The Rout in Trafalgar Bay
(1805)
“_Thank God, I have done my duty._”
NELSON.
The 21st October 1805 is a red-letter day in the history of England.
Dawn had scarcely succeeded night ere Nelson was up and doing. He wore
his Admiral’s frock-coat, the only decoration being four stars of
different Orders which were pinned on his left breast. “In honour I
gained them,” he said, “and in honour I will die with them.” He had not
buckled on his sword, and this is the only action he fought without it.
The previous night Villeneuve had signalled for the columns of his
fighting squadron to form in close line of battle without regard
to priority of place, his former intention having been to give the
three-deckers the more important positions. Captain Lucas of the
_Redoutable_ states that the ships “were all widely scattered” in
consequence of this order. “The ships of the battle squadron and
those of the squadron of observation were all mixed up,” although
the commanders of the latter did their best to get into something
approaching order.
Early the following morning--the glorious 21st--the French Admiral
signalled to “clear for action!” and in response to the _Hermione’s_
message, “The enemy number twenty-seven sail-of-the-line,” he ordered
each ship to leave but one cable’s length between its immediate
neighbour. They were now on the starboard tack. Almost before these
instructions had been completely carried out Villeneuve decided to
alter their position, signalling them to form in line of battle on the
port tack. The manœuvre was not easily effected. The wind was light,
with a heavy swell, many ships missed their station, and there were
several gaps and groups of ships along the line instead of vessels
at regular intervals. The newly-formed line was consequently very
irregular and almost crescent-shaped. Villeneuve, prudent to a fault,
wished to have Cadiz harbour under his lee; he was apparently already
lending his mind to thoughts of disaster.
Gravina, with the twelve reserve ships, seems to have pursued his own
tactics. Instead of keeping to windward of the line, so that he might
bring succour to Villeneuve if need should arise, the Vice-Admiral
“moved to the rear to prolong the line”--now extending some five
miles--“without having been signalled to do so.” Whether Villeneuve
took particular notice of this false move at the time is uncertain,
but later, on his attempt to get his colleague to take up the position
previously arranged for him and which would have enabled Gravina “to
reinforce the centre of the line against the attack of the enemy,” no
attention was paid to the command. Never was there a more fatal error
of policy. Had the Spanish Admiral been able to bring twelve ships to
bear upon the battle when it was at its height he might have rendered
valuable assistance.
Scarcely less reprehensible was the behaviour of Rear-Admiral Dumanoir
Le Pelley, who with ten ships fell to leeward and formed a rear
squadron.[70] Not until it was too late did he attempt to take any part
in the battle.
The British fleet was formed into two columns, eleven ships following
the _Victory_ (100), and fourteen in the rear of the _Royal Sovereign_
(100), under Collingwood. Nelson’s idea was to bear down upon the
enemy with these two divisions and break the centre of the combined
fleet in two places at once, Nelson leading the weather line, and
Collingwood the lee. While Villeneuve was issuing his last order before
the struggle, “Every ship which is not in action is not at its post,”
the British Commander-in-chief was committing to paper the following
prayer:
“May the great God whom I worship grant to my country and for the
benefit of Europe in general a great and glorious victory, and may no
misconduct in anyone tarnish it; and may humanity after victory be the
predominant feature in the British fleet! For myself individually, I
commit my life to Him that made me, and may His blessing alight on my
endeavours for serving my country faithfully. To Him I resign myself
and the just cause which is entrusted me to defend.”
Nelson also made his will, heading it, “October 21st 1805, then in
sight of the Combined Fleets of France and Spain, distant about ten
miles.” Blackwood and Hardy attached their signatures as witnesses. He
left Emma, Lady Hamilton, “a legacy to my King and country, that they
will give her an ample provision to maintain her rank in life. I also
leave to the beneficence of my country my adopted daughter, Horatia
Nelson Thompson; and I desire she will use in future the name of Nelson
only.”
[Illustration: Hoisting the Famous Signal
C. M. Padday]
Blackwood had gone on board the flag-ship at six o’clock in the
morning, and found the admiral “in good, but very calm spirits.” He
tells us in his “Memoirs” that “during the five hours and a half that
I remained on board the _Victory_, in which I was not ten minutes from
his side, he frequently asked me, ‘What I should consider a victory?’
the certainty of which he never for an instant seemed to doubt,
although, from the situation of the land, he questioned the possibility
of the subsequent preservation of the prizes. My answer was, that
considering the handsome way in which battle was offered by the enemy,
their apparent determination for a fair trial of strength, and the
proximity of the land, I thought if fourteen ships were captured, it
would be a glorious result; to which he always replied, ‘I shall not,
Blackwood, be satisfied with anything short of twenty.’ A telegraphic
signal had been made by him to denote, ‘that he intended to break
through the rear of the enemy’s line, to prevent them getting into
Cadiz.’ I was walking with him on the poop, when he said, ‘I’ll now
amuse the fleet with a signal;’ and he asked me ‘if I did not think
there was one yet wanting?’ I answered, that I thought the whole of
the fleet seemed very clearly to understand what they were about, and
to vie with each other who should first get nearest to the _Victory_
or _Royal Sovereign_. These words were scarcely uttered, when his last
well-known signal was made, ‘ENGLAND EXPECTS EVERY MAN WILL DO HIS
DUTY.’ The shout with which it was received throughout the fleet was
truly sublime. ‘Now,’ said Lord Nelson, ‘I can do no more. We must
trust to the Great Disposer of all events, and justice of our cause. I
thank God for this great opportunity of doing my duty.’”
It has been pointed out that Blackwood is wrong in the matter of
the cheer “throughout the fleet,” for several of the crews were not
informed as to the purport of the signal. The Admiral’s first idea was
to flag “Nelson confides that every man will do his duty.” Captain
Blackwood suggested “England” in place of “Nelson,” which the Admiral
told Pasco, the signal officer, to hoist, adding that he “must be
quick” as he had “one more signal to make, which is for close action.”
“Then, your Lordship,” ventured Pasco, “if you will permit me to
substitute ‘expects’ for ‘confides’ the signal can be more quickly
completed, because we have ‘expects’ in the vocabulary, while
‘confides’ must be spelled.” The code-book therefore won the day, and
a message which has inspired the Navy for over a century was soon
floating on the breeze.
In this connection there is a tradition that a Scottish sailor
complained to a fellow-countryman: “Not a word o’ puir auld Scotland.”
“Hoots, Sandy,” answered his comrade, “the Admiral kens that every
Scotsman will do his duty. He’s just giving the Englishers a hint.”
To continue Blackwood’s narrative: “The wind was light from the S.W.,
and a long swell was setting into the Bay of Cadiz, so that our ships,
like sovereigns of the ocean, moved majestically before it; every one
crowding all the sail that was possible, and falling into her station
according to her rate of going. The enemy wore at about seven o’clock,
and then stood in a close line on the larboard tack towards Cadiz. At
that time the sun shone bright on their sails; and from the number of
three-deckers amongst them, they made a most formidable appearance;
but this, so far from appalling our brave countrymen, induced them to
observe to each other, ‘what a fine sight those ships would make at
Spithead.’[71] About ten o’clock, Lord Nelson’s anxiety to close with
the enemy became very apparent. He frequently remarked to me, that they
put a good face upon it; but always quickly added, ‘I’ll give them such
a dressing as they never had before,’ regretting at the same time the
vicinity of the land. At that critical moment I ventured to represent
to his lordship the value of such a life as his, and particularly in
the present battle; and I proposed hoisting his flag in the _Euryalus_,
whence he could better see what was going on, as well as what to order
in case of necessity. But he would not hear of it, and gave as his
reason the force of example; and probably he was right.”
