The Battle of Vigo Bay, October 12, 1702

Ludolf Bakhuizen's The Battle of Vigo Bay records one of the most dramatic naval engagements of the War of the Spanish Succession, when Anglo-Dutch forces broke through a defensive boom to attack the Franco-Spanish treasure fleet sheltered in the Galician bay. The resulting battle destroyed or captured the fleet and its cargo of American silver. Bakhuizen, the foremost Dutch marine painter of his generation after Willem van de Velde the Younger's departure to England, produced a vivid eyewitness-style account of modern warfare at sea. The painting served both as historical commemoration and demonstration of naval power for an audience for whom sea dominance was strategically essential.

Bakhuizen captures the chaos of battle through smoke, fire, and a turbulent sea rendered with expert handling of grey-green water and cresting waves. Ships at various stages of distress populate a panoramic composition. Thick impasto on wave-crests contrasts with thin glazes used for distant smoke and sky.