Scheepsgevecht tussen Hollandse en Franse koopvaardijschepen

Dated to 1672 and held at Het Scheepvaartmuseum, this canvas depicting a naval battle between Dutch and French merchant vessels belongs to the year of the French invasion of the Netherlands — the 'Rampjaar' or disaster year — when French forces overran much of the Dutch Republic while English and French navies attacked at sea. Commerce raiding between Dutch and French merchant convoys was a feature of this conflict, and van de Velde documented such encounters with the same forensic attention he brought to major fleet engagements. By 1672, van de Velde had just moved to England, and the timing creates the interesting circumstance of a Dutch painter depicting Dutch vessels in combat while in the employ of their English adversaries. Het Scheepvaartmuseum's collection of 1672-related naval paintings constitutes one of the most important visual records of the Rampjaar at sea.

Oil on canvas depicting an active exchange between merchant vessels in combat. Unlike van de Velde's warship scenes, merchant vessels have less ornate decoration but different rigging and hull characteristics that he renders with accuracy. Cannon smoke and disturbed water confirm the violence of the encounter.