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THE HAMPTON COURT BEAUTIES.
FROM THE NEW MONTHLY MAGAZINE.
The Hampton Court Beauties, like the Windsor
Beauties, owe their existence to a woman's pride, in
her own sex, not to the gallantry of ours. The
thought was first suggested by Queen Mary, and its
execution was begun during one of King Willilam's
absences.
The Beauties of Hampton Court are all full lengths,
with the exception of Queen Mary. As paintings,
they are decidedly inferior to the Windsor Beauties,
und, willi «lue deference to the virtues of the Ludias
(hey represent, are certainly inferior (o (hem in lite
interest and beunly of llie subject«. They linve suf-
fered to» so lunch from the alternate dampness mid
dryncss of their «¡luiitioir, that it would be iuvidioH»'
to criticise the colouring as the fmdl of the Artist ;,
then' ¡s a cbulkiiies« in the flesh, add ii rawness in the
tints, which will not bear u comparison willi the ilell
cucy of Lely's carnations, nor even willi many of
Kueller's other works, which have been belter pre-
served.
" Ala«! how little from the grave we claim :
Thou hut preserv'st n face, and I n mimi',".
Exclaimed Pope t» Iii« fiieud: mid pity it is, llintof
several of the beii'iliful ivomeii we me nmv about ron.,
«¡dering, the face una the name are all that remain i«y
«ni.
Qui!i:n Mar v, eldest «lau« liter of James the Second
by Atnie Hyde : half length, by WUsiug.
A« Ibis picture represents Mary, without tiny of her
pernplieriiiilia of roy it I ty, and merely in the usual;
«Ires« of a Lady of her lune, we «hull consider her ne- ,
cordiiigly in her most interesting mid distinguished
character-as a woman, mid not ns a Queen.
Mary wn« murried young to u mun destitute of
every quality which could recommend him to the sex;
he was feeble in temperament, ungraceful in hi« per-
son, and ungracious in hi« niatuiei-s. Whatever » o
may owe us a nation «1 the public virtue or nuibilioii ,
of WiHiiuu, it Is certain that the different milices oí ',
bim «cut lei ed thrungli the pages of hi« panegyrist.
Barnet, when brought together, make up u must (tit
amiable mut revolting private character.
With regard to Mary's conduct low uni« her father
and sister, it appeals «0 inexcusable, that Buniol,
with all Iii« admiration of hi r excellencies, rather
npologizcs for her than attempts to defend her. On
her fir»! arrival at Whitehall, afler the deposition of
.lames the Second, her unconcerned gaiety was «ti
like exultation, that even the Bishop was si-iimlulized :
-." 1 confe«s," he snys, "I wa« one of llios« «vho
censured (hi« iii my thought«. 1 thought a lillie more
seriousness hail dniie as well when «he came into her
father's palace, anil was lo he scl on hi« throne llie
next dny." The Queen afterwards «aid, that «he bud
been commanded hy the Prince, her husband, to " put
on cheerfulness, mid act u part not natural to her,
for fear of disgusting their adherents, and that none
knew what she suffered ;" mid «lie might have lid-
dell, none believed. In this insluuce, us in many
oilier«, dissimulation, if it w11« such, defeated its own
purpose'; for her conduct on the occasion exponed her
togciieuil indignation, and for a lime turned every
heart against her. Neither dues it see-m necessary iluit
she should have carried her dissimulation even into her
own heiichmnher. " 1 was one of those," says the
Duchess of Mtu'thorough, (who, (hough passionate
nod prejudiced, is tolerably good milhoiity for facts)
" who had llie honour lo wau upon die Queen to her
own apartment. She uni about it, looking into every
closet and «¡ouvciu'uicy, and turning np (lie quills upon
llie beti, us people do w hen (hey come into an inn, mid
with 110 other sort of concern in bur appearance, but
such as they express ., anti," adds the Duchess, with
naivete", " ir she fell no leúdeme««, I thooirht «he
ought ut least lo have looked grave, or even pensively
«uni, nt so melancholy a reverse of her father's mr
tiiue." Such hypocrisy would ut least hu vc sttrved
her cause helier.
The portrait of William the Third is nt one end of
(he Gallery of Beauties, near lhut of the Queen. Tin«
mininer in which (he pictures me hung is 11 good ex-
emplification of (heir domestic arrangements, 'the
polirait of Mary, n small unpretending liait' length,
is modestly suspended by the «¡ile ol' her husband,
whose Muji'bty cover« one end of llie room ami hull'
an acre ol canvas. And though n« poets write.-.
