Lot 94: Nicholas S. Cammillieri (Maltese, 1762-1860) Seven warships proceding under sail

Seven warships proceding under sail
signed 'Cammillieri of Malta' (in white band lower right), inscribed in white on black band at bottom of watercolour (from left to right) 'H.M.S. Canopus', 'H.M.S. Revenge', 'H.M.S. Edinburgh', 'H. M. Ship Vernon, March 9th 1835', 'H.M.S. Thunderer', 'H.M.S. Caledonia', 'H.M.S. Portland', 'H.M.S. Columbine'
pen, ink, grey wash and watercolour heightened with white
43.2 x 67.3cm (17 x 26 1/2in).

In March 1835, Canopus, 84 guns, was commanded by Capt. Hon. Jos. Percy. She had been launched in 1796 at Toulon as the French ship Franklin and captured by the British in 1798.
Revenge, 78 guns, was commanded by Capt. W. Elliot. She had been launched in 1805 at Chatham.
Edinburgh, 74 guns, was commanded by Capt. James R. Dacres. She had been launched in 1811 at Brent, Rotherhithe.
Vernon, 50 guns, was commanded by Capt. John McKerlie and designed by Capt. (later Sir) William Symonds. She had been launched in 1832 at Woolwich. Vernon was haulked at Portland in 1863 and in 1873 was moved to Portsmouth as the torpedo and mining school. She was renamed Acteon in 1886 and sold in 1923.
Thunderer, 84 guns, was commanded by Capt. William F. Wise. She had been launched in 1831 at Woolwich.
Caledonia (flagship), 120 guns, was commanded by Capt. Thomas Brown. She had been launched in 1808 at Plymouth.
Portland, 52 guns, was commanded Capt. David Price. She had been launched in 1822 at Plymouth.
Columbine, 18 guns, was commanded by Commander Thomas Henderson and also designed by Capt. (later Sir) William Symonds. She had been launched in 1826 at Portsmouth.

In 1835, Her Majesty's frigate Vernon's qualities as a warship were being assessed in a series of trials in the Mediterranean. She had been laid down at Woolwich in December 1831 and launched on the 1st May 1832. She was the first frigate to be built in accordance with the design principles advocated by Capt. (later Sir) William Symonds, whose appointment as Surveyor of the Navy and whose innovative designs for warships aroused controversy in naval circles.
As recorded in the correspondance printed in the 1835 Nautical Magazine, the Admiralty ordered Vice-Admiral Sir Josias Rawley, Bart., the commander in chief of the Mediterranean Station, based at Malta, to conduct sailing trials in various weather conditions. Departing Vourla Bay to return to its base in Malta, the squadron, comprising the seven vessels named in our watercolour, plus three others, repeatedly engaged in sailing trials to test the Vernon.

In a letter from Caledonia in Malta harbour dated 2 April 1835, Vice-Admiral Sir Josias Rowley wrote that the trial conducted on the 9th March matched the Vernon against the Portland and the Columbine and lasted three hours. So superior was the Vernon in all the trials that her captain wrote 'I never thought ship-building could be brought to such perfection. We can fight either side, let it blow as hard as it likes; and as to sailing, we astonished the whole fleet, which we beat in prime style, always leaving the fastest of them six or seven miles astern in six hours.'

As Nicholas Cammillieri was primarily a ship's portraitist, this watercolour is a very rare subject-matter for him to have painted and possibly unique in his output. Works by Cammillieri are held in museums across Europe and the United States of America, including : National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, London; Peabody Museum, Salem, Massachusetts; Mariners Museum, Newport News, Virginia; Mystic Seaport Museum, Connecticut and the Franklin D. Roosevelt Library and Museum, Hyde Park, New York.