A sailor who rejoiced in the nickname of Jack Nasty-Face gives us an
excellent view of the proceedings as the sail-of-the-line were got
ready for action: “During this time each ship was making the usual
preparations, such as breaking away the captain and officers’ cabins,
and sending the lumber below--the doctors, parson, purser, and loblolly
men were also busy, getting the medicine chests and bandages and sails
prepared for the wounded to be placed on, that they might be dressed
in rotation as they were taken down to the after-cockpit. In such
bustling, and, it may be said, trying as well as serious time, it is
curious to notice the different dispositions of the British sailor.
Some would be offering a guinea for a glass of grog, while others
were making a sort of mutual verbal will--such as, if one of Johnny
Crapeau’s shots (a term given to the French) knocks my head off, you
will take all my effects; and if you are killed, and I am not, why, I
will have yours; and this is generally agreed to....”
Another intimate word-picture of what happened just before the contest
of giants began is furnished by General Sir S. B. Ellis, K.C.B., who
was a second lieutenant of Marines in the _Ajax_. “I was sent below
with orders,” he writes, “and was much struck with the preparations
made by the bluejackets, the majority of whom were stripped to the
waist; a handkerchief was tightly bound round their heads and over the
eyes, to deaden the noise of the cannon, many men being deaf for days
after an action. The men were variously occupied; some were sharpening
their cutlasses, others polishing the guns, as though an inspection
were about to take place instead of a mortal combat, whilst three or
four, as if in mere bravado, were dancing a hornpipe; but all seemed
deeply anxious to come to close quarters with the enemy. Occasionally
they would look out of the ports, and speculate as to the various ships
of the enemy, many of which had been on former occasions engaged by our
vessels.”
At about noon the first shot was fired. It came from the _Fougueux_, a
French ship of 74 guns, under the command of Captain Louis Baudoin.
The _Royal Sovereign_, with the _Belleisle_ (74), _Mars_ (74), and
_Tonnant_ (80) just behind her, forged ahead. Nelson had signalled
Collingwood to break the enemy’s line at the twelfth ship from the
rear, but on seeing that she was only a two-decker Collingwood changed
his course and steered straight for the _Santa Ana_, a huge Spanish
ship of 112 guns, commanded by Vice-Admiral Alava. The _Fougueux_
(74) then came up and endeavoured to prevent Collingwood from getting
through the line. This caused the English Admiral to order his captain
to make a target of the bowsprit of the Frenchman and steer straight
for it. Fortunately for the enemy she altered her course, but although
she saved herself she did not prevent the _Royal Sovereign_ from
breaking the line.
Collingwood was in his element; his usual silent ways gave place to
enthusiasm. “What would Nelson give to be here!” he observed, the
while his double-shotted guns were hurling death into the hold of his
adversary and raking her fore and aft. A broadside and a half tore down
the huge stern gallery of the _Santa Ana_ (112), and killed and wounded
a number of her crew, all of whom showed by deed and daring that they
were worthy of their famous ancestors.
Both ships were soon in a pitiable condition, but they hugged each
other in a last desperate struggle. A terrific cannonade ensued, the
_Fougueux_ and the _San Leandro_ (64) raking the _Royal Sovereign_, and
the _San Justo_ (74) and _Indomptable_ (80) lending their assistance
some distance away, although it was difficult for them to distinguish
between the two chief contestants, so dense was the smoke from the
guns. Some fifteen or twenty minutes after Collingwood had maintained
the unequal contest alone, several British ships came up and paid
attention to those of the enemy which had gone to Alava’s assistance.
At about a quarter past two the mammoth _Santa Ana_ struck her flag.
On the captain delivering up his sword as deputy for the Vice-Admiral,
who lay dreadfully wounded, he remarked that he thought the conquering
vessel should be called the _Royal Devil_!
[Illustration: Nelson and Collingwood cutting the Enemy’s Lines at
Trafalgar
H. C. Seppings Wright]
Nelson, steering two points more to the north than Collingwood,
so as to cut off the enemy’s way of retreat to Cadiz, came up about
half an hour after the latter had begun his engagement. As the stately
flagship entered the zone of fire a number of Villeneuve’s vessels
poured a perfect avalanche of shot upon her decks. Down went a score
or more of brave fellows, the wheel was smashed, necessitating the
ship being steered in the gun-room, and a topmast dropped on the deck
from aloft. A shot struck one of the launches, a splinter tearing a
buckle from one of the shoes of either Nelson or Hardy, which is not
quite clear. “They both,” writes Doctor Beatty, in his “Narrative,”
“instantly stopped, and were observed by the officers on deck to
survey each other with inquiring looks, each supposing the other to be
wounded. His Lordship then smiled and said, ‘This is too warm work,
Hardy, to last long’; and declared that, through all the battles he had
been in, he had never witnessed more cool courage than was displayed by
the _Victory’s_ crew on this occasion.”
Steering for the _Santissima Trinidad_ (130), at that time the biggest
floating arsenal ever built in Europe, Nelson sought to engage her,
but an alteration in position precluded this, and he tackled the
_Bucentaure_ (80), Villeneuve’s flagship. The French Admiral was at
last face to face with the man whose spirit had haunted him since he
assumed command.
Crash went the 68-pounder carronade into the 80-gun Frenchman, and down
came the greater part of the _Bucentaure’s_ stern. The _Victory_ then
grappled with the _Redoutable_, at the same time receiving a hurricane
of fire from the French _Neptuno_ (80).
Up in the fighting-tops of the _Redoutable_ (74) were riflemen trying
to pick off the officers of the _Victory_. One marksman, a little
keener sighted or more fortunately placed than the others, saw Nelson
walking up and down with Hardy. There was a flash of fire, a sharp
crack as the bullet sped through the air, and the master mariner of
England, of the world, of all time, fell in a heap upon the deck.
The fatal ball entered his left shoulder by the edge of the epaulet,
cut through the spine, and finally buried itself in the muscles of the
back.
Three fellows rushed forward to his assistance.
“They have done for me at last, Hardy,” he murmured, as they carried
him below.
“I hope not,” was the Captain’s reply, not knowing the extent of
Nelson’s injuries, and probably thinking that it might be possible to
remove the missile.
“Yes, my backbone is shot through,” and then Nelson placed a
handkerchief over his face that the crew might not know who formed the
central figure of the solemn little procession. Some sailors on the
_Santissima Trinidad_, however, could see from the stars on his coat
that an important officer had fallen, and cheered.
They laid him in a midshipman’s berth in the dimly-lit cockpit. He
looked into the face of Death as he had looked into the face of the
enemy, without flinching but not without hope. Sometimes a sentence
would escape his lips. “Ah, Mr Beatty,” he said to the surgeon, “you
can do nothing for me; my back is shot through,” and to Dr Scott, the
chaplain, “Doctor, I am gone: I have to leave Lady Hamilton and my
daughter Horatia as a legacy to my country.”
Very little relief could be afforded him. He sipped lemonade
frequently, his breast was rubbed, and constant fanning helped to
soothe his agonies a little. Nelson sent for Hardy, whom he valued as
an able officer and friend, but as the Captain could not leave his post
at once the dying man feared for his safety. “Will no one bring Hardy
to me? He must be killed! He is surely dead!”
The cheers of the British tars were borne down to the cockpit as often
as an enemy’s ship struck her flag, and a smile played over the pallid
features. At last Hardy appeared and took his chief’s hand. “How goes
the day with us?” was the eager question.
“Very well, my Lord. We have taken twelve or fourteen ships; but five
of their van have tacked and mean to bear down on us; but I have called
two or three of our fresh ships round, and have no doubt of giving them
a drubbing.”
“I hope none of _our_ ships have struck?” Nelson hastened to ask,
seeing that Hardy was anxious to return to his post.
“There is no fear of that,” was the reassuring answer.
Hardy, unable to restrain his tears, ascended the companion ladder. As
the guns were fired into the passing squadron of Rear-Admiral Dumanoir,
the ship shook violently, thereby causing the dying man intense agony.
