LARGE DINING-ROOM.

All the pictures in this room are full-length portraits by Vandyck.

No. 1.

ANNE LADY RICH.Black dress. White sleeves. Gold-coloured scarf. Curls. Standingby a table near a window. Dark red curtain.By Vandyck.

ANNE LADY RICH.

Black dress. White sleeves. Gold-coloured scarf. Curls. Standing

by a table near a window. Dark red curtain.

By Vandyck.

SHE was the only daughter of William, second Earl of Devonshire, by his wife, Lady Christian Bruce, renowned alike for her loyalty, her wisdom, and her wealth. Lady Anne Cavendish married Robert, Lord Rich, son and heir to Robert, Earl of Warwick.

No. 2.

PHILIP, LORD WHARTON.

Red doublet embroidered with gold. Dark red breeches. Yellow boots. Hat under his arm. Holds a stick. Red curtain and garden in the background.

BORN 1613.By Vandyck.

BORN 1613.

By Vandyck.

THE family of Wharton derive the name from a ‘fair lordship’ on the river Eden, county Westmoreland.

Grainger, in speaking of this picture in the Wrest collection, says of Lord Wharton that he was in the service of the Parliament during the civil war in the reign of CharlesI., but that courage was undoubtedly not his shining point. ‘Like his grandson Duke Wharton, he could better exercise his tongue than his sword.’

Walker says of him, that at the battle of Edgehill, where he was the colonel of a regiment of Roundheads, his Lordship was found hidden in a ditch, but we are bound to take such testimoniescum grano. He was the fourth Baron, of decidedly puritanical views, and, whether a good soldier or not, he was constantly with the army, and his political life was an eventful one. He sat in Parliament for many years, and was summoned to attend the treaty of Ripon, together with several other Peers, among those who were the least obnoxious at that time to the popular party. Lord Wharton was also one of the so-called Commissioners who went to Edinburgh at the meeting of the Scotch Parliament. After the Restoration he was sent to the Tower, together with the Duke of Buckingham and Lords Salisbury and Shaftesbury, ‘charged with contemptof the authority, and being, of Parliament,’ for having called in question the Parliament meeting after a very long prorogation. In this case the Duke of Buckingham petitioned the King, and the captive Peers were soon set at liberty, with the exception of Lord Shaftesbury. But Lord Wharton’s chief characteristic seems to have been his high esteem of the matrimonial state, since he married three times. His first wife was Elizabeth, daughter of Sir Richard Wandesford, Knight, in the county of York, by whom he had an only daughter, married to Robert Bertie, Lord Willoughby d’Eresby, afterwards Earl of Lindsay. His second wife was Jane, daughter and heir to Arthur Goodwin, upper Winchenden, county Bucks, by whom he had six children. His third spouse was the daughter of William Carre, Groom of the Bedchamber to JamesI., who was widow of Edward Popham. By her he had one son, William, killed in a duel.

No. 3.

MADAM KIRKE.Tawny-coloured gown. White sleeves with lace. Pearl necklace. Fair curls. Standing by a table. Garden in the background.By Vandyck.

MADAM KIRKE.

Tawny-coloured gown. White sleeves with lace. Pearl necklace. Fair curls. Standing by a table. Garden in the background.

By Vandyck.

SHE was one of the dressers to Queen Henrietta Maria,—‘a situation for which she competed with Mistress Neville,’ says Grainger, and gained the preference. When King CharlesI.left Hampton Court, he desired Colonel Whalley to give Mistress Kirke a picture of the Queen, which appeared to betoken she had been faithful to their Majesties in times of trouble.

No. 4.

PORTRAIT OF A MAN UNKNOWN.Dressed in black.By Vandyck.

PORTRAIT OF A MAN UNKNOWN.

Dressed in black.

By Vandyck.

No. 5.

THREE BROTHERS OF THE HOUSE OF BALBI.

They are standing on a flight of steps between two columns, feeding a bird. The eldest wears a red and gold doublet, red stockings, white collar and cuffs, holding a black hat. The second boy in a black and gold suit, holds his youngest brother by the hand, who is dressed in a white and gold frock.

By Vandyck.

THIS charming picture was bought by the grandfather of the present Lord Cowper, Lord de Grey, but we are unable to identify the children, or the date at which it was painted, doubtless during one of Vandyck’s visits to Genoa; neither have we any authority for the supposition, but it appears more than probable that the beautiful Marchesa Balbi, in Mr. Holford’s splendid collection at Dorchester House, is the mother or sister-in-law of these noble boys.

No. 6.

DIEGO MESIA FELIPE DE GUZMAN, MARQUEZ DE LEGANES.Black dress. White collar. Order.By Vandyck.

