The Death of the Earl of Chatham The Death of the Earl of Chatham The Death of the Earl of Chatham is the title of a 1781 oil-on-canvas painting by Boston-born American artist John Singleton Copley. It depicts the collapse of William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham on 7 April 1778, during a debate in the House of Lords on the American War of Independence. Chatham is surrounded by peers of the realm, and the painting contains fifty-five portraits. Lord Chatham was the architect of the British victory in the Seven Years' War (1757–1763), in which Britain won supremacy in America. Although sympathetic to American grievances and
HMS London (1766) HMS London (1766) HMS "London" was a 90-gun second-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 24 May 1766 at Chatham Dockyard. "London" was originally launched as a 90-gun ship, as was standard for second rates at the time, but was later increased to 98-guns when she had eight 12 pounders installed on her quarterdeck. She was Sir Thomas Graves' flagship at the Battle of the Chesapeake in 1781. In the Action of 18 October 1782, she was raked by "Scipion" and had to let her escape. She participated in the Battle of Groix in 1795. Next,