“Oh, _Victory_, _Victory_,” he cried, “how you distract my poor brain,”
followed by “how dear is life to all men.” Then his wandering thoughts
turned homeward, and the memory of happy hours at Merton made him add,
“Yet one would like to live a little longer, too.” Hardy again entered
the cockpit with the good news that fourteen or fifteen ships had
struck. “That is well,” Nelson breathed, “but I bargained for twenty.
Anchor, Hardy, anchor.” The Captain then asked whether Collingwood
should not take the post of Commander-in-chief. The Admiral answered
with all the force he could muster, “Not whilst I live, Hardy--no other
man shall command whilst I live. Anchor, Hardy, anchor; if I live I’ll
anchor.”
Nelson was sinking: the moment for taking his long farewell of his
Captain had come. “Don’t throw me overboard, Hardy. Take care of my
dear Lady Hamilton; take care of poor Lady Hamilton. Kiss me, Hardy.”
As the sorrowful officer bent over him consciousness began to fade.
“Who is that?” he asked. On being told that it was Hardy, he whispered,
“God bless you, Hardy.”
His life flickered like the candle fixed on the beam above, and then
slowly went out. He murmured that he wished he had not left the deck,
that he had _not_ been a _great_ sinner, and said with deliberation,
“Thank God, I have done my duty.” “God and my country” were the last
words heard by the sorrowful little group gathered round their beloved
master. In the arms of Mr Walter Burke, the purser of the ship, Nelson
lay dead.
And above, the heavy guns thundered a funeral dirge.
As we have already seen, the _Victory_ was engaged in a duel with the
_Redoutable_ when Nelson received his death wound. For a short period
the Frenchman did not return the fire, and thinking that Captain Lucas
was about to surrender, the _Victory’s_ guns also kept silence. But
the interval had been used for another purpose. The French crew were
swarming over the bulwarks of the British flagship, climbing chains,
and even clambering over the anchor in their attempt to get on board. A
desperate resistance was offered, Captain Adair was killed by a musket
ball, as well as eighteen marines and twenty seamen.
Help came from a sister ship. The _Téméraire_ (98)--the fighting
_Téméraire_ of Turner’s glorious picture--was now astern of the
_Redoutable_. Had she possessed the machine guns of to-day she could
hardly have swept the decks of the enemy with more deadly effect. The
men who were attempting to board went down like ninepins. The carnage
was awful; the sight sickening. When the smoke cleared, little heaps of
corpses were seen piled up on the decks, while the bodies of other poor
fellows floated on the sea, now tinged with the blood of victor and
vanquished. Five hundred and twenty-two of the _Redoutable’s_ crew fell
that day before she struck her colours.
[Illustration: The Battle of Trafalgar (the “Victory” in centre of
foreground)
W. L. Wyllie, A.R.A.
=By permission of the Art Union of London, 112 Strand, Publishers of
the Etching=]
The _Bucentaure_ and the _Santissima Trinidad_ were together throughout
the battle and received a succession of attacks from various ships
until they surrendered. Both of them were then little more than
dismasted hulks. Villeneuve fought with the strength of despair,
but the case was hopeless, and resistance only prolonged the agony.
No assistance came to him despite his frantic efforts to attract
attention. “My part in the _Bucentaure_ is finished!” he cried at last,
and so the gallant but weak-willed officer was taken.
In appearance Villeneuve was “a tallish, thin man, a very tranquil,
placid, English-looking Frenchman; he wore a long-tailed uniform coat,
high and flat collar, corduroy pantaloons of a greenish colour, with
stripes two inches wide, half-boots with sharp toes, and a watch-chain
with long gold links.”[72]
Other ships surrendered as the day wore on, the _Algéçiras_ (74) to
the _Tonnant_ (80), the _Swiftsure_ (74) and the _Bahama_ (74) to the
_Colossus_ (74), the _San Juan Nepomuceno_ (74) to the _Dreadnought_
(98). Eighteen ships of the Allied Fleet were captured; one, the
_Achille_ (74), blew up with a terrific explosion.
The _Victory_ had been roughly handled by her adversaries. In Hardy’s
report of the 5th December 1805, he says:
“The hull is much damaged by shot in a number of different places,
particularly in the wales, strings, and spurketing, and some between
wind and water. Several beams, knees, and riders, shot through and
broke; the starboard cathead shot away; the rails and timbers of the
head and stem cut by shot, and the falling of the mizen-mast; the
principal part of the bulkheads, halfports, and portsashes thrown
overboard in clearing ship for action.
“The mizen-mast shot away about 9 feet above the deck; the main-mast
shot through and sprung; the main-yard gone; the main-topmast and cap
shot in different places and reefed; the main-topsail yard shot away;
the foremast shot through in a number of different places, and is at
present supported by a topmast, and a part of the topsail and crossjack
yards; the fore-yard shot away; the bowsprit jibboom and cap shot, and
the spritsail and spritsail topsail yards, and flying jibboom gone;
the fore and main-tops damaged; the whole of the spare topmast yards,
handmast, and fishes in different places, and converted into jury geer.
“The ship makes in bad weather 12 inches water an hour.”[73]
At five o’clock Gravina made the signal for retreat. What a sorry lot
they were, those eleven ships--six Spanish and five French--which with
their consorts had attempted to dethrone the Mistress of the Seas.
Another four under the command of Dumanoir had also made good their
escape, but only to be captured off Cape Ortegal on November 4th, by
Sir Richard Strachan.
An eye-witness on board the _Belleisle_ graphically describes the
scene after the last shot had been fired: “The view of the fleet at
this period was highly interesting, and would have formed a beautiful
subject for a painter. Just under the setting rays were five or six
dismantled prizes; on one hand lay the _Victory_ with part of our fleet
and prizes, and on the left hand the _Royal Sovereign_ and a similar
cluster of ships. To the northward, the remnant of the combined fleets
was making for Cadiz. The _Achille_, with the tricoloured ensign still
displayed, had burnt to the water’s edge about a mile from us, and our
tenders and boats were using every effort to save the brave fellows who
had so gloriously defended her; but only two hundred and fifty were
rescued, and she blew up with a tremendous explosion.”
The battle was over, but much yet remained to be done. Eighteen
sail-of-the-line of the Allied Fleet had struck their flag, and it
was Collingwood’s difficult task to secure the prizes. “A continued
series of misfortunes,” to use the Admiral’s own words, “... of a kind
that human prudence could not possibly provide against, or my skill
prevent,” alone precluded him from keeping more than four trophies of
Trafalgar.
“On the 22nd, in the morning,” he states in a despatch to the
Admiralty, “a strong southerly wind blew, with squally weather, which,
however, did not prevent the activity of the officers and seamen of
such ships as were manageable from getting hold of many of the prizes
(thirteen or fourteen), and towing them off to the westward, where I
ordered them to rendezvous round the _Royal Sovereign_, in tow by the
_Neptune_. But on the 23rd the gale increased, and the sea ran so high
that many of them broke the tow-rope, and drifted far to leeward before
they were got hold of again; and some of them, taking advantage of
the dark and boisterous night, got before the wind, and have perhaps
drifted upon the shore and sunk. On the afternoon of that day, the
remnant of the combined fleet, ten sail of ships,[74] which had not
been much engaged, stood up to leeward of my shattered and straggling
charge, as if meaning to attack them, which obliged me to collect a
force out of the least injured ships, and form to leeward for their
defence. All this retarded the progress of the hulks; and the bad
weather continuing, determined me to destroy all the leewardmost that
could be cleared of the men, considering that keeping possession of the
ships was a matter of little consequence, compared with the chance of
their falling again into the hands of the enemy; but even this was an
arduous task in the high sea which was running. I hope, however, it has
been accomplished to a considerable extent. I intrusted it to skilful
officers, who would spare no pains to execute what was possible. The
Captains of the _Prince_ and _Neptune_ cleared the _Trinidad_, and sunk
her. Captains Hope, Bayntun, and Malcolm, who joined the fleet this
morning, from Gibraltar, had the charge of destroying four others. The
_Redoutable_ sunk astern of the _Swiftsure_, while in tow. The _Santa
Ana_ I have no doubt is sunk, as her side is almost entirely beat in;
and such is the shattered condition of the whole of them, that, unless
the weather moderates, I doubt whether I shall be able to carry a ship
of them into port....”
