Sir Thomas Gresham
1 portrait matching these criteria:
- set matching 'Macdonnell Collection'
© National Portrait Gallery, London
Sir Thomas Gresham
by Francis Delaram, after Unknown artist
line engraving, circa 1600-1625
6 7/8 in. x 4 5/8 in. (175 mm x 116 mm) paper size
Purchased with help from the Friends of the National Libraries and the Pilgrim Trust, 1966
Reference Collection
NPG D2811
Sitterback to top
- Sir Thomas Gresham (circa 1518-1579), Founder of the Royal Exchange. Sitter associated with 23 portraits.
Artistsback to top
- Francis Delaram (1590-1627), Engraver. Artist or producer associated with 58 portraits.
- Unknown artist, Artist. Artist or producer associated with 6578 portraits.
This portraitback to top
Gresham was one of the most important merchants and financiers in Elizabethan England. He spent much of his career in Antwerp, raising and managing loans for the crown. This print was produced several decades after his death and the inscription heralds his achievements as a 'worthy citizen' and the founder of the Royal Exchange.
Linked displays and exhibitionsback to top
- Making History: Printed Portraiture in Tudor and Stuart Britain (7 July 2007 - 9 December 2007)
Subjects & Themesback to top
Events of 1600back to top
Current affairs
Robert Devereux, Earl of Essex is put on trial for failing to put an end to the rebellion in Ireland, attempting to negotiate a truce with the rebel leader Hugh O'Neill, Earl of Tyrone, and deserting his post.Charles Blount, Lord Mountjoy, replaces Essex as Lord Deputy of Ireland.
The East India Company receives its Royal Charter by Queen Elizabeth I.
Birth of Prince Charles in Scotland (later King Charles I).
Art and science
William Shakespeare writes Hamlet.The scientist William Gilbert writes De magnete ('on the magnet'), which pioneers research into the properties of the lodestone (magnetic iron ore) and introduces the terms 'electricity' and 'magnetic pole'.
The miniature painter Nicholas Hilliard works on his painting treatise The Art of Limning at this time.
International
Henry IV of France marries Marie de Medici from the powerful ruling family of Florence, Italy.The Italian astronomer, philosopher and mathematician Giordano Bruno is sentenced to death by the Roman Inquisition and burned at the stake for heresy.
Following the death of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, Tokugawa Ieyasu seizes control of Japan at the Battle of Sekigahara.
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