RICHARD II & the WILTON DIPTYCH

[@Daisy-tl2lh]

I used to go into the National Gallery regularly just to stand and admire this superb painting ...

[@sixeses]

Thanks Allan

[@dianespears6057]

Such a beautiful piece. Thank you for the insights.

[@puppy1584]

You are the perfect narrator…clear enunciation. You make history interesting.

[@conniehopkins6105]

I am so glad to have you back. I've missed your posts immensely.

[@idreamofparis7233]

Absolutely beautiful

[@ByronAdams-j7t]

This was marvelous.

[@ianport2185]

Marvellous as ever! Off to the local White Hart for a drink...😊

[@andrewcorke1671]

Thank you so much Allan for a wonderful explanation of what is definitely my favourite painting in the National Gallery. And while I am about it, can I thank you for your brilliant coverage of the Coronation last year. It opened up the event to me, and I am sure many others, in a way that none of the extensive coverage in the press even got close to. Thank you so much for a fascinating series.

[@AmynAL]

It is so good to have you back! This diptych is so beautiful. Thank you for explaining the symbolism and attitude of the painting. It is stunning.

[@stepps511]

Thank you for this, Allan. It is a wonderful story of an exquisite piece of medieval art. When you described the iconography of the piece I was immediately reminded of Richard Crashaw's poem, "Welcome All Wonders...Welcome, all wonders in one sight! Eternity shut in a span,Summer in winter, day in night, Heaven in earth, and God in man!" The imagery here is stirring to be sure. Again, many thanks for your wonderful knowledge and your willingness to share it with us.

[@wuzzlebottom]

They really are beautiful. Thanks!

[@orsino88]

It’s a shame that we don’t know more about the artist or artists who painted the panels. And such a fusion of delicate craftsmanship with Richard’s folly and vanity-putting your own badges on angels! Really now.

[@hwizell7478]

In propaganda Author’s specific focus Big hair supports crown 👑 #haiku #fineart #propaganda

[@paulnovosel9469]

Allan: Please do more videos like this with Medieval art pieces! Wonderful and beautiful! You do it so well.

[@downtonviewer]

I had seen the White Hart on the wall in the Westminster Abbey Muniment Room and meant to research more about Richard II. I have not, as yet, had time. Thank you for this lovely synopsis of the king and his beautiful diptych.

[@dukeofhaas]

As a lifelong American Anglophile and student of the British monarchy, I always understood that the rightmost figure on the left panel represented a pilgrim. Yet so it is that your extraordinary research and deep subject knowledge, both enhanced by your keen observational skills, has once again provided me with another "eureka" moment. Of course the figure is a saint! Only saints are portrayed with halos about their head. And your deep dive into the kingly insignia represented throughout the diptych once again led me to ask, "why did I never notice that?" Thanks again, Dr. B., for your contribution to English heritage is much appreciated and deeply respected.

[@misss.o.j.]

That art is beautiful and your narration and story are compelling!!! And I remember the Mass from yesterday, the elevation of the Host IS intuitively the high point!!❤✝️❤!! God bless you and thank you for the videos!!! 🇺🇸 💛 🇬🇧

[@allanbarton]

Thank you very much! Glad you enjoyed it 😊

[@davisd_ambly4067]

Simply a breathtaking piece, Allan. I always go to see the diptych when I'm in London and gaze at it n awe not only at its visual beauty but in a moment of adoration of the vision.

[@pheart2381]

Me and my cat love these dives back In history. I love the longer videos.

[@djowen5192]

Amazing, simply amazing. Thankyou.

[@jilltagmorris]

This was fascinating. Many thanks Dr. 😊❤

[@Floortile]

I try and visit the National Gallery on each of my trips to London - and make a beeline for the exquisite Wilton Diptych. Thank you so much for your authoritative, informative, contextualising. Marvellous as well to have another video on this absolutely excellent channel.

[@educanassa100]

Amazing vídeo

[@rhiannonpoole6019]

Thank you for another beautifully presented and informative video. This was my mother's favourite painting so it means a lot to me. I feel sorry for King Richard - how could he help becoming as he did, being crowned at the age of ten? Wouldn't we all have had a misguided sense of self in his position?

[@PaulFellows3430]

A superb video of a truly magnificent painting.

