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Lot Essay
This picture appears to be Elliott's prime composition of the Battle of the Saintes and the source of a number of (unsigned) variants and versions.
The victory of Admiral (George) Rodney (1718-1792) over the French fleet off a series of islands, the Saintes, off Guadeloupe, on 12 April 1782, was painted by numerous important maritime artists including Thomas Luny (1759-1837) and Thomas Whitcombe (1763-after 1824). This picture is of particular importance because it is thought that Elliott, who was made Lieutenant in May 1781, fought at the Battle of the Saintes.
Towards the end of the American War of Independence, by which time both France and Spain had allied themselves to the colonists' cause in the hope of gaining territory at England's expense, the French campaign to take British colonies in the Caribbean had already been successful. Admiral Rodney, who had entered the Navy in 1732, following his education at Harrow, had risen quickly thorough the Navy's ranks and had successfully re-captured the colonies of Martinque, St. Lucia, Grenada and St. Vincent while Commander-in-Chief of the West Indies Station in 1761-1762. He returned to the West Indies in 1780 and the following year was made Vice-Admiral of Great Britain. In the spring of 1782, the French, following their successful capture of St. Eustatius, St. Kitts and Montserrat, made ready to mount an offensive against Jamaica. Rodney realised that the situation was critical and that a full-scale fleet action was his only means of stopping them. The French fleet, under the Comte de Grasse, set out from Fort Royal, Martinique, on 8 April; Rodney intercepted it and an initial inconclusive engagement took place the following day. Outwardly de Grasse had the advantage but soon lost it and the battle developed into a running fight which lasted three days. On the morning of 12 April, Rodney brought the French to action off Les Saintes, a group of small islands in the channel between Guadeloupe and Dominica. Initially adopting the traditional strategy, Rodney then bewildered the French by piercing their line of battle in two places and threw them into confusion. This tactic of 'breaking the line', in which the British ships passed through a gap in the French line thereby engaging them from the leeward side, a tactic employed by Nelson twenty-three years later at the Battle of Trafalgar, was devastatingly effective. Before long the French flagship, the 104-gun Ville de Paris, was surrounded and forced to strike her colours to the Barfleur, and even though a number of ships managed to escape, it was nevertheless a decisive defeat for the French which saved the valuable island of Jamaica from invasion. Following Rodney's return to England, Parliament gave thanks to him and he was raised to the peerage on 19 June 1782.
Most of Elliott's pictures show naval actions, particularly in the colonies of Jamaica and Canada. He died in July 1795 and his last known picture, dated 1794, shows H.M.S. Victory off Bastia.
The victory of Admiral (George) Rodney (1718-1792) over the French fleet off a series of islands, the Saintes, off Guadeloupe, on 12 April 1782, was painted by numerous important maritime artists including Thomas Luny (1759-1837) and Thomas Whitcombe (1763-after 1824). This picture is of particular importance because it is thought that Elliott, who was made Lieutenant in May 1781, fought at the Battle of the Saintes.
Towards the end of the American War of Independence, by which time both France and Spain had allied themselves to the colonists' cause in the hope of gaining territory at England's expense, the French campaign to take British colonies in the Caribbean had already been successful. Admiral Rodney, who had entered the Navy in 1732, following his education at Harrow, had risen quickly thorough the Navy's ranks and had successfully re-captured the colonies of Martinque, St. Lucia, Grenada and St. Vincent while Commander-in-Chief of the West Indies Station in 1761-1762. He returned to the West Indies in 1780 and the following year was made Vice-Admiral of Great Britain. In the spring of 1782, the French, following their successful capture of St. Eustatius, St. Kitts and Montserrat, made ready to mount an offensive against Jamaica. Rodney realised that the situation was critical and that a full-scale fleet action was his only means of stopping them. The French fleet, under the Comte de Grasse, set out from Fort Royal, Martinique, on 8 April; Rodney intercepted it and an initial inconclusive engagement took place the following day. Outwardly de Grasse had the advantage but soon lost it and the battle developed into a running fight which lasted three days. On the morning of 12 April, Rodney brought the French to action off Les Saintes, a group of small islands in the channel between Guadeloupe and Dominica. Initially adopting the traditional strategy, Rodney then bewildered the French by piercing their line of battle in two places and threw them into confusion. This tactic of 'breaking the line', in which the British ships passed through a gap in the French line thereby engaging them from the leeward side, a tactic employed by Nelson twenty-three years later at the Battle of Trafalgar, was devastatingly effective. Before long the French flagship, the 104-gun Ville de Paris, was surrounded and forced to strike her colours to the Barfleur, and even though a number of ships managed to escape, it was nevertheless a decisive defeat for the French which saved the valuable island of Jamaica from invasion. Following Rodney's return to England, Parliament gave thanks to him and he was raised to the peerage on 19 June 1782.
Most of Elliott's pictures show naval actions, particularly in the colonies of Jamaica and Canada. He died in July 1795 and his last known picture, dated 1794, shows H.M.S. Victory off Bastia.