Roundel Portraits of Lady Charlotte Fitzroy and Edward Henry Lee

These two portraits in the Tapestry Room depict the late 17th century owners of Ditchley Park: Lady Charlotte Fitzroy and Sir Edward Henry Lee, first Earl and Countess of Lichfield. Both paintings are attributed to Sir Godfrey Kneller who was an important portrait painter of their time, often at the service of the royal court.

Charlotte Fitzroy was the daughter of Charles II, King of England, and one of his mistresses, Barbara Villiers, Duchess of Cleveland, both of whose portraits also hang in Ditchley Park (in the White Drawing Room). As she was acknowledged by Charles, her surname ‘Fitzroy’ is a reflection of her heritage, an Anglo-Norman word that means ‘child of the king’. She was known f...