Windsor Beauties
The Windsor Beauties are a famous collection of paintings by Sir Peter Lely, painted in the early to mid-1660s. They were originally housed in the Queen's bedchamber in Windsor Castle (hence the name Windsor Beauties). They can now be seen at Hampton Court Palace.
List of "Beauties"
The original set of "Beauties" painted by Lely include, depending on the source:
- Barbara, Duchess of Cleveland (née Villiers)[1][2]
- Frances, Duchess of Richmond and Lennox (née Stuart)[1][2]
- Mrs. Jane Myddleton (née Needham)[1][2]
- Elizabeth, Countess of Northumberland (née Wriothesley)[1][2]
- Elizabeth, Countess of Falmouth (née Bagot)[1][2]
- Margaret, Lady Denham (née Brooke) (named Elizabeth in the cited printed sources but Margaret at the Royal Collection)[1][2]
- Frances, Lady Whitmore (née Brooke)[1][2]
- Henrietta, Countess of Rochester (née Boyle)[1][2]
- Elizabeth, Countess de Grammont (née Hamilton)[1][2]
- Anne, Countess of Sunderland (née Digby)[1]
- The Countess of Ossory[1] (Melville omits this name, citing Ernest Law that the portrait previously identified by this name is actually Lady Falmouth.[2])
- Madame Henrietta, Duchess of Orléans[2]
Anne Hyde, Duchess of York, does not figure in the above list of ten; but since she was largely responsible for the collection (and choosing the sitters), she was also painted as part of the collection. Possibly a little flattery from Lely was responsible for this.
The portraits for the first ten names are included at the Royal Collection website as "probably commissioned by Anne Hyde, Duchess of York."
Gallery
Featured are some of the Windsor Beauties listed above:
-
Barbara Palmer, Duchess of Cleveland (ca 1641-1709) (N.B. According to the Royal Collection, the actual portrait included in this set is the one where she is dressed as Minerva.) -
Frances Stewart, Duchess of Richmond (1648-1702) -
Hon. Frances Brooke, Lady Whitmore (d. 1690) -
Elizabeth Hamilton, Countess of Gramont (1641-1708) -
Jane Needham, Mrs Myddleton (1646-92)
-
Margaret Brooke, Lady Denham (ca 1647-67)
-
Elizabeth Wriothesley, Countess of Northumberland (1646-1690) -
Mary Bagot, Countess of Falmouth and Dorset (1645-79)
,_Duchess_of_Cleveland_by_Sir_Peter_Lely.jpg)
_-_Elizabeth_Hamilton_(1640-1708).jpg)
See also
- Hampton Court Beauties, a later set by Sir Godfrey Kneller.
- Gallery of Beauties, a still later set in Munich.
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Cunningham, Peter (1865). "The Early Painters of England: Peter Lely". The Art-Journal. 27 (Vol. 4, New series): p. 8.
{{cite journal}}:|pages=has extra text (help) - ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Melville, Lewis (2005). The Windsor Beauties: Ladies of the Court of Charles II (Revised ed.). Ann Arbor: Victorian Heritage Press. pp. i. ISBN 1-932690-13-1.
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External links
- Search for Windsor Beauties by Sir Peter Lely at the Royal Collection website
- The Windsor Beauties: Ladies of the Court of Charles II by Lewis Melville. Loving Healing Press, 2005. ISBN 1-932690-14-X, ISBN 978-1-932690-14-9
