Naval battle before Curaçao – P.M. de la Cave, 1782
€3.250
Naval Battle and Recapture of the Vrouw Machtelyna off Curaçao, 1782. Wash drawings made by P.M. de la Cave. Size (each): 16.5 × 24 cm.
The Vrouw Machtelyna, under Captain Christiaan Geerman, was in June 1782 a richly laden, privately armed merchant vessel, bound for the Windward Islands and sailing under escort from Curaçao. In the context of the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War—during which the British navy systematically targeted Dutch commerce—the ship was intercepted by the frigate Diamond under Captain Christopher Parker. After a prolonged and unequal engagement, the hooker ship was severely damaged and forced to surrender, whereupon a British prize crew was placed aboard and Geerman, together with his officers, was taken prisoner. The situation changed, however, when the approach of Dutch vessels prompted the British to withdraw; the remaining Dutch crew then managed to regain control of the ship and rehoist the flag.
The drawings are designs for a three-part series of prints (the finished engravings are held in the Rijksmuseum), executed by Carel Frederik Bendorp and published in Amsterdam by Jan Willem Smit. The scenes depict, in sequence:
I.
The armed hooker Vrouw Machtelyna lies off the harbour of Curaçao on 16 June 1782. When, at eleven o’clock in the morning, shots are seen to be fired from Fort De Fuik at an enemy vessel, the topsails are lowered, while the cutter Kemphaan tacks along the shore.
II.
That afternoon, around half past one, the Vrouw Machtelyna engages the British war frigate Diamond, in sight of the Dutch naval vessels lying in the harbour of Curaçao under the command of Rear Admiral Rietveld. Meanwhile, the cutter Kemphaan, commanded by Lieutenant Jan Janse Eye, continues to beat against the wind in order to remain within range of the fort’s guns.
III.
After approximately three hours of fighting, the Vrouw Machtelyna is heavily damaged in rigging and sails. As two additional ships approach, she surrenders to Captain Parker, who places eight men aboard the hooker and has Captain Geerman and several officers taken off. Toward evening, however, he discovers that the approaching vessels are Dutch, whereupon the Diamond makes off. The crew of the Vrouw Machtelyna then rehoists the flag and regains control of the ship.
The strength of the series lies not in the strategic importance of the encounter, but in its clear dramatic structure: from initial alarm through intense combat to an unexpected reversal and symbolic restoration of honour. In keeping with the tradition of the eighteenth-century news print, the actual recapture is not explicitly depicted but is condensed into the final image of the fleeing frigate and the restored flag. In this way, a somewhat ambiguous episode—first loss, then recovery—is transformed into a clear and engaging visual narrative. In a war that proved largely unfavourable to the Dutch Republic, such images answered a need for representations of resilience and regained honour.
Literature:
- Frederik Muller – De Nederlandsche geschiedenis in platen (1863-1882), nos. 4481-a/1, 4481-a/2 and 4481-a/3.
Price: Euro 3.250,- (3 drawings)
