The present lot depicts John Knox (1514-1572), the renowned Scottish reformer, and Mary Queen of Scots (1542-1587), who reigned from 1542-1567. The painting illustrates a pivotal moment in Scottish History, as John Knox admonishes Mary Queen of Scots on the day on which her betrothal to Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley (1546-1567), was announced. Lord Darnley had claim to both the Scottish and English thrones and through marriage he secured his position as King Consort of Scotland. However, the marriage was not a happy one and the present lot depicts the precursory moment when Knox encourages the young Queen not to marry Darnley. The decision to ignore Knox’s warnings was a choice which Mary lived to regret as, shortly after the marriage in 1565, Darnley’s vanity and streak of violence was revealed. Two years later, their marriage came to an abrupt end – an ending shrouded in rumour and scrutinisation. Shortly after the birth of their son, Lord Darnley was murdered at Kirk o’Field and in a full circle of reprimand, Knox denounced Mary Queen of Scots, accusing her of involvement.
The present work was exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1823. The painting was one of controversy, creating a stark divide between critics. Southern critics criticised Allan for depicting Mary as a non-traditional beauty: ‘The London papers criticised Allan for not having painted the Queen ‘according to the rules derived from the Grecian models’.’ (Irwin, Scottish Painters at Home and Abroad, London, 1975, p. 211). However, Scottish critics applauded Allan for his innovative and modern depiction of Knox, which rejected David Hume’s (1711-1776) damming interpretation: ‘In [John Knox’s] appearance, therefore, we discover no traces of that surly brutality falsely ascribed to him by Hume […] He is a man of his age, - the intrepid and fearless Reformer – the heroic and undaunted preacher of righteousness – the honest expounder of the oracles of God’ (The Edinburgh Magazine and Literary Miscellany, The Scots Magazine, September 1823).
The late 18^th century and early 19^th century saw a resurgence in Scottish pride and a romanticisation, promoted by the popular writings of Sir Walter Scott (1771-1832) and Robert Burns (1759-1796). William Allan, in a similar vein, stood to revive Scottish pride, and the present lot was the first of a series of Scottish historical paintings. The romanticism of the Scottish landscape and its history stands in stark contrast to the rise of Naturalism in the latter half of the century, which focused on class disparity and the effects of industrialisation.
Born in Edinburgh in 1782, William Allan began his artistic journey as an apprentice to a coach painter. He later went onto study at the Trustees' Academy, Edinburgh, where he studied alongside David Wilkie (1785-1841) and John Burnet (1784-1868). Allan went onto have a rich career, travelling to London, St Petersburg, Turkey and Spain. He was elected Royal Academician in 1835 and three years later he was appointed President of the Scottish Academy. Then in 1841, he succeeded Wilkie as Her Majesty’s Limner for Scotland and was knighted that same year. Allan had a passion for the promotion of Scottish art, artists and history subjects and held the title of Master of the Trustees' School of Design in Edinburgh from 1826 until a few years before his death.