A boy and his dog

Paulus Moreelse (Dutch, 1571-1638), 1634.

They may not all look like boys, but they are.  Until the end of the nineteenth century, little boys were kept "in skirts" well past weaning.  The moment of transition, when boys left off skirts, was called "breeching" and depending on the time period, came as late as six or seven.  (In the 1780s, when Marie Antoinette's sons were born, she popularized a simpler attire for little boys between the ages of three to about seven: plain trousers that buttoned onto a short jacket, which was worn over a collared shirt.  But by the 1820s boys were again in skirts.)

Artist by the name of van Zelven, 1605. (This is the only known painting by this artist.)

William III Prince of Orange, by Adriaen Hanneman (Dutch, circa 1604-1671), 1654.

Ulrik, Prince of Denmark, by Jacob van Doort (or Van Doordt) (Dutch, 1590-1629), 1615.

Jacob Willemszoon Delff the Elder (circa 1550 – 1601), 1581.

Children of the Marquis de Béthune, by François-Hubert Drouais (French, 1727–1775), 1761.

Charles II of England as Prince of Wales, by Justus van Egmont (Dutch, 1601–1674), 1630.

Unknown Flemish artist, 1625.

Esmé Stuart, 5th Duke of Lennox and 2nd Duke of Richmond, attributed to Jan Weesop (Flemish, active in England), 1653.

Thomas de Keyser (Dutch, circa 1596–1667), ND.