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Ada, Countess of Lovelace, stands at the foot of a staircase and steps delicately forward, demurely turning her face away from the viewer. Lord Byron married Annabella Milbanke, daughter of Sir Ralph Milbanke, in 1815. The couple's only child, Ada, was born just before they separated amid bitter quarrels the following year. Ada was raised by her mother and educated in mathematics and sciences to prevent her following in her father's footsteps as a poet. She became famous at a young age through the following lines from her father's hugely successful poem 'Childe Harold': 'Is thy face like thy mother's, my fair child! Ada! Sole daughter of my house and my heart? When last I saw thy young blue eyes they smiled' Ada became a mathematician and assisted Charles Babbage in his work on mechanical computers.
In 1835, Ada married Lord King, created Earl of Lovelace in 1838. The couple had two sons and a daughter. However, in her later life Ada suffered poor health and also gambled. Her illness, coupled with financial ruin, led her mother, Lady Byron, to take over the Lovelace household. Ada died in severe pain from cancer of the womb. By her own request she was buried next to her father in the church of St Mary Magdalene, Hucknall.
Title
Ada King (1815–1852), Countess of Lovelace, Mathematician, Daughter of Lord Byron
Date
1836
Medium
oil on canvas
Measurements
H 216 x W 137 cm
Accession number
2172
Acquisition method
purchased from Leggatt Brothers, 1953
Work type
Painting
Government Art Collection
Queen's Yard, 179A Tottenham Court Road, London, Greater London W1T 7PA England
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