DOCUMENTATION | Exhibitions: 1648 - War and Peace in Europe |
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| Essay Volumes > Tome II: Art and culture |
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HANS-MARTIN KAULBACH
The Portrayal of Peace Before and After 1648* |
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To what extent does the pictorial portrayal of the Peace of Westphalia offer any indication as to the new concepts and structures for the peace process in Europe, the foundations of which were laid in 1648? Does the imagery of the period mirror the development from a "universal" notion of peace to the "international" model, with the growing significance of international law and the role of diplomacy in safeguarding peace, or even the new perception of the Holy Roman Empire as a "system of securing peace and the rule of law" [1]? A general study of the work produced at the time of the Peace of Westphalia does not reveal the immediate emergence of any new type of allegory on peace. The political consequences of the treaties were generally depicted using a modification of existing allegorical models which had been well developed during the 16th century: [2]
the personification of peace in the figure of Pax is portrayed as embedded in the structure of political order; Mars, the god of war, is either banished or defeated and cast in irons; Pax and Justitia are united and reconciled with a kiss; the "horrors of war" are juxtaposed with the "blessings of peace", both in personified form as well as in motifs drawn from everyday life. That which is destroyed by war is restored in peace. The peasant with his plough, a motif derived from classical art and a common background feature in allegorical works, is the most frequently used symbol for the prosperity brought by peace.
The triumphal carriage of peace, a motif which offered the greatest range of allegorical possibilities, was also prevalent in works produced around 1648. These paintings and prints also document the variety among contemporary interpretations of the Peace of Westphalia, ranging from the celebration of peace itself to the self-aggrandisement of royalty. Gerard Ter Borch's The Swearing of the Oath of Ratification of the Treaty of Münster (1648) [3] signalled the beginning of a new development in which the peace congress was combined with allegorical imagery. In both painting and the graphic arts, the allegorical portrayal of peace was largely defined by the followers of Rubens. [4] The depiction of the peace agreement as a historical event, on the other hand, was developed and standardised primarily in the popular graphic arts and illustrated broadsheets. The notion of institutionalisation as proposed by the allegorical use of the "Temple of Peace" began to develop only after 1648, becoming an ideal of international peacekeeping in the 18th century.
I. The ruling authorities of the pax christiana universalis
The preamble to the treaties of Münster and Osnabrück signed in 1648 reads: Pax sit christiana, universalis, perpetua veraque amicitia; a Christian, universal and everlasting peace, with true and honest friendship, between the emperor and the kingdoms of Sweden and France, and the estates of the Holy Roman Empire. [5] This expression of universal and enduring peace among all Christian territories is not new. It is based on a notion prevalent since the Middle Ages of a res publica christiana, a Christian Union, in which the universal authorities of emperor and pope presided in judgement over the Christian nations, charged with securing peace, or its restoration should war break out. [6] Our inquiry into the context in which peace is personified as Pax, and thus of the concepts relating to peace itself, is directed in the first instance towards the portrayal of these universal authorities.
Pope Paul III brought about "a universal peace between Christians under the special guardianship of emperor Charles V and Francis, king of France, both of whom were painted from life. Peace burns the weaponry, the doors of the temple of Janus close, and fury lies in chains". [7 ]With these words, which would be echoed in the preambles to the treaties of 1648, Giorgio Vasari describes the fresco in the Palazzo della Cancelleria in Rome which he and his assistants had completed in 1546. [8] Pope Paul III Farnese who, in 1538, negotiated the treaty of Nice, is portrayed as a mediator and cast in the role of the classical Roman imperator. The gesture of his outstretched right hand is derived from the equestrian statue of emperor Marcus Aurelius in Rome, and was understood by his contemporaries as an atto di pacificatore. [9] Yet, the truth of the matter was that the popes of the 16th century had forfeited their right to act as universal mediators through their own campaigns of war. [10] The notion of sovereignty entertained by the European monarchs left little room for a higher authority whose judgement they were required to accept. Universal arbitration was now being replaced by more diplomatic means of settling disputes, chief among them being mediation by a neutral third party acceptable to both sides. [11] In truth, pope Paul III was not the architect of the Treaty of Nice, but rather a mediator who travelled between the warring parties with whom he held separate negotiations. An actual "summit" of the three parties never took place. [12] Yet, this was of little relevance as far as allegorical works of this kind were concerned. After all, their principal function was not to represent events as they took place, but to create a general and idealised image of history which also served to glorify the patron and his dynasty. Thus, the notion of a pax christiana universalis supported by a higher, pan-national authority was already in dispute by the middle of the 16th century.
The other universal authority charged with maintaining peace between the Christian nations was the head of the Holy Roman Empire. In the 16th century, the imperial notion of a peace safeguarded by a universal Christian ruler, a concept derived from the Pax Romana of the Roman emperor Augustus, was centred principally around emperor Charles V. [13] Even the successful repulsion of Habsburg ambitions to establish a universal monarchy did not bring about the final demise of this idea. [14]
In 1571, an elaborate composition (plate 1) developed by Wenzel Jamnitzer was published as an etching by Jost Amman and dedicated to emperor Maximilian II: "Form and likeness, wherein is shown the source of all might and government, and how these are wielded". [15 ]The ornamental oval, in honorem potentissimi caesaris, idealises the empire as an authority bestowed with a divine mandate. In the middle stands a pedestal identified as the Templvm Pacis, or "Temple of Peace". To the left sits Pax with palm-branch and beehive, symbols of the unity of the nation and the "sweet fruit" of their labours. Discarded armour lies at her side. In the middle sits wisdom, the three-faced Sapientia, and to the right Victoria (identified in a preparatory drawing as "krig", or "War") in the form of the goddess of war, Bellona. On the pedestal kneels Maximilian II, his cloak held by Justitia and Fides. A pair of angels hand the emperor a sword and the book of law, while a second pair hold the imperial crown above his head. The heavens open as if the Last Judgement were about to take place, revealing Christ upon a globe, with the imperial double eagle beneath. The niches of the tribuna that half encircles the Temple of Peace house Old Testament prophets and kings, while above stand the cardinal and princely virtues. The text proclaims the divine mandate bestowed upon the emperor of safeguarding the peace: "I herewith grant to you this sword and the book of law, that hope may come unto the needy, and dread unto the evil". [16] Pax figures in this context not as a consequence of the peacemaking process, but as one of the principles of good and righteous government, whose ideals are personified by the virtues depicted at the level of the emperor. War and Peace, on the other hand, are seated at a more "earthly" level as equal possibilities between which the emperor must choose with wisdom and foresight. Beneath them are Unanimity, Piety and the Church to the left, and "aler Nationen des Kaisers leut" ("all nations under imperial rule") to the right, who look up in supplication to Maximilian. The image is therefore more than a mere depiction of imperial power, it is a reminder that the divine mandate bestowed upon the emperor must extend to the problems of the day as perceived by the artist Jamnitzer, identified in the title as "citizen of Nuremberg".
