This website presents our knowledge and research on this important aspect of the Royal Collection. As of April 2026 it will not be regularly updated and new research on this topic will sit within the main website.

Portraiture

Prince Albert was an early adopter of portrait photography

GREY (ACTIVE 1856)

'Prince Alfred'; Prince Alfred, later Duke of Edinburgh and Saxe-Coburg-Gotha (1844-1900)

c.1858

Albumen print hand-coloured with watercolour | 8.2 x 6.2 cm (image) | RCIN 2914281

Hand-coloured photograph of a half length portrait of Prince Alfred, later Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (1844-1900) facing a quarter to the left. He wears a black jacket, waistcoat and tie and a white shirt. Photograph cropped into an oval.
  • Creator(s)

    Grey (active 1856) (colourist)

    Subject(s)

    Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh and Saxe-Coburg & Gotha (1844-1900)
  • 8.2 x 6.2 cm (image)

  • Commissioned by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert

  • Object type(s)
      • visual works
        • photographs