Mutiny of the Swiss Pikemen
by DERMOYEN, Willem, Wool and silk tapestry, 440 x 818 cm
The workshop of Bernaert van Orley produced a tapestry cycle for Emperor Charles V, commemorating the decisive imperial victory over the French army of Fran�ois I in the Battle of Pavia. These seven tapestries depict the historical event as a heroic epic. Nonetheless, each of the narrative scenes is presented as a panorama filled with anecdotal details. The Mutiny of the Swiss Pikemen is the fifth tapestry in the cycle. It shows numerous Swiss mercenaries fleeing the French camp. In the foreground, the leader of the regiment, Jean de Diesbach, is about to be beheaded by an imperial soldier on horseback.
The tapestry was executed by the Brussels workshop of the brothers Willem and Jan Dermoyen.