A watercolour and bodycolour view of the Royal Yacht Squadron Yachts running for the Emperor's Cup; the central craft from left to right are Euryalus, Curacoa, Royal Albert, Racoon, Diadem, Fairy, Renown and The Royal Yacht. Signed "O.W. Brierly" and inscribed, identifying the vessels.

Queen Victoria and Prince Albert were on board the Royal Albert with Emperor Napoleon III and the Empress on 6 August 1858, travelling from Cherbourg towards England. The Royal Yacht Squadron vessels had left Cowes at 6am that morning to compete for the cup which was to be presented by the Emperor.

Brierly worked for three members of the Royal family through his long career as a marine painter, and after his death his daughter recorded that the interest Queen Victoria had always taken in his work had been ‘one of the happiest memories that remained with him and cheered him to the very last’. This watercolour was painted for Queen Victoria, who first commissioned him in 1856 to record that year's Naval Review (see RCINs 920312 and 920311). A sketch for this watercolour was exhibited at the Old Watercolour Society's Winter Exhibition 1871-2 (no. 133) and a sketch taken 'on the spot' was shown by Brierly at the 1875 exhibition.

This watercolour was originally intended to be bound in Souvenir Album IX, though this did not happen. Queen Victoria and Prince Albert compiled nine Souvenir Albums during their marriage. These albums contained watercolours and drawings documenting their life together and were arranged in chronological order. The albums were dismantled in the early twentieth century and rebound in new volumes with additional items, but a written record of their original contents and arrangement still exists.