In a later letter Collingwood says, “There never was such a combat
since England had a fleet.” Three of the prizes, the _Santa Ana_, the
_Neptuno_, and the _Algéçiras_ escaped in the gale and entered Cadiz
harbour, the former two having been retaken by Cosmao Kerjulien, who
lost three ships over the transaction. The _Swiftsure_ (French), the
_San Ildefonso_, the _San Juan Nepomuceno_, and the _Bahama_ were the
only Trafalgar prizes saved; these were taken to Gibraltar.
Villeneuve was sent to England and afterwards exchanged, Alava was
fortunate enough to reach Cadiz on board the shattered _Santa Ana_.
Although severely wounded, he recovered and lived for many years.
Cisneros, after a gallant resistance, also escaped, and was promoted
Vice-Admiral in return for his distinguished services, later taking
up the important positions of Captain-General and Minister of Marine.
Magon, who fought his flagship the _Algéçiras_ until he was struck dead
after receiving several wounds, is one of the most glorious names in
the naval annals of France. Three officers in turn were dangerously
wounded before the tattered flag of the battered hulk was finally
lowered. Of the other admirals, Cosmao retook the _Santa Ana_ and the
_Neptuno_, already noted, Dumanoir was court-martialed, and Gravina
succumbed to his wounds as these words formed themselves on his almost
nerveless lips: “I am a dying man, but I die happy; I am going, I hope
and trust, to join Nelson, the greatest hero that the world perhaps has
produced.”[75] Escano was injured in the leg, but reached Spain safely.
Napoleon’s officers paid dearly for the fight in Trafalgar Bay, but
Villeneuve was the scapegoat of Napoleon’s ambition. On his return to
France he took his own life.
[Illustration: How the news of Trafalgar was carried to London
Frank Dadd, R.I., from a sketch by C. W. Cole]
Collingwood gave the number of prisoners as 20,000, and the monetary
loss of the enemy nearly £4,000,000, “most of it gone to the bottom.”
The British loss was 1690 killed and wounded; that of the allies 5860,
although no exact figures are obtainable. The captives were taken
to England, and the officers allowed on parole, but the seamen and
soldiers of the extinguished Allied Fleet were sent to the prisons of
Porchester, Forton, Weedon, Norman Cross, Mill Bay, and Stapleton,
locked up in local gaols, or interned in hulks. By a cruel fate the
_Bahama_ and the _Swiftsure_ were added to the number of the latter.
Few exchanges were made, and so the poor fellows either died in exile
or remained until the downfall of Napoleon secured them liberty.
Thus ended the battle of Trafalgar--Napoleon’s maritime Waterloo. The
idea of a great military commander conducting operations at sea was
proved to be impracticable, while the superior qualities of British
seamanship were once more evident. The method of warfare practised
by the combined fleet, that of aiming at the rigging and picking
off combatants by sharp-shooting, was less successful than our own
principle of aiming at the vital parts of the hull. Whereas the British
succeeded in firing a gun nearly once a minute, it took three minutes
for the Allied Fleet to do so. The total armament on the English
vessels numbered 2148 guns, while the French had 1356, and the Spanish
1270, bringing the combined force to 2626.
Great Britain gained enormously in prestige as a result of Nelson’s
overwhelming victory. Amongst other important consequences Trafalgar
led Napoleon to enforce his disastrous Continental System, by means
of which he hoped to exclude from the Continent the goods of his
persistent enemy. This, in its turn, brought on the war with Russia, a
big step towards the final catastrophe of Waterloo.
More than two weeks passed before the people of England received
certain intelligence of the great rout of the enemy in Trafalgar Bay.
On the 6th November 1805, guns at the Tower and elsewhere announced
the victory, and the glad tidings flashed through the length and
breadth of the land--
_The heart of England throbbed from sea to sea._
But, alas! the idol of the nation lay dead in the keeping of his
comrades and sorrowing England could never again greet in life the son
who had loved her so well.
Nelson had touched the imagination of high and low, and only the sad
circumstance of an early death in the moment of glorious victory was
wanted to ensure him the proudest place in all the long annals of
British naval history.
Mr William Canton has written an exquisite poem[76] which well
expresses the mingled feelings of elation and grief with which the
nation received the great news. He imagines a “glittering autumn
morning” in Chester, the Cathedral bells clashing a jubilant peal for
the victory. But while yet the air is filled with the glad tongues of
the joy-bells--
_Hark, in pauses of the revel--sole and slow--
Old St Werburgh swung a heavy note of woe!
Hark, between the jocund peals a single toll,
Stern and muffled, marked the passing of a soul!
English hearts were sad that day as sad could be;
English eyes so filled with tears they scarce could see;
And all the joy was dashed with grief in ancient Chester on the Dee!_
After Nelson’s remains had been embalmed at Gibraltar they were
conveyed in the _Victory_ to Portsmouth, which was reached on the
2nd December 1805. In the early days of the New Year there was a
lying-in-state in the beautiful Painted Hall of Greenwich Hospital, but
comparatively few of the many thousands of people who wished to pay a
last tribute of respect to the Admiral’s memory were able to do so.
The coffin, made out of the mainmast of the famous _l’Orient_ which
blew up at the Nile, enclosed in an outer case, was then removed to the
Admiralty, where it remained until the 9th January 1806, the day of
the public funeral. The Prince of Wales, Dukes of the realm, prelates,
statesmen, admirals, aristocrats and plebeians crowded into St Paul’s
Cathedral, a fitting shrine for the dust of the greatest sailor of the
country--
_Whose flag has braved a thousand years
The battle and the breeze._
An Earldom was conferred upon the Rev. William Nelson, a large sum
of money was voted by Parliament for the purchase of an estate to
be named after Trafalgar, and certain monies were given to the dead
Admiral’s two sisters. By such means the country sought to discharge
its heavy debt to the glorious memory of Nelson. Nothing was done for
Lady Hamilton, and although, at the time of Nelson’s death, her income
amounted to about £2000 a year she died in very reduced circumstances
at Calais in the year of Waterloo. Her daughter, and in all probability
Nelson’s, was married on the 24th February 1822 at Burnham, Norfolk,
to the Rev. Phillip Ward, M.A. She is described as both witty and
fascinating, and her portrait by Sir William Charles Ross makes one
believe that she was so.
More than a century has passed since the great battle was fought “in
Trafalgar’s Bay,” but the memory of the little, one-eyed, one-armed
man is still treasured by those who believe, as he believed, that the
strength of Great Britain rests upon her command of the sea.
