Royal Academy Exhibition of 1830 was an art exhibition that took place at Somerset House in London between 3 May and 24 July 1830. It was the annual Summer Exhibition of the Royal Academy of Arts. It was the last to be held during the reign of George IV who died in June while the exhibition was in progress and was succeeded by his younger brother William IV.
The President of the Royal Academy Thomas Lawrence had died suddenly in January and the Irish portraitist Martin Archer Shee was elected to succeed him. Lawrence's friend J.M.W. Turner produced a watercolor The Funeral of Sir Thomas Lawrence depicting his burial at St Paul's Cathedral which he exhibited. A number of the final works by Lawrence were posthumously exhibited to public and critical acclaim including his Portrait of Lord Aberdeen. Lawrence had dominated portraiture during the Regency era there was much press speculation about which other painters would fill his shoes.
Turner also exhibited the biblical painting Pilate Washing his Hands which met with a rough reception from critics. Likewise Jessica based on the Shakespeare character from The Merchant of Venice received very harsh reviews. Gilbert Stuart Newton displayed a more conventional version Shylock and Jessica. He also featured two landscape paintings from his recent visit to Italy. John Constable sent in several works including Helmingham Dell and a view of Hampstead Heath but his Water Meadows near Salisbury was rejected.
Scottish artist David Wilkie exhibited his The Entrance of George IV at Holyroodhouse which he has been working on since George IV's Visit to Scotland in 1822. He also displayed a portrait of George IV in Highland Dress which was very badly received. The American artist Thomas Cole made his debut at the academy and exhibited two landscapes - a depiction of the memorial to General Isaac Brock at Queenstown Heights in Canada and a View of New Hampshire. The French romantic painter Eugène Delacroix showed his The Murder of the Bishop of Liège inspired by the novel Quentin Durward by Walter Scott under the title The Boar of Ardenne.
<Gallery Mode="packed" Heights="200"> File:Georgehamiltongordonaberdeen.jpg|Portrait of Lord Aberdeen by Thomas Lawrence File:Thomas Lawrence (1769-1830) - Miss Caroline Fry - N01307 - National Gallery.jpg|Caroline Fry by Thomas Lawrence File:Countess of Belfast Lawrence.jpg|Portrait of the Countess of Belfast by Thomas Lawrence File:George IV in kilt, by Wilkie.jpg|George IV in Highland Dress by David Wilkie File:Sir David Wilkie (1785-1841) - The Entrance of George IV at Holyroodhouse - RCIN 401187 - Royal Collection.jpg|The Entrance of George IV at Holyroodhouse by David Wilkie File:William Etty (1787âÂÂ1849) â Candaules, King of Lydia, Shews his Wife by Stealth to Gyges, One of his Ministers, as She Goes to Bed â N00358 â Tate.jpg|Candaules, King of Lydia, Shews his Wife by Stealth to Gyges, One of his Ministers, as She Goes to Bed by William Etty File:William Etty - The storm, 1830.jpg|The Storm by William Etty File:James Ward - Venus Rising from her Couch - Google Art Project.jpg|Venus Rising from her Couch by James Ward File:James Ward - Diana at the Bath - Google Art Project.jpg|Diana at the Bath by James Ward File:Gilbert Stuart Newton - Shylock and Jessica from the 'Merchant of Venice,' II, ii - Google Art Project.jpg|Shylock and Jessica by Gilbert Stuart Newton File:Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775-1851) - Jessica - T03887 - Tate.jpg|Jessica by J.M.W. Turner File:Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775-1851) - Pilate Washing his Hands - N00510 - National Gallery.jpg|Pilate Washing his Hands by J.M.W. Turner File:Funeral of Sir Thomas Lawrence.jpg|The Funeral of Sir Thomas Lawrence by J.M.W. Turner File:Joseph Mallord William Turner 067.jpg|Palestrina - Composition by J.M.W. Turner File:Joseph Mallord William Turner 085.jpg|Calais Sands at Low Water by J.M.W. Turner File:John Constable - The Dell at Helmingham Park - Google Art Project.jpg|Helmingham Dell by John Constable File:Water Meadows near Salisbury.png|Water Meadows near Salisbury by John Constable File:Tomb of General Brock, Queenston Heights, Ontario.jpeg|Tomb of General Brock, Queenstown Heights by Thomas Cole File:Queen Victoria as a girl - Westall 1830.jpg|Princess Victoria by Richard Westall File:Richard Temple-Nugent-Brydges-Chandos-Grenville, 2nd Duke of Buckingham and Chandos by John Jackson, 1830.jpeg|Portrait of the Duke of Chandos by John Jackson File:John Jackson (1778-1831) - Sir John Soane - NPG 701 - National Portrait Gallery.jpg|Portrait of Sir John Soane by John Jackson File:Maria Malibran by Henri Decaisne.jpg|Maria Malibran as Desdemona by Henri Decaisne File:Sir David Wilkie (1785-1841) - The Guerilla's Return - RCIN 405093 - Royal Collection.jpg|The Guerilla's Return by David Wilkie File:The Passage Point.jpg|The Passage Point by Augustus Wall Callcott File:A Brisk Gale. A Dutch East-Indiaman Landing Passengers.jpg|A Brisk Gale. A Dutch East-Indiaman Landing Passengers by Augustus Wall Callcott File:Clarkson Stanfield - Mount St Michael, Cornwall - Google Art Project.jpg|Mount St Michael, Cornwall by Clarkson Stanfield File:Edwin Landseer - Attachment.jpg|Attachment by Edwin Landseer File:L'Assassinat de l'évêque de Liège - Eugène Delacroix - Muse du Louvre Peintures RF 1961 13.jpg|The Murder of the Bishop of Liège by Eugène Delacroix File:Gilbert Stuart Newton (1794-1835) - Yorick and the Grisette - N00353 - National Gallery.jpg|Yorick and the Grisette by Gilbert Stuart Newton </gallery>