According to her Wikipedia article, she is an oft-quoted commentator of the day and she had a close, but Platonic, relationship with the Duke of Wellington.
From the Fitzwilliam Museum; spots throughout image removed with Photoshop by gogm.
Harriet Arbuthnot wears a casual-looking dress that shows how the French Revolution had changed fashion on both sides of the Channel.
Keywords: 1796, Cosway, Harriet Fane, Harriet Arbuthnot, Fane family, Arbuthnot family, British, curly coiffure, fichu, vee neckline, close sleeves, waist band, bows, Empire waistline, necklace