Attributed to Mather Brown (Boston 1761-1831 London)


Portrait of General Officer Richard England, half-length, in military uniform oil on canvas91.2 x 71cm (35 7/8 x 27 15/16in).
|Lieutenant-General Richard James England (1745-1812) spent much of his military career in North America. Born in Lifford, County Clare, he was commissioned as an ensign into the 47th Regiment of Foot at the age of 20. He fought at the Battle of Bunker Hill (1775) and at the Battles of Saratoga during the American Revolutionary War where he was taken prisoner. By 1783 he was commanding the 24th Regiment of Foot as Lieutenant-Colonel and was appointed Commandant of Detroit in 1792. Latterly he was made Lieutenant-Governor of Plymouth and was General Officer commanding the Western District of Canada. He married Anne O'Brien by whom he had three children and died in London in 1812.