Carolus II.dus D.G. Ang. Sco. Fra. et Hib. Rex Fidei Defensor. &c.

Kneller, Godfrey, after

Mezzotint portrait of King Charles II (1630-1685) of England, Scotland and Ireland, engraved and published by John Smith (1652-1743) in London between 1690 and 1743. It is a cropped copy of a full-length portrait by Sir Godfrey Kneller (1646-1723), probably the portrait now in the Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool. The king wears the ceremonial vestments and accoutrements of the Order of the Garter, including a gold collar and a figure of St George on horseback slaying a dragon. The badge on his shoulder bears the arms of the Order: a St George cross surrounded by the motto, 'honi soit qui mal y pense' (evil to him who evil thinks). Kneller added the inscription 'ad vivum' ((painted) from life) to his painting, suggesting the work was begun in the king's lifetime but completed after his death.