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The Tudors

The Early Tudors

King Henry VII 1457 – 1509

By an unknown artistOil on panel, 1505 16 3/4 x 12 in. (42.5 x 30.5 cm)

The picture is shaped like a rounded arch. Withinthis, the upper half of King Henry VII (1457 – 1509)appears against a sky-blue background. His handsrest on a stone sill and in his right he holds a redrose; a symbol of the House of Lancaster and oflove. A black Tudor hat arches over his brow. Darkbushy shoulder length hair emerges at the sides ofhis face to be swept back over his ears. His longproud nose is turned away to his right, while Henrylooks brightly at the viewer with narrowed almond-shaped eyes. His wide narrow-lipped mouth bearsan assured expression.

Henry wears a black tunic against which the whitelapels of his gown stand out strongly. The red of hisgown is embroidered with gold. Parting at his neck,a dark brown fur collar spreads across his shouldersto hang behind him. The Order of the GoldenFleece is suspended from a gold chain that liesacross his chest. This honour was conferred onHenry by Maximilian I whose daughter, Margaret,

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Henry intended to marry.

An inscription on the sill records that the paintingwas made at the order of Herman Rinck, agent ofMaximilian I, on October 29 1505.




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Elizabeth of York 1465 – 1503

By an unknown artist Oil on panel; a late sixteenth-century copy from a portrait of about 150022 1/4 x 16 3/8 in. (56.5 x 41.6 cm)

Elizabeth of York (1465 – 1503) stands behind a drapery on which her hands rest, holding thewhite rose of the house of York. The drapery isembroidered with a pattern of gold foliage on darkgrey-green fabric. She wears a crimson long-sleeved dress with white silk cuffs.

Her face is framed by the narrow opening of a largedark gabled hood. It rises in a triangular arch aboveher brow so that the parting in her chestnut hair isvisible. The opening is decorated with a border ofembroidered gold squares that have alternatingcentres of rubies and emeralds. The long verticalsides conceal part of her cheeks and fall beside thesquare-cut neck of her crimson dress.

Her forehead has an intelligent high dome. Faintplucked brows arch down to her straight nose. Fullrosebud lips sit above her little chin. Her left cheekis turned towards you while her almond-shapedeyes look ahead into the distance. A pendant hangs

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at her neck combining rubies and pearls in theshape of the Tudor rose. The words ‘ElizabethaUxor Henrici VII’ (‘Elizabeth wife of Henry VII’) arewritten across the dark brown background at thetop of the painting.




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King Henry VIII 1491 – 1547 and King Henry VII1457 – 1509

By Hans Holbein the Younger (1497 or 8 – 1543)Ink and watercolour on paper, about 1536–1537101 1/2 x 54 in. (257.8 x 137.2 cm)

This is a preparatory line drawing for half of alarge wall painting in Whitehall Palace. The paperwas made by pasting A4-sized sheets togetherand has aged to become an uneven light browncolour. It was used as a ‘cartoon’, a design for amural. A method called ‘pouncing’ was usedwhere lines were pierced with tiny holes, charcoaldust was brushed through and the design thentransferred onto the wall.

Henry VIII dominates this life-size drawing,standing at the front edge of a loosely carpetedstep with his massive stockinged legs broadlyspread. His gown opens wide to reveal his broadbarrel chest, his fabrics, his jewellery andhis proud codpiece. His arms emerge from thegown in the wide puffed sleeves of his jacket.Under a broad feathered bonnet, Henry VIII’s face is enlarged by a full rounded beard andmoustache. Within this shape his exquisite narroweyes and long fine nose are very faint. The overall

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effect of his head and body is huge.Behind him steps rise to a shell-like niche beneatha frieze of figures from classical mythology.Overlapping the frieze is the face of Henry VII who stands in the background. Standing on thecarpeted top step at the level of his son’s knees,Henry VII’s waist is just above the level of HenryVIII’s left shoulder. Wearing a black soft hatadorned with a Tudor rose, Henry VII holds hisample gown closed at his waist. They both lookahead into the distance on your right.



