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The first day's attack on the Castle of Aboukir by the Turkish Gun-boats having five British, and five Russian seamen in each, and assisted by the boats of the Swiftsure, octr: 24th

Cooper Willyams

1798

watercolor

From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum

British Romanticism Romanticism 18th Century Marine

Dominant colour

The first day's attack on the Castle of Aboukir by the Turkish Gun-boats having five British, and five Russian seamen in each, and assisted by the boats of the Swiftsure, octr: 24th is a 1798 watercolor by Cooper Willyams, a British Romanticism work, held at Victoria and Albert Museum.

Who painted this?: Cooper Willyams
When & what style?: 1798 · British Romanticism
Where can I see it?: Victoria and Albert Museum

About this work

This watercolour shows a naval battle scene from 1798. British and Russian sailors worked together in small boats against Napoleon’s forces. Painted by an Anglican priest who served on Nelson’s ship, it blends war with everyday life. The artist highlights a small moment—Turkish captains in the foreground—rather than the big fight. It’s part of a set turned into prints later. Look up the Victoria and Albert Museum.

The story of this work

Overview

The watercolour depicts a scene from October 1798, when Turkish gunboats, supported by British and Russian crews from the Swiftsure, launched an attack on the Castle of Aboukir. While the naval engagement unfolds in the background, the foreground highlights Turkish captains retreating to a small boat near a wreck to smoke pipes. The work is one of five watercolours later reproduced as aquatints in Revd. Cooper Willyams’s 1802 publication, *A Voyage up the Mediterranean in His Majesty’s Ship the Swiftsure*. The artist focuses more on the human elements and local details than on the broader…

Read the full account in the museum source.