Studio of Willem Wissing, 
Dutch 1656-1687- 
Portrait of Laurence Hyde, 1st Earl of Rochester,...

Studio of Willem Wissing, 
Dutch 1656-1687- 

Portrait of Laurence Hyde, 1st Earl of Rochester, three-quarter length, in garter robes; 

oil on canvas, inscribed and dated 'Henry Duke of Kent / 1712' (upper left), 128.3 x 101.6 cm. 

Provenance: 
James Duff, 2nd Earl Fife (1728-1809), Duff House, Banffshire, by 1798, and by inheritance with the house to his brother; 
Alexander Duff, 3rd Earl Fife (1731-1811), and by descent to his son; 
James Duff, 4th Earl Fife (1776-1857), and by inheritance to his nephew; 
James Duff, 5th Earl Fife (1814-1879), and by descent to his son; 
Alexander Duff, 6th Earl of Fife and later 1st Duke of Fife (1849-1912); 
his sale, Christie's, London, 7 June 1907, lot 79, as 'Sir G. Kneller', 7 gns. to the following; 
with Parsons' Galleries, London. 
Nan Ino Cooper, Baroness Lucas of Crudwell and Lady Dingwall (1880-1958), Wrest Park, and by family descent to the present owner. 

Literature: 
James Duff, Earl of Fife, Catalogue of the portraits and pictures in the different houses belonging to the Earl of Fife, London, 1798, p. 27, no. 4; 1807 edition, p. 58, no. 3, as 'Sir P. Lely', listed in the Middle South-East Bedroom, Duff House. 

Note: 
Laurence Hyde (1641-1711) was made 1st Earl of Rochester of the second creation in 1682 after a period as Master of the Robes to Louis XIV between 1662 and 1675 and then election to the new English parliament as member for Wootton Bassett in 1679. 
Hyde was the brother-in-law of James II (1633-1701) through his sister, the king's first wife, Anne Hyde (1637-1671), and, as such, the uncle of Queen Mary II (1662-1694) and Queen Anne (1665-1714). Initially a supporter of James II, in 1688 Hyde backed the Glorious Revolution, after which he devoted his attention to the church, becoming advisor in ecclesiastical matters to his niece Mary II.