paintings of battles at sea

This was perhaps the most famous sea battle ever fought. England’s greatest naval hero, Admiral Nelson, commanded England’s most famous warship, HMS Victory. Nelson’s victory foiled Napoleon’s plan to invade England. During this moment of his greatest glory, Nelson was shot down by a French musket ball. His body was returned home in a cask of brandy to a hero’s funeral.

The Battle of Trafalgar

Kalmar Nyckel was a Swedish ship built by the Dutch. It carried Swedish settlers to North America in 1638, and was later sunk in a battle with the British.

A modern replica of the ship is based in Wilmington, DE.

The Kalmar Nyckel

The USS Enterprise in the Mediterranean

The Enterprise was a U.S. Navy topsail-schooner built in Baltimore in 1799. She is shown here in 1801 during her service in the First Barbary War. Since this ship was decommissioned, there have been six other Naval vessels with the name Enterprise.

winner of The Maritime Heritage Award 
at the Mystic International Marine Art Exhibition

Built in Boston in 1797, the Constitution won several important victories over the British during the War of 1812, demonstrating that the new American Navy could stand up to the greatest sea power in the world, and earning the nickname “Old Ironsides.”

USS Constitution vs HMS Java

This battle was one of the decisive turning points in American history. The British navy’s loss of this battle allowed General George Washington to defeat the British at Yorktown, thereby ending the American Revolution. The battle took place just outside the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay in 1781, between a British and French fleet. For two and a half hours the fleets traded broadsides. Neither fleet was decisively defeated, but the French won the day by denying the British entrance into the Bay, and thus forcing the British to surrender to General Washington.

The Battle of the Chesapeake

During the War of 1812, Captain Oliver Hazard Perry's decisive victory over the British fleet on Lake Erie ensured American control of the Great Lakes. During the battle, Perry flew his famous flag which read "Don’t Give Up the Ship." After the battle, Perry sent his famous message, "We have met the enemy and they are ours." The painting depicts the Niagara charging into battle, with the British ships Detroit and Queen Charlotte behind her.

The Battle of Lake Erie

The USS Constellation was one of the first ships to be built for the newly formed U.S. Navy. She was a 38-gun frigate, carrying about 340 men. The painting depicts her during the Quasi-War with France in 1799. Constellation defeated the French L’Insurgente, a 36-gun frigate. This was the first victory over an enemy warship for the United States Navy.

USS Constellation vs L’Insurgente

The Ranger was one of John Paul Jones’ favorite ships. Built in New Hampshire in 1777, she was a corvette, which meant she carried all her cannons on one deck. She was adorned with a figurehead of a rifleman (a ranger.) In 1778, John Paul Jones brought the American Revolution to England’s shores by sailing Ranger in British waters. He defeated the British frigate Drake in an action that Jones described “warm, close and obstinate.”

John Paul Jones: Ranger vs Drake

Black Bart Roberts Attacks

Bartholomew Roberts was one of the most feared pirates of the golden age of piracy. He raided ships in the Atlantic until he was hunted down and killed in 1722. His two vessels, Royal Fortune and the Ranger, are shown attacking a British frigate.

USS Constitution vs HMS Guerriere

The USS Constitution was built in Boston in 1797. She carried 54 guns and a crew of more than 450. During the War of 1812, the Constitution won several important victories over the British, demonstrating that the new American Navy could stand up to the greatest sea power in the world.

This painting depicts her second victory — over the frigate HMS Guerriere off the coast of Nova Scotia. Captain Isaac Hull was in command of the Constitution. The British ship fired the first shot of the battle, but Hull took advantage of his heavier broadsides and his ship's superior sailing ability. The British, to their astonishment, saw that their shot seemed to rebound harmlessly off Constitution's hull — giving her the nickname "Old Ironsides." The two ships traded cannon fire until Guerriere was a dismasted hulk. She was so badly damaged that she was not worth towing to port, so Hull sank her.

The Constitution returned to Boston, where there was great rejoicing over the victory. Hull and the crew were awarded medals and prize money in recognition of their spectacular triumph over the Royal Navy.

  • John Paul Jones

    This portrait is based on the bust made from life by the famous sculptor Houdon. 

    John Paul Jones was a complicated man. Hard-charging and brave to the point of recklessness, he was also argumentative and had a quick temper. When the Revolutionary war came along, JPJ saw his chance to shine.

    JPJ took the fight to the shores of the British Isles. To the British he was considered a pirate, to the French he was a dashing heart-throb, and to Americans he was a hero of liberty.

    After the Revolution, JPJ found himself a warrior without a war. He signed up with Russia and became an admiral in their fight with the Turks. But he became entangled in a sex scandal, and left the Russian service with a medal and a bitter heart. A few years later he died suddenly of a kidney problem in a hotel room in Paris. He was 45 years old.

  • Oliver Hazard Perry

    Oliver Hazard Perry was the commanding officer in the U.S. Navy’s victory at the Battle of Lake Erie during the War of 1812. He was just 28 years old. During the battle, Perry flew his flag which read "Don’t Give Up the Ship."

    The nine vessels of the American fleet were outweighed and outgunned by the six ships of the British fleet. But Perry sailed USS Niagara into close action, broke the British battle line, and forced them to surrender. This decisive victory over ensured American control of the Great Lakes. After the battle, Perry sent his famous message, "We have met the enemy and they are ours."