DIEGO MESIA FELIPE DE GUZMAN, MARQUEZ DE LEGANES.

Black dress. White collar. Order.

By Vandyck.

HE was the son of Diego Mesia de Obando, by Elizabeth, daughter of the Count D’Olvares. From early youth he showed an aptitude for military and diplomatic affairs; and in 1626 he was created Marquez de Leganes, and sent by PhilipIV.in command of the Spanish forces in the Netherlands; and the ensuing year the King further employed him in negotiations respecting the proposed annexation to Spain of some of the disputed Provinces. Leganes was a companion in arms of the celebrated Cardinal Infant, Ferdinand, son of PhilipIII., by whose side he fought at Nordlingen, and contributed not a little to that decisive victory gained by the Imperialists over the Swedes and Duke Bernhard of Saxe-Weimar. It was in allusion to this battle that the pious Canon Antonio Calderon, in his funeral oration on the Cardinal, after extolling the virtues and valour of this warlike prelate, reminded his hearers that Nordlingen was the place ‘where the heretic Luther preached his most pestilential doctrines.’ On the death of the Archduchess Clara Eugenia, Ferdinand succeeded to the Government of the Spanish Netherlands, and thither Leganes followed him, but was summoned to Milan in 1636, on his appointment as Governor of that city. Northern Italy was at that time the theatre of constant warfare, and Leganes distinguished himself in frequent encounterswith the French, the Piedmontese, and the Savoyards. The Valteline especially was torn by internal discord, the result of religious differences between the Protestants and the Catholics; while the position of the country made it an object of desire and contention among foreign powers. Leganes had his hands full in that direction, both as regarded military operations and negotiations with the French, who disputed the territory. On the death of the Duke of Savoy, the Emperor Ferdinand employed the Milanese Governor to oppose the election of the widowed Duchess as Regent for her son’s dominions; after which Leganes invaded Piedmont, took Vercelli, Asti, Crescentine, and some smaller towns; marched on Turin, where he was unsuccessful; and then attacked Casale, a stronghold of much importance, where he was beaten back with great loss by the French, under Comte Simon d’Harcourt. This failure was a source of terrible mortification to the Spanish General; but the future had consolation in store for him. His Italian campaign at an end; he marched into Catalonia, and there had his revenge on his old enemies, and the Comte d’Harcourt himself, by wresting from them the town of Lerida, which had been some time in the occupation of the French. While thus engaged in active service, intrigues were being carried on at the Court of Spain against Leganes, and imputations were cast on his military conduct, from which he had great difficulty in defending himself. In spite, however, of the machinations of his enemies, he was named Generalissimo of the Forces, and despatched against the Portuguese in 1646. His death took place in 1655. He had to wife Philippina, daughter of the famous commander, Ambrogio Spinola, who had done such gallant service for the Spaniards in the Netherlands and elsewhere. In the wars of Northern Italy he had been less successful; and the mortification he experienced from several discomfitures, combined with the slights put upon him by thereigning King of Spain, from whose predecessor he had received the highest marks of favour, was said to have accelerated the death of the great commander.

In the collection of the engraved portraits by Vandyck there is a spirited likeness of the Marquis de Leganes, with a Latin inscription enumerating his many titles. In addition to those already mentioned, he was Lord of the Bedchamber to the King of Spain, Grand Commander of the Order of the Lion, Privy Councillor of State and War, President of the Council in Flanders, and Captain-General of Artillery.

No. 7.

ELIZABETH, COUNTESS OF SOUTHAMPTON.White satin gown. Blue scarf. Pearl necklace. Fair hair. Landscape seen through window in the background.By Vandyck.

ELIZABETH, COUNTESS OF SOUTHAMPTON.

White satin gown. Blue scarf. Pearl necklace. Fair hair. Landscape seen through window in the background.

By Vandyck.

SHE was the daughter of John Vernon of Hodnet, county Salop, and married Henry Wriothesley, third Earl of Southampton, brother in arms of Robert, Earl of Essex, under whom he served in his foreign campaigns; and in one engagement in which he had distinguished himself, Lord Southampton was knighted by his general’s hand on the field, ‘before he could sheathe his sword, or wipe the sweat from his brow.’ His adhesion to Lord Essex, when that nobleman fell under her Majesty’s displeasure, nearly cost Lord Southampton his life; but he was more prudent than his friend, for he made submission, andasked mercy of Elizabeth, while Essex, who disdained to follow a similar course in his own case, interceded with the Queen for his former comrade. Southampton’s life was spared; but he was kept a close prisoner in the Tower till the accession of King James, when he was set at liberty.

