Place Made

Date Made

1679

Medium

ink on paper

Dimensions

HOA: 14 1/2″; WOA: 10″

Accession Number

5690.3

Description

William Craven, 1st Earl of Craven, was born into a wealthy London merchant family. His father was Lord Mayor of London in 1610. Craven left England for the Continent where he fought on behalf of Frederick V, Elector Palatine of the Rhine (1596-1632). He was also closely associated with the king’s wife, Elizabeth Stuart, Queen of Bohemia (1596-1662). During the English Civil War he remained on the continent, financially supporting Elizabeth’s brother, Charles I (1600-1649), and her nephew Charles II (1630-1685).

Following the Restoration he was rewarded handsomely for his loyalty to the Stuarts and the royal cause. He was granted an earldom. And he was granted a huge tract of American land and named one of the eight Lords Proprietors of Carolina.

DESCRIPTION: Half length portrait of a man with long hair standing in full armor holding a stick or pole in one hand and a helmet in the other. He is posed with a landscape scene in the background.

Credit Line

Gift of Thomas A. Gray