The Hampton Court Beauties are a series of portraits by Sir Godfrey Kneller

Godfrey Kneller

Sir Godfrey Kneller, 1st Baronet was the leading portrait painter in England during the late 17th and early 18th centuries, and was court painter to British monarchs from Charles II to George I...

, commissioned by Queen Mary II of England

Mary II of England

Mary II was joint Sovereign of England, Scotland, and Ireland with her husband and first cousin, William III and II, from 1689 until her death. William and Mary, both Protestants, became king and queen regnant, respectively, following the Glorious Revolution, which resulted in the deposition of...

 depicting the most glamorous ladies from the court of William III

William III of England

William III & II was a sovereign Prince of Orange of the House of Orange-Nassau by birth. From 1672 he governed as Stadtholder William III of Orange over Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht, Guelders, and Overijssel of the Dutch Republic. From 1689 he reigned as William III over England and Ireland...

. They adorn the state rooms of King William III at Hampton Court Palace

Hampton Court Palace

Hampton Court Palace is a royal palace in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, Greater London; it has not been inhabited by the British royal family since the 18th century. The palace is located south west of Charing Cross and upstream of Central London on the River Thames...

. Hampton Court also houses the so-called Windsor Beauties

Windsor Beauties

The Windsor beauties are a famous collection of paintings by Sir Peter Lely, painted in the early to mid 1660s.They were originally housed in the Queen's bedchamber in Windsor Castle...

 by Sir Peter Lely

Peter Lely

Sir Peter Lely was a painter of Dutch origin, whose career was nearly all spent in England, where he became the dominant portrait painter to the court.-Life:...

, depicting the most beautiful ladies of the court of King Charles II of England

Charles II of England

Charles II was monarch of the three kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland.Charles II's father, King Charles I, was executed at Whitehall on 30 January 1649, at the climax of the English Civil War...

, a generation before. The Hampton Court Beauties are of a plainer, less erotic style reflecting the change in opinion towards women towards the latter half of the seventeenth century.

The Hampton Court Beauties

Isabella Bennet

Isabella FitzRoy, Duchess of Grafton

Isabella Bennet FitzRoy, 2nd Countess of Arlington and Duchess of Grafton was a British peeress and heiress.-Family and marriage:...

, Duchess of Grafton (1667–1713),

Margaret Cecil

Margaret Cecil

Lady Margaret Cecil, Countess of Ranelagh was a British courtier.The Countess of Ranelagh was one of the "Hampton Court Beauties" painted by Sir Godfrey Kneller for Queen Mary II.-Family:...

, Countess of Ranelagh (1672–1727),

Carey Fraser

Carey Fraser

Lady Carey Fraser was a British courtier.She was Maid of Honour to Queen Catherine of Braganza from 1674 - 1680.Lady Carey is one of the Hampton Court Beauties painted by Sir Godfrey Kneller for Queen Mary II...

, Countess of Peterborough (c.1658-1709),

Frances Whitmore

Frances Whitmore

Frances Whitmore was a British courtier.Frances was one of the Hampton Court Beauties painted by Sir Godfrey Kneller for Queen Mary II.She was styled Dame Frances Myddelton-Family:...

, Lady Middleton (1666–1694),

Mary Scrope

Mary Pitt

Mary Pitt was a British courtier.Her portrait is one of the Hampton Court Beauties by Godfrey Kneller, comissioned by Queen Mary II of England.-Family:...

, later Mrs Pitt (born 1676),

Diana De Vere

Diana Beauclerk, Duchess of St Albans

Diana Beauclerk, Duchess of St Albans was born Lady Diana de Vere, was a British courtier. She was Mistress of the Robes to Caroline, Princess of Wales from 1714 to 1717....

, Duchess of St Albans (1679–1742),

Lady Mary Bentinck

Lady Mary Bentinck

Lady Mary Bentinck, Countess of Essex was the daughter of William Bentinck, 1st Earl of Portland, a Dutch and English nobleman who became in an early stage the favourite of stadtholder William, Prince of Orange and his wife Anne Villiers Lady Mary Bentinck, Countess of Essex (1679 – 20 August...

, Countess of Essex (died 1726),

Mary Compton

Mary Compton

Mary Compton was a member of Queen Mary II's court.She was styled Lady Mary Compton, and then Countess of Dorset.-Hampton Court Beauties:Mary was one of the Hampton Court Beauties painted by Sir Godfrey Kneller for Queen Mary II....

, Countess of Dorset (1669–1691)

External links

• Hampton Court Beauties