I'm not sure what the story behind this image is. The caption (Anne S K Brown) says Mr. de Marleborough, Tel qu'il était en 1668 quand il servait en qualité d'enseigne dans le Régiment des Gardes Françaises. It's by Van der Meulen. I don't know...was Churchill in the GF?
The flag looks like GF and the clothing looks right for 1668, but is it really 'Marleborough'
The flag looks like GF and the clothing looks right for 1668, but is it really 'Marleborough'
Ralphus,
ReplyDeleteI believe it might be a bit of "romaticism" on the part of the artist. According to both Wolesley and Winston Churchill in their biographies, young John Churchill went from court page to Ensign of the 1st Foot Guards on September 14, 1667. Tired of court intrigue (and possibly at the center of some of it), he quit the Court sometime in 1668 and is next reported as a volunteer in the Tangiers Garrison in late 1668 or early 1669, where he remained for the better part of three years. There is actually no documented evidence of his presence in the Tangiers Garrison or Regiment, but most of his biographer's have accepted as proof a letter from John to his wife describing the hot Mediterranean weather and conditions in the garrison in August. There is also a Royal Warrant from Charles reimbursing John's Father for £140 covering John's expenses while "in Our service in the Mediterranean" and authorizing Adm. Sir Thomas Allin to take him aboard ship as part of his fleet action against Algiers in 1670. It is documented that John Churchill was back in London by 1671, where he fought a well-documented duel.
Bill
English Historians does not record with favour about the young Marlborough apprenticeship under Turenne in 1668-69. Possibly he did not really service in the Maison du Roi, but without doubts Marlborough had a French miliary imprints, as correctly reported in Correlli-Burnett biography.
ReplyDeleteBruno Mugnai