''Charles I with M. de St Antoine'' is an

oil painting Oil painting is the process of painting with pigments with a medium of drying oil as the binder. It has been the most common technique for artistic painting on wood panel or canvas for several centuries, spreading from Europe to the rest of ...

on canvas by the

Flemish Flemish (''Vlaams'') is a Low Franconian dialect cluster of the Dutch language. It is sometimes referred to as Flemish Dutch (), Belgian Dutch ( ), or Southern Dutch (). Flemish is native to Flanders, a historical region in northern Belgium; ...

painter Anthony van Dyck, depicting

Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...

on horseback, accompanied by his riding master, Pierre Antoine Bourdon, Seigneur de St Antoine. Charles I became King of England,

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

and

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

in 1625 on the death of his father

James I James I may refer to: People *James I of Aragon (1208–1276) *James I of Sicily or James II of Aragon (1267–1327) *James I, Count of La Marche (1319–1362), Count of Ponthieu *James I, Count of Urgell (1321–1347) *James I of Cyprus (1334–13 ...

, and van Dyck became Charles's

Principal Painter in Ordinary The title of Principal Painter in Ordinary to the King or Queen of England or, later, Great Britain, was awarded to a number of artists, nearly all mainly portraitists. It was different from the role of Serjeant Painter, and similar to the earlie ...

in 1632. This portrait is dated 1633, and was the first

equestrian portrait An equestrian portrait is a portrait that shows the subject on horseback. Equestrian portraits suggest a high-status sitter, who in many cases was a monarch or other member of the nobility, and the portraits can also carry a suggestion of chivalry ...

of Charles I painted by van Dyck. The

prime version In the art world, if an artwork exists in several versions, the one known or believed to be the earliest is called the prime version. Many artworks produced in media such as painting or carved sculpture which create unique objects are in fact r ...

is in the Royal Collection and hangs in the East Gallery at Buckingham Palace.

Description

Charles is depicted as a chivalrous knight and sovereign riding a large, muscular white horse – possibly a

Lipizzaner The Lipizzan or Lipizzaner ( hr, Lipicanac, cz, Lipicán, hu, Lipicai, it, Lipizzano, sr, Lipicaner, sl, Lipicanec), is a European breed of riding horse developed in the Habsburg Empire in the sixteenth century. It is of Baroque type, and ...

– under a neoclassical

triumphal arch A triumphal arch is a free-standing monumental structure in the shape of an archway with one or more arched passageways, often designed to span a road. In its simplest form a triumphal arch consists of two massive piers connected by an arch, cro ...

, from which is fall hangings of green silk. He is clad in

parade armour Plate armour is a historical type of personal body armour made from bronze, iron, or steel plates, culminating in the iconic suit of armour entirely encasing the wearer. Full plate steel armour developed in Europe during the Late Middle Ages, ...

with the blue sash of the Order of the Garter and carries a baton to symbolise his command of the military. Charles is depicted almost alone, perhaps alluding to the period of his personal rule without Parliament, and is viewed from below, as in van Dyck's 1635 painting ''

Charles I at the Hunt ''Charles I at the Hunt'' – also known under its French title, ''Le Roi à la chasse'' – is an oil-on-canvas portrait of Charles I of England by Anthony van Dyck c. 1635, now in the Louvre Museum, Paris. It depicts Charles in civilian clothing ...

'', which disguises the king's lack of stature. To the right stands his riding master, Pierre Antoine Bourdon, Seigneur de St Antoine (with a ribbon around his neck, possibly of the

Order of Saint Lazarus The Order of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem, also known as the Leper Brothers of Jerusalem or simply as Lazarists, was a Catholic military order founded by crusaders around 1119 at a leper hospital in Jerusalem, Kingdom of Jerusalem, whose care beca ...