King Henry VIII 1491 – 1547 and King Henry VII1457 – 1509

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King Edward VI 1537–53

By William Scrots (active 1537–53) Oil on panel, 1546 16 3/4 x 63 in. (42.5 x 160 cm)

This portrait is a wide-stretched distortion, knownas an ‘anamorphic distortion’. The image appearscorrectly only when viewed from the extreme left-hand side. Ordinarily an image is put on a surfacedirectly facing the artist and is intended to beviewed from about the same position. Inorder to create this picture the artist painted theimage on the painting’s surface while it was tiltedaway so that the artist’s eye was almost in line withthe surface of the picture. It only becomesrecognisable when the same position is taken bythe viewer. Sometimes shadows make this kind of distortion, just as a setting sun may cast a longshadow from an object. This painting is like acoloured-in shadow which shows the bust ofEdward VI, aged nine years, as if his portrait is a coin.

The coin hovers above a hilly rural landscape anda far-off city. Edward’s shoulders and bonnetoverlap all but the outline of the coin. It is divided

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by a white line into a dark inner circle and abronze border. The border ahead of him gives hisage; ‘Aetatis suae-9’, ‘His summers-9’. Behind hishead is the date; ‘Anno Domini - 1546’, ‘The yearof the Lord -1546’. The letter ‘E’ looms largebeside his nose. The letter ‘P’ sits in line with itbehind his neck. These letters are in Latin andidentify the sitter as Prince Edward.

The white feather of a black bonnet sits along thetop of his head on short red hair. His hairlinecurves above his round pink cheek to his ear.Edward’s big eye looks directly ahead under afaint eyebrow. His profile shows a little chinand a pointed nose recessed under a round brow.A white lace frill surrounds his neck, and acrosshis chest lie jewelled gold chains.




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Catherine Parr 1512 – 48

Attributed to Master John (active 1544–5)Oil on panel, about 1545 71 x 37 in. (180.3 x 94 cm)

Catherine Parr (1512 – 48) is about two thirds life-size, she stands on the vermilion and dark blue ofa Persian carpet. The square neck of her dress iscut low to reveal the top of her shoulders. Herface, neck and shoulders gleam pale and bright. At her tight waist the triangle of her bodice meetsthe triangle of her wide underskirt. The geometryof her dress combines with a flat blue backgroundto give an air of simplicity to a portrait opulent withjewels and fabrics.

She returns your gaze thoughtfully with darkalmondshaped eyes set amidst the soft features of her oval face. Her reddish hair parts under acrimson crescent headpiece with a white jewelledborder. At her neck a pendant hangs. Beneath it alarge crown-headed brooch is pinned to the dress.

It is a dress of cloth-of-silver over a crimsonunderskirt embroidered with gold and pearls. Bell-shaped fur oversleeves open out from narrowelbows into enormous cuffs. Wide crimson under-

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sleeves emerge and narrow to her wrists,surrounding them with white silken puffs. Partlyconcealed by pleated white cuffs, her hands touch,wearing rings of jet. Below her hands pairs ofcameo heads hang down to end in a tassel atankle height.




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The Court of Elizabeth

Queen Elizabeth I 1533 – 1603

By an unknown artist; possibly a copy of a coronation portrait of 1559Oil on panel, about 160050 1/8 x 39 1/4 in. (127.3 x 99.7 cm)

The young queen stands facing us in her fullcoronation regalia, fragile and doll-like yet theembodiment of royalty. Against a plain dark bluebackground she is depicted three-quarter length.Small black eyes stare from the pale oval face withits delicate skin, lightly brushed with red on thecheeks and on the small, determined mouth. Shewears a heavy jewelled crown on top of the longgolden hair that hangs loose about her shouldersand falls below her waist.

Elizabeth’s slender body is encased in a stiffenedbodice of cloth of gold and a cloth of gold skirt,both patterned with symbols of royalty, the fleur de lys of France and the Tudor rose. A heavycloak of the same fabric hangs from her shoulders,its wide ermine collar held in place with longgold cords ending in two large tassels. The cloakis open, to reveal the ermine lining. It falls awayover her right arm and follows a sweeping curve

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over her left arm and across the body to join the other side of the cloak on the bottom left of the painting.

