Portrait of a ruler in the Weisser Saal

The portrait shows Elector Ferdinand I of Salzburg. He came from the House of Habsburg-Lorraine, and was previously Grand Duke of Tuscany, but was expelled during the Napoleonic Wars. In 1803, after the last prince-archbishop of Salzburg abdicated, Salzburg was elevated to the status of electorate, and Ferdinand assumed its rule.

That same year, Andreas Nesselthaler painted Ferdinand’s portrait. The elector wears the red and white uniform of an Austrian field-marshal, decorated with medals. Beside him on a cushion are the Austrian archducal hat and the crown of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany. In his left hand he holds a sheet of paper bearing a Latin inscription referring to the events: “You were robbed of the Arno, take the golden age of the Salzach.” Hohensalzburg Fortress is visible in the background.

However, in 1805, after only two years, Ferdinand had to leave Salzburg and abdicate as elector.