_For he is England’s admiral,
Till setting of her sun._
Index of Proper Names
Aboukir Bay, 102, 103
Acre, Siege of, 146
Acton, Sir John, 55, 119, 137, 141, 149, 216
Adair, Captain, 242
_Achille_, the, 244
Addington, 176, 180, 192, 196, 201, 204, 212
_Aigle_, the, 203, 204, 209
_Admiral Barrington_, the, 40
Africa, 46, 145
_Agamemnon_, the, 53, 54, 55, 56, 60, 61, 64, 66, 67, 68, 69,
70, 169, 172
Ajaccio, 98, 201, 216
_Ajax_, the, 228, 237
Alava, Vice-Admiral, 238
_Albemarle_, the, 36, 37, 38
Albert, Prince, 120, 121
_Alcmene_, the, 118
Alexandria, 100, 101, 103, 110
_Alexander_, the, 98, 106, 121, 130, 149, 153
Alexander I., 180
_Algéçiras_, the, 243
Algeziras, 194
Allemand, 226
Alessandria, 145
Ancona, 156, 157
Ancona, Siege of, 158
Andrews, Miss, 43, 58
Andrews, Lieutenant George, 58
Antigua, 44, 47, 48, 222
Antipodes, the, 201, 220
_Amazon_, the, 173, 187
America, 41, 46, 47
Amiens, Truce of, 196, 209
_Amphion_, the, 198
_Archimedes_, the, 120
Arezzo, 157
Asia, 46
_Audacious_, the, 107
Augereau, 183
Austria, 107, 116, 144
_Badger_, the, 32
_Bahama_, the, 243, 247
Baird, Dr, 192, 200, 211
Ball, Captain Alexander, 98, 106, 116, 121, 128, 133, 181, 197, 201
Barbadoes, 45, 221, 222, 223
Barcelona, 202, 203
_Barfleur_, the, 44, 77, 81, 82
Barras, 146
Barrington, 32
Bastia, 59, 60, 61, 62, 71
Batavia, 198
Batavia, Army of, 183
Bath, 35, 43, 50, 86, 94
Baudoin, Captain Louis, 237
Bavaria, 145
Baynes, Lieutenant, 90
Bayntun, Captain, 221, 245
Beachy Head, 183
Beatty, Dr, 239, 240
_Bedford_, the, 67
_Belleisle_, the, 201, 244, 248
_Bellerophon_, the, 107
_Bellona_, the, 157, 172, 178
Belmonte, Prince, 156
Berry, Captain, 83, 84, 97, 102, 104, 105, 108, 109, 150, 151, 152,
156
Berthier, 115
Bey of Tunis, the, 56
Bickerton, Sir Richard, 38, 50, 197, 226
Boigne, Comtesse de, 126
Birmingham, 196
Blackwood, Captain, 227, 231, 234, 235
_Blanche_, the, 74, 75
Blenheim, 195
_Blenheim_, the, 80, 81
Bonaparte, Napoleon, 57, 97, 145, 187, 192, 213, 218
_Boreas_, the, 44, 46, 49, 50
Borghetto, 69
Boulogne, 183, 184, 185, 186, 189, 200, 209, 215
Bowen, Captain Richard, 93
Box Hill, 182
Brecon, 195
Brereton, Brigadier-General, 222
Brest, 66, 67, 121, 127, 141, 143, 198, 202, 208, 209, 210, 212, 215,
219, 226
Bridport, Admiral Lord, 99
_Bristol_, the, 30
_Britannia_, the, 81
Bronté, 143
Brueys, Admiral, 103, 104, 108
Bruix, 128, 143
_Bucentaure_, the, 239, 242
Burke, Walter, 242
Burgh, de, Lieutenant-General, 76
Burnham Thorpe, 20, 43, 50
Bussorah, 29
Byron, Admiral, 31
Cadiz, 54, 55, 77, 79, 87, 88, 89, 96, 128, 143, 201, 203, 204, 209,
210, 213, 214, 218, 220, 222, 223, 226, 230, 231, 233-236, 239,
245
Cadogan, Mrs, 157, 160
Cagliari, 56, 216
Caimakan Pacha, the, 151
_Ça-Ira_, the, 66, 67
Calabria, 121
Calais, 183, 186
Campbell, Rear-Admiral, 202, 210, 214
Campbell, Commodore Donald, 221
Canada, 24
Candia, 109, 200
_Canopus_, the, 201
Canterbury, 23
Canton, William, 248
_Captain_, the, 67, 70, 78, 80, 81, 82, 83, 85, 88
Capaci, 158
Capraja, island of, 72
Capri, 120, 125
Capua, 126, 139, 141
Capua, Siege of, 140
Caracciolo, Commodore, 110, 123, 126, 135, 136, 138
_Carcass_, the, 25, 26, 27
Carlyle, 31
Caroline, Queen, 126, 153, 154
Carthagena, 76, 141, 143
Caserta, 126
Castel San Giovanni, 157
Cayenne, 215
_Censeur_, the, 67
_Ceres_, the, 74, 75
Chatham, 23, 24, 25
Chatham, First Earl of, 188
Chatham, Second Earl of, 51
Cherasco, 71
Chesterfield, Lord, 52
Chevalier de Michaud, 32
Choiseul, 31
Cisneros, 246
Civita Vecchia, 98, 144
Clarence, Duke of, 90, 95, 126
Cochrane, 221, 223
Cockburn, Captain, 74
Collingwood, Captain, 35, 78, 79, 81, 82, 85, 196, 218, 223, 226,
228, 233, 234, 237, 238, 239, 244, 246
Colomb, Admiral, 12
_Colossus_, the, 85, 231, 243
Colpoys, Sir John, 198
_Concepcion_, the, 54
Constantinople, 126, 146
Copenhagen, 165, 167, 168, 169, 171, 179, 181, 194
Copenhagen, battle of, 168, 171, 180, 181
Cordova, Don Josef de, 77
Corfu, 103, 109, 198
Cornwallis, Earl, 34, 35
Cornwallis, Sir William, 35, 198, 200, 209, 214, 215, 223, 226
Corsica, 55, 56, 57, 59, 63, 64, 66, 71, 72, 73, 88, 128, 129, 145,
208
Coruña, 53, 202, 203
Cosmao, 246
Cronstadt, 180, 181
_Culloden_, the, 78, 79, 80, 81, 85, 90, 104, 118, 134, 144
Culverhouse, Lieutenant, 75, 76
Dacres, Captain, 78
Dalling, Sir John, 32, 34
_Dannebrog_, the, 172, 174, 175, 178
D’Aubant, General Abraham, 61, 62
Davison, Alexander, 193, 196, 205
Deal, 184, 191
Decaen, 197
Decrès, 230
_Defence_, the, 176, 231
_Defiance_, the, 178
Dego, 71
Denmark, 34, 163, 164, 167, 180
_Desirée_, the, 172, 178
Despard, Captain, 34
D’Estaing, Count, 31, 32, 33
_Diadem_, the, 80, 82
Diamond Rock, 223
Dieppe, 186
Dixon, Captain Charles, 40
_Dolphin_, the, 29
Dominica, 222, 223
_Donegal_, the, 201, 204
D’Orvilliers, Count, 31
Dover, 184, 185
Downs, the, 99
Draco, 167
_Drake_, the, 40
_Dreadnought_, the, 24, 243
Dresden, 159, 160
Drinkwater, Lieutenant-Colonel, 80
Duckworth, Rear-Admiral, 127, 141
Dumanoir, 229, 241, 244, 246
Dumouriez, 161
Dundas, Lieutenant-General David, 59, 60, 61
Dundonald, Earl of, 155
Dunkirk, 183
_Duquesne_, the, 56
_Egmont_, the, 81
Egypt, 98, 116, 118, 126, 143, 146, 194, 198, 202, 207, 208, 216, 219
Elba, 71, 73, 74, 87, 89, 216
El Arish, Convention of, 147
_Elephant_, the, 167, 168, 171, 172, 173, 174, 176, 178
Ellis, Sir S. B., K.C.B., 237
Elgin, Earl of, 146
Elliot, Sir Gilbert, 70, 71, 75, 85, 100, 206
Elsinore, 37
England, 29, 34, 35, 42, 43, 52, 70, 73, 78, 79, 107, 111, 155, 156,
161, 163, 179, 180, 183, 185, 197, 201, 203, 205, 208, 209,
213, 227, 232, 246
Erskine, Sir James, 144, 148
Essex, 183
Europe, 52, 117, 166, 179, 192, 213, 223
_Euryalus_, the, 228, 231, 236
_Excellent_, the, 78, 81, 82, 83
Fall, the pirate, 37
Farmer, Captain, 29
Fearney, William, 84
Ferdinand, King, 113, 117, 118, 126, 130, 137, 139, 140, 142, 149
Ferguson, Mr, 168
Ferrol, 198, 208, 219, 223, 224, 226
_Ferret_, the, 211
