ABSTRACT Title of Document: PIETY, POLITICS, AND PATRONAGE: ISABEL CLARA EUGENIA AND PETER PAUL RUBENS’S THE TRIUMPH OF THE EUCHARIST TAPESTRY SERIES Alexandra Billington Libby, Doctor of Philosophy, 2013 Directed By: Professor Arthur K. Wheelock, Jr., Department of Art History and Archeology This dissertation explores the circumstances that inspired the Infanta Isabel Clara Eugenia, Princess of Spain, Archduchess of Austria, and Governess General of the Southern Netherlands to commission Peter Paul Rubens’s The Triumph of the Eucharist tapestry series for the Madrid convent of the Descalzas Reales. It traces the commission of the twenty large-scale tapestries that comprise the series to the aftermath of an important victory of the Infanta’s army over the Dutch in the town of Breda. Relying on contemporary literature, studies of the Infanta’s upbringing, and the tapestries themselves, it argues that the cycle was likely conceived as an ex-voto, or gift of thanks to God for the military triumph. In my discussion, I highlight previously unrecognized temporal and thematic connections between Isabel’s many other gestures of thanks in the wake of the victory and The Triumph of the Eucharist series. I further show how Rubens invested the tapestries with imagery and a conceptual conceit that celebrated the Eucharist in ways that symbolically evoked the triumph at Breda. My study also explores the motivations behind Isabel’s decision to give the series to the Descalzas Reales. It discusses how as an ex-voto, the tapestries implicitly credited her for the triumph and, thereby, affirmed her terrestrial authority. Drawing on the history of the convent and its use by the king of Spain as both a religious and political dynastic center, it shows that the series was not only a gift to the convent, but also a gift to the king, a man with whom the Infanta had developed a tense relationship over the question of her political autonomy. I argue that when Isabel presented the tapestries to the Descalzas Reales she intended them to assert her power and, moreover, compel its reciprocation. This interpretation relies on archival documents that show that Isabel frequently gave religious gifts to establish relationships of reciprocity; the simultaneously religious and political functions the convent served the Spanish royal family; as well as on the tapestries themselves. PIETY, POLITICS, AND PATRONAGE: ISABEL CLARA EUGENIA AND PETER PAUL RUBENS’S THE TRIUMPH OF THE EUCHARIST TAPESTRY SERIES By Alexandra Billington Libby Dissertation submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of the University of Maryland, College Park, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy 2013 Advisory Committee: Professor Arthur K. Wheelock, Jr., Chair Professor H. Perry Chapman Professor Anthony Colantuono Professor Jay Robert Dorfman, Dean’s Representative Professor Meredith Gill © Copyright by Alexandra Billington Libby 2013 Dedication For My Parents ii Acknowledgements It is with great pleasure that I thank the numerous people that have helped me to research and write this dissertation. I am indebted to so many for their support and encouragement. I must start by expressing my gratitude to the University of Maryland and the Department of Art History and Archeology for its generous funding of my academic endeavors. A Graduate Student Summer Research Fellowship and the Jenny Rhee Travel Fellowship provided me the funds necessary to conduct critical archival, library, and museum research in Europe. The George Levitine Fellowship and the Anne G. Wylie Dissertation Fellowship supported the research and writing of this dissertation. My research was also aided significantly by the invaluable assistance I received from the staff in the Department of Art History and Archaeology at the University of Maryland, the National Gallery of Art Research Library, the Bibliothèque Municipale in Besançon, the Book Library at the Courtauld Institute of Art, the Archives Générales du Royaume and the Archives de l'État en Belgique in Brussels, as well as the sisters of the Monastère du Carmel in Brussels, the Zusters Karmelietessen in Antwerp, and the Discalced Clares of El Monasterio de las Descalzas Reales in Madrid. I would also like to the thank the following scholars who, in various ways, have stimulated my thinking about Isabel Clara Eugenia and Peter Paul Rubens: Koen Brossens, Denise Giannino, Quint Gregory, Fiona Healy, David Jaffé, Teresa Posada Kubissa, Susan Merriam, Ana García Sanz, Elizabeth Sutton, Yui Suzuki, Marjorie Venit, Amy Walsh, Maureen Warren, Betsy Wiesman, Anne Woollett, and, in particular Michael Zell, under whose direction I first began my exploration of the Infanta Isabel’s iii patronage of Rubens while a Master’s student