Offered by Galerie William Diximus
Oil on canvas painted by William Brassey Hole (1846-1917) depicting the death of Admiral Nelson (1758-1805) during the naval battle of Trafalgar in 1805.
Provenance: The artist, and by descent to his son Gilbert Hole (died in 1967), then acquired by Gillespie & Paterson, Edinburgh.
Major work of the artist.
Dimensions without frame: 120,5cm X 159cm
Dimensions with frame: 128.5cm x 167cm
England has lost the hero of his navy, fallen under the blows of the brave Redoutable. It is in these terms that Captain Lucas salutes the death of Admiral Nelson in his report to the Minister of Marine and Colonies, Denis Decres. On October 21, 1805, Horatio Nelson was mortally wounded at the Battle of Trafalgar, off Cadiz.
The clash between the British fleet and the French-Spanish coalition ships began late in the morning, after Nelson addressed his famous slogan: "England expects that every man will do his duty". Aboard HMS Victory, at the top of the attack, the Admiral refused to remove his medals, which could make it an easy target for the enemy. His secretary is mown by a ball. Soon, the Victory is under the crossfire of the Redoutable and Santísima Trinidad, almost at close range. Shortly after 1 pm, Nelson collapses. A bullet struck him on the right shoulder, passed through his lung and smashed his spine, and stopped under the left shoulder blade. He will die four hours later. Repatriated to London, he will be entitled to a national funeral.
William Brassey Hole:
painter born in Salisbury born November 7, 1846, died in Edinburgh on October 22, 1917.
A member of the Royal Society of Painters in Water Colors, Royal Society of Watermakers, etching and engravers, exhibited etchings from 1873. The Edinburgh Museum preserves from this artist: Christ contemplating Jerusalem, which was exhibited in Edinburgh in 1855 and in Brussels in 1897.
