IV when Prince of Wales in 1806, and then when king in 1824.

The miniature is inscribed by the artist on the vellum backing: His Majesty George III / Painted by – / Mr. W ; Grimaldi, enamel & / Miniature painter to their royal / Highnesses the Duke & Duchess of York / Albermarle Street / London. 1800 / For His Royal Highness / the Prince of Wales.