Hendrik van Minderhout, The battle of Lowestoft, c. 1650 by Atelier Liesjes

About "Hendrik van Minderhout, The battle of Lowestoft, c. 1650"

by Atelier Liesjes

About the artwork

The battle of Lowestoft, 3 June 1665, with HMS 'Royal Charles' and the 'Eendracht'

The battle of Lowestoft was the first fleet action of the Second Dutch War, 1665-1667, and resulted in a Dutch defeat with a loss of about 30 ships. In this initial fleet battle, both sides had more than 100 sails.

This painting was probably painted shortly after the battle and shows the action between the 'Royal Charles' and the 'Eendracht' from the Dutch perspective. The left foreground is dominated by the duelling flagships of the two supreme commanders. On the left is the 'Royal Charles', with the Duke of York aboard, and the royal coat of arms carved on her stern. A small boat is connected to the ship by a rope held by two men and there are other men working in the rigging. From very close up on the right, the 'Eendracht' with the carved lion is visible on her stern, waving the Dutch flag and flag just before she exploded. The painting inaccurately gives the English flagship 'Royal Charles' a Dutch stern, with a square crease and gallery.

Hendrik van Minderhout (Rotterdam, 1632 - Antwerp, 22 July 1696) was a Dutch painter of marines. He was mainly active in the cities of Bruges and Antwerp.

He worked from 1652 in Bruges, where he became a member of the Guild of St Luke in 1663. He moved to Antwerp around 1672.

His work consists mainly of large marines (seascapes, harbours, docks, fleet scenes, river landscapes), often showing fantasised locations with classical ornaments.