The surrender of Maurice of Nassau’s troops in the Rhenish town of Juliers to Ambrose of Spinola was one of the most important events at the beginning of the Thirty Years’ War. The town was of great strategic importance as it was an important point of communication between the Dutch and the Germans. The siege lasted seven months and ended on 3 February 1622 with the surrender of the town. The departure of the Dutch troops took place without the honours of unfurled flags. Leonardo depicted the act for the Salón de Reinos in a traditional manner, showing a clear act of submission. In the foreground, Spinola, on horseback, receives the keys of the city from the Dutch governor who kneels before him. He is accompanied by the Genoese general Diego Felipe Mexía de Guzmán (the next Marquis of Leganés), who played a secondary role in the operations. In front of these two, the scene is attended by a Spanish general, on foot, accompanied by a squire who looks towards the viewer, pointing towards the act of surrender. In the background is the city with the departure of the Protestant troops, showing a more successful integration between the background and the foreground. On the other hand, Jusepe Leonardo had to use other portraits for his composition, as by the time the composition was completed in 1634-35, Spinola had died in 1630, but he had models by Rubens and Van Dyck. For the portrait of the Marquis of Leganés, who left Madrid in April 1634, he seems to have used the effigy depicted by Van Dyck.
Collection: Images
Project: 5. Power and powers in the history of Europe: oligarchies, political participation and democracy., 6. Under a cloak of terror: violence and armed conflict in Europe.
Chronology: XVII
Scope: Secondary Education, Baccalaureate, University
Resource type: Image
Format: Oil on canvas (307 x 381 cm)
Source: Museo Nacional del Prado (Madrid)
Language: Spanish
Date: 1634-35
Owner: Álvaro Romero González (Modernalia)
Identifier: P000858
Copyright: Museo del Prado (Madrid)
Abstract: Representation of the Surrender of Juliers, a work that forms part, along with others, of the commemoration of a series of land and naval victories that were won by the armies of the Hispanic Monarchy during the first period of the Thirty Years' War. These canvases were destined for the Salón de Reinos of the Buen Retiro Palace.
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