(1551/1552 - 1642)
John de Critz was born in Antwerp. He travelled to England in 1568 and was apprenticed to Lucas de Heere, a Dutch painter based in London. By 1598 de Critz had become one of the leading portrait painters in London. He held the lucrative position of Serjeant Painter to the monarchy jointly with Leonard Fryer from 1605 and with Robert Peake from 1607 to 1619. His son, John de Critz the younger, also became a painter.
