Holbein’s Portrait of the Baby Who Would Be King

In this installment of ‘Light Comments About Interesting Art,’ Henry VIII’s only male heir gets the royal treatment from the Tudor dynasty’s greatest artist.

“Edward VI as a Child,” (cropped) probably 1538, by Hans Holbein the Younger. Oil on panel, 22-3/8 inches by 17-5/16 inches. National Gallery of Art. Washington. Public Domain

Hans Holbein the Younger’s “Portrait of Edward VI as a Child” (1538) gave the 16th-century world a first look at Henry VIII’s only male heir and the future king of England. Although generally unknown today, the child did become king, but only for a short six years.

His reign was overshadowed by the contest between his half-sisters, Mary and Bess, and the long reign of the victor, Elizabeth I.