Henry Hudson after Mather Brown.

Lord Loughborough.

13 x 19 inches

Alexander Wedderburn, 1st Earl of Rosslyn, Lord Loughborough (1733-1805).

Lord Loughborough looks astonished in this portrait and we can only wonder what's written upon the mysterious scroll being held at arm's length. A successful and methodical lawyer from Scotland his steely ambition would take him all the way to London: a seat in the House of Commons from 1761, a flourishing legal career and eventually (in 1793), the ultimate accolade of becoming Lord High Chancellor. No mean achievement for someone whom James Boswell describes in his 1763 Journal as "overbearing and flippant". He was credited with elegant oratory when advocating at the Bar but these skills appear to have deserted him in social situations when he became tongue tied and rather dull. In fact, so dull was he considered that he was accused by his contemporaries of causing dullness in others: not the sort of guest you'd want at your soiree!