In a broadsheet on the Peace of Westphalia of 1648 published by Huych Allardt in Dutch, French and German, [17] the treaty is presented in precise allegorical form beneath the biblical verse, "How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace" (Isaiah 52:7). The emperor stands in the centre, raised upon a shield and holding the "band of unity" with the other signatory powers, queen Christina of Sweden and King Louis XIV of France. On either side stand the German electoral princes, their number increased to eight under the terms of the treaty. The contractual nature of the new political order in Germany and Europe is emphasised by the background with its handshakes and swearing of oaths. In the foreground sit Justitia and Charitas clothed in contemporary apparel, while at the front, before a trophy of broken weaponry symbolising the triumph over war, Pax sits upon the struggling but now exhausted Mars. The surrounding images depict the "horrors of war" on the left, and on the right, the symbols of peace. At the top are a pair of lovers, backed by a peasant at the plough and the image of post-war reconstruction, in the middle is Germania atop broken and discarded weaponry, while at the foot a lion serves wine with the celebrating populace before the town hall. Despite every effort to depict the conclusion of the current peace agreement as in distinct allegorical terms, the old iconographic elements shine through. As in Jost Amman's etching of 1571, the sky opens above to reveal the divine message derived from Luke 2:14, "Glory to God – Peace on Earth". The arms of the three monarchs hang together as an indication that the mandate is no longer intended for the emperor alone. The hierarchical arrangement, however, is retained: the emperor stands in the centre, beneath the name of God, with the Virtues seated at his feet along with War and Peace. Here, the Peace of Westphalia is depicted not as a new form of political order, but as a revival of a well-known vision of peace, modified to accommodate the terms of the treaties.
The establishment of peace was by no means the exclusive domain of this trio of sovereign powers. Depending on the patron and the political interests involved, the content of works portraying individual monarchs could vary drastically from that which emerged from the publishing houses. An extreme example is the portrait of emperor Ferdinand III and his family after the Peace of Westphalia. Joachim von Sandrart documents the emperor's concept for his painting, which is preserved only in an engraving by Franciscus van der Steen dating from 1653 [18]. Here, Ferdinand presents himself as Jupiter seated on a throne before a temple, his dominion over the world symbolised by his foot placed upon the globe. His consort is Bellona, the goddess of war, while his dead wives descend from the heavens as Juno and Ceres. His daughter is Minerva, his brother Mars, his sons Apollo and Cupid. The figure of Pax, however, does not appear, the only symbols of peace being the olive-branch raised almost threateningly by the king, the blessings flowing from the horns of plenty, and the broken weaponry, a symbol that the peace has been achieved through victory in war. The image provides a clear indication of just how Ferdinand understood his stated role as Jupiter Pacificus.
The work depicts more than the purely "God-given" authority of the empire as the source of order and the power to decide between war and peace. Here, the emperor raises himself and his family to the level of the Olympian gods. This would seem to suggest that the Peace of Westphalia did not in fact bring about an image of equality among the European powers, but rather the true beginning of the epoch of royal apotheosis. Louis XIV of France was another to have himself and his family portrayed as the gods of Mount Olympus. [19] As early as the 16th century, the role of peacemaker and the authority to choose between war and peace was no longer the sole preserve of pope and emperor. Be it through poetry or painting, any sovereign could now become a "new Augustus", closing the doors of the temple of Janus and restoring the "Golden Age". After 1648, the competition among European monarchs to be regarded as the "bringer of peace" entered a new phase.
One example is a copperplate engraving commemorating the Peace of Ryswick in 1697, Peace Restored in Europe by King William III (plate 2), [20] by Paulus van Somer, in which the artist places the English king in the centre. In self-confident pose, William ushers Pax down from Olympus to earth. Yet, the "Europe" to which he brings peace, namely the Grand Alliance of England, Spain, the Netherlands and the Holy Roman Empire on the one hand and the enemy France on the other, is not depicted. The three figures that accompany him are his own kingdoms of England, Scotland and Ireland. In this "absolutist" concept of peace, there is no place for agreement between monarchs, while the duty of guiding Pax to earth lies in the hand of the sovereign alone. [21] This absolutist allegory on peace remained in use, both in painting commissioned by royalty and in the graphic arts, for more than one hundred years after the Peace of Westphalia.
II. Pax at court
The concept of incorporating allegorical figures into the portraiture of a ruler and his court offered a wealth of possibilities for depicting the coveted role of peacemaker or mediator. One such portrait is Christian IV as Mediator, painted by Adrian van de Venne for the Danish monarch in 1642/43. [22] The composition used by Jürgen Ovens in his work Duke Friedrich III of Holstein-Gottorf and his Family at the Celebration of Peace is almost a mirror image of that used by van de Venne (plate 3). [23] Although the subject matter is the celebration rather than the negotiation of peace, the imagery is identical. Pax, a young maiden dressed in light-coloured clothing, is led by Minerva to the monarch seated on a throne amid his family and household, where she is presented to him by his consort with open hand. The allegorical devices in the foreground – cherubs carrying cornucopiae, the fallen Mars with a cherub beating a drum above, discarded armour – correspond with the imagery symbolising the anticipated "blessings of peace" used in numerous allegorical works produced around 1648.
