William Russell, 1st Duke of Bedford (1616 – 1700) in Garter Robes
studio of Sir Peter Lely (Soest 1618 – London 1680)
Category
Art / Oil paintings
Date
circa 1630 - 1700
Materials
Oil on canvas
Measurements
1245 x 1003 mm (49 x 39 ½ in)
Place of origin
England
Order this imageCollection
Hardwick Hall, Derbyshire
NT 1129133
Caption
William Russell, 5th Earl and 1st Duke of Bedford was the second son of the 4th Earl. He was educated at Magdalen College, Oxford, and sat in the Long Parliament as Member for Tavistock until he succeeded to the earldom in 1641. As a moderate man he found the Civil War distressing. First of all holding a command on the Parliamentary side, he entered the King's service in 1643 and was promptly taken prisoner by Essex. In 1649 he retired from politics to devote himself to his father's great enterprise, the draining of the Fens. He married Lady Anne Carr by whom he had 7 sons. This is a varied derivative of the full-length Garter portrait of the 5th Earl by Lely of 1676 at Woburn.
Summary
Oil painting on canvas, William Russell, 1st Duke of Bedford (1616 – 1700) in Garter Robes, studio of Sir Peter Lely (Soest 1618 – London 1680). A three-quarter length portrait, turned to the left, gazing at spectator, wearing Garter robes, his left hand on his hip, his hat on a table, left.
Provenance
In Lady Louisa Cavendish 1860 catalogue of Hardwick Hall and thence by descent until, following the death of Edward William Spencer Cavendish, 10th Duke of Devonshire (1895 - 1950), Hardwick Hall and its contents were accepted by HM Treasury in part payment of death duties and transferred to the National Trust, in 1959
Credit line
Hardwick Hall, The Devonshire Collection (National Trust)
Makers and roles
studio of Sir Peter Lely (Soest 1618 – London 1680), artist previously catalogued as attributed to Sir Peter Lely (Soest 1618 – London 1680), artist