) who looks up at the king while holding his helmet. A large Royal coat of arms of the

House of Stuart The House of Stuart, originally spelt Stewart, was a royal house of Scotland, England, Ireland and later Great Britain. The family name comes from the office of High Steward of Scotland, which had been held by the family progenitor Walter fi ...

stands to the lower left of the painting – of four quarters: first and fourth the

fleur-de-lys The fleur-de-lis, also spelled fleur-de-lys (plural ''fleurs-de-lis'' or ''fleurs-de-lys''), is a lily (in French, and mean 'flower' and 'lily' respectively) that is used as a decorative design or symbol. The fleur-de-lis has been used in the ...

of France quartering the three lions of England, second the double tressured lion of Scotland, and third the harp of Ireland – surmounted by a large crown. The painting is oil on canvas and measures . It may have been intended as a theatrical ''

trompe-l'œil ''Trompe-l'œil'' ( , ; ) is an artistic term for the highly realistic optical illusion of three-dimensional space and objects on a two-dimensional surface. ''Trompe l'oeil'', which is most often associated with painting, tricks the viewer into ...

'' flourish at the end of the King's Gallery in St James's Palace.

Provenance

It was valued at £150 and included in the auction of the Royal Collection following the execution of Charles I. It was sold to "Pope" on 22 December 1652 and subsequently acquired by the Flemish painter Remigius van Leemput who lived in London. It was recovered from van Leemput through legal proceedings and returned to Charles II in 1660 upon the Restoration of the Monarchy. The painting remains in the Royal Collection and is on display in the East Gallery at Buckingham Palace.

Versions

Van Dyck painted different versions of this portrait. The prime version is in the Royal Collection. Another version is a 1635 copy in the collection of the

Earl of Carnarvon Earl of Carnarvon is a title that has been created three times in British history. The current holder is George Herbert, 8th Earl of Carnarvon. The town and county in Wales to which the title refers are historically spelled ''Caernarfon,'' hav ...

, which can be seen in the State Dining Room of

Highclere Castle Highclere Castle is a Grade I listed country house built in 1679 and largely renovated in the 1840s, with a park designed by Capability Brown in the 18th century. The estate is in Highclere in Hampshire, England, about south of Newbury, B ...

. He was influenced by his own earlier equestrian portraits of , Marquis of Groppoli, in 1627, and

Francisco de Moncada, 3rd Marquis of Aitona Francisco de Moncada (in Catalan: Francesc de Montcada i Montcada), 3rd Marquis of Aytona, (1586–1635) was a Spanish diplomat, soldier and writer of the early 17th century. He was also interim Governor of the Spanish Netherlands. Early life Mo ...

in 1632, and by a portrait made by his master,

Peter Paul Rubens Sir Peter Paul Rubens (; ; 28 June 1577 – 30 May 1640) was a Flemish artist and diplomat from the Duchy of Brabant in the Southern Netherlands (modern-day Belgium). He is considered the most influential artist of the Flemish Baroque tradi ...

, of the

Duke of Lerma Francisco Gómez de Sandoval y Rojas, 1st Duke of Lerma, 5th Marquess of Denia, 1st Count of Ampudia (1552/1553 – 17 May 1625), was a favourite of Philip III of Spain, the first of the ''validos'' ('most worthy') through whom the later H ...

, dated 1603. Although Van Dyck had not seen this work, it would have been seen by Charles I and probably inspired the commission. Van Dyck went on to paint a dismounted ''

'' in c.1635, and the ''

Equestrian Portrait of Charles I The ''Equestrian Portrait of Charles I'' (also known as ''Charles I on Horseback'') is a large oil painting on canvas by Anthony van Dyck, showing Charles I on horseback. Charles I had become King of England, Scotland and Ireland in 1625 on t ...

'' in c. 1637–38.

Gallery

File:Retrato ecuestre del duque de Lerma (Rubens).jpg, Peter Paul Rubens, ''Equestrian portrait of the

'', 1603 File:Anton Van Dyck - Anton Giulio Brignole-Sale on horseback - Google Art Project.jpg, Van Dyck, ''Equestrian portrait of '', 1627 File:Francesc de Montcada i Montcada - 3er Marques d'Aitona.jpg, Van Dyck, ''Equestrian portrait of

'', 1632

References

{{italic title

Charles I of England in art 1633 paintings

Paintings in the Royal Collection of the United Kingdom