The sitter shown here is certainly not Frances, Viscountess Nelson, but may be intended as a portrait of Princess Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen (1792-1849). In 1818 she came to England from Germany for an arranged marriage to Prince Frederick William, Duke of Clarence, the aim being to produce a male heir to the Hanoverian succession. It proved a happy match, despite the fact he was twice her age and already had ten illegitimate children (by Dorothy Jordan and called the Fitzclarences), which Adelaide accepted. In 1830 she became Queen on his succession as the 'Sailor King' William IV. Though politically unpopular for her conservative views, Adelaide was a woman of amiable good sense and a steady influence on her eccentric husband. None of their children survived early infancy, however, and in 1837 William was succeeded by his niece, Queen Victoria, who had a high regard for her widowed aunt. Adelaide's health in later life was poor: although she died in England, she spent much time abroad in warmer climes, mainly the Mediterranean. [PvdM 11/10]