Hubert [&] Stadler after Captain Brenton

The Second Battle of Algeciras To Sir James Saumarez Bar.t and Knight of the Bath, rear Admiral of the Blue &c, This Plate representing the condition of the British Squadron on the morning of the 12th July 1801, at the time the Caesar hauled out of Gibraltar Mole to pursue the enemy's fleet under way off Algeciras is with permission dedicated by his most obedient, humble servant Edw.d Harding.

30.5 x 24.5 inches

Large scale aquatint in original colour; engraved by Stadler and Hubert after the painting by Captain Jahleel Brenton and published in London in 1802.

This rousing maritime scene takes us back to the thick of the French Revolutionary Wars which dominated life in England from 1793 until their conclusion in 1802. Here we have a famous battle that took place outside Gibraltar in July 1801. The Straits of Gibraltar were obviously of vital strategic importance at the time and control of these waters was essential in accessing shipping routes to the Mediterranean. The British forces under Rear Admiral Sir James Saumarez are pitched against the combined forces of the Spanish and French. The Brits are outnumbered with 6 ships and 2 frigates against 9 ships and 3 frigates but by the end of the battle 119 have been killed or wounded on the British side against over 2000 with the enemy. At this particular point in the fray, we see HMS Caesar, under the command of Saumarez, in pursuit of the enemy's fleet.