Episode from the famous battle of the Falkland Islands, took place between English and German Navy during WWI on 8.12.1914. it depicts the sinking of the German flagship SMS Scharnhorst after bombing by British battle cruisers  HMS Invincible and HMS Inflexible.

This military work was executed by French painter Charles Malfroy (French, 1862 - 1918 ).

The Battle of the Falkland Islands was a First World War  naval action between the British Royal Navy and Imperial German Navy  on 8 December 1914 in the South Atlantic. The British, after their defeat at the Battle of Coronet  on 1 November, sent a large force to track down and destroy the German cruiser squadron.  The battle is commemorated every year on 8 December in the Falkland Islands as a public holiday. 
Full information about the battle at Falkland Islands see under following link from on-line Wikipedia:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Falkland_Islands

Author of this work, French painter Charles Malfroy (1862 - 1918), a native of Lyon, specialized in views of the Mediterranean harbors, and one of Martigues in particular, he liked to paint along its banks. Martigues, known as the “Venice of Provence”, located on the edge of the Etang de Berre and Caronte Canal, which connects the lake to the Mediterranean, and especially its port then inspired many artists in the mid-nineteenth century, such Raymond_Allègre (1857-1933), Henri Théophile Decanis (1847-1917) and of course Felix Ziem (1821-1911) who established there his workshop. Charles Malfroy himself settled in Martigues his studio, which was taken in the first half of the twentieth century by his son Henry Malfroy. As a follower of the post-impressionist artist Jean-Baptiste Olive (1848-1936), a maritime landscape painter from Marseille, Charles Malfroy was much appreciated for his clear tones and his ability to deal with the Mediterranean light, subtly transposing on his palette the sky and the sea. From Le Havre to Venice, he painted tirelessly in an almost unreal clarity atmospheric effects arising from the merging of these elements.

Literature: "General Artist´s Lexicon " by Thieme/Becker and Benezit. "Dictionary of painters, sculptors, decorators and etchers"(in French), Paris, 1999.

Inscription: signed lower left, on the backside of the canvas mounted original label with the French description ( probably by the painting's author) about this battle episode ( difficult to read). 

Technique: framed oil on canvas/cardboard. 

Measurements: unframed w 28" x h 16 1/8" (71,3 x 41 cm), w 30 7/8" x h 19 1/8" (78,5 x 48,5 cm).

Condition: in very good condition.