King William III

1 portrait

© National Portrait Gallery, London

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King William III

by Unknown artist
oil on canvas, circa 1695
85 3/8 in. x 68 7/8 in. (2170 mm x 1750 mm) overall
Given by Henry Yates Thompson, 1896
Primary Collection
NPG 1026

Sitterback to top

  • King William III (1650-1702), Reigned 1689-1702. Sitter associated with 142 portraits.

Artistback to top

  • Unknown artist, Artist. Artist or producer associated with 6578 portraits.

Linked publicationsback to top

  • Cannadine, Sir David (Introduction); Cooper, Tarnya; Stewart, Louise; MacGibbon, Rab; Cox, Paul; Peltz, Lucy; Moorhouse, Paul; Broadley, Rosie; Jascot-Gill, Sabina, Tudors to Windsors: British Royal Portraits, 2018 (accompanying the exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery from The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Texas, USA, 7 October 2018 -3 February 2019. Bendigo Art Gallery, Australia, 16 March - 14 July 2019.), p. 119 Read entry

    Equestrian portraits were increasingly popular towards the end of the seventeenth century, and William III, with his impressive military record, was particuarly suited to this kind of imagery. It is possible that the battle scene in the background is intended to be the Battle of the Boyne (1690), a famous victory in Ireland in which he defeated the forces of the deposed King James II.

  • Ingamells, John, Later Stuart Portraits 1685-1714, 2009, p. 327
  • Saywell, David; Simon, Jacob, Complete Illustrated Catalogue, 2004, p. 663

Events of 1695back to top

Current affairs

Princess Anne, daughter of James II by Anne Hyde, and now heir apparent to the English throne, returns to court having retired two years previously over William III's dismissal of John Churchill and his wife, Sarah, Anne's closest companion.

Art and science

William Congreve's comical farce, Love for Love, exemplifying the height of Restoration comedy, reopens Lincoln's Inn Theatre with a new actors' company led by actor Thomas Betterton. Its witty, sparking dialogue made it hugely popular with audiences.

International

William III and Maximilian II Emanuel of Bavaria, commanding the army of the grand alliance, recapture Namur in the Spanish Netherlands from the French. Despite a period of victories, the Netherlands and England begin to struggle financially under the economic strain of the ongoing Nine Years' War.

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