Eduardo de Martino (1838-1912)

H.M.S. Alexandra lying in Spithead

Details

Eduardo de Martino (1838-1912)
H.M.S. Alexandra lying in Spithead
signed, inscribed and dated 'E De Martino. to my friend Sir F. Richards/London 14th July 1889.' (lower left) and further inscribed on a label attached to the backboard 'Presented to Frederick John Durnford, R.N. by the Executors of the late Admiral of the Fleet Sir Fredk. William Richards, G.C.B. B.C.L. his godfather, October 1912'
pencil and watercolour heightened with white
9 x 17in. (24.1 X 43.cm.)

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Lot Essay

Built at Chatham and completed in 1877, H.M.S. Alexandra was one of the last two broadside ironclads in the Royal Navy and the fastest battleship of her day. Heavily armed and capable of 15 knots at full steam, she served as a flagship throughout her active career. Present at the bombardment of Alexandria in 1882, she acted as flagship for H.R.H. the Duke of Edinburgh in the Mediterranean from 1886 to 1889, during which time she was painted white, for coolness, at the Duke's insistence. This made her one of the most distinctive ships in any of the navy's fleets and ensured that her memory lived on long after she was broken up in 1908.

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