Finland, Gulf of, 181
Fischer, Commodore, 174
Fitchett, Dr, 104
Flanders, 186
Florence, 156, 157
Flushing, 183, 186, 188
Foley, Captain, 173, 177
Foote, Captain, 131, 132
Fornelli, 59
_Fougueux_, the, 237, 238
_Foudroyant_, the, 109, 129, 131, 133, 136, 137, 139, 149, 150,
152, 158, 159
Fox, General, 148
_Fox_, the, 91
France, 24, 31, 34, 41, 52, 53, 58, 68, 71, 73, 115, 116, 127, 145,
147, 163, 189, 192, 197, 198, 200, 202, 209
Frederick, Captain, 80
Frederick the Great, 117
Fremantle, 177
Frere, John Hookham, 204
_Freya_, the, 164
Froude, J. A., 31
Gaeta, 141
Galwey, Lieutenant, 105
_Ganges_, the, 177, 178
Ganteaume, Vice-Admiral, 212, 215, 219, 223, 226
Gardner, Lord, 198
Genoa, 65, 68, 69, 72, 98, 129, 149, 197
George III., 85, 95, 196
Gibraltar, 30, 87, 110, 202, 229, 231, 248
_Glasgow_, the, 32, 33
_Glatton_, the, 174, 178
Gloucester, 195
_Goliath_, the, 81, 104, 118, 130
Gourdon, 219
Gourjean, 65
Gozo, 109
Graham, Brigadier-General, 148
Græme, Admiral, 184
Graves, Admiral, 167, 173
Gravina, 218, 229, 233, 244
Great Britain, 24, 31, 33, 41, 46, 52, 53, 58, 72, 137, 145, 163,
164, 180, 183, 191, 197, 247, 249
Grenville, Lord, 69, 154, 155
Gutierrez, Don Antonio, 93
Haïti, 33
Hallowell (is Carew, Sir Benjamin), 63, 79, 109, 129
Hamburg, 161
Hamilton, Lady, 110, 112, 113, 115, 116, 118, 120, 121, 122, 123,
130, 131, 133, 137, 138, 140, 151, 155, 156, 157, 158, 159,
160, 165, 182, 184, 187, 190, 193, 225, 227, 230, 234, 240,
241, 249
Hamilton, Sir William, 61, 110, 111, 113, 115, 118, 121, 124, 131,
133, 140, 151, 153, 155, 156, 157, 158, 159, 182, 195
Hardy, Thomas, Masterman, etc., 75, 76, 121, 129, 162, 234, 239, 240,
241, 243
Haverfordwest, 195
Haydn, 159
Helvoet, 188
_Hermione_, the, 232
Hières, Islands of, 205, 211
_Hinchinbrook_, the, 33, 34
Hispaniola, 30, 33
Holland, 31, 34, 41, 53, 99, 198
Hood, Lord, 39, 40, 41, 50, 53, 54, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63,
65, 67, 92, 110, 129, 189
Hope, Captain, 118, 119, 245
_Holstein_, the, 172
Hotham, 32, 65, 66, 68, 70
Howe, Lord, 31, 43, 50
Hughes, Sir Richard, 45, 47, 50
Hughes, Sir Edward, 29
Hughes, Lady, 44
Hyde Park, 193
_Inconstant_, the, 66
_Incorruptible_, the, 211
_Indomptable_, the, 238
India, 100
Inman, Captain, 172
_Invincible_, the, 165
Ipswich, 96
Ireland, 77, 108, 202, 209, 223
_Iris_, the, 39
_Irresistible_, the, 80, 81, 82
Ischia, 120, 125
_Isis_, the, 172
Italy, 57, 88, 118, 122, 126, 143, 145, 162, 229
_Jamaica_, the, 169, 172
Jamaica, 30, 32, 33, 34, 35, 221, 223
James II., 75
_Janus_, the, 35
Jervis, Sir John, 69, 70, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 78, 79, 82, 85, 86, 94
(see St Vincent).
Josephine, 49
Juan, Fort San, 34
Keith, Lord, 123, 128, 129, 130, 131, 134, 139, 140, 141, 143, 146,
147, 148, 149, 150, 151, 152, 155, 164, 194, 198
Kent, 183
Keppel, the Hon. Vice-Admiral A., 31
Kiöge Bay, 180, 181
Kléber, 147
Knight, Miss Cornelia, 110, 156, 160, 161
Knight, Sir Joseph, 110, 156
_La Diane_, 107
_La Justice_, 107
_La Minerva_, 136
Langara, 54
_L’Aquilon_, 105
_L’Artemise_, 106
_La Sérieuse_, 106
La Touche Tréville, 189, 190, 209, 210, 211, 213
Laughton, Sir J. Knox, 123, 135, 163
Lauriston, General, 192
_Leander_, the, 100, 109
_Le Conquérant_, 105
_Le Généreux_, 106, 107, 109, 148, 149, 151
Leghorn, 55, 64, 71, 117, 118, 148, 153, 197
_Le Guerrier_, 105
_Le Guillaume Tell_, 106, 107, 150, 156
Leopold, Prince of Salerno, 149
_Le Souverain Peuple_, 105
_Le Spartiate_, 105
_Le Timoleon_, 107
_Le Tonnant_, 107
Levant, the, 202
_L’Heureux_, 105
Lincoln, 33
Lindholm, Adjutant-General, 177
Linzee, Commodore, 56, 57, 59
_Lion_, the, 35, 150
Lisbon, 96
_Lively_, the, 82
Lloyd, Sir Thomas, 32
Locker, William, 30, 33, 35, 46, 51
London, 19, 36, 43, 50, 86, 94, 182, 183, 191, 194
_London_, the, 172, 177, 178
_L’Orient_, 105, 106, 107, 108, 109, 145, 248
Loudon, Field-Marshal, 117
Louis XV. of France, 24, 126
Louis XVI., 53
_Lowestoffe_, the, 30
Lucas, Captain, 232
Lutwidge, Admiral, 25, 27, 183
Macaulay, 53
Mack, General, 117, 119
Macdonald, Marshal, 135
Madalena Islands, 200, 207, 216
Madrid, 204
Magon, Admiral, 229, 246
Mahan, Admiral, 31, 122, 131, 134, 138, 171
Mahon, 148
Malcolm, Captain, 245
_Malta_, the, 150
Malta, 98, 100, 101, 116, 118, 121, 122, 123, 127, 128, 130, 144,
148, 149, 150, 153, 156, 197, 207, 216, 217, 219
Malta, Siege of, 143
Man, Admiral, 203
Mantua, 145
Margate, 184
Marlborough, Duke of, 195
Maria Antoinette, 116
Maria Carolina, Queen, 111, 116
Maria Theresa, 116
Maritimo, 128, 130, 131
Marquis de Niza, 117, 118
Marquis d’Osmond, 126
Marseilles, 201
_Mars_, the, 231
Martinique, 33, 215, 218, 221, 223
McArthur, Mr John, 144
Masséna, 145
_Medusa_, the, 187
_Melpomène_, the, 56
Melville, Lord, 217
_Mercedes_, the, 214
Merton Place, 193, 195, 196, 227, 241
Messer, Captain, 158, 159
Messina, 100, 128, 148
Milford, Duke of, 195
Miller, Captain R. W., 83, 84, 92, 107
Millesimo, 71
_Minerve_, the, 74, 75, 76, 77
Minto, Lord, 149, 151, 225
Minorca, 126, 139, 141, 143, 148
Miomo, 62
Missiessy, Admiral, 215, 218, 223, 226
_Monarch_, the, 172, 176, 178
Mondovi, 71
Monmouth, 195
Moore, Sir John, 53, 58, 59
Montague, Admiral George, 198
Montenotte, battle of, 71
Montreuil, 42
Montserrat, 222
Morea, the, 200, 202, 208, 210, 216
Moreau, 145
Morpeth, 193
Morris, Judge O’Connor, 122
Mortello, tower of, 59
Moseley, Dr, 208
Moutray, Captain, 47
Mulgrave, Lord, 25
Myers, Sir William, 222
_Namur_, the, 81
Naples, 54, 55, 71, 107, 110, 112, 113, 116, 118, 119, 121, 122, 123,
125, 127, 130, 131, 133, 139, 142, 143, 154, 163, 198, 216, 219
Napoleon, 32, 57, 71, 73, 88, 98, 102, 107, 111, 117, 145, 146, 180,
183, 184, 186, 188, 191, 194, 200, 208, 209, 211, 212, 214,
215, 218, 226, 229, 247
Nelson, Catherine, 20
Nelson, Edmund, 20, 23, 143
Nelson, William, 22, 202, 212, 249
_Neptune_, the, 245
_Neptuno_, the, 239, 246
Nevis, 49, 50
