Prince Albert commissioned this portrait from the Prussian sculptor Emil Wolff in 1841 as a gift for his new wife. The Prince is dressed as a Greek warrior and at the centre of his breastplate is Victory (Viktoria), bearing in her hands a palm of Peace and a garland of honour, identifying the Prince as the Queen’s champion. When the statue was delivered to Windsor in 1844 Victoria called it ‘very beautiful’ (Journal, 8 Setpember 1844) but admitted that, ‘we know not yet where to place it’. Two years later she recorded that the statue had been moved to Osborne, explaining the decision in her diary:

Albert thinking the Greek armour, with bare legs & feet, looked too undressed to place in a room

Queen Victoria, 1 September 1846

The Prince commissioned a second version of his statue, modified by the lengthening of the tunic and the addition of sandals, to be placed in Buckingham Palace.