Lot number 3535 - Auction 146
DIE BELAGERUNG VON NAMUR IM JAHRE 1692 DURCH LUDWIG XIV

JEAN-BAPTISTE MARTIN (OR MARTIN) (ALSO CALLED MARTIN DES BATAILLES) 1659 Paris - 8 October 1735 ibid. THE SIEGE OF NAMUR IN 1692 BY LOUIS XIV Oil on canvas (relined). 34 x 52 cm (F. 40.5 x 58 cm). Part. slight old rest., min. old retouching. Frame. One of the strongest cities in the Netherlands, Namur was besieged more than once in its history. The first, corresponding to our painting, took place at the end of May 1692, when Louis XIV appeared before Namur. This siege, which took place in the context of the War of the Augsburg League, was led by Vauban. The army was led by the Marshal of Luxembourg, who is depicted here on a white horse at the king's side. On 5 June, Louis XIV entered the city and the citadel, which was located on a rocky outcrop that can easily be recognised in our work, surrendered at the end of the month. A version from which our painting seems to be derived was commissioned by Louis XIV in 1692 to decorate the castle of Marly-le-Roy (Versailles; Musée national des châteaux de Versailles et Trianon). Martin des Batailles painted at least three other pictures with the same subject, one of which is in the Musée Jacquemart-André (Paris). (cf. Auction Hotel Drouot, Paris, Frayssee & Associés, 5 December 2012.) Provenance: Rhenish private collection.