Newfoundland, 39
Newhouse, Captain, 110
New York, 39
Nicolas, Sir Harris, 156, 193
Nile, battle of, 102, 142, 148
Nisbet, Josiah, 53, 54, 90, 91, 93
Nisbet, Mrs, 49, 182
Nore, the, 99
_Northumberland_, the, 149
Norfolk, 20, 36, 86, 88, 94
North America, 31
North Walsham, 20, 22
Norwich, 20, 86, 94
Nuovo, fort of, 132, 134
Nova Scotia, 46
Novi, 145
Nuovo, fort of, 132, 134
Otto, M., 191
Oldfield, Captain, 90
Oporto, 127
Orde, Sir John, 214, 220
Orfordness, 183
_Orion_, the, 78, 80, 81, 82
Oxford, 195
Paget, the Hon. A., 153, 154, 155
Palermo, 118, 120, 121, 126, 128, 129, 130, 131, 135, 137, 142, 148,
150, 153, 155, 216
Pantellaria, 216
Paoli, 58
Paris, 98, 145
Parker, Captain, 33, 190, 191
Parker, Lady, 35
Parker, Sir Peter, 30, 32, 35
Parker, Sir Hyde, 70, 80, 81, 164, 166, 167, 168, 178, 180
Parker, Sir William, 100
Parsons, Lieutenant G. S., 77, 78, 80, 136
Pasco, 235
Paul I., 164, 180
_Pegasus_, the, 50
Pellew, 202
_Penelope_, the, 150
Percy, Josceline, 115
Perrée, Rear-Admiral, 149
Petersburg, 126
Pettigrew, 7
Phipps, Captain Constantine John, 26
Piccadilly, 195, 196
Piedmont, 69, 71
Pierson, Lieutenant, 83, 84
Pigot, Captain James, 29
Pisaro, 158
Pitt, William, 52, 53, 180, 213
Plymouth, 37, 50
Polson, Sir John, 35
_Polyphemus_, the, 169
Ponza Islands, 125
Pope, 43
Porqueroles, castle of, 212
Port Mahon, 127, 129, 144
Porto Ferrajo, 71, 73, 76, 87
Port Royal, 33
Portsmouth, 29, 37, 41, 197
Portugal, 73, 107
Prague, 159
Preston, Captain D’Arcy, 75
Prince Regent, the, 177
_Prince George_, the, 80, 81
_Principe d Asturias_, the, 89
Procida, Islands of, 125, 133
_Proselyte_, the, 62
Prussia, 34, 180
Quebec, 39
_Racehorse_, the, 26
_Raisonnable_, the, 23, 24
_Ramilies_, the, 176
Ramsgate, 184
Rathbone, John, 24
_Redoutable_, the, 232, 239, 242, 245
_Revenge_, the, 203
Richery, Admiral, 203
Riou, Captain, 172, 173, 174
Robinson, Captain Mark, 29, 30
Rochefort, 198, 202, 209, 210, 215, 216, 226
Rogers, Samuel, 37
Rogliani, 58
Rome, 117, 144
Romney, 61, 160
Rose, Captain, 172
Rosily, 229
Ross, 195
Ross, Sir William Charles, 249
_Royal Sovereign_, the, 233, 235, 237, 238, 244, 245
Ruffo, Cardinal, 126, 131, 132, 134, 135, 137
_Russell_, the, 169, 172, 178
Russia, 34, 107, 126, 163, 200, 213, 247
_Santissima Trinidad_, the, 77, 78, 80, 84, 239, 240, 242
Sardinia, King of, 115
Sardinia, 55, 56, 71, 129, 201, 207, 212, 216
Saumarez, Captain Sir James, 78, 79, 109, 193
Savannah, 33
Scott, Dr, 240
_Seahorse_, the, 29, 79, 94, 131, 132
Sheerness, 184
Sicily, 100, 122, 127, 131, 139, 148, 150, 198, 207, 216, 219
_Siren_, the, 211
Smith, Sir Sidney, 123, 125, 143, 145, 146, 147
Smith, Spencer, 146
Smyrna, 126
Southey, 7, 138
Southolm, 167
Spain, 24, 31, 32, 33, 41, 72, 73, 89, 99, 199, 203, 204, 242, 246
Spencer, Lord, 100, 113, 124, 126, 134, 139, 140, 141, 145, 152, 155
Spezia, 129, 153
Spithead, 50, 64, 94, 96, 99, 223, 236
St Cyr, General, 208
St George, Mrs, 159
_St George_, the, 164, 165, 167, 178
St Kitts, 48
St Lucia, 32, 222
St Omer, 42
St Vincent (see Jervis), 85, 88, 89, 93, 96, 98, 99, 109, 118, 122,
123, 125, 126, 127, 128, 129, 151, 152, 164, 177, 181, 183,
185, 186, 187, 188, 189, 190, 205
San Domingo, 198, 201, 202
San Fiorenzo, 58, 59, 60, 62, 68
_San Josef_, the, 84, 86, 162
_San Juan Nepomuceno_, the, 243, 246
_San Justo_, the, 238
_San Leandro_, the, 238
_San Nicholas_, the, 84
_Sannite_, the, 120
_Sans Culottes_, the, 67
_Santa Ana_, the, 238, 246
Santa Cruz, 89, 94, 95
_Santa Sabina_, the, 74, 75
Spry, Mr, 35
Staines, 182
Sterne, 42
Stewart, Colonel William, 168
Stirling, Admiral, 223
Strachan, Sir Richard, 201, 203, 244
Stuart, Captain Don Jacobo, 74, 76
Stuart, General, 64
_Success_, the, 149
Suckling, John, 20
Suckling, Captain Maurice, 20, 23, 24, 91
Suckling, William, 36, 43, 56
Suffolk, 183
_Superb_, the, 223, 225
Surrey, 193, 196
Sussex, 183
Suwarrow, 144, 145, 160
Swansea, 195
Sweden, 34, 163, 168, 180
_Swiftsure_, the, 243, 245
Switzerland, 145
Sykes, John, 88
Syracuse, 101, 150
Taranto, 208
_Téméraire_, the, 242
Teneriffe, 89
Tetuan, 220
_Thalia_, the, 110
_Theseus_, the, 88, 91, 94, 107
Thesiger, Captain Sir Frederick, 175, 177
Thompson, Horatia Nelson, 234, 240, 249
_Thunderer_, the, 228
Thurn, Count, 136
Thursfield, James R., 123, 124
Tippoo Saib, 100
Tobago, 221
_Tonnant_, the, 105, 237, 243
Toro, 216, 219
Toulon, 54, 55, 57, 64, 65, 66, 67, 69, 76, 77, 96, 97, 98, 132, 133,
145, 197, 201, 202, 205, 207, 208, 210, 215, 217, 218, 222
Trabaccoli, 157
Trafalgar, 53, 86, 90, 109, 230, 246, 247
Trench, Mrs, 159, 160
Trench, R. C, Archbishop of Dublin, 159
Trieste, 109, 126, 156, 158
_Triumph_, the, 24
Trinidad, 221, 222
Troubridge, Captain, 78, 79, 80, 90, 92, 93, 95, 127, 129, 131, 133,
139, 143, 144, 149, 150
Tucker, Colonel J. M., 26
Tunis, 56, 59, 216
Turin, 54, 68, 115
Turkey, 107
Tuscany, Grand Duke of, 57
Tuscany, 115, 117, 118, 126
_Unité_, the, 184
Ushant, 31, 198, 223
Vado Bay, 130
Valetta, 150
_Vanguard_, the, 96, 97, 98, 103, 104, 105, 110, 113, 119, 120,
121, 129
Vansittart, Mr, 165, 166, 181
Vaudreuil, M., 39
_Vestale_, the, 66
_Victory_, the, 19, 65, 66, 78, 79, 81, 82, 115, 197, 198, 200,
201, 223, 225, 228, 231
Vienna, 126, 155, 156, 159
Vigo, 224, 226
Villeneuve, 209, 216, 217, 218, 219, 220, 223, 229, 232, 234, 239,
242, 243
Villettes, Lieutenant-Colonel, 62
Vincent, Earl of St (see Jervis)
Voinovitsch, Count, 158
Voltri, 69
Wales, 195
Walpole, Galfridus, 120
Walpole, Sir Robert, 20
Ward, Rev. Phillip, 249
Warwick, 196
Waterloo, 247
Wellington, Duke of, 113
West Indies, 24, 31, 39, 46, 202
Whitehall, 227
William, Prince (or William IV.), 40, 50
_William Tell_, the, 151
Wolfe, 61
Woodward, Dr., 35
Woolwich, 29, 36
Wooton, 20
Worcester, 196
_Worcester_, the, 29
Wroxham, 94
Yarmouth, 161, 165, 181
Yorktown, 34
_Zealand_, the, 172
_Zealous_, the, 107
Zurich, battle of, 145
FOOTNOTES
[1] Robert Browning.