Her opulent jewels are rubies, deep blue sapphiresand pearls. Over the cloak round her shoulders, is a heavy jewelled chain and above, round herneck, is a matching choker from which issues astiff white ruff that hugs the contours of her face,giving the impression that her head grows directlyfrom her clothes with no neck.

In her long white fingers the queen holds thesymbols of office, the tall jewelled sceptre and the orb, dark blue, encircled with jewels toppedwith a large blue cross embellished with pearls.She holds the orb firmly with ringed fingers againstthe gold of her skirt.




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By Marcus Gheeraerts the Younger (1561 or 2 – 1636)Oil on canvas, about 159295 x 60 in. (241.3 x 152.4 cm)

Against a sky, stormy with flashing lightning to theright and pale blue with sunlit clouds to the left,Queen Elizabeth I (1533 – 1603) towers above amap of England, her feet in the county ofOxfordshire. England stretches across the curve ofthe Earth and there are tiny galleons dotted abouton a dark bottle green sea.

She is turned slightly to her right, resplendent in a pale silvery satin dress. The artist shows avirtuosity in the handling of oil paint especially in the portrayal of light shining on fabrics andjewels. Thin bright white lines on the cooler tonesof the costume suggest the shimmering effect oflight on satin.

Her dark eyes stare out of a powdered white face and her red lips are pursed. She has a highforehead and her hair is set with pearls. Close toher left ear there is a jewel in the form of a celestialsphere and a large red jewel sits on the top of her


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crown. Ropes of pears hang down to below herwaist. A transparent veil forms two curved wing-like shapes at the back of her head and a ruffrising up from the neckline of her bodice is open to reveal an elaborate necklace. In her right handshe holds a fan, attached to the waist by a coralred ribbon. In her left hand there is a pair ofgloves. Her bodice tapers to a tiny waist; the skirtspreading out in a wide circle. The costume isintricately decorated with a lattice-work design and rosettes in puffed silk. In the centre ofeachrosette there are brilliant rubies, diamondsand pearls in gold settings. Pearls, which were the favourite jewel of the queen, edge her entirecostume.

The stormy sky, the clouds parting to revealsunshine, and the Latin inscriptions on the painting make it plain that the portrait’s symbolictheme is forgiveness.




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Sir Henry Lee 1533 – 1611

By Antonis Mor (1519 – 75)Oil on panel, 156825 1/4 x 21 in. (64.1 x 53.3 cm)

Sir Henry Lee is shown half-length, holding his lefthand against his chest at the base of the picture inan unusual manner. From his high collared neck aring hangs on a loop of red string. His left thumbpasses through the ring and his hand is suspendedfrom it. The other fingers lie together, the back ofhis hand towards you, in front of his heart.

With a mild frown he turns his face to the left toengage you intently with his right eye. The right-hand side of his slightly aquiline nose is shownabove a trimmed moustache and the setexpression of his mouth. A receding hairline ofshort curly reddish hair frames his high wide brow.The angular planes of his brow and cheeks acrossto his right ear are bathed in light.

His black doublet, slit and braided with silver, risesin a high collar. A gold chain is wound five timesaround the collar proclaiming his status asgentleman. A frill of lace runs from his neat square-trimmed beard, passing just beneath his ears. His

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white sleeves bear a gold pattern of true-lovers’knots and spheres, divided vertically andhorizontally, called ‘armillary spheres’.




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Mary, Queen of Scots 1542 – 87

After Nicholas Hilliard (1547–1619)Oil on panel, about 161031 1/8 x 35 1/2 in. ( 79.1 x 90.2 cm)

This is a three-quarter length portrait of Mary,Queen of Scots (1542 – 87). An inscription in Latinat the left edge of the painting tells us that it waspainted after she had been a prisoner in Englandfor 10 years.

She is turned slightly to her right but her darkbrown eyes look sharply to her left giving theimpression that she is very much on the alert. Thebottom of her left ear is revealed and perhaps sheis listening intently. A dark curtain falling in softfolds on her left contributes to a sense of muffledsound. She has a pale face with a delicate blushof pink on her cheeks. Her nose is sharp andbony and her thin lips are unsmiling.

