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My good friend and fellow #Popham fan @LynnBry29527024 has drawn my attention to a previously unknown portrait of my chap. It's properly the best thing that has happened to me today. Here it is. (Short thread) 1/7
Why is this such fabulous find? Because it's a late-life portrait, 1818+ (Popham died in 1820). And it's so different from the other portraits I've seen, not because the features are off (the eyes, the nose, the chin are distinctive) but because he looks so...tired. 2/7
By the time this portrait was painted, Popham had outlived his usefulness. Buenos Aires and Walcheren had made the politicians reluctant to trust him. His time off Spain in 1812 failed to turn into a permanent posting. 3/7
In 1817 he was appointed commander-in-chief at Jamaica. This far-flung post killed him; it also killed two of his children. By the time this portrait was painted in 1818 he must have been so weary of everything. You can see the disillusionment in his eyes. 4/7
You can see it in contrast with the other two portraits I know of. In both of those, younger Popham is full of confidence and self-satisfaction, as though launching a challenge to the world. 5/7
1818 Popham has none of that pomposity. He looks almost broken. When I was researching Ld Chatham, there was one particular letter that allowed me to see beyond his reputation to the man beyond. I wonder if this portrait has given me that same moment for Popham. 6/7
I know I often talk about how I distrust and dislike Popham; but for all that I do feel sorry for him. He was a bit of a git, but his last years must have been so bitter. Maybe he deserved it. But I can't look at this portrait without feeling sad. He was human, after all. 7/7
