Hogarth succeeded his brother-in-law John Thornhill, who had fallen ill and resigned the post. Hogarth's father-in-law, Sir James Thornhill, had also been serjeant-painter (he himself had succeeded Thomas Highmore through family connections). Though Hogarth's salary for the post was only £10, it was potentially lucrative: Hogarth wrote that he was now "landed as it were and secured from tugging any longer at the ore". Hogarth found himself responsible for all royal commissions for painting and gilding—anything from palace decorations to flags and boxes. After paying workmen and a deputy, he reckoned five years later that he was making £200 a year profit as serjeant-painter. However, the office, which came under the Board of Works, was not as prestigious as Hogarth would have liked. Joshua Reynolds was employed to paint leading members of the court and able to charge much higher prices than Hogarth, as a result of direct court patronage.