Sophie Guillemette, Grand Duchess of Baden (1801-1865)

Before Franz Xaver Winterhalter became the most sought-after court portraitist in Europe — painting Queen Victoria, Napoleon III, and the courts of Russia — he served the Grand Duke of Baden at Karlsruhe. This 1831 likeness of Sophie Guillemette, a Swedish-born princess who had become Grand Duchess of Baden, dates from that early career, when the young German artist was establishing the polished, flattering style that would make him a favourite of royalty across the continent.