December 2012
PRESS RELEASE 4 April 2019 Russia, Royalty & the Romanovs The Queen's Gallery, Palace of Holyroodhouse 21 June – 3 November 2019 For more than 300 years Britain has been linked to Russia through exploration and discovery, diplomatic alliances and, latterly, by familial and dynastic ties. Russia, Royalty & the Romanovs, opening on 21 June 2019, explores the relationship between the two countries and their royal families through more than 170 works of art in the Royal Collection, many of which were exchanged as diplomatic gifts or intimate personal mementos. The first Russian ruler to set foot on English soil was Tsar Peter I, known as Peter the Great. In 1698 he visited London for three months and met with the British King, William III, as part of a diplomatic and fact-finding tour of Western Europe. On his departure Peter presented the King with his portrait, painted by Sir Godfrey Kneller. The young Tsar is depicted wearing Laurits Regner Tuxen, the mantle of a ruler and the armour of a warrior, The Marriage of Nicholas II, Tsar of looking to the West and hoping to establish a new, Russia, 26th November 1894, 1896 ‘open’ Russia. During the reign of the Empress Catherine II (Catherine the Great), Russia’s borders expanded to the south and west, and the country was established as one of the great powers in Europe. The Empress’s coronation portrait by Vigilius Eriksen, c.1765–9, is a clear statement of magnificence and power. It was recorded as hanging in the Privy Chamber at Kensington Palace in 1813, and may have been a diplomatic gift to George III.
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