William Simson

William Simson was born in 1800 in Dundee and made his living as a successful painter of landscapes, seascapes and genre pictures, working particularly in watercolour. He studied art at the Trustee's Academy in Edinburgh and in 1830 he was elected a member of the Royal Scottish Academy, although he eventually settled in London. Simson travelled a great deal, particularly in Italy and the Netherlands, and is perhaps best known for his history paintings on themes such as the murder of the Princes in the Tower. He also painted occasional sporting subjects, some of which were later engraved. William Simson died in 1847 in Chelsea, London.