Wilhelm Velten was born in St. Petersburg and although he spent most of his childhood in Russia, he moved at quite an early age to Germany, and it was in this country that he spent the remainder of his life, travelling from there for the purpose of his work. He died in Munich in 1929. Velten’s favourite subjects were people and animals, and it is for this type of painting that he is most well-known.

He specialised in painting battle scenes, which depicted soldiers in snowy landscapes (rather similar to the landscapes he knew as a child). In this way, concentrating as he did on military subjects with figures and horses in prominence, he managed to combine his interests within a single painting. His paintings were normally on panel, large examples by him being very rare. His works were nearly always small in size, but with extremely fine detail and it is for this reason that his paintings are sought after by international collectors the world over. His works can be found in museums in: Buffalo; Munich and Prague.