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Queen Mary II

6 of 1569 portraits matching these criteria:

- subject matching 'Buildings and architecture'

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Queen Mary II

by Jan Verkolje
oil on canvas, circa 1688
15 5/8 in. x 12 3/4 in. (397 mm x 324 mm)
Purchased, 1880
Primary Collection
NPG 606

Sitterback to top

  • Queen Mary II (1662-1694), Reigned with William III 1689-94. Sitter associated with 97 portraits.

Artistback to top

  • Jan Verkolje (1650-1693), Painter, draughtsman and mezzotint printmaker. Artist associated with 13 portraits.

This portraitback to top

The elder daughter of James II by Anne Hyde, Mary married William of Orange in 1677. In the heartbreaking dilemma presented by the revolution of 1688, Mary chose to support her husband and Protestantism rather than her Catholic father. She is said to have come to Whitehall 'laughing and jolly' and she proved a wise and tactful queen. In this elegant portrait, an exquisite small-scale version of a portrait painted in Holland in 1685, she is shown in robes of state with the crown and sceptre by her side. She is holds white flowers in her left hand and there is a view of classicizing architecture, including a running fountain, in the distance.

Related worksback to top

  • NPG 197: Queen Mary II (based on same portrait)

Linked publicationsback to top

Subjects & Themesback to top

Events of 1688back to top

Current affairs

The Glorious Revolution. Senior statesmen, increasingly resentful of James's assault upon liberties of his subjects, invite William III of Orange to invade England. Their action is spurred on by the acquittal of seven bishops who refused to read James II's declaration of indulgence from their pulpits. James flees into exile.

Art and science

George Savile, Marquess of Halifax, publishes his political tract, The Character of a Trimmer, written 1685, which urged Charles II to shake off his brother's influence.
Writer, Aphra Behn, publishes Oroonoko, often considered to be an abolitionist treatise.


International

Nine Years' War. Threatened by William III's invasion of England and possible alliance of Protestant European states under his helm, Louis XIV sends French troops into the Rhineland. This pre-emptive strike ignites a war of attrition, and institutes a coalition of European states united in attempting to halt expansionist France.

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