[@nicholaselder6522]

I know and love this painting, and have a copy [in a suitably gilded frame] over a mantlepiece. I hadn't considered the link between the Elevation of the Host and the relationship between the King kneeling in adoration and the Christ Child offering his blessing, which makes perfect sense . Thank you!

[@tarynolyvia]

Always a great day when Dr. Barton posts a video! I wish they could all be hours and hours long, I just can’t get enough! I know you work hard on the content you make for us, it’s just so good it’s hard not to feel greedy! This is what the channel playlist is for though. Hope you have a great week, good sir!

[@dennisthompson2350]

Good to see you back.

[@OkieJammer2736]

SO interesting and your teaching style and intonation really create such a welcome, pleasant experience with each upload. Thank you.

[@michealgillman7418]

Allan the details in you videos are truly amazing...I would not have seen 90% of what you explained...thank you.

[@EarlyMusicDiva]

Tying in with previous videos of yours regarding the various crowns of the realm - I wonder if the crowns Edmund and Edward are wearing are accurate depictions of what their historical crowns actually looked like? What a marvelous diptych, very beautiful.

[@davidhowe6905]

I was thinking about the Wilton diptych in the last few days, and wondering if Allan had covered it. A detail of some of the angels is used as the cover for a CD I bought of music by William Byrd, and the delicacy of the image has impressed me ever since.

[@kevinchambers1101]

I must say that your presentations are as much of a masterpiece as the masterpieces you present. Each and every one of them are of the highest quality.

[@Chloe_Stella]

Outstanding work of art and explication. Thank you for putting so much work into teaching others.

[@janeknight3597]

The Wilton Diptych will be in Oxford at the Ashmolean Museum 10May- 1 September 2024. It is free entry.

[@jimcook1747]

Finally - I'm within the first 100 views, and am the first commenter! Keep up the good work Dr Barton!

[@allanbarton]

Thank you!

[@bevinboulder5039]

I'm curious about the size of this beautiful object. I've been to the National Gallery and wish I had known about this piece then. Thanks for another great video Dr. Barton!

[@pleiomedesnutcracker2683]

It is quite small - each panel is about 21 inches high and 15 inches wide. BTW it's not on display at the National Gallery at the moment, it's going to Oxford to be part of an exhibition at the Ashmolean opening in early May. Its nice that it continues to travel...

[@bevinboulder5039]

@@pleiomedesnutcracker2683 Thank you for answering my question. I didn't think it could be very big since it was designed to be closed at times.

[@monicacall7532]

Let’s try that again! In 1997 I visited London for the first time. While my husband was busy attending the national brass band competition I spent my time visiting places I’d only read about before. The National Gallery was on of those places. It was an amazing experience, but when I saw the diptych I got chills up and down my spine. It was beyond beautiful, especially all the gold and azure blue used throughout. I sat down and spent a fair amount of time just contemplating the subject and the artistry used to create such a truly awe inspiring masterpiece. It’s a memory that I greatly cherish. Thanks for another wonderful video!😮

[@johnwhitehead4446]

An excellent presentation about a very complex, as well as outstandingly beautiful, work of art.

[@popcult]

Excellent video on one of the most beautiful medieval spiritual objects. It is truly a miraculously, divinely effective piece. So much so that it’s hard to believe that it belonged to the rather less than “holy” Richard II. THANK YOU FOR THIS VIDEO. It’s

[@conrad4852]

Well, I’ve never seen this in person, I’ve watched several videos about it and I definitely think yours is the best I’ve seen. Thank you.

[@ejmeadows]

Very helpful video about a work I’ve seen on every visit from Melbourne to London. But, I can find no information on how this painting survived Richard’s downfall. How was it preserved before it turned up in the collection of Sir James Palmer in the early seventeenth century? I suppose we will never know, but it does suggest that Henry IV didn’t conduct a purge of the decorative and devotional arts commissioned by Richard.

[@Marshal_Dunnik]

"Woe to thee, O land, when thy king is a child." - Ecclesiastes 10 : 16

[@pixbychris3182]

A beautiful object for sure. St Edmunds should still be the patron saint as George is patron of lots of places including Moscow.. Can I ask. In the enthroned picture the orb has a very long stem on it. Was this just of the time?

[@excession3076]

I never even knew that St Edmund was a patron saint until this video. But I couldn't agree more, and we can have St Edward as well. I've always wondered why St George ended up as the patron saint and of course nowadays it's just used as another vector of attack on the country.

