41 Mornington Road
Regents’ Park
March 22^d _
1847

Sir
In compliance with your request
to have my Autograph, I send it you in
this form. On the 19.^th ins.^t I attain’d
my 72^d year, having been born on the 19^th
of March 1773. I have a perfect recollec=
=tion of the Riots of London _ My Father’s
house was mark’d to be burnt; the leaders
of the Western mob conceiving he must
be a Roman Catholic. However, the mob
were better amused in another course _
I was born with a natural Genius for
Music and Drawing. I drew pretty well
at 4 years old, and painted my first picture
when only six. Before I was 4 years old,
I played my own invented melodies which I
accompanied with a bass, on the then

only instruments, a Harpsichord _ At 4
& half years old the instrument was sent by
my Mother’s desire out of the house, as I
used to rise at 3 or 4 in the winter mornings
and go in the dark to the Instrument to play,
what I had dreamt of _ This was too musical
for my beloved Mother, tho’ my Father and
my 3 uncles were all learned theoretical
Musicians. _ I maintained myself at
13 years old; and by the Royal Academy Cata=
=logues my name appears, when of that age,
my Picture being a Landscape 4 feet 6 by 3 ft
4. It was honor’d by a central place _
I kept myself at School for 3 years afterwards
My address for the Picture I first Exhibited
was Wanstead Academy, which is near
Epping Forest. I was in Holland when
the French Army under Pichegre envaded
it _ I was driven, and many friends with
me from Utrecht, which City we left at 6
------------------------------------------------------
in the Evening of Jan.^y 1793 and the french
advanced Guard enterd at 7 the next morning.
1793 & 94 produced one of the severest frosts
known to us. The Thermometer stood for
5 weeks at 50° Degrees below freezing _ We
wrote with boiling ink, and with difficulty
could get a letter done _ I went to Italy
and arrived in Rome in Feb.^y 1796 _ In
1797 the French drove me to Naples _
in July I escaped by Genoa. I walked all
through Switzerland, the ony way to see all
the wonders of that Alpine Country _.
I made a Calculation of my probable ex
=pences to return to England which was so
exact, that I had ‘6/0 left of the hoarded
sum: but I brought home £95 besides,
being some of the fruits of success in my
Profession. I never drew on my Father for
one sixpence after I had reached my 13^th year
On the contrary, I gave each of Eight sisters

£20 a year to equip them as they liked _
I presented them all with handsome gold
watches when only 16 years old _ At 10 years
of age I invented Panorama’s. Mr Barker
who carried out the Invention on his part
has the reputation of being the Inventor; but
Sir George Beaumont also invented the
same made of representing Nature. He built
a Small Temple on purpose, on the Walls
he intended as he told me, to have Keswick
Lake represented _ I have painted 13 large
Panoramas. I built what is now converted
into the Strand Theatre, a Panorama building
60 feet diameter _ My first view was Rome
from the Tower of the Capitol. My next was
the City seen from the Villa Ludovisi _ my
3^d was Florence _ my 4^th was the Bay of Naples
from the Shores of Vico & Sorrento _ I paint
in all styles, and can imitate every Master
of Every Italian School, every Flemish and
every Dutch Master. I am in perfect health.
thanks to resolute frugality, temperance and
moderation. I hope this sketch may be acceptable
I remain your obedient Servant RRReinagle