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Artist or Maker: Adam Frans van der Meulen (Brussels 1632-1690 Paris)
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Provenance: The Dukes of Leeds, Hornby Castle, Herefordshire, and by descent.
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Notes: The Property of the 10th Duke of Leeds Will Trust (lots 101-104)
Born and trained in Brussels, van der Meulen later moved to Paris where, from 1 April 1664, he was in the service of Louis XIV, primarily responsible for depictions of the King's military campaigns and conquests. Between 1665 and 1681 van der Meulen accompanied the royal entourage on nine military campaigns, mainly to eastern and north-east France, and on his return he translated studies that he had made on the spot into paintings, including the Army of Louis XIV before Doornik (Brussels, Musées Royaux de Beaux Arts), Louis XIV before Versailles (Moscow, Pushkin Museum of Fine Art) and the Seizure of Cambrai (Versailles, Château).
The present battle has been identified previously as Battle of the Spurs, 16 August 1513 , however, as a French Court painter, it seems unlikely that van der Meulen would have been commissioned to paint this notorious and rapid defeat of French troops by British troops, which occurred some one-hundred and twenty years before his birth.
