PW1760

Sunset with the Fleet Long Caption: The location shown is the Grand Fleet's northern base at Scapa Flow, beyond reasonable doubt in the summer of 1915. On the left is the battlecruiser 'Tiger ' (1913). The other ships all appear to be battleships of the 'King Edward VII' class, which formed the 3rd Battle Squadron of the Grand Fleet from 1914 to April 1916. Their main topmasts were removed (as shown here) in 1914-15 and they were transferred south to Sheerness in April 1916. Although this tranquil sunset view of moored battleships reflects Wyllie's interest in depicting natural effects and the influence of Turner, the ships, painted in Wyllie's characteristic reductive shorthand, are almost certainly identifiable from their shapes outlined against the sky. Credit line: © National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, London Object: PAF1760 Artist: William Lionel Wyllie Medium: watercolour Size: Sheet: 275 x 444 mm Click here to buy a bespoke print of this image.