King Francis I of France
Artist: Joos van Cleve (Netherlandish, c.1485ā1540/41)
Date: c. 1538
Medium: Oil on panel
Collection: Saint Louis Art Museum, Saint Louis, Missouri, United States
Francis I of France
Francis IĀ (12 September 1494 ā 31 March 1547) wasĀ King of FranceĀ from 1515 until his death in 1547. He was the son ofĀ Charles, Count of AngoulĆŖme, andĀ Louise of Savoy. He succeeded his first cousin once removed and father-in-lawĀ Louis XII, who died without a legitimate son.
A prodigiousĀ patron of the arts, Francis promoted the emergentĀ French RenaissanceĀ by attracting many Italian artists to work for him, includingĀ Leonardo da Vinci, who brought theĀ Mona Lisa, which Francis had acquired. Francis's reign saw important cultural changes with the growth of central power in France, the spread ofĀ humanismĀ andĀ Protestantism, and the beginning of French exploration of theĀ New World.Ā Jacques CartierĀ and others claimed lands in the Americas for France and paved the way for the expansion of the firstĀ French colonial empire.
For his role in the development and promotion of theĀ French language, Francis became known asĀ le PĆØre et Restaurateur des LettresĀ (the 'Father and Restorer of Letters'). He was also known asĀ FranƧois au Grand NezĀ ('Francis of the Large Nose'), theĀ Grand Colas, and theĀ Roi-ChevalierĀ (the 'Knight-King').
