WILLEM VAN DE VELDE THE YOUNGER (1633-1707)
The 'Royal Escape' in a Breeze
c.1675RCIN 405211
Following the Royalist defeat at the Battle of Worcester on 3 September 1651, Charles II escaped from England to France in this vessel, a Brighthelmstone coal brig called Surprise. He was taken from Shoreham on the south coast to Fécamp, in Normandy, and thereafter spent nine years in exile on the Continent. After the Restoration, the king purchased the boat, converted her into a yacht and re-named her the Royal Escape.
Cat. 9
Cat. 9
BUCKINGHAM PALACE INVENTORY NUMBER / [Number] ; an oval stamp, enclosing a number; relates to the current B.P. Picture Inventory ( started ca. 1968; includes oils, miniatures, enamels, watercolours & drawings, porcelain paintings & mosaics)No 1730