page_title: Triumph of Frederick Henry, Prince of Orange
section_title: Description and style
hierarchical_section_title: Triumph of Frederick Henry, Prince of Orange / Description and style
caption_attribution_description: Nederlands: Huis ten Bosch: Oranjezaal na de restauratie: overzicht noordoosthoek, met de hele oostwand This is an image of rijksmonument number 17517
context_page_description: Triumph of Frederick Henry, Prince of Orange is a painting by Jacob Jordaens, signed and dated at the bottom left "J JOR fec / 1652".
context_section_description: Given the large number of similarities between the two works' iconography, Jordaens' probable model was a print by Salomon Savery after a drawing by David Vinckboons. This drawing was an allegory of Frederick Henry's triumphal entry into the Hague after the victories of Wesel and 's-Hertogenbosch, his two great successes in the Eighty Years' War.
  In Jordaens' work, Frederick Henry is shown wearing armour and a deep red cloak (reminiscent of ancient Roman triumphal dress) seated on a throne in a triumphal chariot. A golden sculpture of Victory behind him holds two crowns, placing the one in her right hand on Frederick Henry's head and holding the other towards Frederick Henry's son William II of Orange, shown as a young horseman in the bottom right. The nude Hymen) behind William crowns him with a golden garland surmounted by a crown - within that wreath are two joined hands, symbolising William's marriage to Charles I's daughter Mary.
  Frederick Henry's chariot is drawn by four white horses with golden harness. A male figure wearing only a pseudo-Turkish dress rides one of them, holding a cornucopia of fruits and ears of grain, a symbol of abundance. Beside the horses Minerva (left) and Mercury (right, in a winged hat and sandals) act as grooms and symbolise Frederick Henry's virtues of wisdom, martial virtue and cunning. Under their hooves the horses trample two terrible serpents (Discord) and a figure biting a heart (Envy). Two lions in front of the horses symbolise bravery and courage, whilst four of the Muses to the far left symbolise the four provinces of the Dutch Republic.
  In the background is a triumphal arch flanked by two golden statues on pedestals, representing Frederick Henry's father William the Silent and his half-brother Maurice of Nassau (right), who both preceded him as Statolder. People gather around the statues to watch the triumphal procession. Above the horses a winged figure with a trumpet (Fame) beats back a skeleton, whilst higher still a woman in a white robe holds palm branches in both hands. She is surrounded by putti unrolling a long scroll inscribed ULTIMUS ANTE OMNES DE PARTA PACE TRIUMPHUS (Fairest above all triumphs is that through which peace is gained), shown by a letter in the National Library of the Netherlands to have been invented by Huygens. This refers to the Peace of Munster, the section of the Treaty of Westphalia of 1648 which guaranteed the Dutch Republic's independence and abandoned all Spanish claims to its lands - Frederick died before the Treaty but his military victories had decisively paved the way for it. Several other putti at the very top of the painting hold a long festoon full of fruit, whilst others tip another cornucopia of coins and jewelry over Frederick Henry, symbolising riches and prosperity.
caption: The Oranjezaal
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