After 1648, particularly in France, the gesture with which the sovereign presents Pax to the court became a central motif in the absolutist portrayal of peace, with numerous examples to be found in the large-format engravings used in the almanacs of the period. In one such example published a year after the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle, Louis XIV indicates the arrival of peace by gesturing with open hand in the direction of Pax, who is ushered into the French court by Ceres, goddess of abundance (plate 4). [24] In another almanac of 1669, Pax stands in the centre and points to the portrait of the mediator, Pope Clement IX, held aloft by two cherubs. [25] While the text credits the pope with having mediated the peace, the power to bring about the actual appearance of Pax rests solely with the king. This motif developed to the extent that the French king was finally portrayed escorting Pax by the hand from the Temple of Peace, or ushering her down, sometimes throned on a cloud, from heaven to earth. [26]
While the sovereign took the role of peacemaker in allegorical works of this kind, the queen was often portrayed as the figure of Pax herself. Jeremias Falck's portrait of queen Christina of Sweden follows an older tradition and depicts the monarch with the attributes of Minerva. [27] In his "glorification" of peace painted in 1652, Jan Lievens went one step further, with Minerva bestowing a crown of garlands on a woman painted in a portrait style and contemporary dress, and holding an olive-branch in the role of Pax. The model was Louise Henriette of Orange. [28] The composition and attributes of the double portrait of Anne of Austria, mother of Louis XIV, and his consort Marie Thérèse, presented as an admission piece by Simon Renard de Saint-André in 1663 to the Académie royale, identify it as an allegory on the Peace of the Pyrenees of 1659. Anne of Austria, with the helmet of Minerva, and Marie Thérèse, with olive-branch and cornucopia, join their right hands as a symbol of reconciliation and unity. Thus, with its allegorical allusions and costume, the personification of peace was integrated into the portraiture of the royal dynasties as a female role.
III. Pax among the people; the blessings of peace
As already mentioned, the background landscapes of the allegorical works of this period were generally filled with highly detailed motifs representing the "blessings of peace" as derived from classical literature. In keeping with the commonly used motto ex pace ubertas, agriculture was always the principal and immediate reward of peace [29], whose sole symbol was the image of the peasant with plough. Broadsheets published at the time of the Peace of Westphalia such as Friedens-Freude. Krieges-Leid ("Joy of Peace. Pain of War") broadened the spectrum to include scenes of craftsmen at work, the construction of dwellings and towns, and, in the broadsheet Lob-Gedicht ("Poem of Praise") for example, even the merchant bourgeoisie [30]:
Jetzt sol der Bawr mit lust seins Ackers wieder pflegen /
Der Kaufmann soll sich auch sehr embsich wieder regen /
Sein G'werbschafft weit und breit ub'rall wird schicken hin /
Da jhm sein Handel best schafft viel nutz und gewinn.
Unlike the association of Pax with the position and role of the monarch, there are very few images portraying the personification of peace among the common people. In 1641, before the actual peace negotiations began, Hendrick Maartensz. Sorgh incorporated the "blessings of peace" in a painting depicting an oath of homage (plate 5). [31] Here, Pax sits as a young maiden dressed in white, raised on a brightly-lit throne. Peasants kneel before the steps offering the fruits of their labour, while, at the edge of the picture, a soldier has laid down his arms. A further symbol of "disarmament" is the heap of discarded weapons lying in the foreground. The child holding the collar of a reclining lion next to the figure of Pax, together with the wolf and lamb, lying side by side in harmony, are ancient and biblical symbols of reconciliation and an end to hostility. [32] In the background, swords are beaten into ploughshares, the realisation of yet another biblical prophecy of peace (Isaiah 2:4). [33] The inscription above the throne, "Under my dominion, blossoms all", releases Pax from any dependency on a monarchical figure and grants her the rank of sole sovereign authority. However, both this position and the worship afforded by the populace, tended to be the exception rather than the rule. Nevertheless, it is possible to comprehend this sentiment from the perspective of the Netherlands, its cities in particular, where, from around 1640 onward, the desire for peace and an end to the expense of war became greater than the prospect of any gain from future military success. [34]
In the popular graphics arts documenting the events of the time, the attention of the populace was focussed not on the condition of established peace itself, but on its arrival. A French broadsheet, The Return of Peace, published in 1649 [35] shows Pax, brought down by Chronos on a cloud, before the Wheel of Fortune. In the background of this densely populated scene, townspeople gather round a horseman who is probably bringing news of peace. At the edge of the picture is a painter at work, surrounded by instruments symbolising the blossoming of the arts and sciences during peacetime. In the centre, an old couple turns with begging gestures towards the figure of Pax who holds out her olive-branch towards them, while a man gathers fruit dropping from the cornucopia. The hope of deliverance as peace returns is expressed in the similar posture of the kneeling, supplicant figure of Germany in the broadsheet Lob-Gedicht ("Poem of Praise"). Here again, Pax descends from Heaven on clouds to dry Germany's tears. While the text states that the favours of peace have been granted by God, the background scenes make clear reference to contemporary events: to the left is the fanfare announcing the arrival of peace, and to the right the envoys ratifying the treaty.
Jacob von Sandrart's broadsheet Wunsch und Seuffzer Zu der bevorstehenden Römisch-Teutschen Keyser-Wahl ("Desires and Complaints with Respect to the Forthcoming Election of the Roman-German Emperor") (plate 6) [36] retains this combination of the personification of peace and a scene of political activity. In this example, however, the relationship between the two elements has changed. Now, Pax stands on the earth, encircled by the begging populace and emptying the horn of plenty. The background includes commonly used motifs of farming and building, while a multitude of figures pray ardently towards Heaven. In the clouds is an imaginary scene of the electorate choosing the emperor, with the dove of the Holy Spirit flying down to them from Heaven. A long poem reveals in 32 verses the sentiment behind these prayers, namely the hope that the election of the new emperor will bring lasting peace, justice and prosperity:
16. Der Krieg hat viel genommen;
es braucht noch langen Fried /
viel wieder zubekommen /
daß wir verarmen nit.
der Krieg hat uns verzehret /
an Mangel reich gemacht:
der Fried uns wieder nehret;
den nehmt ach nehmt in acht!
