(Paris 1612–1689)
Portrait of Louis Joseph de Bourbon, Duc de Vendôme (1654–1712),
monogrammed at lower left: AV (ligated), inscribed at upper margin: Duc de Vendôme,
oil on canvas, 139 x 109 cm, framed

The Duke of Vendôme, also referred to as the ‘Grand Vendôme’, started his military career under Marshal Turenne and was appointed Maréchal de Camp as early as 1678. In 1681 he became the governor of Provence. Raised to the rank of general lieutenant in 1688, he fought against Flanders, Piedmont, and Spain. During the War of the Spanish Succession (from 1701 on), Vendôme was commander-in-chief of the French troops in Upper Italy. As such he was the opponent of Prince Eugene of Savoy, whom he defeated several times. In 1706 he was called to the Netherlands to fight against the Duke of Marlborough. Following a defeat in the Battle of Oudenaarde, he was disranked upon the instigation of Madame de Maintenon. In 1710 Louis XIV sent his cousin to Spain, where he was instrumental in securing the throne of Philip V, the Sun King’s grandson. The duke’s marriage to his cousin, Marie-Anne de Bourbon-Condé, whom he wed in 1710, remained childless. His mortal remains are buried in the tomb of the Spanish kings at the Escorial in Spain.

Stylistically the present painting closely resembles the portrait of Prince Eugene of Savoy by Jacob van Schuppen at the Belvedere in Vienna.

We are grateful to Stéphan Perreau for his kind assistance in cataloguing the present painting.