Portret van François-Hercule de Valois, hertog van Anjou 1841 - 1879

Edouard Taurel made this print of François-Hercule de Valois, Duke of Anjou, in the Netherlands. Prints like this were frequently commissioned for dissemination to flatter the reputation of the sitter, whose noble status is shown by the heraldic imagery below the portrait. The Duke lived in a time of great religious conflict in Europe. He was the son of a French king and briefly was offered the throne of the Netherlands at a time when the Dutch were in revolt against their Spanish rulers. Anjou was also a suitor to Queen Elizabeth I of England, a political match that was controversial in England because he was Catholic. The history of this image is tied up in the history of European royal families and their strategic political alliances. Art historians research such prints by looking at archives of letters, newspapers, and political pamphlets. These help us understand the role of such images within the institutions of politics and power.