The Capture of the Chevrette

De Loutherbourg's The Capture of the Chevrette of 1802 depicts the dramatic night cutting-out expedition of August 1801 when HMS Doris's boat crew captured the French corvette Chevrette in the Camaret Roads under intense fire. Such boat actions — requiring extraordinary personal courage from men attacking a defended warship in open rowing boats — were among the most celebrated exploits of the British Navy during the French Revolutionary Wars. De Loutherbourg rendered the nocturnal sea battle with the theatrical lighting expertise he had developed on the London stage, capturing the flash of cannon fire against dark water.

De Loutherbourg's rendering of the night action uses dramatic firelight and moonlight effects to create a theatrically vivid scene. The careful depiction of the ships and the combatants demonstrates his familiarity with naval subjects and his dramatic compositional sense.