With a rare lack of ambiguity, the image captures the desire of the people that the "blessings" of the Peace of Westphalia endure and grow, and expresses this desire in a direct appeal to the ruling authorities. The text, however, does not speak of the total departure of war, merely its diversion:
18. ... daß Mars nit werde können
uns kommen vor das Thor.
Hinweg / hin zu dem Türken
mit Krieg und würgerey /
da kan er gutes wirken:
hier ist kein glück darbey.
Thus, even after the Peace of Westphalia, the God-given pax christiana remained limited to the context of war waged against other nations. [37]
IV. The triumph of peace
Ever since the early 16th century, "the classic theme of humanist rhetoric and iconography [...] was not war and peace, but triumph". [38]
In allegorical works documenting the Peace of Westphalia, the dominant theme was the "triumphal carriage of peace", with Pax adopting the role of the triumphant sovereign. This theme was stronger even than the portrayal of individual monarchs or groups of rulers as the personification of peace. The model for the depiction of triumph in the graphic arts was provided by a series of woodcuts after Mantegna's Triumphs of Caesar and, in particular, Dürer's allegorical The Great Triumphal Carriage of Emperor Maximilian of 1522. Nevertheless, it is clear that the triumphal carriage as used in works commemorating the Peace of Westphalia was derived from a series of "triumphs of peace" which first began to appear in 1564 with Marten van Heemskerck's much-copied Vicissitudes of Human Affairs. In this work, Heemskerck depicts the Antwerp Ommegang of 1561, a procession of decorated carriages in which the triumph of peace was nothing more than a stage in the cycle of human existence, as it passed through wealth, arrogance, envy, war, poverty, humility, peace, before returning to wealth again. [39] This idea of the triumph of peace in the form of a public procession was a common feature of allegorical prints, particularly in the Netherlands at the time of the Pacification of Ghent (1576) and the Twelve Year Truce (1609). [40]
A broadsheet published at the time of the armistice of 1609 contains all the elements of this model (plate 7). [41] The principal figure is the personification of the Bestand (Twelve Year Truce) surrounded by the princely virtues in a carriage driven by the negotiator Pater Johan Ney and accompanied by Henry IV of France and James I of England. The horses that draw the carriage also bear the stadtholders of Brussels, Albert and Isabella, while Mars trails in irons behind. The direction of the carriage is also indicated, as it drives between the two states of the Low Countries seated on thrones beneath baldachins. At the front right is Belgium, "subject to the archdukes" and flanked by the king of Spain and Spinola, while on the opposite, "sunny" side, is Belgica Liberata, with Maurice of Nassau and two Ordines or representatives of the Provinces. Above is the mythological symbol of Mars leaving his carriage to join Venus, or "make love not war". Fama with her trumpet proclaims the truce, also the subject of a laudatory poem, and the broadsheet reproduces the entire text of the armistice agreement.
This elaborated model of the allegorical triumphal carriage was also used during the Thirty Years' War. The anticipation of peace can be found in a variety of broadsheets on the triumphs of Gustavus II Adolphus in 1631/32. In Herrlichen Triumphs Platz ("Glorious Triumph's Square"), the Virtues stand before the columns Gloria and Victoria awaiting the arrival of the king on horseback. Misericordia, looking to the king, raises "Euroba", while Pax and Justitia are united in a kiss. [42]
The differing interpretations of the Peace of Westphalia are clearly represented in the variety of works produced in 1648. An engraving with the arms of the bishop of Eichstätt, for example, [43] places the imperial crown on the triumphant Pax, while a cherub on the imperial eagle above carries other insignia. Beside Pax, sit the figures of Scientia and Religio with cross, chalice and host. The peace that triumphs here is Catholic, and loyal to the emperor, but set within the framework of the political principles that have brought the treaty into being and which shall continue to rule thereafter. Here, the destination is the space between the four columns of "Love of Fatherland", "Amnesty", "Neutrality" and "Reasons of State". The peasant ploughing in the background is a commonly used motif symbolising the tangible benefits of peace; the land can be worked once more, and hunger is finally at an end.
In a broadsheet published by Martin Zimmermann in 1648, the "theuwre und edle Frieden" ("dear and noble peace") sits opposite the emperor in his own triumphal carriage beneath the seven columns and the baldachin of the empire. [44] Again, the destination of the procession is indicated by the columns "Love of Fatherland" and "Counsel with Reason", the bearers of the triumphal arch. In the engraving Der Augspurgische Friden-Wagen ("Augsburg Peace Carriage") [45] by Wolfgang Kilian, the three monarchs are separated from the figure of Pax. The kings ride in a long triumphal procession beneath a baldachin, while Pax sits in the actual triumphal carriage with Fides, Libertas and Iustitia as well as other virtues, while War and its evils follow in irons behind. In other versions, Johann Georg, elector of Saxony, sits in the carriage with Pax in the role of "bringer of peace", in some cases replacing her entirely. [46]
In Salomon Savery's allegory on the Peace of Münster, peace is depicted entering The Hague in triumph. [47] Pax is portrayed with mural crown and the cap of freedom, in her hands an olive-branch and cornucopia, the personification of a land now "coming home" with its national liberty. The text "better a single peace than many triumphs" urges that peace be safeguarded at the expense of future military ambition. It is a further example of a work in which the triumphal carriage accompanied by the cardinal virtues, here preceded by the representatives of the "Staten", is integrated into a general allegorical plan. The triumphal arch decorated with armorial insignia is crowned by Fortuna, the goddess of chance and luck. In the portrayal of the triumph of Gustavus Adolphus and Der Augspurgische Friden-Wagen, Fortuna flies ahead of the triumphal carriage; here, she turns towards the procession and empties the horn of plenty. The inscription on the arch alludes to the realisation of the biblical prophecy, "Peace be within thy walls, prosperity within thy palaces" (Psalms 122:7). Above the heavenly choir, the allegory is elevated yet further with the Christian message of peace, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men" (Luke 2:14). The fact that the plate used for this work originally depicted Frederik Hendrik's victorious entry into The Hague in 1629, and was only later modified to show the Peace of Münster in 1648, [48] clearly illustrates the ease with which the triumphs of monarchs and Pax could be interchanged.
