JOHN MICHAEL WRIGHT (1617 - 1694) Portrait of Sir Francis Wy...

Hammer

€73,000

JOHN MICHAEL WRIGHT (1617 - 1694) Portrait of Sir Francis Wyndham, 1st Baronet of Trent Apparently signed, inscribed and dated verso 'Collonell [sic] Francis Wyndham/ of Trent in Somersett shire' 'Jo: Mich Wright Lord Pinxit. 1671' (please see restorer's photograph below, before canvas was lined, c. early 1980s) Oil on canvas, 126 x 105cm In a carved giltwood frame Provenance: Possibly by descent to Thomas Wyndham (1763-1814) Clearwell Court, Gloucestershire and Dunraven Castle, Glamorganshire; to his son-in-law Windham Wyndham-Quin, 2nd Earl of Dunraven (1782-1850), by descent to the 7th Earl of Dunraven and Mount-Earl, sold Christie's and Hamilton & Hamilton, Adare Manor, Co. Limerick, 9 and 10 June 1982, lot 87 (as Colonel Clark Wyndham of Orchard Wyndham); Private collection, Ireland Literature: Guy Wilson, Greenwich Armour in the Portraits of John Michael Wright, The Connoisseur, February 1975, pp. 109-115, illus. (as portrait of an unidentified gentleman, Collection of the Earl of Dunraven) Robert O'Byrne ed., A Vanishing World, The Irish Country House Photographs of Father Brown, Dublin 2024, p. 20 (illustrated in the drawing room) Sir Francis Wyndham, 1st Baronet (1610-1676) Francis Wyndham was the son of Sir Thomas Wyndham (1570-1631) and his wife Elizabeth Coningsby. They descended from the Kentsford Wyndhams a cadet branch of the Orchard Wyndhams, who are based in Somerset. Wyndham began his early years spending time in Europe and graduating from the University of Padua in 1635. On his return to England, he was elected MP for Minehead in April 1640 for the Short Parliament. This Parliament was summoned by King Charles I for a short session of only three weeks. Wyndham became a Royalist colonel when the First English Civil War broke out. He was appointed governor of Dunster Castle, which was one of the last defences to hold out in southwest England. He had a reputation for being a good soldier and eventually surrendered on honourable terms. Shortly afterwards in 1646 he married an heiress Anne Gerard the daughter of Thomas Gerard of Trent (1593-1634). With the partition of the Gerard estates in 1651, Francis and Anne moved to Trent. The Gerard family had been recusants in a previous generation and their seat in Trent still maintained its priest-hole. It was this hiding place that enabled Wyndham to assist Charles II with his escape after the Battle of Worcester. The Wyndham family had a close connection with Charles II, therefore the future king could welcome the security for several days in Trent, Dorset. During the 1655 Penruddock uprising Wyndham was arrested in suspicion of involvement with intending to restore Charles II to the throne. He was subsequently released without charge. Wyndham was created a baronet on 18 November 1673, apparently by willing to forego a claim on the Exchequer for £10,800 granted to him by privy seal in 1670. John Michael Wright was an English painter, although born in London he apprenticed in 1636 to the Scottish painter George Jameson in Edinburgh. He remained in Scotland for five years before travelling to Rome in the early 1640’s. In Rome he established himself as a painter, copyist and collector. On his return to England in 1656 and following the restoration of 1660, he received several Royal commissions from King Charles II and subsequently King James II. It was during this time there became a fashion for portraits in which the sitter was dressed in what was then considered to be antique armour. Wright painted many works with the sitter wearing some form of Greenwich armour. There are noticeable similarities between each of the portraits. One could assume that the use of a single Greenwich armour or indeed a quantity could have been housed in his studio. It has been noted that the long tassels on the portrait of an unidentified gentleman (believed to be Sir Francis Wyndham) also appear in other portraits. Wright seems to have had an appreciation for antiquary, which could explain the accuracy seen in the details of this portrait and that of Murrough O’Brien, 1st Earl of Inchiquin. However, Murrough O’Brien who fought for many years in Ireland and further afield would probably have never worn such an armour. He had power and a reputation to uphold and therefore his appearance in this portrait expresses status. Wright’s portrait’s showcasing Greenwich armour imply they were painted in the 1660’s and display a detailed perspective on costume from a bygone era. Adare Manor, the magnificent architectural masterpiece that we see today within its natural setting overlooking the River Maigue became the seat of the Quin family in the 1600s. It was probably in the 1720’s when the first documented residence ‘Adare House’ was built by Valentine Quin (d.1744). Throughout the 18th century alterations and redesigning the parkland continued. It was in 1810 that Windham Henry Quin married Caroline Wyndham, the only surviving child of Thomas Wyndham MP of Clearwell Park, Gloucestershire and Dunraven Castle, Glamorganshire. It was following his death that Windam acquired by Royal license the double barrelled name of Wyndham-Quin. During this time, Windham’s father Valentine was living in England and was created Viscount Mount-Earl in 1816 and then created Viscount Adare and the 1st Earl of Dunraven in 1822. The title of Dunraven was chosen to honour his daughter-in- law, Caroline. Windham, who became the 2nd Earl and along with his wife Caroline decided to make monumental changes to Adare House. They had visited many grand houses in England and became influenced by the fashionable gothic style. Windham and Caroline developed a passion for cathedrals with their aspiring scale and magnificence. The architect brothers James and George Pain were commissioned to begin the process of redesigning the house into a manor. The Pain brothers lasting legacy at Adare is the spectacular gallery, which was considered to be the largest domestic room in Ireland. The gallery became the wonderful backdrop to display the Wyndham family portraits and exquisite old master paintings. The work on the new manor house continued for more than 30 years to complete. Adare Manor and the contents remained in the Wyndham-Quin family until the early 1980’s, when it was sold. Today, the manor and the grounds have been beautifully restored keeping intact the integral importance of an historic legacy in Ireland.