Portrait of the Duke of Angoulême
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| Portrait of the Duke of Angoulême | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Artist | Thomas Lawrence |
| Year | 1825 |
| Type | Oil on canvas, portrait painting |
| Dimensions | 269.7 cm × 178.3 cm (106.2 in × 70.2 in) |
| Location | Royal Collection, Windsor Castle |
Portrait of the Duke of Angoulême is an 1825 portrait painting by the British artist Sir Thomas Lawrence depicting Louis Antoine, Duke of Angoulême, the Dauphin and heir to his father Charles X.[1]
Lawrence was commissioned by George IV to paint portraits of leading European figures who had been involved in the defeat of the French Emperor Napoleon during the Napoleonic Wars. Angoulême had been in exile in England with his uncle Louis XVIII. In March 1814 he arrived in southwestern France following the fall of Bordeaux to British troops. There he proclaimed the Bourbon Restoration.[2] After his father's abdication during the July Revolution of 1830 he went into exile and from 1836 to his death in 1844 was the Legitimist pretender to the French throne, styled as Louis XIX by his supporters.[3]
Lawrence depicts Angoulême in military uniform with a cloak against a background representing the storm of war. Lawrence also painted his Portrait of Charles X and his Portrait of the Duchess of Berry while in Paris. He was paid five hundred guineas for the work. The painting is today in the Royal Collection and hangs in the Waterloo Chamber at Windsor Castle.[4]