Orleans Collection
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The Orleans Collection was a very important collection of over 500 paintings formed by Philippe II, Duke of Orléans, mostly acquired between about 1700 and his death in 1723. Apart from the great royal-become-national collections of Europe it is arguably the greatest private collection of Western art, especially Italian, ever assembled, and probably the most famous, helped by the fact that most of the collection has been accessible to the public since it was formed, whether in Paris, or subsequently in London, Edinburgh and elsewhere.
Jupiter and Io by Correggio, one of the few paintings to leave the Orleans Collection before the French Revolution. (Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna)
Allegory of Wisdom and Strength (c. 1580) by Veronese, originally painted for Rudolph II, Holy Roman Emperor, now in the Frick Collection, New York.
Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor, 1552–1612, deposed by his family after he turned into a recluse
Christina of Sweden, 1626–1689, went into exile when she wanted to convert to Catholicism
Philippe II, Duke of Orléans
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Philippe II, Duke of Orléans, was a French prince, soldier, and statesman who served as Regent of the Kingdom of France from 1715 to 1723. He is referred to in French as le Régent. He was the son of Monsieur Philippe I, Duke of Orleans, and Madame Elisabeth Charlotte, Duchess of Orléans. Born at his father's palace at Saint-Cloud, he was known from birth by the title of Duke of Chartres.
The 10-year-old Duke of Chartres in red on the right; the scene depicts the Doge of Genoa at Versailles on 15 May 1685.
Philippe c. 1678
Philippe in 1686 by Nicolas de Largillière
Philippe's wife, Françoise Marie de Bourbon, youngest daughter of Madame de Montespan, by François de Troy.