Denis Dighton
Encyclopedia
Denis Dighton was an English painter
, best known for his military portraits and battle scenes.
. He studied at the Royal Academy. At the age of seventeen he received a commission in the army, through the influence of the Prince of Wales
, who had been a close friend of his mother. However, he soon returned to civilian life, and enrolled as a student of the Royal Academy in 1807. He subsequently exhibited 17 pictures there between 1811 and 1825. By 1814 he had received the title of Military Painter to H.R.H. the Prince Regent. The prince sent Dighton to Belgium just before the Battle of Waterloo, and seems to have bought all his exhibited pictures.
He subsequently fell from royal favour when his intermediary with the Prince Regent
, Sir Benjamin Bloomfield
, lost his place in the royal household, to be replaced by Sir William Knighton
. After this loss of patronage, Dighton became mentally ill; he moved with his wife and son to Brittany, where he lived supported by the Artists' Fund until his death at the age of 35 on 8 August, 1827.
Denis Dighton is mostly known for his paintings of battle scenes especially depicting the Peninsular War
and the Battle of Waterloo
; he also painted a scene of Nelson
being shot at the Battle of Trafalgar
.
He was married to Phoebe Earl, flower painter to Queen Adelaide, in 1815.
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
, best known for his military portraits and battle scenes.
Life
Denis Dighton was the son of the caricaturist Robert DightonRobert Dighton
Robert Dighton was born c.1752 in London and died there in 1814. An English portrait painter, print maker and caricaturist, he was the founder of a dynasty of artists who followed in his footsteps.-Life and work:...
. He studied at the Royal Academy. At the age of seventeen he received a commission in the army, through the influence of the Prince of Wales
George IV of the United Kingdom
George IV was the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and also of Hanover from the death of his father, George III, on 29 January 1820 until his own death ten years later...
, who had been a close friend of his mother. However, he soon returned to civilian life, and enrolled as a student of the Royal Academy in 1807. He subsequently exhibited 17 pictures there between 1811 and 1825. By 1814 he had received the title of Military Painter to H.R.H. the Prince Regent. The prince sent Dighton to Belgium just before the Battle of Waterloo, and seems to have bought all his exhibited pictures.
He subsequently fell from royal favour when his intermediary with the Prince Regent
George IV of the United Kingdom
George IV was the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and also of Hanover from the death of his father, George III, on 29 January 1820 until his own death ten years later...
, Sir Benjamin Bloomfield
Benjamin Bloomfield, 1st Baron Bloomfield
Lieutenant-General Benjamin Bloomfield, 1st Baron Bloomfield GCB GCH was Private Secretary to the Sovereign 1817–1822....
, lost his place in the royal household, to be replaced by Sir William Knighton
William Knighton
Sir William Knighton, 1st Baronet GCH was Private Secretary to the Sovereign, George IV 1822–1830.He was born in 1776, and studied under his uncle, Dr. Bredall, in Tavistock, Devon. He spent two years at Guys Hospital, London, and received a diploma from the University of St Andrews in 1797...
. After this loss of patronage, Dighton became mentally ill; he moved with his wife and son to Brittany, where he lived supported by the Artists' Fund until his death at the age of 35 on 8 August, 1827.
Denis Dighton is mostly known for his paintings of battle scenes especially depicting the Peninsular War
Peninsular War
The Peninsular War was a war between France and the allied powers of Spain, the United Kingdom, and Portugal for control of the Iberian Peninsula during the Napoleonic Wars. The war began when French and Spanish armies crossed Spain and invaded Portugal in 1807. Then, in 1808, France turned on its...
and the Battle of Waterloo
Battle of Waterloo
The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815 near Waterloo in present-day Belgium, then part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands...
; he also painted a scene of Nelson
Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson
Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson, 1st Duke of Bronté, KB was a flag officer famous for his service in the Royal Navy, particularly during the Napoleonic Wars. He was noted for his inspirational leadership and superb grasp of strategy and unconventional tactics, which resulted in a number of...
being shot at the Battle of Trafalgar
Battle of Trafalgar
The Battle of Trafalgar was a sea battle fought between the British Royal Navy and the combined fleets of the French Navy and Spanish Navy, during the War of the Third Coalition of the Napoleonic Wars ....
.
He was married to Phoebe Earl, flower painter to Queen Adelaide, in 1815.
Paintings
- The Storming of San Sebastian on the 31st of August (1814 - National Trust for ScotlandNational Trust for ScotlandThe National Trust for Scotland for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, commonly known as the National Trust for Scotland describes itself as the conservation charity that protects and promotes Scotland's natural and cultural heritage for present and future generations to...
, Leith Hall) - Battle of Orthes (1815 - Marquess of AngleseyMarquess of AngleseyMarquess of Anglesey is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1815 for Henry Paget, 2nd Earl of Uxbridge, a hero of the Battle of Waterloo...
) - The Battle of Waterloo (1816 - Marquess of AngleseyMarquess of AngleseyMarquess of Anglesey is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1815 for Henry Paget, 2nd Earl of Uxbridge, a hero of the Battle of Waterloo...
) - Waterloo - Charge of the Second Brigade of Cavalry (1817)
- Battle of Waterloo (attributed) (Army and Navy Club, LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
) - Greeks and Turks. Defeat of the Turks in the Defile of Klissura (1823 - Private Collection)
Works about
- Carman, William Y., "The Battle of Waterloo by Denis Dighton," Journal of the Society for Army Historical Research, Vol. XLIII, No. 174, June 1965, pp. 55-59.
- Harrington, Peter. (1993). British Artists and War: The Face of Battle in Paintings and Prints, 1700-1914. London: Greenhill