This and other engravings are referred to by Adriaen van Nieulandt in an allegorical work produced in 1650, which is marked by a clear differentiation between two pictorial levels. [49] In the background, Pax offers her hand to a figure representing the United Provinces, and an olive-branch to the stadtholder, William II of Orange. Frederik Hendrik stands victorious in the triumphal carriage, while behind him Libertas, wearing the cap of freedom, is in dispute with Religio. In the iconography of the princes of Orange, Peace is often interpreted as a princely triumph, as can be seen in the Oranjezaal of the Huis ten Bosch. In the monumental painting on the main wall, The Triumph of Frederik Hendrik by Jacob Jordaens, for which a number of preparatory studies are in existence, Pax descends from Heaven over the carriage of the triumphant victor, who bears all the attributes of the military hero. [50] Peace itself enters through a side door painted in an illusionist manner by van Couwenbergh and held open by Hercules and Minerva. [51] Finally, in Triumphus Pacis by Cornelis Schut, the triumph of peace is portrayed as a consequence of military victory rather than the conclusion of peace. [52]
V. From the "universal" to the "international": the Temple of Peace
Internationalism, the waiving of universal claims in favour of a system of mutually recognised, sovereign European states, has been identified as one of the most significant results of the Peace of Westphalia. "The failure of universal claims provided the necessary drive for the development of internationalism as the political focus for the next era in European history." [53]
A radical change was underway in the development of how peace was conceived. Peace had released itself from the structure of an overall authority and had now become a matter to be addressed between the states themselves. The "universal" model was about to be replaced by the "absolutist" image of peace. Hence the development in the aftermath of 1648 of a new type of allegory on international peace: the "Temple of Peace".
The temple of peace was already in use as an artistic motif and incorporated into the structure of imperial rule, a typical example being Jamnitzer's allegory on emperor Maximilian II (plate 1). Built in ancient Rome at the height of the worship of Pax under emperor Vespasian in 75 A.D., the temple of peace was already well known through its use in classical literature. [54] "Peace was held to be a goddess by the ancients / and had, in Rome, a temple of such beauty and magnificence / that foreign nations flocked to visit", wrote Joachim von Sandrart in his Iconologia Deorum. [55] Holding an olive-branch, his Madonna of Peace painted in 1648 rests her left hand on a classical circular temple identified as the "Temple of Peace", thus becoming an attribute of the Virgin as the embodiment of the divine desire for peace. At the close of negotiations during the Nuremberg execution day in 1650, a "Temple of Peace" was constructed as part of the celebratory fireworks display. This motif, juxtaposed with a "Castle of Discord", was documented in a number of broadsheets as well as in verse by Johann Klaj. In subsequent peace negotiations, the temple of peace was often the focal point of celebrations marking the conclusion of the treaty. [56]
The decisive step from the temple of peace as an attribute to a place where peace was actually concluded was not made at the time of the Peace of Westphalia, but only later at the Peace of the Pyrenees in 1659. The first allegorical work to use this motif was an engraving by Gabriel Le Brun depicting the "temple of lasting peace erected by cardinal Mazarin", which appeared as a frontispiece to a laudatory poem on the Peace of the Pyrenees published in 1660. [57] The open temple, with the Virtues standing between its columns, had a statue of Pax as its central cult object. Crowned figures representing the signatory kingdoms converse on its steps. France gestures with its right hand towards the goddess of peace, yet the meaning is ambiguous and it is unclear what is about to happen. Will Spain and France join hands and embrace in reconciliation, or are they disputing who should enter the temple first?
Whatever the case, the position of Pax in relation to the monarchy had changed radically from that shown in the etching by Jost Amman (plate 1). Peace itself was now the superior authority, while the conclusion of the agreement had become a religious rite after the classical manner, which was performed in front of the populace by figures representing the participating nations. With its dedication to cardinal Mazarin, the work also functioned as an allegorical glorification of his policies. Unlike other allegories on the Peace of Westphalia, War has not been defeated. Mars storms down the steps of the temple, scattering its evils, and turning towards the Turks at the left-hand edge of the picture. The Turks look on in horror, fearful that they might be the next victims. This, one of the potential consequences of peace, represents the revival of an older theme, where peace in Christian Europe is merely the prelude to war against the Turks.
In 1726, Bernard Picart published a broadsheet, Traitez de Paix (plate 8), not as an allegory on any specific treaty, but rather as a "model" for peace agreements in general. [58] In this model, Picart places the monarchs at the "Altar of Peace" on the steps before the temple, where their unity is symbolised by the handshake. Picart discloses the nature of their agreement by placing Pax and Justitia on the pedestal, thereby positioning the old motif of the reconciliation of peace and justice (after Psalm 85:11) in the centre of the picture. [59] Among the concepts personified in the temple are those of international law and natural law, identifying the context of the allegory as the debate on international law and peace which developed in the aftermath of 1648. The institutionalisation of peace presented here can also be found in the great discourses on everlasting peace published in the 18th century, a concept which, of course, was to remain far removed from reality. [60]
The cult of peace, with the temple as the ritual site where warring nations united in reconciliation, remained in use in a variety of forms for most of the 18th century, even finding service after the Treaty of Versailles in 1783. [61] From around the time of the Treaty of Belgrade in 1739, the Ottoman Empire also began to appear in these works. [62] Only then did the secularised notion of peace between the continental powers finally free itself from the old boundaries of the pax christiana. [63] The model was revived at the Treaty of Amiens in 1802, but this time the role of peacemaker was taken by Napoleon. [64]
VI. The institutionalisation of the peace congress
While the Peace of Westphalia was unable to create an institution capable of bringing about lasting peace, it did help define the way in which peace agreements were concluded. The negotiations in Münster and Osnabrück, as well as the instruments of mediation that were used, went on to serve as models for subsequent peace agreements. [65] Indeed, 1648 can be regarded as the beginning of the great epoch of the European peace congress.
A broadsheet published by Rombout van der Hoeye on the Vrede van Munster ("Peace of Münster") [66] clearly illustrates how public interest was directed towards the proceedings of the peace congress. The principal image depicts the exchange of instruments of ratification, and is surrounded by scenes showing the arrival of the envoys, the confirmation by oath and the theatrum from which the peace was proclaimed. [67] Unlike Jonas Suyderhoef's famous engraving after the painting by Ter Borch, [68] this broadsheet is not an eyewitness account of events by the artist, [69] but instead uses fictitious scenes as a means of satisfying the desire for a detailed representation of events. The hall depicted in the central image, for example, is not the real Friedenssaal ("Hall of Peace") in the Rathaus in Münster.
