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Prince Rupert (1619-82) was the son of the exiled king and queen of Bohemia living in The Hague. His mother was the sister of King Charles I of England and through his father, Rupert was count of the Rhine Palatinate in Germany. The rulers of the Dutch Republic were his cousins. As a youth, Rupert lived at his parents' court in The Hague, but he visited England in 1636-37. There, he studied drawing with Van Dyck and was awarded an M.A. by Oxford University.Rupert's parents commissioned portraits of themselves and their children from fashionable artists like Van Dyck, court painter to Charles I, as gifts for their powerful cousins. This one was executed with assistants (responsible for the weakly executed setting), but the graceful hands and long delicate face show Van Dyck's touch.