Burning of the English Fleet near Chatham (19-24 June 1667)

Willem Schellinks, 1667 - 1678

The river Medway during the Dutch attack on the English fleet, 1667, by Willem Schellinks. England's principal naval base was at Chatham on the river Medway. After reducing the fort at Sheerness, the Dutch ships sailed upstream and reached Chatham on 22 June 1667. Below left is Fort Sheerness, held by a Dutch garrison. Despite the ring of submerged ships, whose masts are visible above the water, the Dutch managed to penetrate the defences. In the distance, to the left in the background, is London. To the right in the background is Rochester.

  • Artwork typepainting
  • Object numberSK-A-1393
  • Dimensionssupport: height 111 cm x width 168 cm x thickness 3 cm, frame size: depth 5.2 cm
  • Physical characteristicsoil on canvas

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Identification

  • Title(s)

    Burning of the English Fleet near Chatham (19-24 June 1667)

  • Object type

  • Object number

    SK-A-1393

  • Description

    Het verbranden van de Engelse vloot bij Chatham, tijdens de Tocht naar Chatham. Voorgesteld is de aanval van de Nederlandse vloot op de Engelse vloot die voor anker lag op de rivier de Medway, een zijrivier van de Theems. Op de voorgrond gaat het veroverde fort Sheerness in vlammen op. Rechts van drie brandende Engelse schepen is de verovering van het vlaggenschip Royal Charles te zien. De vernietiging van de Engelse vloot bij Chatham was een belangrijke episode uit de Tweede Engelse Zeeoorlog (1665-1667).

  • Part of catalogue

Creation

  • Creation

    • painter: Willem Schellinks, Amsterdam
    • painter: Willem van de Velde (II), Amsterdam [rejected attribution]

  • Dating

    1667 - 1678

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Material and technique

  • Physical description

    oil on canvas

  • Dimensions

    • support: height 111 cm x width 168 cm x thickness 3 cm
    • frame size: depth 5.2 cm

This work is about

  • Person

  • Subject

  • Place

  • Period

    1667-06-19 - 1667-06-23

Acquisition and rights

  • Copyright

    Public domain

  • Provenance

    …; transferred from the Ministerie van Marine (Department of the Navy), The Hague, as attributed to Willem van de Velde, to the museum, 1883{J.M. Obreen, Catalogus der verzameling modellen van het Departement van Marine, The Hague 1858, p. 173; Jaarverslag Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam 1883 (annual report Rijksmuseum), p. 25.}

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Willem Schellinks

Burning of the English Fleet near Chatham (19-24 June 1667)

Amsterdam, Amsterdam, 1667 - 1678

Conservation

  • H.E. van Eendenburg, september 1998: cleaned

Provenance

…; transferred from the Ministerie van Marine (Department of the Navy), The Hague, as attributed to Willem van de Velde, to the museum, 18831J.M. Obreen, Catalogus der verzameling modellen van het Departement van Marine, The Hague 1858, p. 173; Jaarverslag Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam 1883 (annual report Rijksmuseum), p. 25.

Object number: SK-A-1393

Entry

Painting representing the attack of a Dutch squadron on the English fleet at anchor in the River Medway. The raid of Chatham was the conclusive episode in the Second Anglo-Dutch War (1665-67).

In 1858, Obreen attributed this painting to Willem van de Velde.2J.M. Obreen, Catalogus der verzameling modellen van het Departement van Marine, The Hague 1858, p. 172. Willem Schellinks (1627?-1678) made a number of paintings depicting the raid. In 1858, Obreen attributed this painting to Willem van de Velde.3Hulton 1959; Exwood & Lehmann 1993.

Literature

J.M. Obreen, Catalogus der verzameling modellen van het Departement van Marine, The Hague 1858, p. 172; P.J.J. van Thiel et al., All the Paintings of the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam: A Completely Illustrated Catalogue, coll. cat. Amsterdam 1976, p. 503; J.P. Sigmond and W.T. Kloek, Sea Battles in the Dutch Golden Age, Zwolle 2014, pp. 138-48, fig. 107

Citation

J. van der Vliet, 2016, 'Willem Schellinks, Burning of the English Fleet near Chatham (19-24 June 1667), Amsterdam, 1667 - 1678', in J. van der Vliet and A. Lemmers (eds.), Navy Models in the Rijksmuseum, online coll. cat. Amsterdam: https://data.rijksmuseum.nl/20027349

(accessed 12 February 2026 02:29:06).

Footnotes

  • 1J.M. Obreen, Catalogus der verzameling modellen van het Departement van Marine, The Hague 1858, p. 173; Jaarverslag Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam 1883 (annual report Rijksmuseum), p. 25.
  • 2J.M. Obreen, Catalogus der verzameling modellen van het Departement van Marine, The Hague 1858, p. 172.
  • 3Hulton 1959; Exwood & Lehmann 1993.