[Karl XII, king of Sweden] Carolus XII D.G.
Suecorum Gothorum et Vandalorum Rex Augustissimus &c. &c. [...] D.K. Ehrenstrahl pinxit W. Faithorne Fecit. Cum Privilegio Regis. E. Cooper excudit [1701]. Rare mezzotint, sheet 330 x 245mm (13 x 9½"). Trimmed; glued to backing sheet at edges. Karl XII (1682-1718), king of Sweden from 1697 until his death. Karl first demonstrated his exceptional skills as a military leader when winning several victories in the Great Northern War (1700-21) which was begun when a triple alliance of Denmark-Norway, Saxony-Poland-Lithuania and Russia launched an attack on the Swedish protectorate, significantly outnumbering the forces of the inexperienced Swedish king. A major victory over a Russian army some three times the size at the battle of Narva in 1700 led Peter the Great to sue for peace, which Karl rejected. Mezzotint published soon after the battle of Narva (to which the text refers), engraved after a portrait by David Klöcker Ehrenstrahl (1628-98), German-born artist who became a founding father of Swedish painting. CS: 5 only state; Fagan: Not in.
[Ref: 42985] £320.00