| The Christening of Victoria, Princess Royal | |
|---|---|
_-_The_Christening_of_Victoria%2c_Princess_Royal%2c_10_February_1841_-_RCIN_404467_-_Royal_Collection.jpg) | |
| Artist | Charles Robert Leslie |
| Year | 1841-1842 |
| Type | Oil on canvas |
| Dimensions | 129.5 cm × 184.0 cm (51.0 in × 72.4 in) |
| Location | Royal Collection |
The Christening of Victoria, Princess Royal is an oil on canvashistory painting by the American artistCharles Robert Leslie, from 1841-1842.
It depicts thechristening on 10 February 1841 of Victoria, the infantPrincess Royal and eldest daughter ofQueen Victoria and her husbandAlbert, thePrince Consort.[1] The painting depicts the ceremony in the Throne Room atBuckingham Palace, during which theLily Font was used for the first time.[2]
The princess is surrounded by her godparents, namelyQueen Adelaide, who is shown stepping forward to name the infant, theDuchess of Gloucester and Edinburgh, theDuchess of Kent and Strathearn, theKing of the Belgians, theDuke of Sussex, and theDuke of Wellington, who stood proxy for theDuke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.[1] Leslie had personally made a request viaLord Melbourne to paint the ceremony.[1] He produced a slight sketch during the event, followed by studies of the baby and the personages involved, though the painting remained unfinished until 1842 as he struggled to arrange a sitting with Queen Adelaide who was in ill health.[1] An engraving was produced based on the painting in 1849 and an impression was sent to the King of the Belgians who did not find it "successful" in terms of likeness.[1] An engraving of the painting byHenry Thomas Ryall is also kept at theMetropolitan Museum of Art in New York.[3]