Cameron’s latest blue-blooded lookie-likie
Have you ever glanced at a portrait of Catherine the Great and thought: “Crikey, that looks a lot like my PM!”? Well, you’re not alone.
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This painting of an 18th century woman totally looks like David Cameron in drag pic.twitter.com/IZNOUqFSll
— Sophie Gadd (@sophie_gadd) December 15, 2013
As if being descended from William IV was not quite enough for David Cameron, it turns out he also bears a striking resemblance to Catherine II the Great of Russia – and for good reason.
Thanks to eagle-eyed student Sophie Gadd, we now know that the prime minister is related to Catherine the Great via William IV’s grandfather – who was the father of George III and a second cousin of Catherine the Great.
Ms Gadd, a student at the University of York, spotted the likeness during a trip to the Deutsches Historisches Museum in Berlin.
And having tweeted Cameron’s likeness to the visage depicted in Johann Baptist Lampi’s 1794 portrait, she sparked thousands of retweets, leading the Spectator to establish the family link.
Cameron’s connection to William IV means he is fifth cousin twice-removed of the Queen: linked by just 13 familial steps.
But the prime minister’s wife Samantha Cameron also boasts an illustrious lineage as the Queen’s 11th cousin. Like her husband, Ms Cameron traces her royal line via a mistress.
Her family tree reveals that Nell Gwyn, the mistress of Charles II, is Mrs Cameron’s great, great, great, great, great, great, great, great grandmother.
So next time you find yourself in a room full of painted aristocracy, look a little closer and ask yourself: “Haven’t I seen that face at Number 10?”
