Sir Richard Wallace: The Collector

Dr Xavier Bray

One of my first endeavours as Director was to find out as much as possible about Sir Richard Wallace. Who was this British born and French educated man, said to be the illegitimate son of 4th Marquess of Hertford? What was his role in the formation of the collection and why is The Wallace Collection named after him and not after the 4th Marquess of Hertford? In this lecture I will set out to reveal what I have since discovered and why he has informed many of my ambitions for the future of The Wallace Collection.