The Harcourt Baby House doll, a mid 17th century English wooden doll of a king or prince, possibly Charles II or his brother Duke of York, later James II of England and VII of Scotland, with black painted eyes and eyebrows, finely carved nose and small red painted mouth, remains of long curly white hair wig, long thin cylindrical wooden body, white kid hands or gloves with cut fingers, one had with six digits, stick legs covered in gold or green hose, white kid shoes, original figured pale gold silk doublet with puffed cut sleeves and voluminous knee length breeches, gilt thread trim and crown, large muslin collar, inner sleeve, two ruffles at wrist, ‘petticoats’ poking from the bottom of the breeches, in leaded glass case for hanging —5 ½in. (14cm.) height including crown, —8in. (20cm.) remaining height of case - Provenance - direct from Stanton Harcourt Manor, Oxfordshire, the ancestral home of the Harcourt family since the late 14th century, the vendor’s story ‘I found this doll in a room full of odds and ends in the house 20 odd years ago - the house had barely been touched since the family moved back here after the war in 1953. My in-laws had moved in, in 1980 but hadn't got to grips with the rooms not in main use, so basically they hadn't been touched since 1953. We emptied the house to restore it, so went through every room and cupboard.  My immediate thought was, this is something special, it reminded me of early 16th century dress and the fact that someone had incased it in a glass box made me think that they thought it was worth preserving so I kept it safe’   Family History - In the 11th century, Errand of Harcourt and his three brothers followed William the Conqueror, duke of Normandy, on the Norman invasion of England, and the brothers were installed with English lands. The English Harcourt branch entered the English peerage, Simon Harcourt was created Baron Harcourt in 1711 and Viscount Harcourt in 1721. The third viscount was created Earl Harcourt in 1749. All their titles were extinguished with the death of Marshal William Harcourt, 3rd Earl Harcourt, in 1830. The house - at first the Harcourts had lands in Leicestershire, but in 1191 Robert de Harcourt of Bosworth inherited lands of his father-in-law at Stanton in Oxfordshire, which then became known as Stanton Harcourt. The manor of Stanton Harcourt has remained in the Harcourt family to the present day, although from 1756 to 1948 their main residence was at Nuneham House, also in Oxfordshire. Costume and identification - due to the size of the doll and the chances that royal clothing might be symbolic and not fashionable, it has not been possible to be precise about the date, but all indications suggest 1650s to 1670s, it is believed that he is wearing a crown, but has no facial hair, which limits who he is meant to be; the most likely candidates are Charles II (although he had a moustache and this doll does not) and the Duke of York, later James II. He is very similar to the dolls in Anne Sharps Baby House, Mrs Lemon and Sarah Gill, wooden with the kid hands, which was given by Queen Anne to her goddaughter in the late 17th century. The family have no record of a Baby House, so he may have been bought as a memento of a royal occasion, being in his case, he was certainly considered an important item. Perhaps even a gift from the royal household. Royal Family - Charles I (father to following), reigned 1625-1649, Charles II, born 1630, reigned 1660-1685, James II, born 1633, reigned 1685-1688, Queen Anne, born 1665 (daughter of James II), reigned 1702-1707