Portrait of James Bruce
18th century
- oil on canvas. 69 х 55,5
Received in 1931 from the Manuscript Department of the Academy of Sciences Provenance: collection of Nikolai Hartong, St Petersburg- State Hermitage, St. Petersburg
Jacob (James Daniel Bruce) (1670 – April 19, 1735) Count (1721). Descendant of an ancient Scottish family. Entered military service in 1687. Participated in the Crimean and Azov campaigns. Accompanied Peter the Great during his first trip abroad. Took part in the Northern War. Starting from 1704 he was Director General of Artillery. Artillery commander in the Battle of Poltava. General-Feldzeugmeister (1711), President of the College of Mining and Manufacturing, senator (1718), Field Marshal (1726).
In this portrait, James Bruce is depicted with the Order of St. Andrew the Apostle the First-Called, which he received on June 27, 1709 for skillful military leadership at the Battle of Poltava. There is another portrait of the same iconographic type, featuring Bruce wearing a costume of the holder of the Order of St. Andrew the Apostle the First-Called and a hat.