The brim of her small cap is turned outwards toform two small curved shapes on either side of herhigh forehead giving us a glimpse of tight reddishbrown curls. Her ruff is open at the throat,attached to a chemise and fans out in elaboratefolds edged with lace. On the left it emphasises

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the hard outline of her cheek. The collar of hercloak, which is made of a transparent, iridescentmaterial also edged with lace, curves above herruff. These articles of clothing form delicate silveryshapes around the warmer colour of her face.

In contrast, her bodice, skirt and sleeves are ofblack material, the sleeves finished with smallwhite ruffs. The material of her cloak slips over her left arm and her hand seems to be reachingtowards a golden crucifix that lies over herstomach. Below her hand, hanging from her waist,there is another, larger golden cross attached to arosary. Her right hand rests on a table coveredwith a red cloth at her side. The edge of her cloaklies along the length of her arm, the artist showinga virtuosity in painting the black of her sleeve seenthrough its shimmering material.




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By an unknown artistOil on panel, about 157544 1/2 x 31in. (113 x 78.7 cm)

This emblematic three-quarter length portraitrepresents Queen Elizabeth I (1533 – 1603) inconfident middle age. Her mask-like face andsumptuous clothing stand out against a blackbackground.

She is turned slightly towards her left. Her featuresare sharply delineated; dark, heavily lidded eyesand scarlet lips contrast with smooth ivory-coloured skin. Without shadows or wrinkles, sheappears to be ageless. A small circular neck ruffemphasises her pointed jaw line and her highforehead is accentuated by her short curled redhair. A veil falls in soft folds behind her rightshoulder. It is made of filmy transparent materialattached to a raised filament of pearls and delicatescallop shapes that form a curve above her head.

Her satin dress is decorated with a coiling,interlaced design of gold leaves and flowers on asilvery white background. The bodice is fastenedat the front with horizontal strips of red frogging.


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Each braid is intricately embroidered with yellowthread and finished with a tiny tassel. Two ropes ofpearls hang from her shoulders and are caught upin a loop attached to her right breast. Thereis an elaborate jewelled pendant suspended to theright of her waist on a dark green cord. The cord ispartially covered by her right arm.

The sleeves of her costume are puffed androunded at the shoulders, narrowing at the wristsand completed with small ruffs. She holds anostrich feather fan in her right hand across thefront of her dress. The feathers are painted withvisible brush strokes in rich reds and yellows,white, black and dark green. A jewelled crown andgolden sceptre lie on a table behind her left arm.




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Sir Francis Drake 1540 – 96

By an unknown artistOil on panel, about 158071 3/8 x 44 1/2 in. (181.3 x 113 cm)

Seaman, buccaneer and Vice Admiral of theEnglish Fleet, Drake (1540 – 96) is portrayed fulllength, his bright brown eyes far-seeing, looking to his left. He is turned a little to his right, his rightleg in front, relaxed at the knee to display hismuscular calves. His curly brown hair is croppedshort and his neatly trimmed full beard andmoustache frame a straight, purposeful mouth.Dressed in a scarlet silk padded doublet and kneebreeches, he is wearing the height of fashion. The sleeves of the doublet are white and silverwith lace cuffs and a richly decorated white ruffencircles his neck, throwing his long face intoprominence. From his shoulders hangs a short,stiff scarlet cape with an olive-green lining, edgedwith silver braid.

From the right of his waist protrudes the hilt of a small dagger and on the left is a long black-sheathed sword that hangs down vertically andalmost touches the grey and green tiled floor. The

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ornate silver hilt is partly hidden by Drake’s leftarm which curves round to hold his black velvethat in front of his thigh. Scarlet stockings finishthismagnificent ensemble and white satin slippersare pushed into black heeled clogs.

To Drake’s right is a table with a dark red velvetcloth on which stands a free-standing globe. Hishand rests on it, as if to prevent it rolling away.The globe is orientated the other way up frommodern representations of the planet and thecontinents are marked in French. On the plaindark wall behind him is Drake’s coat-of-arms: ahelmet surrounded with scarlet and silver feathers.Beneath, are two silver stars and inscribed on asilver scrolled ribbon, his motto, ‘Sic ParvisMagna’, meaning ‘greatness out of small things’.




