Emperor Francis II of Austria Riding Before a Hilltop Castle, Hand Colored, 1815

An original antique engraving, colored by hand, captioned "FRANCIS 2ND. EMPEROR OF AUSTRIA." The Emperor rides a chestnut horse stepping toward the left, holding the reins in both hands with his saber sheathed. He wears a black bicorne with a white plume and red cockade, a white coat with red collar and cuffs, gold epaulettes, several orders on the breast, white breeches and black boots. His saddle cloth is violet with a heavy gold fringe. Behind him at the left a castle with round towers stands on a rocky hill above a river, flying a red and white flag with a shield, and distant mountains run across the horizon.

No engraver's or artist's name is lettered on this plate. The publication line reads "Published 18th. of May 1815, by Richard Evans, Whites Row, Spitalfields." Francis II was the last Holy Roman Emperor and ruled Austria as Emperor Francis I.

The plate was issued for The History of the Wars occasioned by the French Revolution by William Nicholson, LL.D., printed in London for Thomas Kelly of 17 Paternoster Row. Its title page promises biographical sketches of the public characters of Europe, with an account of the Congress of Vienna, the escape from Elba, Waterloo and the exile to Saint Helena. The plates carry their own engraved publication line naming Richard Evans of Whites Row, Spitalfields, London.

The white uniform and the castle on its hill give this portrait a lighter, more courtly character than the battle plates.

This is an original antique print, not a modern reproduction. This item is sold unframed.