A very great deal of dependence cannot, as a rule, be placed on the form of the flags introduced into their pictures by artists even of the highest rank. When painting flags more attention is frequently given by them to the colour effect desired to be produced than to the accurate drawing of the details. Some instances of unworthy errors in the drawing of national flags may be mentioned. In a painting by Leutze, now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, a representation is shown of "Washington crossing the Delaware, on December 25th, 1776." In this a flag with the stars and stripes is prominently shown, although no such flag had any existence until a year and a half afterwards,[47] an error which has been perpetuated by a copy of this painting on a series of the national bank-notes issued by the United States Government. In the Capitol of the United States at Washington there is a picture of the "Battle of Lake Erie," fought in 1814, in which the flag on Commodore Perry's boat has only thirteen stars and thirteen stripes, although the United States ensign had been changed twenty years before, in 1794, to have fifteen stars and fifteen stripes. On the walls of the Commons Corridor in the British Houses of Parliament at Westminster is a fresco representing the landing of Charles II., in 1660, in which the Union Jack is depicted as having three crosses, the red cross of St. Patrick being included, although it was not entered in the flag until 1801, or 140 years afterwards. [47] The United States national ensign has at the different dates been composed as follows: 1776--The Union Jack of Queen Anne and thirteen stripes. 1777--Thirteen stars and thirteen stripes. 1794--Fifteen stars and fifteen stripes. 1818--Fifteen stars and thirteen stripes. Thereafter an additional star was added as each new State was created out of the western territories, the stripes for the original thirteen colonies remaining the same. 1896--Forty-five stars and thirteen stripes. 1909--Forty-six stars and thirteen stripes. In each of these instances the artist was painting from his imagination, but Vandervelt, who painted the picture from which our illustration of the _Naseby_ is taken, was himself present on the occasion he recorded, and, seeing that he was the most celebrated marine artist of his day, the details of the flags can be taken to be correct. The subsequent proclamation of Charles II., in 1663 (page 89), shows that this flag not only continued to be used on the royal ships, but that also all the merchant ships had adopted it and were flying the "Ensign Red" at the stern in the same way as on the _Naseby_, and thus it was that this flag, having become established by usage as the national ensign, was then confirmed in its position by the proclamation of the King. [Illustration: 21. MEDAL OF CHARLES II., 1665.]