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Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester 1532 – 88

By an unknown artistOil on panel, about 157542 1/2 x 32 1/2 in. (108 x 82.6 cm)

Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester (1532 – 88) wasan important patron of the arts and owned a largecollection of portraits. He sat for his own portraiton numerous occasions, and the Gallery’s paintingtestifies to his personal vanity and love of finery.

The three-quarter length portrait shows RobertDudley’s head and body turned a little to his right.The lean, confident face and hooded black eyes ofQueen Elizabeth’s favourite are turned upon usdirectly. His black hair is sleeked back from a highforehead under a soft black velvet cap with acurled red ostrich feather. A high white ruff hugshis ears and sets off the long lightly-waxedmoustache and small pointed beard that surrounda hard, determined mouth and jutting jaw.

The bronze leather of his stiffly padded doublet islightly slashed and is tightly buttoned with twentyornate gold buttons up to the high collar. Thesleeves protrude from crenulated trimmings at theshoulder. They are drawn in at the wrists with six

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bands of gold braid and white lace frills below.Hanging almost to his waist from a jewelled goldchain about his neck is the medallion of the Orderof the Garter. The long fingers of Dudley’s lefthand rest lightly on the hip of the bronze and goldvelvet of puffedout trunk-hose. Beneath his hand isthe gold hilt of a sword that passes behind him.

On the left of the picture is one side of an ebonychair, decorated with brass buttons and goldtasselled braid. Dudley’s right arm is drapedelegantly over the arm of the chair. Behind hishead is a swathe of olive green velvet curtain andon the plain, dark wall above the chair, level withhis eyes, is the insignia of the Order of the Garter,a gold crown over a circular belt inscribed ‘HoniSoi Quy Mal y Pense’ – ‘evil be to him who evilthinks’ with a multiple coat of arms in the centre.

Dudley was Elizabeth’s only serious suitor, butElizabeth came to realise that marriage to asubject would never be popular.




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Sir Walter Ralegh 1552 – 1618, with his sonWalter 1593 – 1618

By an unknown artistOil on panel, 160278 1/2 x 50 1/8 in. (199.4 x 127.3 cm)

The consummate ‘renaissance man’ Ralegh(1552–1618) was an accomplished poet and writeras well as an explorer. He is also credited withintroducing tobacco and potatoes to England.

Painted during the height of his renewed favourwith Queen Elizabeth I, Walter Ralegh standsrelaxed and selfassured in his finery. His left handon his hip, he confidently extends his right hand torest it on a heavy table draped with a red cloth. On his left, his son stands waist-high close besidehim. In an outfit all of turquoise blue with silverbraiding, the boy mimics Sir Walter’s pose, swordsat their sides. A back-ground of crimson velvethangs in large folds behind them.

The boy has short cut hair and holds his black hatagainst his left hip, while Sir Walter Ralegh wearshis flat-topped broad-brimmed hat. An exoticfeather is attached to it by a jewelled brooch. Lacefrom his high collar rises behind his ears. He hashigh cheekbones, almond-shaped eyes and a

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long fine nose. A trimmed grey moustache andpointed beard add to his look of cultivatedrefinement. Over a white shirt with silken sleeveshe wears a doublet of golden brown, elaboratelydecorated with seed pearls.

White satin trunk-hose, like huge padded shorts,hang above quilted white satin breeches andgartered white stockings. His yellow shoes are tiedwith large white ribbons.




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The Somerset House Conference 1604

By an unknown artistOil on canvas, 160481 x 105 1/2 in. (205.7 x 268 cm)

This huge painting commemorates the treaty ofpeace and trade between England and Spain,which in 1604 brought an end to a war that haddragged on for twenty years.

The grave faces of the eleven delegates at theSomerset House Conference gaze out at us fromeither side of a long table covered with asumptuous carpet, patterned in red, dark greenand black. The end of the table is facing us andruns back towards a wide six-panelled window,one small pane of which is open. Across thecourtyard beyond, another wing of the house isvisible. A tapestry or painted cloth is displayed onthe left wall.

