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Description: | A portrait of the 'Royal Katherine', an 84-gun ship built at Woolwich in 1664 by Christopher Pett and named for Catherine [Katherine] of Braganza, the Portuguese-born queen of King Charles II. The ship took part in all the principal actions of the second and third Dutch Wars, 1665-74 and later fought against the French in King William's War, including at the Battles of Bantry Bay and La Hogue, 1692. She was broken up in 1698. There is a characteristic Vale cartouche, ornately decorated with seashells and coral, at the top centre of the picture. This contains the inscription, 'The Royall Katherine command[e]d by John Earl of Mulgrave in the Second Dutch Warr', which is however inaccurate since John Sheffield, 3rd Earl of Mulgrave, only commanded the ship during the Third Dutch War. He later became Marquis of Normanby (1694), and Duke of Buckingham in 1703. The painting was in the Sheffield Collection at Normanby Hall, so may be the painting of the Royal Katherine that was commissioned by Mulgrave and seen in his London house by Captain George Carleton. In his memoirs first published in 1728, Carleton described how the Royal Katherine was captured by the Dutch and then recaptured by the English at the Battle of Solebay in 1672, adding, ?This is the same Ship which the Earl of Mulgrave (afterwards Duke of Buckingham) commanded the next Sea Fight, and has caus'd to be painted in his House in St. James's Park.?
The portrait shows the 'Royal Katherine' in starboard-broadside view firing a salute. She is flying a Union jack on her sprit top-mast as well as the red ensign and a number of pennants. A number of figures are busy on deck and a small boat is positioned at the stern with a man holding a boathook. Immediately beyond, to the left, is a gaff-rigged royal yacht in stern view (possibly intended as the 'Katherine' of 1661 from her stern carving and double quarter windows, although the two stern windows are too small) and on the far left an additional stern view of the 'Royal Katherine'. Instead of a coat of arms she has a full length carving of Queen Katherine on her stern, with the letters 'CR' and 'KR', (for 'Carolus Rex' and 'Katherina Regina') elsewhere in the decoration. It is possible that the painting has been slightly cut down on the left and right, but not much given that the cartouche is still central.
There is very little documentary information about the artist although it is known that he worked in England in the style of van de Velde and Sailmaker between 1705 and 1730. Because this ship was broken up in 1698 the painting is thought to be the earliest that can be attributed to him, although it could have been done later from drawings, as the apparent inclusion of the 'Katherine' yacht also suggests: if not it indicates he was working earlier than can be otherwise shown. If commissioned for the Earl of Mulgrave it must have been painted before 1721, when he died. It is signed, bottom left, 'H. Vale fec'.
Signed in in light toned paint: H. Vale fec.
caption: HMS 'Royal Katherine' | Publisher: | "http://collections.rmg.co.uk/" | Rights holder: | "Royal Museums Greenwich" | Subjects: | Royal Katherine Royal Katherine 1664 paintings | Source: | Royal Museums Greenwich | Identifier: | http://collections.rmg.co.uk/collections... | Go to resource |
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