Half length, to the right; in blue. His left hand is on his hip, his right has a bâton. This is the famous admiral in the reign of William and Mary, who gained the victory of La Hogue against the French fleet under Tourville. This portrait is one of the series of admirals painted for William III. 242 Portrait of General Spalken (_910_) . . . . . _unnamed._ Three-quarters in length. Bareheaded, with grey hair. His right arm rests on a table, on which is his cocked hat; his left is in his belt. He wears a general's uniform, a red coat with blue facings, a long white waistcoat with brass buttons, and white breeches. I can find nothing about Spalken. 243 Admiral Sir Thomas Dilks (_9_) . . . . . _After Kneller by_ BOCKMAN. This is the hero of a brilliant action in Cancalli Bay in 1703, when a small English squadron attacked a fleet of forty-three French merchantmen with three men-of-war, and captured them all. 244 Admiral Sir Stafford Fairbourne (_18_) . . . . . _After Kneller by_ BOCKMAN. Lived in the reigns of William III. and Anne. 245 Admiral Sir John Gradin (_8_) . . . . . _After Kneller by_ BOCKMAN. Served in the reign of Queen Anne, and was dismissed for over-caution. 246 Admiral Beaumont (_1_) . . . . . _After Dahl by_ BOCKMAN. He perished on the Goodwin Sands in the great storm "such as of late o'er pale Britannia passed," in 1703. =King's Grand Staircase.= Sir Christopher Wren was the original builder of this staircase, although Kent's name has usually alone been associated with it. To the great architect, however, we certainly owe the "shell" of the building, its proportions, the black marble steps, the black and white chequered marble on the landings, and the fine balustrade of wrought iron. This ironwork was doubtless designed by Jean Tijou, whose name we have found in the contemporary accounts relating to this palace, and in whose style the design certainly is. As to the stair-treads, it is worthy of note that in an estimate of Wren's for the completion of the King's Great Staircase at Hampton Court, in 1699, he proposed that they should be made "of Irish stone such as are at Kensington, but longer and easier," which, in fact, they are. In King William's time the windows must have been of a different type to those now here, which are in the style of Kent. As to the walls, they were then probably painted with simple ornaments. Among the Kensington accounts for the year 1692, we have found the following record of a payment relating to such work: "To Robt. Streeter, Serg^{t} Painter, for japanning, gilding and painting several Roomes and Lodgings in the said Pallace, painting severall staircase, and the Guard Chamber, and other places in and about the said Pallace--£3,599." Kent's Alterations in the King's Grand Staircase.