Geoff Hunt, PPRSMA (born 1948)
Bellona and Courageux coming home, Spithead 1761
Oil on canvas
Private collection
'HMS Bellona (left) was one of the first of the new British standard 74-gun ships - a long-lived ship, completed in 1760, still active in 1813. On 15 August 1761 she ran into the powerful French Courageux 74 off the coast of Portugal. A famous, hard-fought action ensued, in which Courageux was finally captured. She proved to be an excellent ship and influenced British battleship design for decades.' More on this painting
Spithead, strait of the English Channel, forming an extensive, deep, and sheltered channel between the northeastern shore of the Isle of Wight and the mainland of England. The Spit Sand forms the western side of the channel leading into Portsmouth harbour. Besides its special association with the Royal Navy—major naval reviews have been held off Cowes (on the Isle of Wight)—Spithead provides the safest approach for large craft entering and leaving Southampton Water, one of England’s most important commercial harbours. More on Spithead
HMS Bellona was a 74-gun Bellona-class third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy. Designed by Sir Thomas Slade, she was a prototype for the iconic 74-gun ships of the latter part of the 18th century. Bellona was launched on 19 February 1760, and commissioned three days later. She was the second ship of the Royal Navy to bear the name, and saw service in the Seven Years' War, American Revolutionary War and the Napoleonic Wars. More on HMS Bellona
HMS Courageux was another 74-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched 1800. She was designed as one of the large class 74-gun ships, and was the only ship built to her draught. Unlike the middling and common class 74-gun ships, which carried 18-pounder long guns, as a large 74-gun ship, Courageux carried 24-pounders on her upper gun deck.
Shortly after the outbreak of the War of 1812, Courageaux shared in the seizure of several American vessels: Cuba, Caliban, Edward, Galen, Halcyon, and Cygnet.
Courageux was placed on harbour service in 1814, and was broken up in 1832. More on Courageux
Geoff Hunt, PPRSMA (born 1948)
HMS Bellona on blockade duty off Brest
Oil on canvas
Private collection
'...I wanted to depict a moment in the monotonous and largely uneventful blockade duty which formed the greater part of a British battleship's life during the Napoleonic Wars.' More on this painting
Throughout the long drawn out war at sea during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, it was a cardinal principle of British naval strategy to blockade the port of Brest, the largest and most important of the French naval bases that threatened the security of the British Isles.
Brest is an important harbor and the second French military port after Toulon. The city is located on the western edge of continental Europe. During the Middle Ages, the history of Brest was the history of its castle. Then Richelieu made it a military harbour. Brest grew around its arsenal, until the second part of the 20th century. More on Brest
Geoff Hunt PPRSMA (born 1948) is a British maritime artist and
former President of the Royal Society of Marine Artists. Hunt attended Kingston
and Epsom Schools of Art, 1966–70, where he studied graphic design. Upon
graduation, following a couple of years in advertising, Hunt established
himself as a freelance artist and designer. Hunt was Art Editor for the popular
Warship quarterly journal, from its inception in 1977 until 1979.
In
February 2007, Hunt was asked by Rear-Admiral John Lippiett, Chief Executive of
the Mary Rose Trust to paint an artist’s reconstruction of Henry VIII’s
infamous flagship. Hunt accepted the commission, finally completing the
painting in January 2009 after hours of extensive and meticulous research. An
article by Hunt recounting the experience can be found in the Shipwright 2010
annual.
Hunt’s
illustrations adorn The Frigate Surprise: The Design, Construction and Careers
of Jack Aubrey’s Favourite Command (2008), which he co-authored with respected
maritime historian, Brian Lavery. Aubrey’s creator Patrick O’Brian has
proclaimed that ‘Geoff Hunt’s pictures, perfectly accurate in period and
detail, but very far from merely representational, are often suffused with a
light reminiscent of Canaletto.’
Hunt lives in Wimbledon with his wife and two
children. Befitting his muse, Hunt’s studio is situated on the site of Merton
Place, Admiral Nelson’s house. More on Geoff Hunt
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