Gerard (Gerrit) van Honthorst (1592 Utrecht - 1656 ibid.) and workshop attr; Portrait of Albertina Agnes of Nassau-Dietz, née Princess of Orange-Nassau Life-size, representative, courtly portrait of the young princess with pearl jewellery, standing by a fountain with a shell. Two other versions of the present painting are known to exist: in the Collectie Stichting van Rechteren in Almelo and in the Klassik Stiftung in Weimar (inv. no. G 1967). The attribution to van Honthorst is based on stylistic comparisons with paintings by the artist or engravings after van Honthorst from around 1650, in which the princess is depicted in a comparable manner. Van Honthorst joined the painters' guild in The Hague in 1637, where he worked until 1652. The Princes of Orange, Frederick Henry and William II appointed him court painter and gave him numerous commissions. Albertine Agnes (1634 - 1696) was one of the most remarkable women in the Netherlands in the 17th century; she was the fifth daughter of the governor Frederick Henry of Orange and sister-in-law of the Great Elector; in 1652 she married her second cousin, William Frederick of Nassau-Dietz (1613 - 1664), governor of Friesland, Groningen and Drenthe. After the death of her husband, she was the first woman to act as regent over the three provinces in the Republic. The fact that a woman became politically active was unprecedented at the time. She maintained her position at a time when the Netherlands was under attack from all sides and Friesland was also in danger of becoming ungovernable. Through skilful power politics, Albertine Agnes was able to expand her position, not only ruling Friesland, Groningen and Drenthe alone, but also supporting the military commanders, carrying out building projects and acting as a patron of the arts. After the war between England and the Bishop of Münster Christoph Bernhard von Galen (1606 - 1678) against the Netherlands, which began in 1665, Albertine Agnes rushed to the besieged and heavily contested city of Groningen. Even when the Bishop of Münster, together with King Louis XIV of France, attacked the Netherlands again in 1672 in the "Rampjaar" (Dutch-French War), Albertine Agnes was involved in organising the defence. She succeeded in protecting the besieged city of Groningen and the north from invasion in a spectacular manner using the waterline. Oil on canvas, double; 110 cm x 90 cm. Frame. Attributed to Gerard van Honthorst (1592 - 1656) and studio. Oil on canvas, relined.