German school, ca.1840.

German school, ca.1840.
"Portrait of Alexis Wilhelm Ernesto Philip of Hesse-Philippsthal-Barchfeld."
Oil on canvas.
Measurements: 80 x 58.5 cm; 102 x 79.5 cm (frame).

Portrait of the Landgrave Hesse-Philippsthal-Barchfeld, based on the official portrait currently preserved in the State Museums of Kassel. We see a handsome character, with mustache and trimmed beard, stylized facial oval and clear forehead. He is depicted half-length, dressed in a uniform richly decorated with insignia, and wearing a red sash on a bandolier. The style is realistic and meticulous in the details, seeking the right qualities in tones and textures: suede gloves, slightly rosy flesh tones, brightness of the harnesses, etc.

The uniform corresponds to that of a cavalry captain of the 2nd Hussar Regiment of the Electorate of Hesse. He wears the breast star of the Grand Cross of the Order of the Golden Lion of Hesse.

Alexis was a son of Landgrave Karl of Hesse-Philippsthal-Barchfeld (1784-1854) from his second marriage to Sophie (1794-1873), the daughter of Prince Ludwig Wilhelm Galderico of Bentheim and Steinfurt. He succeeded his father in 1854 as Landgrave of Hesse-Philippsthal-Barchfeld. He was General of Cavalry à la suite. From 1855, he was also a member of the Prussian Upper House and a knight of the Order of the Black Eagle.

Prussia annexed the Electorate of Hesse, including Hesse-Philippsthal-Barchfeld, in 1866. From 1880, Alexis and Ernest of Hesse-Philippsthal both received, as heirs of the Landgraves of Philippsthal, a pension of 300,000 marks from the Treasury of the Electorate of Hesse. They were also given three castles: Hanau City Castle, Rotenburg Castle and Schönfeld Castle in Kassel.

On June 17, 1854, Alexis married Louise (1829-1901), the daughter of Prince Charles of Prussia, at Charlottenburg Palace. The marriage remained childless, and ended in divorce on March 6, 1861. Alexis died on August 16, 1905. He was succeeded as titular Landgrave of Hesse-Philippsthal-Barchfeld by his nephew Clovis (1876-1954), the son of his brother Wilhelm (1831-1890).