" ilciiveii itself to Kueller's hand decreed
To fix c; real Nassau, nu th«; bounding «feed,"
Heaven seems lo baie left him there,and ilenied its
inspiration lo his work. Nothing can be conceived
more lame mid spiritless than the whole perfoimunee,
crowded willi allegorical monsters in the woist st)lo
r I of ínstele«« iifleciiitioii. As the lunn says in Moliere,
" Nous avous changé lout cela ; " what should we
cay now if the President of the Royal Academy were.
«1 exhibit a picture of (he Duke of Wellington in a
full suit of tittil regimental«, surrounded by a host of
Virtues mid Victories, and Valour» mid Temperances,
and fat little geniuses willi light blue wing«, flying
and sprawling about ¡11 all directions.
The portrait of Mary i« in belter Inste: it is very
lady-like and unaffected ; the neck and bosom perhaps
rallier too much expand, cniinidiriug that Mary in
(induced a decorum in dress unknown in the last lu«
reigns. The face is u complete Stuart fuce, and luis a
striking resemblance lo oil the pictures of the young
Pretender. With considerable beauty, swi élues«, mid
dignity, we li ml I hnsc indication« of weakness mid ob-
stinacy round the mouth, mid in the lower part of the
countenance, common lo all llie portraits of IbeStuart
line.
The Countess of Peterborough-Carey Fraser,
daughter of A'-Xaudor Eraser, und first wife of Charlu
Moi'diiiuit, Earl of Peterborough ¡in«) Monmouth.
Neitiicr the charm« nor the virtues «if this'amiable
and benn ti Oil woman, bad power to fix die heart of
her inconstant and eccentric husband. He spent very
little of Instinto with her, his restless mid voltitil«
spirit lending bim abroad. It wa« his boast " that lie
luitl seen more kings and more postillions than any
111:111 ¡11 Europe." Walpole calls him " as gallant as
A niadis, mid r« brave;" and Pope said of lum, " that
he was never horn lo die like other men, any more than
to live like them." Lord Peterborough's riviilship of
the Duke of Marlborough, and his exploits while tin
wa« C'ninmiuider-iii-chief of (he British force« ill
Spain, may be ion ml ¡11 every History of England.
Murried to such a mini, the Countess of Peterborough
must hnve derived what portion of happiness fell lo
her share from the glory rather than the leuilerucss of
lier husband, mid the noble qiinliiie« of her «on-, who
were both of Ihein distinguished hy their tjnllaalry und
good conduct. She died in 170!). leaving also a
daughter uflerwards Duchess of Gordon. Tlie second
wife of the Euri of Peterborough was the celebrated
singer Anastasia Robinson, of whom Dr. Burney has
given us such tin interesting memoir in hi« History of
Music.
In Ibis portrait of the first Countess of Peter-
borough, the face lins gieat beauly, mid a dii>iufii'(l
expression, mingled, however, with uti air of pensive,
ness, st.cb a« the wife of Lord Peterborough maybe
supposed lo hove, worn habitually. She is leaning on
a pedestal of the »linne of Pallas : the nttiliide i« easy,
unaffected and Indy-like. The drapery, however, ian
failure, being carelessly painted, and coin posed of
deep shudes of.red mid lillie violently contrnslcd,
which have a most iujiidic'-otis effect; (Ile folds have
the stiffness of cast.iron ; all die beauly and effect of
the picture are confined, ns usual, to the head; which
i« extremely well painted, und full of interest.
Dnctui Snaiiics, Master of Pelerhotise, Cambridge,
towards the close of llie Killi century, deprived ilia
college over which he presided of a handsome e.tate,
by hi» whimsical pcrvcr«c»ess:-Mary, Ila? widow of
Thomas Ramsay, Lord Mayor of London in I M7,
afler conferring several favours on that foundation,
offered lo settle 5001. per nanum "nu the house, pro-
vided thal it might be culled «« The College of Peter
and Mary."-" No," said Hie capricious Master.
*' I'eter, who lins lived loo long single, is too old
now for a femlito partner." The lady, disgusted tyt
llie Doctor's scruple, turned the stream of her bene-
volence toother foundations.
Talma's demise, which, by the unfavour-
able accounts in the French journals, seems
almost inevi able, will be a severe loss ta
tiuglish residents, and occasional visiters.
irom ibis cnunlry lo that gay city, Paris,
especially those who are in love with the
Drama and Hie Arts.-Talma kept an hos-
pitable, and almo»! an open table, whers
men ol' genius and artist« were received with
kiudiie-s, and from earlv associations and de»
votion to England, his great delight was to
introduce the English people, who called,
upon lum, to ibe men of science and acquire«
tneuts in Ins own country al a good dinner.
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