The delegates are seated on high-backed chairs,their pale faces forming a ‘v’ with the open windowat the apex. They are dressed in rich but sombreblack, white ruffs encircling their necks, theirmoustaches and pointed beards on display. Hereand there, a hand rests on the table.

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On the right, closest to us, is Robert Cecil, 1st Earlof Salisbury, Chief Minister to Queen Elizabethand then to James I. His left hand is towards usand rests on the arm of his chair, his black cloakfalls in folds over his arm. His right hand is heldacross his chest, a gesture which highlights hisown importance. The expression on his thin faceand in his round black eyes is inscrutable. On thetable in front of him is a document and a pewterinkwell with a quill pen. Behind him, the four otherEnglish delegates sit complacently. At the far endof the table, the aged figure of Thomas Sackville,1st Earl of Dorset holds a staff of office, and nextto him, closer to us, the Lord High Admiral, LordHoward, displays a single silver sleeve thatalleviates the almost unrelieved black of thecostume of the company.

Opposite, sit the six Spanish delegates, oneelderly man’s pale face seems to catch the light,drawing attention to the papers clutched in hishand resting on the edge of the table. Theirexpressions are perhaps a little less sanguinethan their counterparts, and the hooked nose ofone delegate is shown in profile as he stares crossthe table, eye to eye with the Earl of Devonshire,


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his gaze perhaps defying the meaning of theleaves and branches of a tree (which may be anolive tree) spreading behind the English delegatessymbolising perhaps peace between England and Spain.




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William Shakespeare 1564 – 1616

Attributed to John Taylor (d. 1651)Oil on canvas, about 161021 3/4 x 17 1/4 in. (55.2 x 43.8 cm)

This head and shoulders portrait of WilliamShakespeare (1564 – 1616) is the most authenticpainting of the playwright to come down to us fromthe early seventeenth century. After the flamboyanceof the paintings of many Elizabethan courtiers, thisportrait seems small, simple and plain.

Shakespeare’s body is turned slightly to his rightand he looks into the viewer’s eyes. His expressionis thoughtful and wise. His hair is long and dark buthas receded to leave a high domed forehead. Hiseyes are also dark and he has a brown beard andmoustache. In his ear he wears a gold hoopedearring. He has a plain white collar with two thinstrings hanging down untied. Otherwise his clothingis black. His portrait is set within a painted ovalsurround, very hard to make out. The background is dark with a reddish hue.

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Henry Wriothesley, 3rd Earl of Southampton 1573 – 1624

By an unknown artistOil on canvas, about 160080 1/2 x 48 in. (204.5 x 121.9 cm)

In this almost life-size portrait, Henry Wriothesley(1573 – 1624), a favourite of Queen Elizabeth Iand possible patron of Shakespeare, confidentlydisplays his wealth. He stands before us, his leftleg turned to reveal a shapely calf.

With lips pursed, his grey eyes gaze out of thepainting to the right. Dark brown hair emphasisesa pale narrow face with high cheekbones and aprominent well-defined nose. A thin-waxedmoustache draws attention to the slight curve ofhis upper lip. There is a hint of rouge on hischeeks and lips and his long hair, brushed backfrom a high forehead, falls in soft waves to his left breast.

The silvery-white of his doublet and lace collargleams against a dark background. Beneath thecollar and spreading out across his chest is ashield-shaped section of armour. It is embellishedwith an intricate golden design and edged with redscallops. He wears gauntlets of white leather,

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delicately embroidered with leaves and flowers.

His right hand, elegantly displayed with longtapering fingers rests on the corner of a tablecovered in a rich dark purple cloth. The fingers ofhis left hand are curled against his waist. Theornate hilt of his sword protrudes from his left side.It hangs from a golden strap, slung across hiswaist and attached to a golden belt. The materialof his doublet covers the top of a short wide skirtin a heavier fabric, patterned with gold braid. Hoseof the same material are gathered below the knee,joining tight white silk hose held in place withribbon tied in large bows.

