Louis-Auguste (later Baron) Schwiter (1805 - 1889) was a landscape and portrait painter. This portrait was begun in 1826 after Delacroix\'s return from England. It was rejected at the Salon of 1827, after which the artist made some alterations, completing the painting in 1830. The landscape background is believed to be by Delacroix\'s friend, the landscape painter Paul Huet (1803 - 1869). The portrait itself may have been influenced by the portraitist Sir Thomas Lawrence (1769 - 1830), who was the subject of an essay by Delacroix published in 1829. The painting was later owned by Degas.