Lady Worsley

The Portrait of Lady Worsley, painted in 1779 by Joshua Reynolds, captures Seymour, Lady Worsley, dressed in a riding habit styled to resemble the uniform of the South Hampshire Militia, of which her husband was colonel. The Oil on Canvas Portrait reflects the patriotic fervor of the period, coinciding with fears of invasion amid the American War of Independence. Reynolds originally spotted Lady Worsley at a military camp, and the painting was meant to complement her husband's 1775 portrait. Her costume and the classical Rococo style hint at the elegance of the era, though her later scandal overshadowed her fame.