This pictorial schema of a main image surrounded by secondary scenes in broadsheets documenting historical events was not new. [70] What was new, however, was that the Peace of Westphalia was not, as was hitherto the case, depicted in purely allegorical terms, but itself became the subject of pictorial reports of the event. The treaties of 1648 and the Nuremberg negotiations of 1649/50 were clearly the first events of their kind in which Zinneprenten, or allegorical graphic representations of events, were accompanied to any significant degree by Historieprenten, or the depiction of the actual events themselves. [71]
From this point onward, artists appropriated the peace congress itself as a motif, depicted either in individual scenes or in combination with allegorical imagery as described above. Thus emerged a new image of the peace agreement. No longer established by a ruling authority, peace was now brought about by diplomatic means. The protagonists were not the sovereign heads of the warring nations, they were the diplomats. While the portraits of the envoys (such as in the series of engravings Pacificatores Orbis Christiani) documented the individuals who had actually brought about the peace, and who were no longer hidden behind pope or emperor, the depiction of the peace agreement itself was used in broadsheets as evidence of its "reality".
Romeyn de Hooghe in particular developed this pictorial schema with his work on the Treaty of Breda in 1667. [72] In his etching commemorating the Treaty of Westminster in 1674 [73], the allegorical fireworks display, with Pax standing over the personifications of the participating countries, is framed like a painting in the centre. In an anonymous broadsheet on the Treaty of Nijmegen in 1678, it is almost impossible to make out the swearing of the oath among the envoys thronging the conference hall in the central image. Most of the surrounding scenes, all derived from Romeyn de Hooghe's broadsheets of 1667, deal with public celebrations such as the fireworks display. [74]
Many broadsheets even take the relationship between the recording of events and allegory as their theme. In a broadsheet commemorating the Treaty of Utrecht (plate 9) [75], for example, we find a Vreede-Zinne-beeld, an allegorical depiction of the peace agreement, with Pax sitting upon a globe in the centre. The picture is framed like a painting and set apart from the surrounding scenes from the peace congress. While the pictorial representation of the events of the congress were necessary in order to communicate the reality of the peace agreement, the allegorical element remained indispensable on account of its superior power to convey meaning.
This type of broadsheet was by no means always an exact pictorial record of the actual events of the negotiations. The schema was copied or developed for almost all peace agreements after 1648, with examples produced as recently as Utrecht (1713) and Aix-la-Chapelle (1748). These works document the almost standardised iconography with which the peace congress was depicted, from the arrival of the envoys, the negotiations, the signing of the treaty and swearing of the oath of ratification, to the exchange of instruments of ratification, the public declaration of peace, the banquets, fireworks and other celebratory events. [76] In the imagery used in the popular press, scenes taken from the peace congress were often linked with the public's hope for peace. This focus on the actual negotiations can still be seen in the portrayal of diplomatic events in the media today, where film and photographic reports of summit meetings are required to show the arrival of dignitaries at the conference table, the signing of the agreement and finally the handshake. [77] As far as the portrayal of peace is concerned, this use of imagery drawn from the peace conference and the diplomacy instrumental in ending hostilities, is the most lasting effect of the Peace of Westphalia.
FOOTNOTES
* An initial study on this subject was presented at the congress 1648. De Vrede van Munster held in Nijmegen and Kleve in 1996 (Kaulbach 1997).
1. Burkhardt/Schumann 1997, p. 82., cf. essay by Johannes Burkhardt in this catalogue.
2. For an overview see Kaulbach 1991; Kaulbach 1994.
3. Cf. essay by Alison M. Kettering in this volume.
4. Cf. essay by Hans Vlieghe in this volume.
5. Instrumentum Pacis Osnabrugense, I; Reese 1988, p. 130f.; Dickmann 1992, p. 6.
6. Cf. Dickmann 1992, p. 80f. On the universal concepts of "monarchy" and "Christianity" see Burkhardt 1992, p. 33f.
7. Vasari 1832-49, VI, p. 261; Vasari 1568, VII, p. 680.
8. Giorgio Vasari and pupils: Allegory on the Mediation of Pope Paul III between Charles V and Francis I in Nice 1538. 1546, fresco. Rome, Palazzo della Cancelleria, Sala Dei Cento Giorni. Vasari 1568, VII, p. 680; Harprath 1978, p. 43, 69, plate 36; Kaulbach 1994, p. 35f.
9. Cf. Harprath 1978, p. 68-71.
10. Cf. Russell 1986, p. 23ff., 37, 47f.; Dickmann 1992, p. 343.
11. Dickmann 1992, p. 81.
12. Russell 1986, p. 39f.
13. Yates 1975, p. 20-27; Russell 1986, p. 47-57; Peronnet 1991, p. 16f.
14. Cf. Dickmann 1992, p. 45; Burkhardt 1992, p. 30ff.
15. Jost Amman after Wenzel Jamnitzer: Apotheosis of Emperor Maximilian II, 1571. Etching in 2 plates, 69.5 x 50.3 cm. Vienna, Graphische Sammlung Albertina (inv. no. ALB 48799). Andresen 1864-78, I, p. 126ff., no. 30; exhibit. cat. Nuremberg 1985, no. 308-310; exhibit. cat. 1979, I, no. E 4.
16. Hunc igitur gladium trado, legumq volumen, / Spes miseris hinc sit, sit metus inde malis. This appears to be based on the most widely used version of the imperial mandate: parcere subjectis, debellare superbos, from Virgil's Aeneis VI, 851-853. Cf. Russell 1986, p. 48.
17. Huych Allardt (publisher): Zalig zijn de voeten der geenen die de vreede verkondigen, 1648. Muller 1863, no. 1963; Atlas van Stolk no. 1960; Hennin 1877-84, no. 3540; Rynkiewicz 1986, p. 52f.
