Tsarevich Nicholas, later Tsar Nicholas I. of Russia

This portrait – full of symbolism – was created by Charles or Hippolyte de Chamisso. It presents a boy holding a dog by its collar with a dead bird in his right hand which seems to have been retrieved by the dog. The high-based column, on which the artist has placed his signature, the cannon in the background and the large medal on the sitter’s left breast do not suit a child’s portrait, but in this case they are used to symbolise a claim to power. On the one hand the composed gaze of the boy gives a child-like impression, but on the other his posture and gestures express a certain proud arrogance.
The uniform of the Petite tenue du Régiment des Gardes à cheval and the order of Saint Andrew support the assumption that the sitter is the Tsarevich Nicholas (1796-1855), who ascended to the Russian throne in 1826 as Tsar Nicholas I. The miniature dates quite exactly between 17 March and 28 May 1800.¹
D. O., B. P.