Chester.
_Portrait of Charles I._--The portrait of Charles I. by Vandyke (the
subject of MR. BREEN'S Query, "N. & Q.," Vol. viii., p. 151.) is no less
than the celebrated picture in which the monarch is represented standing,
with his right hand resting on a walking cane, and his left (the arm being
beautifully foreshortened) against his hip; and immediately behind him his
horse is held by an equerry, supposed to be the Marquis of Hamilton. The
picture hangs in the great square room at the Louvre, close on the left
hand of the usual entrance door, and is undoubtedly one of the finest in
that magnificent collection. As a portrait, it is without a rival. It is
well known in this country by the admirable engraving from it, executed in
1782, by Sir Robert Strange.
The description of this picture in the Catalogue for 1852 _du Musée
Nationale du Louvre_, is as follows:--
"Gravé par Strange; par Bonnefoy; par Duparc;--Filhol, t. 1. pl. 5.
"Collection de Louis XV.--Ce tableau, qui a été exécuté vers 1635, ne
fut payé à van Dyck que 100 livres sterling. En 1754, il faisait
partie, suivant Descamps, du cabinet du marquis de Lassay. On trouve
cette note dans les mémoires secrets de Bachaument," &c.
Then follows the passage quoted by MR. BREEN. I can find no mention of a
Dubarry among the ancestors of the monarch.