King Charles I

1 portrait

© National Portrait Gallery, London

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King Charles I

by Unknown artist
oil on copper with 17 mica overlays, second half of 17th century
3 1/8 in. x 2 1/2 in. (79 mm x 64 mm) oval
Purchased, 1996
Primary Collection
NPG 6357

On display in Room 6 on Floor 3 at the National Portrait Gallery

Sitterback to top

  • King Charles I (1600-1649), Reigned 1625-49. Sitter associated with 335 portraits.

Artistback to top

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

This portraitback to top

When this unusual portrait was offered by an art dealer in 1996, the Gallery already owned ten painted portraits of King Charles I (1600-49), and over 200 printed images. The portrait was nevertheless considered a valuable addition to the Collection as it gives a fascinating insight into seventeenth-century history and visual culture.
The oil on copper miniature of the king is accompanied by a set of 17 overlays made from a transparent glass-like material called mica. These can be laid over the miniature in order to dress him in different costumes and introduce other figures. Together they tell the story of his imprisonment, trial and execution on 30 January 1649. The final scene shows an angel trumpeting his arrival in heaven. It was one of the many objects made in the aftermath of his execution that honoured him as a holy martyr. They are very fragile and have deteriorated over time.
Nothing certain is known about the portrait’s origin and provenance but it can be dated to the second half of the seventeenth century. It is possible that the portrait was produced in Holland and collected by exiled Royalists or smuggled into England during the period of the Commonwealth and Protectorate (1649-60). Despite attempts to suppress royalist sympathy, items such as this fuelled a growing cult of Charles I as King and Martyr. The popularity of devotional miniatures such as this can be gauged by the number of similar examples that survive in public and private collections today. The Gallery collecting policy usually favours portraits made during the sitter’s lifetime but an exception was made for this fascinating posthumous portrait.

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. 76
  • Saywell, David; Simon, Jacob, Complete Illustrated Catalogue, 2004, p. 116

Subject/Themeback to top

Mediaback to top

 

Events of 1651back to top

Current affairs

Charles II, crowned King of Scotland, daringly invades England. His defeat at the Battle of Worcester by Oliver Cromwell permanently ends further military action against Parliament. Charles's escape from Worcester becomes legendary, as a fugitive, he seeks refuge for six weeks before finally fleeing to Normandy.

Art and science

Social philosopher, Thomas Hobbes, publishes his major work, Leviathan. Recognised as a cornerstone of western political philosophy, Hobbes's implication that the new political authority should be accepted, angering many exiled royalists.

International

Headed by Chief Justice, Oliver St. John, a delegation is sent by the Rump Parliament to The Hague to negotiate a union between England and the Dutch Republic. The mission fails, principally over refusal by the Dutch to expel the exiled Stuart royal family from the country.

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