The Battle of Terheide

Jan Abrahamsz Beerstraaten completed this oil painting on canvas in 1659, depicting the naval Battle of Scheveningen fought in 1653. The artist signed the work "I·BEERSTRAATEN." on a piece of driftwood located in the lower left corner. Although the scene was misidentified for a long time as an episode from the Four Days' Battle, the central vessel was recognized in the early twentieth century as Maarten Tromp's flagship, the Brederode.

The painting originated from the collection of Gerrit van der Pot, a collector based in Rotterdam. The Rijksmuseum acquired the work on June 6, 1808, purchasing it during the estate auction of Van der Pot held in Rotterdam.

The Battle of Terheide is housed in the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam, inventory number SK-A-2698. It entered the collection via purchase on 6 June 1808 from the estate sale of Rotterdam collector Gerrit van der Pot, who had owned it since at least 1808. The work has been displayed in the museum's hall 2.15 and featured in exhibitions focusing on Dutch Golden Age marine art and 17th‑century battle paintings.

Jan Abrahamsz Beerstraaten's depiction of the 1653 Battle of Scheveningen is recognized as one of his largest and most complex marine compositions. Although the scene was historically misidentified for a long period as an episode from the Four Days' Battle featuring Michiel de Ruyter's flagship, early twentieth-century analysis correctly identified the central vessel as Maarten Tromp's Brederode based on stern details. The work has been praised since at least 1808 for transforming the chaos of naval warfare into a balanced and imaginative visual narrative.

Art historically, the painting serves as a significant record of the First Anglo-Dutch War, despite containing factual inaccuracies such as the inclusion of the sinking English ship Pelican, which was actually destroyed by fire in 1656. This synthesis of dramatic storytelling with specific, albeit sometimes erroneous, historical details underscores Beerstraaten's approach to history painting within the Dutch Golden Age.

The Battle of Terheide is regarded as one of Jan Abrahamsz Beerstraaten's largest and most elaborate marine paintings, praised as early as 1808 as a 'wonder of invention and imagination' for its ability to translate a chaotic naval engagement into a clear, balanced composition. The work entered the Rijksmuseum in 1808 after being acquired at the estate sale of the Rotterdam collector Gerrit van der Pot, lord of Groeneveld, securing its place in the Dutch national collection. Its prominent display in hall 2.15 of the Rijksmuseum reflects an enduring recognition of the painting as a key visual record of the 1653 Battle of Ter Heijde during the First Anglo-Dutch War, even though the depicted sinking English vessel, the Pelican, was in fact destroyed by fire in 1656 rather than lost at Ter Heijde.

Created in 1659, The Battle of Terheide is an oil painting by Jan Abrahamsz Beerstraaten, a Dutch artist associated with the Golden Age. The work depicts a naval engagement, presenting a crowded seascape where numerous vessels collide amid billowing smoke and tumultuous waves. It is classified as a history painting and is part of the Rijksmuseum’s collection.