The period from the early works of Hogarth (about 1730) to the death of Turner (1851) was the golden age of British painting, bringing it into the forefront of European art. The main figures are Hogarth, Ramsay, Reynolds, Gainsborough and Lawrence, Blake, Constable and Turner. William Vaughan discusses the key personalities and analyses the class structure, political background, including the effects of the Napoleonic Wars, and economic factors that governed the art market.