A brief encounter between:
'Interior of the New Church at Delft with the Tomb of William 'the Silent'

Hendrick Van Vliet and Louis Daguerre

Both paintings show churches which house royal tombs. The tomb shown behind railings in Delft New Church is of the assassinated William I, Prince of Orange, founder of the Dutch nation - the most famous monument in 17th century Netherlands, a symbol of the nation's freedom and independence. Holyrood was also the focus of nationalism, as the ancient burial place of the Scottish kings, whose tombs were sited in the Chapel underneath the East window (in the shadowed right of the painting). But as many of the French royal family were exiled there after the Revolution, Daguerre probably painted it as a French 'royalist' picture.

Though both paintings appear accurate views, both have been distorted for pictorial effect. In reality one cannot view both the tomb of William the Silent as well as the view across the church choir; and Daguerre (who is not known to have ever visited Scotland) shows Holyrood as a ruin whereas it had been repaired by the time he painted his picture.

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