18. Franciscus van der Steen after Joachim von Sandrart: Allegory on Emperor Ferdinand III and his Family, 1653. Copperplate engraving in 2 plates, 88.7 x 72.2 cm (Wurzbach 49; Hollstein-A, XXVIII, p. 57, no. 25). Adriani 1977, p. 86f.; Klemm 1986, no. 98, with the text of Sandrart's Concept from his Teutsche Academie.
19. Jean Nocret: The Family of Louis XIV, 1670. Oil on canvas, Château de Versailles. Burke 1993, p. 46, plate 8.
20. Paulus van Somer: Peace Restored in Evrope By King William III Anno 1697 (allegory on the Peace of Ryswick). Copperplate engraving. Amsterdam, Rijksprentenkabinett. Muller 1863, no. 2980.
21. For a study of similar works depicting the "absolutist peacemaker", such as those in the Salon de la Paix in Versailles or the Painted Hall of the Greenwich Hospital, see Kaulbach 1991, p. 463. In the popular graphic arts, see the almanac engravings in Hennin 1877-84, no. 4996 and 6328.
22. Cf. essay by Mogens Bencard in this volume.
23. Sumowski, 1983, no. 1486; most recently: Drees 1997, p. 247ff.
24. Anon.: La paix Presentée au Roy unie à la Abondance, almanac for 1669. Copperplate engraving in 2 plates. Paris: N. Regnesson, 1669. Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris (inv. no. Qb 1669). Hennin 1877-84, no. 4491.
25. Lepautre: Les Illustres Estresnes presentées A leurs Majestez par la Paix, almanac for 1669. Copperplate engraving in 2 plates. Paris: Jean Sauvé, 1669. Paris, Bibliothèque Nationale (inv. no. Qb 1669). Hennin 1877-84, no. 4497; cat. Paris 1993, no. 277.
26. Cf. anon.: Le Roy au comble des ses Victoires En donnant la Paix á ses Ennemies, almanac for 1697. Paris: P. Landry, 1697. Hennin 1877-84, no. 6328; anon.: La Paix accordée aux peuples par Louis XIIII Roy de France, almanac for 1679. Paris: Montcornet, 1679. Hennin 1877-84, no. 4996.
27. Dowley 1955, p. 277f.; Becker 1972/73, p. 177ff.
28. Sumowski 1983, no. 1207; Drees 1997, p. 248.
29. The motto in Andrea Alciati's Emblemata, 1531, no. 179. Frequently cited are Tibullus, Elegy I.10, 45-68; Ovid, Fasti I, 697-704; IV, 407f. Cf. Baumstark 1974, p. 146ff.
30. Harms 1980ff., IV 256; Muller 1863, no. 1964.
31. Hendrick Maartensz. Sorgh: The Blessings of Peace, 1641. Oil on wood, 64 x 88 cm. Tours, Musée des Beaux-Arts (on loan to the Musée Azay-le-Ferron). The inscription on the throne reads Me Praeside Cuncta Virescunt. Lossky 1956, p. 15-20; exhibit. cat. Paris 1970/71, no. 198; exhibit. cat. 1971, no. 22. The painting was the basis for a work of the same name by Willem de Poorter, 1643, in Copenhagen, Statens Museum for Kunst (inv. no. Sp 460). Lossky 1956, p. 18ff.; Sumowski 1983, IV, no. 1612. A simple copy, oil on wood, 47 x 62.5 cm, was auctioned as a "Follower of Jacob de Wet" at Sotheby's in Amsterdam, 14/11/1990, no. 46.
32. On "animal peace" see Baumstark 1974, p. 143f. with sources.
33. Cf. Baumstark 1974, p. 136; Wohlfeil/Wohlfeil 1987; Kaulbach 1992, p. 113-142.
34. Cf. Geurts 1997.
35. LE RETOVR DE LA PAIX; Hennin 1877-84, no. 3572.
36. Jacob von Sandrart: Wunsch und Seuffzer Zu der bevorstehenden Römisch-Teutschen Keyser-Wahl, 1657. Broadsheet with etching and type, image 16.3 x 28.6 cm (Hollstein-A, XXXVIII, p. 43, no. 10). Apart from Lob-Gedicht, inspiration came from two broadsheets on the subject of peace by Jacob van der Heyden: Harms 1980ff., I, no. 174; exhibit. cat. Coburg 1983, no. 103.
37. Cf. Burkhardt/Schumann 1997, p. 52ff., 72ff.: Burkhardt 1992, p. 145.
38. Burkhardt 1992, p. 13.
39. Cf. exhibit. cat. Stuttgart 1997/98, no. 40.
40. Cf. Muller 1863, nos. 723 b, 1248 A, 1256, 1268, 1272; Atlas van Stolk 605, 1241f.; Paas 1985-94, P-109f., PA 28-30; Kaulbach 1994, p. 42f.
41. Hessel Gerritsz after David Vinckboons: Afbeeldinghe van't Nederlandts Bestandt (allegory on the armistice agreement between the Netherlands and Spain, 1609), 1609. Broadsheet with copperplate engraving and type, 39.3 x 89.8 cm. Rotterdam, Atlas van Stolk. Muller 1863, no. 1267; Atlas van Stolk, no. 1240 (1); cf. McGrath 1975.
42. Andreas Bretschneider (or possibly Augustin Braun); cat. Coburg 1983, no. 86; Paas 1985-94, V, P-1538; cf. Harms 1980ff., IV, 176, 176a; Paas 1985-94, V, P-1423f.
43. Monogram CS (or LS): Avgurivm Pacis (allegory on the Peace of Westphalia), 1648. Harms 1980ff., IV, 255.
44. Martin Zimmermann: Triumphwagen/Welcher Ihrer Kays: Mayest: unserm allergnädigsten Herren durch den [...] edlen Frieden/ dieses 1648. Jahrs den 24: October [...] zugerichtet worden. Augsburg 1648. Broadsheet with etching and type, 11.8 x 29.9 cm pl. Paris, Bibliothèque Nationale (inv. no. Qb 1, 1648) Hennin 1877-84, no. 3554; Nuremberg, Germanisches Nationalmuseum, Graphische Sammlung (inv. no. HB 24471, container 1220). Duchhardt 1996a, no. 396.
