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King Charles II

5 of 11 portraits by John Savage

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King Charles II

by John Savage, after Willem Wissing
line engraving, late 17th century
5 1/2 in. x 3 1/4 in. (141 mm x 83 mm) plate size; 6 5/8 in. x 3 3/4 in. (167 mm x 96 mm) paper size
Purchased with help from the Friends of the National Libraries and the Pilgrim Trust, 1966
Reference Collection
NPG D18527

Sitterback to top

  • King Charles II (1630-1685), Reigned 1660-85. Sitter associated with 295 portraits.

Artistsback to top

  • John Savage (active 1683-1700), Engraver and publisher; successor to Isaac Beckett at the Golden Head, Old Bailey. Artist or producer associated with 11 portraits.
  • Willem Wissing (1656-1687), Portrait painter. Artist or producer associated with 147 portraits, Sitter in 3 portraits.

Related worksback to top

Events of 1670back to top

Current affairs

Charles II mistress, Barbara Villiers, is created Duchess of Cleveland and granted Nonsuch Palace including its sizeable grounds.
Actress and royal mistress, Nell Gwyn, gives birth to Charles II's son, Charles, who would later become, Duke of St. Albans.

Art and science

Tragicomedy, The Forc'd Marriage, by Aphra Behn, staged by the Duke's Company, starts Behn's career as a professional writer. The writer may have been a royalist spy towards the end of the interregnum.
Poet laureate, John Dryden, is made historiographer royal, a post he would hold for nearly 20 years.

International

Terms of a secret treaty between Charles II and Louis XIV are brought by Henrietta, Duchess of Orleans during a visit to Dover; upon England supplying the majority of military power for a war against Holland and Charles's official conversion to Catholicism, France would assist financially.

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