(1793 - 1865)
Sir Charles Lock Eastlake was born in Plymouth; the son of a judge-advocate and solicitor to the Admiralty. He studied under Samuel Prout before entering the Royal Academy (RA) Schools. He sketched Napoleon as a prisoner at Plymouth Sound and sold a resulting portrait sold for 1000 guineas. He then lived in Rome for 14 years. In 1830 he became a member of the RA and returned to London. In 1841 he was appointed Secretary of the Fine Arts Commission for the interior decoration of the Palace of Westminster. He was also Keeper of the National Gallery (1843-47). He married writer Elizabeth Rigby in 1849 and was elected President of the RA the following year. At 62 he was appointed first Director of the National Gallery. He died in Pisa, aged 72.