at Boston University. His advice and insights as I first began to think critically about patronage and gift theory have stayed with me, and I am indebted to him for his early guidance. I am extremely grateful to the many friends and fellow art historians whose kindness and camaraderie helped see me through this project: Bethany Bohmer, Andrew and Suzy Eschelbacher, Madeline Gent, Lillian Gould, Jennifer Henel, Bridget Hoyt, Kate Kula, Lara Langer, Toby Mandel, Winnie Mays, Keely Orgeman, Brighton Payne, Henriette Rahusen, Lisa Sutcliffe, Stanton Thomas, Liz Tunick, and Lara Yeager- Crasselt. I am also thankful to thank Sofia Calzada Orihuela and Jake Shilling for their invaluable assistance translating the Spanish and Latin texts. To my committee members, H. Perry Chapman, Anthony Colantuono, Jay Robert Dorfman, Meredith Gill, and Arthur K. Wheelock, Jr., who have given generously of their thoughts and advice, I owe an enormous debt of gratitude. In particular, I would like to thank Anthony Colantuono and Meredith Gill, who have guided me in my exploration of patronage and gift studies while at Maryland. Our many conversations have challenged and shaped my thinking about Isabel Clara Eugenia and The Triumph of the Eucharist series immensely. Without question, I am the most deeply indebted to my advisor, Arthur Wheelock, who has shared so freely of his time and energy. His careful reading, thoughtful comments, and ever-ready editor’s pen made this manuscript infinitely better, and the benefits that I have received from his kindness and generosity are immeasurable. I continued to be inspired by his love of Dutch and Flemish art, which is matched only be iv his dedication to his students. I hope one day to reach the high standards that he has set as a scholar, teacher, curator, and friend. Finally, I offer my most sincere gratitude to my family. To my sister, Brooke, for being the model of a smart, strong woman, to my brother, Jesse, for reminding me that laughter cures everything, to my husband, Jason, for his endless patience, love, and support: you have my eternal thanks. To my parents, James and Patricia Libby: unlike Rubens, there have been many undertakings that exceeded my confidence. In those times, you stood behind me with love and encouragement. You saw your dreams in my accomplishments and urged me onward. This dissertation is for you. v The thesis or dissertation document that follows has had referenced material removed in respect for the owner's copyright. A complete version of this document, which includes said reference material, resides in the University of Maryland College Park's library collection. vi Table of Contents Dedication........................................................................................................................... ii Acknowledgements............................................................................................................iii Table of Contents.............................................................................................................. vii List of Figures.................................................................................................................... ix Introduction......................................................................................................................... 1 The Triumph of the Eucharist in Literature .................................................................... 9 Sources and Materials................................................................................................... 14 a. Primary Documents............................................................................................... 15 b. Iconography and Imagery ..................................................................................... 18 c. The Descalzas Reales............................................................................................ 19 Chapter Outline............................................................................................................. 21 Chapter 1: Defining the Problem of Authority: Isabel Clara Eugenia and the Spanish Court.................................................................................................................... 24 The Cession of the Netherlands and the Problem of Authority.................................... 25 Overview of the Act of Cession.................................................................................... 30 Political Education and Courtly Apprenticeship Under Philip II ................................. 33 ”The Most Beautiful, the Most Learned”: Public Perceptions of the Infanta Isabel .... 39 Isabel, Albert, Philip III: Siblings, Cousins, Rivals.....................................................