page_title: Marie de' Medici cycle
section_title: The Flight from Blois
hierarchical_section_title: Marie de' Medici cycle / The Paintings / The Flight from Blois
context_page_description: The Marie de' Medici Cycle is a series of twenty-four paintings by Peter Paul Rubens commissioned by Marie de' Medici, widow of Henry IV of France, for the Luxembourg Palace in Paris. Rubens received the commission in the autumn of 1621. After negotiating the terms of the contract in early 1622, the project was to be completed within two years, coinciding with the marriage of Marie's daughter, Henrietta Maria. Twenty-one of the paintings depict Marie's own struggles and triumphs in life. The remaining three are portraits of herself and her parents. The paintings now hang in the Louvre in Paris.
context_section_description: The Flight from Blois is a depiction of Queen Marie escaping from confinement at Blois.  The Queen stands in a dignified manner, suggesting her poise in times of disarray, amongst a chaotic crowd of handmaidens and soldiers.  She is led and protected by a representation of France, and guided by illustrations of Night and Aurora. They are used literally to portray the actual time of the event and shield the queen from spectators as they illuminate her path.  Rubens painted a scene of the event in a more heroic nature rather than showing the accuracy of realistic elements. According to historical records of the Queen's escape, this painting is not truthfully reflecting the moment of the occurrence. Rubens did not include many of the negative aspects of the event, fearing that he would offend the Queen, which resulted in the paintings non-realistic nature.  The Queen Marie is depicted in a humble way, yet the illustration implies her power over the military.  She does not express any hardships she had gone through by the escape.  The male figures in foreground reaching for her are unknown.  The larger figures in the background represent the military, who were added to have a symbolic meaning of the Queen's belief in the command over military.
caption: The Flight from Blois
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