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Historic early 19th century watercolor portrait of Captain James Lawrence. Done on wove paper, the colors remain strikingly vibrant. Captain Lawrence is pictured in his miliary regalia, along with American flags, a shield, an eagle, and other accoutrements. The piece also retains its early, if not original black molded frame, housed under plexiglass within a gilt wood frame. As he is identified in the portrait in French as Capitaine Lawrence, this portrait could have been created in one of the French speaking areas of Canada, perhaps through a connection to his father who fled to Canada during the Revolutionary War. On the back of the frame, also preserved under plexiglass, is a newpaper clipping of a cartoon from 1955 by John Hix depicting Captain Lawrence and his famous line. This piece remains in an amazing state of preservations, and has been professionally conservation mounted. Dimensions: sight 9.5" x 7.5"; frame 10 7/8" x 12 7/8".
A brief biography: James Lawrence was born in New Jersey in1781. His mother died when he was an infant, and his father abandoned him, fleeing to Canada. Lawrence joined the Navy in 1798, and wored his way up the ranks, ulitmately earning the rank of Captain in command of the Chesapeake in 1813. In June of 1813, he engaged the British naval ship Shannon. The Chesapeake's crew was relatively inexperienced and the frigate was quickly damaged and overtaken. Captain Lawrence was mortally wounded in the battle, and as he was being carried below deck, he famously said, "Don't Give Up the Ship". (www.americanbattlefieldtrust.org).
Although this portrait is undated, there are no references to Lawrence's famous quotation or his death, which suggests that this portrait was made between Lawrence's promotion to Captain in March 1813 and his death in June 1813.
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