Portrait Duke Anthony Ulrich of Brunswick-Lüneburg Wearing Sash Imperial Order of St Andrew the First-Called Circle of Georg Christoph Grooth C1740

Portrait of Duke Anthony Ulrich of Brunswick-Lüneburg (1714–1774), Generalissimo of the Russian Army, wearing the sash of the Imperial Order of St Andrew the First-Called  Circle of Georg Christoph Grooth C1740

🖼️ Subject & Medium

A distinguished 18th-century German School court portrait of Duke Anthony Ulrich of Brunswick-Lüneburg, shown half-length, turned three-quarter to the left, in full ceremonial and military dress with his Russian orders prominently displayed.

Painted in oil on canvas, the work has been relined and is presented in a later moulded gilt frame. Framed dimensions are approximately 97 cm high × 78 cm wide × 4.5 cm deep. On stylistic grounds it is attributed to the circle of Georg Christoph Grooth (1703–1749), a German painter active at the Russian imperial court, and dates to around c. 1740.

📐 Composition & Technique

The composition is simple and stately. Against a dark, neutral ground, Anthony Ulrich is brought forward into the light, his powdered wig, pale complexion and richly coloured garments forming a strong focus. He wears a deep green coat densely embroidered with gold, over which falls a crimson, ermine-lined mantle signalling his princely Welf status. Across his chest runs the pale blue sash of the Imperial Order of St Andrew the First-Called, with the dark blue collar of the order resting on his shoulders and the radiating star with St Andrew’s saltire shining on his left breast. In his right hand he holds a dark field-marshal’s baton with a jewelled finial, the classic attribute of a generalissimo.

The head is carefully modelled in cool, porcelain-like flesh tones over a light ground, with crisp drawing around eyes, nose and mouth and a gentle rosiness in the cheeks. The wig is described with small, regular strokes. The lace, fur and gold embroidery are treated more broadly, with brisk, decorative touches that catch the light and give texture. The paint surface shows a fine, even craquelure typical of 18th-century canvases, which adds to the period character of the work.

🧑🎨 Artist – Linked Stylistically

Though the painting is anonymous, it clearly belongs to the German–Russian court portrait tradition associated with Georg Christoph Grooth (1703–1749) and reflects the refined Franco-German idiom of Antoine Pesne (1683–1757).

The dark, uncluttered background, smooth and cool modelling of the head, and strong emphasis on orders, sash and baton are all hallmarks of Grooth’s work at the courts of Empress Anna and Elizabeth. At the same time, the slightly idealised yet dignified expression, and the elegant balance between decorative costume and calm, composed features, sit firmly within the Pesne–Grooth orbit.

In the absence of signature or documentary proof, the most responsible and accurate catalogue formula is:

Circle of Georg Christoph Grooth (1703–1749), German School, c. 1740–1750.

🧑🎓 About the Sitter

Anthony Ulrich (Anton Ulrich) (1714–1774) was a prince of the House of Welf, second son of Ferdinand Albert II, Duke of Brunswick-Bevern. In 1739 he married Anna Leopoldovna, granddaughter of Tsar Ivan V of Russia, a politically charged union that placed him at the heart of Romanov succession plans.

In 1740 their infant son was proclaimed Emperor Ivan VI, and Anthony Ulrich received the rank of Generalissimo of the Russian Army, the highest military post in the empire. For a brief moment he stood at the summit of Russian political and military life.

🕰️ Historical Context

That moment proved short-lived. In 1741 Elizabeth, daughter of Peter the Great, seized the throne in a palace coup. Anthony Ulrich, Anna and their children were arrested and moved to remote northern Russia, where they lived for decades as state prisoners under strict conditions. The Duke eventually went blind and died in captivity at Kholmogory in 1774.

Seen with this history in mind, the portrait is more than a display of court magnificence. The sash and star of the Order of St Andrew and the field-marshal’s baton present Anthony Ulrich at the high point of his fortunes, just before his fall. The contrast between the confident, ceremonial image and his tragic later fate gives the painting a distinctive, poignant resonance.

✍️ Signed

The work is unsigned; no signature or monogram is visible on the front of the canvas.

On the reverse of the relined canvas, a later German inscription names the sitter as “Anton Ulrich, Prinz von Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel” and outlines his life (born 1714; married Anna, regent of Russia; appointed generalissimo in 1740; imprisoned in 1741; died 1775). The handwriting appears to be 20th-century and should be regarded as a historical label rather than a contemporary note, but it accords closely with known facts and supports the established identification.

🖼️ Framed

The painting is housed in a later moulded gilt wooden frame which suits its period character and scale. The frame shows expected signs of age and use – a little dust in the recesses, light scuffing and small chips to the gilding on exposed edges – but is structurally sound and ready to hang.

📜 Provenance

Documented
The work almost certainly originates in Germany, as indicated by the German-language inscription on the reverse, the sitter’s dynastic connection to Brunswick and the traditional “Origin from Germany” note in trade descriptions. The canvas was relined and attached to its present stretcher, likely in the 19th or early 20th century, when the identifying inscription was probably added by a restorer, dealer or historically minded owner.

By the early 21st century the portrait had entered the British art trade, where it was handled by Cheshire Antiques Consultant Ltd. and offered as an important 18th-century German School portrait of Duke Anthony Ulrich of Brunswick-Lüneburg on various online platforms. It subsequently passed into the present collection.

Conjectural (but consistent)
Given the subject, language and style, it is plausible that the painting was originally produced within the Brunswick-Welf sphere or closely related to the Russian court, perhaps as a studio repetition or variant of an official likeness of Anthony Ulrich made around his appointment as generalissimo. From there it could well have hung for generations in a north-German aristocratic or substantial bourgeois interior – as part of an “ancestor gallery” or formal reception room – before being restored, relined, inscribed on the reverse and finally dispersed into the wider European market. While this early history is not documented, it fits the known evidence.

❤️ Why You’ll Love It

✅ Big visual impact – rich crimson, emerald green, ermine and the pale blue sash of the Imperial Order of St Andrew, with the star and baton giving real courtly theatre.

✅ A sitter with a story – Duke Anthony Ulrich of Brunswick-Lüneburg, generalissimo of the Russian Army, deeply enmeshed in Romanov coups and long imprisonment: a portrait with genuine narrative weight, not just a generic “man in a wig”.

✅ Credible attribution – convincingly placed in the circle of Georg Christoph Grooth (1703–1749) and the mid-18th-century German/Russian court-portrait tradition, combining strong decorative presence with solid art-historical grounding.

🧾 Condition

Condition
The painting is offered in fine used condition, commensurate with age. The canvas displays a network of craquelure and age-related cracking, together with some foxing and small, localised paint losses. Minor historic retouchings are present in places, applied to integrate these areas.

A horizontal line is visible near the top of the composition where, over many years, the back of a frame or stretcher has pressed against the canvas; along this line there is associated flaking and small losses. The earlier relining has given the support good structural stability and the image remains coherent and attractive.

The frame shows general wear consistent with age and use: some surface dust, light scuffs and occasional small chips to the gilding at exposed points. Overall, the work is ready to hang. A future owner might, if desired, commission a light professional clean and minor conservation to even out the varnish and visually soften the stretcher mark, but such intervention would be a refinement rather than a necessity.