Thomas Fleming tells Francis Drake of the Armada

What it is

This painting was made in 1919 by Kenneth Denton Shoesmith. It shows the legend of Francis Drake learning that the Spanish Armada was approaching. Men in Elizabethan-era dress gather on a grassy green near the sea, with ships and sails in the background, and some bowls lie on the grass.

Why it matters

The painting was made more than three centuries after the events it shows. Its curator describes it as illustrative rather than contemporary, so it tells us how the story of Drake was pictured in 1919, not what happened in 1588. The central figure in the scene is described as wearing white and red, and the Commons record names Thomas Fleming as the man who informs Drake of the Armada.

Look closer

• Who are the men gathered around the central figure, and how are they dressed?
• What do the green, the sea and the ships tell you about the setting the painter chose?
• Why might a painter in 1919 choose this legend, and what does the painting leave out?