Magnificent armour matching the section adorninghis chest completes the aura of wealth andprecarious power. On the floor lies a breastplateand on the table behind his hand there is a helmetembellished with a plume of bright, white feathers.




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Sir Henry Unton 1557 (?) – 96

By an unknown artistOil on panel, about 159629 1/8 x 64 1/4 in. (74 x 163.2 cm)

Sir Henry Unton’s wife Dorothy commissioned this highly unusual ‘narrative portrait’. The portrait gives us a rare insight into Elizabethandomestic life.

This narrow, horizontal picture is painted in a naivestyle reminiscent of a cartoon strip. A portrait of thesoldier and diplomat Sir Henry Unton, dressedfashionably in black with a large white ruff aroundhis neck is positioned to the left of centre, near thetop of the painting, surrounded by scenes from hislife-story. He is much larger in scale than any otherfigure: dark hair and beard drawing attention to hispale face. Turned slightly to his right, he is seatedbehind a table. He is poised to write and holds apen in his right hand over a blank sheet of paper.Above his shoulders he is flanked to the left by asmall winged figure of fame and to the right adancing skeleton, representing the figure of death.

At the bottom right hand corner, he is shown as ababy in the arms of his mother, Anne Seymour, as

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the story of his life begins to unfold. Above, he isglimpsed through a window, studying at OrielCollege, Oxford; the buildings delicately painted intones of pale brown. At the top of the picture,divided from the rest of the painting by a ribbonlikeEnglish Channel there are three distant interwovenlandscapes with tiny figures mostly on horsebackamidst silvery green hills. They portray, from theright, Unton’s journey beyond the Alps to Veniceand Padua; his service with Leicester in theNetherlands and embassy to King Henry IV innorthwest France.

Then, next to the figure of death he lies in bed, aphysician at his side. The journey of his coffincommences in a minute black galleon on theEnglish Channel and continues by road pastfigures of the poor, grateful for his charity, to hishome at Wadley House.

These episodes surround a block of detail to theright of centre portraying detailed scenes of his lifeat Wadley including a masked ball. Unton’s funeralprocession stretches beneath his portrait toFarringdon church, which lies between the left sideof the portrait and the left edge of the painting. His


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recumbent effigy and the kneeling figure of his wifeare situated in the bottom left hand corner.




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Queen Mary I 1516 – 58

By Master John (active 1544 – 5)Oil on panel, 154428 x 20 in. (71.1 x 50.8 cm)

The young Mary Tudor (1516 – 58), not yetQueen, stands facing us, three quarter length, herface turned away a little to her right. Behind her,on the dark blue background, gold letteringproclaims the date of the painting, 1544, and thatLady Mary is daughter to, the most virtuousPrince, King Henry the eight, and that she is 28years old.

Dark brown eyes gaze into the distance above asmall mouth. The nose is broad, the jaw line fleshybut strong. Mary is pale and the oval of her face isemphasised by her red-brown hair, parted in themiddle and drawn over the ears framing her high,broad brow. A headdress, a stiff half moon edgedwith lace flowerets, is caught under herchin with a narrow cord. From the headdress anopaque black veil falls behind her left shoulder.

The restricting bodice of her red-gold damaskdress is cut low in a wide square neckline trimmedwith a narrow lace band, displaying her white

NPG 428 The Tudors: Queen Mary I, 1 of 4

The Tudors


décolleté. She wears two necklaces of pearls andtiny rubies, one encircling her neck and holding agold, sapphire and pearl pendant, the otherlooser and dropping down behind the lace of herdress. A ruby and pearl brooch is pinned high onthe centre of her bodice and a jewelled belt drawsattention to her tiny waist. The sleeves of herdress, tight over the upper arm, bell out over herelbows, with enormous cuffs turned back to show a red silk lining. Fine silvery silk under-sleevesedged with black cord sweep down to her wrists.Rosettes of fine white lawn peep through them and then frill out over white hands clasped togetherto display long ringed fingers with pearly nails, thefingers appearing almost to fidget a little, belyingthe tight control of the firmly set mouth and chin.




The Tudors


the tudors the early tudors - npg.org.uk · pdf filethis, the upper half of king henry vii...

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