45. Harms 1980ff., II, 321
46. Harms 1980ff., II, 329-330; cf. Harms 1980ff., II, 321.
47. Salomon Savery: Pax Vna Triumphis Innvmeris Potior. Muller 1863, no. 1958; Rynkiewicz 1986, p. 44f. Caption from Silius Italicus, Punica, XI, 593f.
48. Salomon Savery after David Vinckboons: The Triumphant Entry of Frederik Hendrik into The Hague, 1629. Muller 1863, no. 1649; Atlas van Stolk 1700; exhibit. cat. Kleve 1993, no. B 34; Orenstein 1990, p. 28f.
49. Adriaen van Nieulandt: Allegory on the Treaty of Münster, 1648, 1650. Exhibit. cat. Delft 1948, no. 442; Rynkiewicz 1986, p. 39ff.
50. Cf. preparatory drawings made by Jordaens in 1651 for the painting completed in 1652: Antwerp, Koninklijk Museum voor Schone Kunsten (inv. no. 799); Brussels, Musée Royale des Beaux-Arts (inv. no. 236).
51. Christiaen van Couwenbergh: Hercules en Minerva openen de deuren voor de vrede, 1651. Oil on wood, 275 x 145 cm. Huis ten Bosch, Oranjezaal. Gelder 1948/49, plate 23. The scene follows the central image of the "Temple of Janus" from the Pompa Introitus Ferdinandi in Antwerp (1635), but reverses the theme.
52. Cf. essay by Hans Vlieghe in this volume.
53. Burkhardt 1992, p. 199, cf. p. 49f.; cf. Dickmann 1992, p. 495.
54. Cf. Simon 1988, p. 75f.
55. Sandrart 1680, p. 112.
56. Cf. Muller 1863, nos. 3490, 3497, 3702 a-c, 3964 a-b, 3967.
57. Gabriel Le Brun: Allégorie de la Paix des Pyrenées. 1659. Copperplate engraving, 36.8 x 23.7 cm. Title page of: A. Amalteo, Il Tempio della Pace. Paris: Claude Cramoissy, 1660. Paris, Bibliothèque Nationale (In-fol. Pièce YD 40). cat. 1976, p. 410, no. 52; Hennin 1877-84, no. 3917; Bousquet 1980, p. 185f. The architectural motifs and the inscription on the temple refer to the Collège des Quatre Nations (Institut de France) in Paris. Louis Le Vau began construction of the Collège in 1661 with funds provided by Mazarin's estate.
58. Bernard Picart: Traitez de Paix, 1726. Etching, 36.9 x 22.3 cm plate. Amsterdam, Rijksprentenkabinett.
59. On this pictorial tradition see Wohlfeil 1991.
60. Cf. Duchhardt 1985; Duchhardt 1987, p. 29-34. Burkhardt 1992, p. 201ff., offers a critical assessment of the new significance of international law and the peace plan.
61. Anon.: Temple de la Paix, 1783. Etching. Paris, Bibliothèque Nationale (inv. no. Qb 1783). Hennin 1877-84, no. 9929; Kaulbach 1991a, p. 464, plate p. 474.
62. Cf. Kaulbach 1991a, p. 464.
63. On the question of the involvement of the Ottoman Empire in international law and peace diplomacy in the 18th century see Duchhardt 1985, p. 274f.
64. Cf. Kaulbach 1991a, p. 463-466; Kaulbach 1995.
65. Cf. Reese 1988, p. 18; Duchhardt 1985, p. 266-272; Burkhardt 1992, p. 167, 200.
66. Rombout van der Hoeye (publisher): Eere zy God inde hoogste Hemelen, ende Vreede op der Aerden; Luce 2.14. Muller 1863, no. 1945; Atlas van Stolk 1948; Harms 1980ff., II, 320; exhibit. cat. Unna 1988, no. 248; Rynkiewicz 1986, p. 14.
67. A detailed analysis of the iconography of the proceedings of the peace congress can be found in Rynkiewicz 1986.
68. Muller 1863, no. 1941; Rynkiewicz 1986, p. 14.
69. Cf. essay by Alison M. Kettering in this volume.
70. Cf. broadsheets documenting the coronation of the elector palatine Frederick V as king of Bohemia in 1619; Paas 1984-94, P-434 and others.
71. Categorisation after Muller 1863; cf. no. 1941-1964; cf. Rynkiewicz 1986.
72. Cf. Landwehr 1973, p. 56f., 80f., 120; Muller 1863, nos. 2284 c, 2285, 2532, 2636.
73. Muller 1863, no. 2532, Atlas van Stolk 2584.
74. Anon.: Vrede handeling tot Nimmegen (ratification of the treaty between France, Spain and the Netherlands at Nijmegen, 1678). Amsterdam: Hendrik Visjager. Etching and copperplate engraving, 42.2 x 53.5 cm. Muller 1863, no. 2633 A; exhibit. cat. Nijmegen 1978; no. H 10. The border scenes are derived from Romeyn de Hooghe's broadsheet commemorating the Treaty of Breda in 1667; Muller 1863, nos. 2284 c, 2285 a; Landwehr 1973, p. 56f.
75. Abraham Allard, Amsterdam (publisher): Lust-Park van de Vreede (the Treaty of Utrecht, 1713). Etching, 49.5 x 57 cm. Amsterdam, Rijksprentenkabinett. Muller 1863, no. 3490; Hennin 1877-84, no. 7449. Apart from the view of the city, this is almost a complete reworking of a broadsheet by L. Scherm on the Peace of Ryswick in 1697; Muller 1863, no. 1974. A peace allegory with Pax in the centre was published in a similar broadsheet on the envoys at the Treaty of Nijmegen; Muller 1863, no. 2637 a; exhibit. cat. Nijmegen 1978, no. H 7.
76. Cf. classification in Rynkiewicz 1986. The proceedings of the peace conference at Ryswick in 1697 were documented by Jan van Vianen in two series of 12 and 16 etchings (Hollstein-A, #, 19-47); Muller 1863, no. 1956f.; Atlas van Stolk 2972.
77. Cf. exhibit. cat. Hamburg 1987, no. 18.
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