Eduardo Federico de Martino, C.V.O. (1838-1912)
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Eduardo Federico de Martino, C.V.O. (1838-1912)

On board Britannia

Details
Eduardo Federico de Martino, C.V.O. (1838-1912)
On board Britannia
signed, inscribed and dated 'board Britannia/10th Augt 94/Ran 110 miles. E.D. Martino.' (lower left) and further inscribed with notes and names of members of the crew
pencil and watercolour heightened with white
12¼ x 9¼ in. (31 x 23.5 cm.)
Provenance
George Hughes Hartman.
Special notice
No VAT will be charged on the hammer price, but VAT at 17.5% will be added to the buyer's premium which is invoiced on a VAT inclusive basis

Lot Essay

Britannia, built for King Edward VII when Prince of Wales in 1893, was undoubtedly the most famous racing cutter of them all. Hugely successful during her long life, she won 33 firsts out of 39 starts in her maiden season and competed against all the fastest yachts of the day. Sold in 1897 - although bought back for cruising in 1901 by which time the Prince of Wales had succeeded to the throne - her second racing career really came into its own when King George V had her refitted for big class competitions in 1921. Under the King's enthusiastic ownership, Britannia went from strength to strength. Despite being re-rigged seven times in all, her hull shape was so efficient that she remained competitive almost to the end until finally outclassed by the big J-class boats introduced in the mid-1930's. King George V died in 1936 and under the terms of his will, Britannia was stripped of her salvageable gear and scuttled off the southern tip of the Isle of Wight.

This charming preparatory sketch done very early in Britannia's long career may show her first skipper John Carter and first helmsman William Jameson, although this can only be conjecture.

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