Brief Biography-Daniel Maclise was born in Cork, Ireland, in 1808. He was the son of a Scottish shoemaker married to an Irish woman. He studied at the Cork School of Art, and in 1828, the Royal Academy in London accepted him. He excelled in portraiture but soon moved on to Historical, biblical, and literary subjects. He won a silver medal in 1829 and a gold medal in 1831 for history painting. The Academy elected him A.R.A. in 1835 and became R.A. in 1840. In 1844, he went to Paris and grew influenced by Paul Delaroche, and he later visited Germany, where the art had always impressed his style. The Academy offered him the Presidency in 1866, which he turned down, and he also refused a knighthood. His major works were vast murals in The House of Lords, Westminster, and his most noted painting is The Marriage of Strongbow and Eva, now in the National Gallery of Ireland. Maclise also illustrated books; a notable one is the Story of the Norman Conquest, displayed at The Academy in 1857. His later works show the influence of the Pre-Raphaelites.