Henry FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Grafton
3 of 747 portraits matching these criteria:
- subject matching 'Chalk'
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© National Portrait Gallery, London
Henry FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Grafton
circle of Sir Peter Lely
chalk, circa 1673
10 1/2 in. x 8 1/8 in. (267 mm x 206 mm)
Purchased, 1937
Primary Collection
NPG 2915
Sitterback to top
- Henry FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Grafton (1663-1690), Sailor and soldier; son of Charles II. Sitter in 14 portraits.
Artistback to top
- Sir Peter Lely (1618-1680), Portrait painter. Artist or producer associated with 843 portraits, Sitter in 19 portraits.
This portraitback to top
Sir Peter Lely's commercial success with black and red chalk drawings encouraged other British artists to take up the medium. His influence can be seen in this sensitive example by an unknown follower. The sitter, Henry Fitzroy was the illegitimate son of Charles II and wears a costume loosely based on Roman dress. This sort of fancy dress was popular in portraits to depict sitters as heirs to Roman culture and military brilliance. This image depicts Fitzroy at the age of about fifteen, a few years after he became a duke.
Linked publicationsback to top
- Ingamells, John, Later Stuart Portraits 1685-1714, 2009, p. 106
- Piper, David, Catalogue of Seventeenth Century Portraits in the National Portrait Gallery, 1625-1714, 1963, p. 144
- Saywell, David; Simon, Jacob, Complete Illustrated Catalogue, 2004, p. 257
Linked displays and exhibitionsback to top
- The Art of Drawing: Portraits from the Collection, 1670-1780 (19 October 2012 - 19 May 2013)
Events of 1673back to top
Current affairs
Controversially, James, Duke of York marries a Catholic, Mary of Modena, daughter of Alfonso IV, Duke of Modena.Parliament passes anti-Catholic legislation, the Test Act, which excludes recusants from public office. Officials are required to take an oath and deny the Catholic doctrine of transubstantiation.
Art and science
Poet laureate, John Dryden, influenced by the war against Holland, writes Amboyna, a tragedy about the Amboyna massacre,1623, when English sailors were murdered by Dutch traders in Indonesia.The Chelsea Physic Garden is established by the Worshipful Society of Apothecaries to train apprentices in plant identification.
International
War with Holland culminates in the Battle of Texel which effectively exhausts both sides, but results in a strategic Dutch victory. With tension mounting between the allies, lord of the Admiralty, Prince Rupert, blames the unsatisfactory outcome on French admiral d'Estrees, and poor provisions.Comments back to top
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