Entry of the Bride

Entitled The Entry of the Bride, this painting is one of five comprising the Wedding Cycle from the studio of the court painter Martin van Meytens. It depicts the bridal procession of Isabella of Parma making its way from the Belvedere Palace to the Vienna Hofburg. The marriage between Joseph, the heir to the throne, and the Bourbon princess Isabella had been arranged for foreign policy reasons by Maria Theresa, who wanted to draw France onto Austria’s side as an ally.