Europe is in the centre of the painting, holding her terrified horse by the harness. She is armed, has a crown on her knees and there are standards behind her. A horn of plenty has been tipped over in the foreground. Europe is watching with alarm as Mars carries away the escutcheon of the city of Maastricht, which is vainly defending it. In the background, four Victories can be distinguished holding the escutcheons of other cities taken by the French royal armies during the campaign of 1672 that preceded the taking of Maastricht: Zutphen, Nijmegen, Utrecht and Worms. Lastly, on the right, two Americans bear testimony to French naval victories on the coast of America.
Full title : The King takes Maastricht in thirteen days, 1673