The painting records Warren Hastings' visit to Lucknow in March 1784 - a meeting between the Governor General and Shahzada Mirza Jawan Bakht Bahadur, the son of Alam Shah II and the heir apparent to the Mughal Empire.

The Prince, a refugee from Delhi, penniless and abandoned, arrived at Lucknow in May 1784. Hastings took pity on him, describing him as "an illustration youth - the relic of the most illustrious line of the Eastern World".

Claude Martin who was present for this meeting is depicted in this painting, seated third from right.