Flora MacDonald (1722–1790)

Flora MacDonald achieved legendary status in Scottish and Jacobite history for her role in aiding the escape of Charles Edward Stuart — Bonnie Prince Charlie — after the defeat at Culloden in 1746, disguising him as her maidservant 'Betty Burke' to reach the Isle of Skye. Her portrait by Ramsay, held at the Guildhall Art Gallery, commemorates a woman who was simultaneously a romanticised heroine and, for a time, a political prisoner held in the Tower of London. By the time Ramsay painted her she had been rehabilitated in public esteem, and the portrait reflects a dignified, composed sitter rather than a fugitive. Ramsay's own family background had Jacobite sympathies, lending an additional layer of meaning to this commission. The portrait is one of several likenesses of MacDonald made in the mid-eighteenth century as her story became part of the mythology of defeated Scottish nationalism. It now stands as a rare surviving image of one of the period's most celebrated women.

Ramsay brings his trademark sensitivity to female portraiture here — the modelling of the face is gentle and characterful, avoiding idealisation in favour of individual presence. The costume appears in muted, dignified tones consistent with the sitter's Scottish Highland identity. The brushwork is assured, with the face receiving the most careful attention and the background minimally resolved.