The Battle of Solebay was the opening action of the third Anglo-Dutch War, 1672–74. On 28 May 1672 ninety-eight ships of the Anglo-French fleet under James, Duke of York, and 75 ships under Admiral de Ruyter engaged in a fight both parties later claimed to have won. One Dutch success was the destruction of the 100-gun ‘Royal James’ by fireships, but their fleet finally had to withdraw.

This painting probably shows the state of the battle in the early afternoon. Although he had started the battle in the ‘Prince’, the Duke of York had by this time shifted to the ‘St Michael’, which flies the royal standard at the main, a red flag at the fore, and a Union flag at the mizzen. This ship is depicted in the left foreground, passing the burning wreck of the ‘Royal James’ in the middle-distance. The English ships are for the most part on the left of the picture, and the Dutch ships stretch away to the right. In the right distance is the French squadron. The period of the battle in the picture is nearest to a sketch plan in the Boymans-van Beuningen Museum, Rotterdam (MB1866/T90), which also marks the Duke of York in the St Michael passing the Royal James.

The painting contains a small number of inaccuracies. It shows the ships (both Dutch and English) before the wind, when at this stage of the battle they were close-hauled on the port tack. The Union flag flying from the St Michael’s mizzen may also be a mistake, since the Duke of York was not permitted to fly this flag at the time of the battle.

The composition features a high horizon line, which may indicate that it was intended as a design for a tapestry. The artist, Willem van de Velde the Younger, tended to favour low horizon lines, except in paintings and drawings which were designed to simulate tapestries or to be used as tapestry designs. The painting is signed on the back of the original canvas 'W. V. Velde' (round letters).