Anthony van Dyck: Portrait of Hendrik van den Bergh (1629-1632)

(Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid, Spain)

A painting by the Flemish artist Anthony van Dyck (1599-1641). Hendrik van den Bergh (1573 – 1638), lord of Stevensweert & stadhouder of Spanish Upper Guelders, was the seventh son of count Willem IV van den Bergh and Maria of Nassau. During the Dutch war of independence (1588-1648) he served in the Spanish military as a commander and fought at the sieges of Jülich, Breda, Grol and at 's-Hertogenbosch - after 1621 he was the second-highest commander in the Spanish army in Flanders. Dissatisfied with Spanish involvement in the Southern Netherlands Hendrik van den Bergh defected in 1632 to the Dutch side. Hendrik married several times and had at least 7 children. Painting from 1629-1632.