Inventory

A highly successful soldier and general, Field Marshal John Ligonier, 1st Earl Ligonier, KB, PC, is considered by many to have been the greatest British soldier between Marlborough and Wellington. In the present painting he is depicted wearing the uniform of the 8th Regiment of Horse, of which he was Colonel from 18 July 1720 to 24 July 1749. It is likely that this work dates to the late 1740s, since after 1749 Ligonier was transferred to the colonelcy of the 2nd Dragoon Guards. This dating is also supported by the fact that the sitter is wearing the sash of the Order of the Bath, of which he was made a Knight in 1743 for his conduct at the Battle of Dettingen.

The battle here depicted is likely to be that fought at Laffeldt on 2 July 1747, a few miles north of Maastricht. Ligonier commanded the cavalry on the British left flank. It is possible that the burnt village in the background represents one of those which the Allies destroyed, so as to deny it to the French. Ligonier himself led a courageous cavalry charge which allowed the Duke of Cumberland and his infantry to withdraw safely. In this charge, Ligonier's horse was killed and he himself was captured. King Louis XV (1710–1774), who had witnessed Ligonier's charge, complimented him on his bravery and after brief negotiations he was released.

A Huguenot by birth, Ligonier was educated in France and Switzerland before coming to Dublin in 1697, where he was supported by his uncle, a lieutenant-colonel of Irish foot under King William III (1650–1702). He served as a volunteer in Marlborough's army in 1702 and having purchased a commission, the following year served in all of the major engagements of the War of the Spanish Succession. Under his colonelcy, the 8th Regiment of Horse was regarded as one of the finest in Europe and the regiment adopted the sobriquet of 'Ligonier's'. Shortly after his feat of bravery at Laffeldt, Ligonier was returned by the electors as MP for Bath, allegedly without him having offered himself for election. King George II (1683–1760) always consulted Ligonier on military matters and in October 1757 he was created commander-in-chief. In the same year, he was raised to an Irish viscountcy and in 1763 he was created Baron Ligonier in the peerage of Great Britain. In 1766, he was raised to an Earldom and in the same year he attained the rank of Field-Marshal. Following his death in 1770, a monument was erected in the North Ambulatory of Westminster Abbey, London, to commemorate Ligonier's military achievements.

Another portrait of Ligonier executed by Sir Joshua Reynolds (1723–1792) was presented by King William IV (1765–1837) to the Tate Britain, London, in 1836.