Mädchen mit Fächer

1621

Marie de' Medici's Commission for the Luxembourg Palace Cycles

The Queen Mother of France, Marie de' Medici, commissioned from Rubens two large allegorical cycles for the Luxembourg Palace — one on her own life and one on the life of the late Henry IV; the second series was never completed.

1624

Ennoblement by Philip IV

King Philip IV of Spain raised Rubens to the nobility.

1627–1630

Diplomatic Missions between Spain and England

Rubens was active as a diplomat, shuttling between the courts of Spain and England in an effort to achieve peace between the Catholic Spanish Netherlands and the Protestant Dutch Republic; he also made several trips to Holland.

1628–1629

Eight Months in Madrid, Friendship with Velázquez

During an eight-month stay in Madrid, Rubens, in addition to diplomatic negotiations, executed important works for Philip IV, studied and copied Titian anew, and became friends with the court painter Diego Velázquez.

1630

Marriage to Helena Fourment

Four years after the death of Isabella Brant, the 53-year-old Rubens married the 16-year-old Helena Fourment; she became the artist's muse and the inspiration for the sensuous figures in many of his paintings of the 1630s, including The Three Graces and The Judgment of Paris.

6 December 1630

Married: Helena Fourment