Amy Robsart ontsnapt uit Cumnor Place

About this artwork

Scène uit de historische roman 'Kenilworth' van (Sir) Walter Scott (1821).

Art Historical Context

This 1837 lithograph by French artist Achille Devéria captures a dramatic moment from Sir Walter Scott’s popular historical novel *Kenilworth* (1821). The scene depicts Amy Robsart’s desperate escape from Cumnor Place, where she has been confined by her ambitious husband, Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester. Devéria, a leading figure in the Romantic movement, specialized in literary and historical subjects, using the relatively new medium of lithography to reach a wide audience with affordable, high-quality prints. Lithography allowed artists to achieve rich tonal effects and fluid lines that closely resembled drawings, making it ideal for illustrating the emotional intensity of Scott’s tales. Here, Devéria emphasizes movement and tension, inviting viewers to imagine the perilous circumstances surrounding the real 16th-century noblewoman whose tragic story Scott dramatized. As both a work of art and a piece of visual storytelling, the print reflects the 19th-century fascination with British history and Romantic literature, bringing Scott’s narrative vividly to life for European audiences.

About the Artist

Achille Devéria · 1800–1857

Achille Jacques-Jean-Marie Devéria (1800–1857) was a French painter and lithographer whose prolific output and sophisticated portrait work made him one of the most important visual chroniclers of French Romantic culture. Born in Paris on February 6, 1800, Devéria came of age during the Restoration period and became closely associated with the Romantic movement that dominated French arts and letter...