This is one of a series of paintings produced to document the marriage of Frederick V, Elector Palatine, to Princess Elizabeth, daughter of James I and Anne of Denmark, in 1613. After elaborate celebrations, the bride and groom travelled to Margate to set sail for Heidelburg and Prague. Frederick, later King of Bohemia, was seen as one of the champions of Protestantism in Germany but after only one year as king he lost Bohemia and the Palatine, at the start of the Thirty Years War, 1618-48, and went into exile. He and his wife have subsequently been known as the ill-fated 'Winter King and Queen of Bohemia' and Frederick's expulsion destroyed the political aims of the marriage, which were to gain James I's support for the South German protestant alliance. In 1661, nine months before her death the following year, Elizabeth returned to England. On the failure of the direct Stuart protestant line through Queen Mary II (childless) and her sister Queen Anne (no surviving children), it was Elizabeth's grandson, the Elector of Hanover, who succeeded to the English throne as George I in 1714.

Painted nine years after the event, this work is not an eyewitness account. The artist has captured the moment when the party arrives at Flushing on 29 April 1613, amid great festivities. En route for the Palatinate they passed through the republic of the United Provinces and visited the Hague, Haarlem and Utrecht. On arrival at Flushing they were embarked in barges and boats and ceremoniously received, with salutes fired from the town and castles along the route. The principal ship, shown broadside to starboard, is the English flagship 'Prince Royal', surrounded by States yachts and barges. The ship on the right may be the 'Disdain', the miniature vessel built for Henry, Prince of Wales. On 29 April a dinner was given on board the 'Prince Royal' in the presence of Princes Maurits and Frederick Hendrik, who also spent the night on board. The following day the royal couple was rowed ashore to Flushing in English barges. Other flagships and several warships are shown on a smaller scale to underline the importance of the 'Prince Royal'.

This ship was the pride of the fleet and was built under the auspices of Prince Henry in 1610 by Phineas Pett. Henry's initials 'H.P.' (Henricus Princeps) liberally augmented with Prince of Wales's feathers appeared on the side. Sadly he died shortly before his sister's wedding and the ship was subsequently completed under the supervision of Sir Allen Apsley, Victualler of the Navy. It thus formed part of the fleet attending on the Elector Palatine. The figurehead of St George was also in incorporated in the decoration. The ship was the only one of importance built during the reign of King James I and is shown flying the Royal Standard of the Stuarts, 1603-89, at the main and the white pennant and the Union flag at the fore, mizzen and the stern.

The theme of arrival and departure was a popular one in the Dutch Republic and the artist was frequently concerned with those of dynastic significance. They made strong political statements and the series of paintings of which this is one were used by the United Provinces to proclaim loyalty to the protestant cause. However, although Frederick and Elizabeth both owned paintings by Willarts, who commissioned the various versions is not known: they include at least three of the English departure, the Dutch arrival, and at least one (in the Nederlands Scheepvaartmuseum, Amsterdam) showing the 'Prince Royal' arriving at Prague, in landlocked Bohemia. This example is an exception in that it was purchased from the estate of the Earl of Craven in 1984. His ancestor, the first earl (1606-97), was the English champion of the exiled 'Winter Queen' and is believed to have inherited it from her, with other works, on her death in England in 1662.

Willaerts (occasionally Willarts, Willers) was born in 1577 in London to Flemish parents who had fled from Antwerp for religious reasons. A leading marine painter, he settled in inland Utrecht, aged 23, in 1604, where he lived for the rest of his life. Here he knew Roelandt Savery, whose influence can be seen in his landscapes, and he was almost certainly influenced by the Brueghel family since he also painted genre subjects. He had three sons who were also marine painters. The painting is signed and dated 'A. WILLAERTS 1623' on the leeboard of the small boat to the left of centre. See also BHC0266.