The vessel depicted is probably the latest of those East Indiamen to bear the name ‘Fort William’. That vessel, of 1,137 tons, came into the service of the Company in 1815. Owned by William Fairlie and captained by John Innes the ‘Fort William’ made just one voyage for the Company to Madras and China and from which it returned in June 1817.

However, a partly torn label on the back of the frame of this picture reads: “Chartered to the East India Co 1806-1809”, and correspondence relating to its acquisition by the Museum indicates it was painted in 1806 for a Captain John Parsons.

It is likely that the name refers to the fortified settlement and factory established in 1696 on the coast of India and which formed a basis for the later development of the city of Calcutta.