Vice-Admiral Sir Thomas Hopsonn, 1642-1717 by Michael Dahl, 1705-08. Repro ID: BHC2782. ©National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, London, Greenwich Hospital Collection

Four Admirals by Kneller and Dahl

Continuing the tradition of the Lely's Flagmen, Queen Anne or her consort Prince George of Denmark commissioned a series of portraits of their sea commanders. The artists were the already well-established German painter, Godfrey Kneller, and Michael Dahl, from Sweden. Like Lely's portraits, these were presented to the Royal Hospital for Seamen at Greenwich in 1824.

The Siege of Malta 1565

The Siege of Malta: Arrival of the Turkish Fleet, 20 May 1565 by Matteo Perez d'Aleccio, late 16th century. Repro ID: BHC0252. ©National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, London, Caird CollectionThe Siege of Malta series of paintings are by or after the Italian artist Matteo Perez d'Aleccio, and once belonged to Charles I. They are versions of the frescoes decorating the hall of the Grand Master of the Knights of St John in Valletta, Malta.

In 1530 the Knights had been driven from Rhodes by the Turks and were granted Malta as a new home for their Order. In 1565 they famously repelled the prolonged Turkish siege of the island. This is the subject of the frescoes and these paintings. There are several more in both series.