Portrait of Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Strafford, by Anthony Van Dyck Courtesy of Christie s
Having a portrait of someone whose execution you have ordered hanging on your wall might make one feel a little, well, uncomfortable.
And so it seems was the case with Charles I and this arresting portrait of Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Strafford (around 1639-40) by Anthony Van Dyck which is coming up for sale at Christie s Old Masters evening auction in London on 8 July, estimated at £3m to £5m.
Strafford was a controversial and uncompromising character. Initially a parliamentarian, he was won over by Charles I and became one of his most powerful courtiers, acting as President of the Council of the North in 1628 and Lord-Deputy of Ireland in the 1630s before becoming chief advisor to the ill-fated king during his Personal Rule (without parliament) between 1639-41, just before the Civil War of 1642. But Strafford was unpopular with many and Charles was pressure