King Henry IV of Castile before the people of Segovia
1862. Oil on canvas.On display elsewhere
Henry IV of Castile (Valladolid, 1425–Madrid, 1474) –King of Castile between 1454 and 1474 enters the city of Segovia accompanied by his half-sister Isabella (Madrigal de las Altas Torres, Ávila, 1451–Medina del Campo, Valladolid, 1504). Isabella had just been proclaimed Princess of Asturias and thus heir to the throne of Castile by the Treaty of the Bulls of Guisando which concluded on 18 September 1468. The entourage is seen passing by the portico of San Martín’s church.
In the catalogue of the 1862 National Exhibition of Fine Arts, the scene is described as follows: ‘The following day, the Princess –who later became Isabella I, Queen of Castile– rode on her palfrey, held by King Henry IV himself by the reins to assure a better command. Isabella went through our city, Segovia, and made the dwellers forget all the troubles they had suffered in the past days and years, for they were delighted with such an appearance’.
Díez, José Luis (dir.), Pintura del Siglo XIX en el Museo del Prado: catálogo general, Madrid, Museo Nacional del Prado, 2015, p.212
