About this artwork

William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland was the second surviving son of King George II. He followed a short spell in the navy with a career in the military, serving at the Battle of Dettingen in 1743 where he was wounded below the knee, an injury from which he never recovered. He commanded the army which pursued Prince Charles Edward Stewart during the 1745 Rising and defeated the Jacobite army at the Battle of Culloden 1746. As a result of his ruthless treatment of the rebels he earned the nickname the 'Butcher'. The sash of the Order of the Garter is visible across his chest; the Duke was given this honour in 1730 when he was still a child.

Updated before 2020

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