By Mitch
This gallery houses the worlds largest portrait collection from the late Middle Ages to the present day. The very first portrait housed in this gallery was the Chandos portrait of William Shakespeare. It is known to be the only portrait to have been painted during Shakespeare’s life and was painted by a man named, John Taylor. It is known as the Chandos portrait after a previous owner and was the first portrait that the gallery acquired when it was opened in 1856. The gallery was a commitment for Britain to expand support for the arts. The gallery is also known for a gruesome murder suicide that took place in 1909. An elderly couple, John Dawson and his wife Nancy, who were wealthy were in the gallery before John shot Nancy from behind and then took his own life, while being declared insane. Nancy died a few hours later.
LONDON 