[@jillhargrave-george4510]

Yes. St George is the patron saint of shepherds here in Crete..he never set foot in England!

[@viviendeacon5880]

Thanks for your talk here. The Diptych is a marvellous piece of work. However, I'm not convinced that the King and the Christ Child are looking at each other, which has always puzzled me. The King seems to be looking straight ahead, perhaps just catching the Christ Child's foot in his glance, and the Christ Child is very clearly looking upwards, nowhere near the Christ Child at all. I understand that perhaps this is a very modern interpretation, and that in the past, people thought that vision was connected with eye-beams like headlights, but even so... what do you think?

[@TerryC69]

Hi Allan! Is the ring a recurring attribute symbol for Edward the Confessor icons? Might there be any other attribute symbols to look for with his icons?

[@calarch78]

I am very curious to know how George of Lydda could supplant native born saints Edward the Confessor and Edmund the Martyr as England’s patron saint.

[@edwin_music5213]

Hi can you do an episode on George IV coronation crown

[@MarkGeraghty]

Thank you for a very clear explanation of a complex item.

[@allanbarton]

Glad you appreciated it!

[@princessofthecape2078]

IMO, Richard bears primary responsibility for what happened to him - it was his personality and leadership style that condemned his kingship. He lived in an era of unquestioned regal authority - it wasn't like he was surrounded by doubters or republicans. People wanted him to succeed; had every interest *in his success.* Therefore, Richard II, as with John, must carry the burden of his fate. He blew it.

[@allanbarton]

Vesting that sort of authority in a boy is bound to skew their sense of self as they mature. It is not a recipe for stability.

[@princessofthecape2078]

@@allanbarton Of course not - although there definitely *are* successful exceptions (and even one standout if we look just at England). Henry III's reign - while not an unquestionable triumph (considering the rebellions) - began in a far deeper crisis than that of Richard II, and the peaceful transition of power upon his demise (especially considering that his son was in the holy land at that time) to a man who would become arguably England's greatest king (Edward I) is a testament to that. I also consider Edward VI's** reign 'stable,' even if it was brief and ended in the King's death - there was, for example, no instantaneous overturning of the status quo, uprising, or reversion to Catholicism. When we look at the minority medieval English monarchs whose time on the throne was marked by disaster, you've got Richard II (who did at least make it to adulthood), Henry VI (who either suffered from mental illness, a massive personality disorder, mental retardation, or some combination of the above [IE, he would have failed as a king no matter what]), and Edward V (who never really got a fair shake at the job, being murdered before he could even be crowned). While a 1-in-4 success rate is hardly good, it's also a) a very small sample size, and b) probably not all that far off the mark of 'failed' medieval Kings who ascended in adulthood. **Granted, this was renaissance.

[@ludovica8221]

@@allanbarton Not the first and not the last royal young man with an inflated sense of his own importance and lacking the humility to understand the responsibilities that come with privilege and power

[@THINKincessantly]

👑 Richard II makes two appearances in Netflix’s “The King”…The first is when Henry answers the Kings summons….its very brief and just as Henry begins to walk towards the King you catch a glimpse of the boy in the Diptych with Chalamets character looking down as he begins his approach….the 2nd appearance is when Chalamet approaches the Dauphin with a request to duel man on man…Richard is clearly standing behind Chalamet dressed in full armor, you’ll know him by his hair….neat.😊 Actually both appearances are given away by their hair.

[@mrbojangles8133]

it's definitely a beautiful piece

[@katjack2780]

I was not at all surprised when I read that it was Richard II who insisted he be called "Your Majesty." Talk about delusions of grandeur...

[@samanthafordyce5795]

I've heard Richard II referred to as "the man who brought fashion to England," and using his introduction of the handkerchief as evidence. Is this true, or is it just a myth?

[@jldisme]

👑

[@monicacall7532]

I remember the first time I saw the diptych

[@THINKincessantly]

5:21 Is that shield showing the houses of Wessex and Plantagenet ? Neat that in the 1390s they still thought of Wessex….

[@THINKincessantly]

He likely would have had the Angels painted in Queen Annes Likeness no? A quick peek into what she may have looked like.???

[@renebissonette7139]

Not a great king but, very passionate in his relationship with God!

[@jamistardust5181]

I wish that you would have explained the White Hart symbol. It should be noted that the "White Harts" were members of a private army formed by Richard in order to oppress his nay Sayers, and have a iron fist to enforce his rule.