Lord Southampton had two sons, the eldest of whom accompanied him to the Low Countries on military service, where they were both attacked by fever. Young Lord Wriothesley died, to the inexpressible grief of his father, who, travelling home with the loved remains ere he was fit to move, was delayed by a relapse, and expired at Bergen-op-Zoom.

Lady Southampton survived her Lord many years. We hear of her, 1647, giving shelter to King Charles on his escape from Hampton Court. She was staying at her son’s country house, at Titchfield, in Hampshire, where the King, who was riding for his life, thought best to take refuge, while he sent messengers to Portsmouth to inquire for a ship that ought to have been in waiting there, but which failed him. Lord Southampton, a zealous loyalist, and devoted personal friend of Charles’s, was absent from home, but his mother, the aged Countess, was a woman of courage and fidelity, and as deeply attached to the Royal cause as her son. To her the King felt no hesitation in declaring himself, and claiming her protection; and in that safe custody he remained several days, before proceeding to the Isle of Wight, where he was retaken by the rebels.

No. 8.

LORDS JOHN AND BERNARD STUART.

One boy has long curling auburn hair. He wears a white satin vest, and hose, silk stockings, and buff shoes. Blue mantle over one shoulder; his foot is on the base of a pedestal. The other brother wears a crimson dress, with a tawny yellow mantle over his left arm. Dark buff boots.

BOTH killed in action, within a few years of each other. Esmé Stuart, Duke of Richmond and Lennox, had seven sons, all of whom he survived, and, on his death, the title merging in the person of his Royal kinsman, CharlesII., his Majesty bestowed it on his natural son, by Louise de la Querquaille, Duchess of Portsmouth, ancestor of the present Duke.

Lord John Stuart was the eldest son of Duke Esmé. Grainger, in his description of the portrait in question, speaks most highly of his noble disposition and courage, which ‘he carried indeed to rashness.’ A devoted loyalist, at the battle of Cheriton Down he was charging up-hill in command of a troop of light horse to attack Sir William Waller’s army, when he fell into an ambuscade, having had two horses killed under him. He lay, pierced by innumerable wounds, amidst hundreds of his own men; he was, however, carried off the field while still living (as was Sir John Smith, brother to Lord Carrington), and conveyed first to Reading, and the next day still further on the road, in order to be within help of skilful surgeons. But the gallant youth did not survive the second dressing of his wounds. He was buried at Christchurch, Oxford, as was a younger brother, killed at the battle of Edgehill. Lord Clarendon, speaking of Lord John, says that hewas early bent on a military career, being ‘of a tough and choleric disposition,’ and caring little for the ‘softnesses of social life.’ Yet he must have been of a loveable nature, for his death was deeply regretted. Lord Bernard was the youngest son of Duke Esmé. He commanded the gallant troop known as the King’s Bodyguard, consisting of the most eminent Royalists in both Houses of Parliament, and, indeed, in all England. Their servants formed another troop under Sir William Killigrew, and invariably followed their lords and masters to the field. At the battle of Cropedy Bridge, where the King commanded in person, Lord Bernard secured the safety of his Majesty, who was in imminent peril, by charging two bodies of the Roundhead horse, and bearing the brunt of the enemy’s cannon, by remaining stationary in an open field, to cover the free passage of the King. He also distinguished himself greatly at the battle of Naseby, among other engagements, and in consideration of his services was created Earl of Lichfield, an honour he did not long enjoy. He was killed at the battle of Rowton Heath, near Chester, having once more come to the assistance of his Royal master and kinsman. Young Lord Lichfield was deeply regretted. The Duke of Richmond’s seven gallant sons all served in the King’s army, and three of them died, like gallant Cavaliers, on the field of battle.

No. 9.

RACHEL, SECOND WIFE OF THOMAS, LAST EARL OF SOUTHAMPTON.

She is seated in the clouds, habited in blue floating drapery. In her right hand she holds a wand; her left rests on a sphere. A skull lies at her feet.

By Vandyck.

HER father, the Marquis de Ruvigny, came of a noble Huguenot family in France, and her brother was at one time head of the Protestant party in that country. But in spite of his religious opinions, he was much in favour, not only with LouisXIV., but also with Cardinal Mazarin. He eventually went to England on a diplomatic mission, where he settled with his family. One of his sons was killed at the battle of the Boyne, the other was created Earl of Galway by WilliamIII.We do not know the date of Rachel de Ruvigny’s marriage, but take it for granted that young Wriothesley made her acquaintance on his first visit to France. His elder brother dying of fever, Thomas, the second son, succeeded to the earldom of Southampton on the death of his father. His wife bore him two sons, who both diedv. p., and three daughters, the second being Rachel, the faithful and devoted wife of William, Lord Russel, who was beheaded.

STAIRCASE.

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