[2] The Report is given in full in Laughton’s edition of “Nelson’s
Letters and Despatches,” pp. 409-11. The editor discovered it in the
Record Office, Admiral’s Despatches, Mediterranean, xxxi. 272.
[3] See lines on page opposite.
[4] A Chippendale arm-chair, which was given to Nelson by his great
grandfather, was presented by the boy to Mrs Luckins, his nurse, when
he left home to join the Navy. It appeared in an auction room so
recently as 1908.
[5] In other words, tow the vessels.
[6] Ships of war sent to accompany merchantmen during hostilities so as
to protect them from the enemy.
[7] A private vessel commissioned to attack and capture the vessels of
an enemy.
[8] See _post_, Chapter xix.
[9] Nelson’s successor and friend.
[10] Sir Richard Bickerton (1727-92) sailed from England with a convoy
on the 6th February 1782. He took part in an indecisive engagement
with Suffrein, off Pondicherry, on the 20th June 1783. Not more than
two-thirds of the British crews were effective owing to scurvy.
[11] In his Autobiography Nelson gives the number as three.
[12] More detailed particulars of this thrilling siege will be found in
the author’s companion volume, “The Story of Napoleon,” pp. 60-64.
[13] See _ante_, page 43.
[14] Captain Benjamin Hallowell (1760-1834). He afterwards assumed the
name of Carew, and became a Vice-Admiral in 1819.
[15] “The Royal Navy,” by Wm. Laird Clowes, vol. iv., p. 153, vol. v.,
pp. 9-10.
[16] “The Navy League Annual, 1910-11,” p. 226.
[17] Parsons gives Nelson the title which he had not then won. See
_post_, p. 85.
[18] “Larboard” has now been superseded by “port,” _i.e._ the left.
[19] See _post_ p. 224.
[20] See _ante_, p. 90.
[21] The Earl of St Vincent appointed him a Master and Commander.
[22] Captain Richard Bowen, of H.M.S. _Terpsichore_, who was killed at
Santa Cruz.
[23] This is in marked contrast to the generous words he wrote to the
Earl of St Vincent on the 24th July.--See _ante_, p. 90.
[24] To bring the vessel round with her stern to the wind.
[25] _i.e._ the Toulon fleet.
[26] His “Authentic Narrative” of the battle was published in 1798,
and is a plain, straightforward account of Nelson’s first great naval
action without a superior in command. We shall have occasion to quote
it freely in this chapter. Berry was Nelson’s captain.
[27] See “Deeds that Won the Empire,” p. 100.
[28] _Ibid._ p. 103.
[29] See _Comment_, ii. 341-2, also Mahan’s “Sea Power,” i. 269.
[30] Among those who perished were Commodore Casabianca and his young
son, whose bravery is immortalised in the well-known poem by Mrs Hemans.
[31] Battle of the Nile.
[32] Miss Knight is referring to the Earl of St Vincent’s flagship, and
not to a vessel named after him.
[33] See _ante_, pp. 72-3.
[34] He had held the position since 1765.
[35] In 1804.
[36] Maria Theresa (1717-1780), Archduchess of Austria, Queen of
Hungary and Bohemia, and Empress of Germany. She crossed swords with
Frederick the Great on more than one occasion, and participated in the
partition of Poland, 1772.
[37] Parthenopeia was the ancient name of Naples.
[38] Prime Minister of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies.
[39] After the fall of the Bastille on the 14th July 1789, many of the
French nobility left the country. In 1790, hereditary nobility was
abolished by the National Assembly. _Émigrés_ who had not returned to
France by the 1st January 1792 were declared traitors.
[40] See _post_, pp. 131-8.
[41] See _post_, Chapters xiv. and xv.
[42] This additional corroborative evidence has not been noticed by
many of Nelson’s recent biographers.
[43] The squadron in Naples Bay was placed under Troubridge.
[44] Pius VI.
[45] See _ante_, p. 24.
[46] The arrival of _La Marguerite_ on the 14th June, with provisions
for the French garrison. Keith’s letters are printed as he wrote them.
[47] Vol. i., pp. 212-7. Dated Palermo, May 13, 1800.
[48] Compare this statement with that of Paget, given on p. 154.
[49] Lady Hamilton’s mother.
[50] Miss Knight and Mrs Cadogan sailed on one of the frigates,
commanded by Captain Messer, an Englishman.
[51] She was the daughter of a domestic servant, and at the age of
thirteen became a children’s nurse.
[52] Afterwards increased to eighteen.
[53] Subsequently Lord Bexley.
[54] Parker’s flag-ship.
[55] This incident is bereft of much of its romance by the knowledge
that Sir Hyde Parker sent a verbal message to the effect that the
question of discontinuing the action was left to the discretion of
Nelson.
[56] TO THE GOVERNMENT OF DENMARK. _Elephant, 2nd April, 1801_: Lord
Nelson’s object in sending on shore a Flag of Truce is humanity: he,
therefore, consents that hostilities shall cease till Lord Nelson can
take his prisoners out of the Prizes, and he consents to land all the
wounded Danes, and to burn or remove his Prizes. Lord Nelson, with
humble duty to His Royal Highness, begs leave to say, that he will ever
esteem it the greatest victory he ever gained, if this Flag of Truce
may be the happy forerunner of a lasting and happy union between my
most gracious Sovereign and his Majesty the King of Denmark.
[57] TO THE BROTHERS OF ENGLISHMEN, THE DANES. Lord Nelson has
directions to spare Denmark, when no longer resisting; but if the
firing is continued on the part of Denmark, Lord Nelson will be obliged
to set on fire all the Floating-batteries he has taken, without having
the power of saving the brave Danes who have defended them. Dated on
board his Britannic Majesty’s ship _Elephant_, Copenhagen Roads, _April
2nd, 1801_.
[58] Nelson afterwards found it necessary to address the Rt. Hon. Henry
Addington, then Prime Minister, on the subject. In a letter written on
the 8th May 1801, he refers to those who thought the sending of a flag
of truce a _ruse de guerre_, to others who “attributed it to a desire
to have no more fighting, and few, very few, to the cause that I felt,
and which I trust in God I shall retain to the last moment, _humanity_.”
[59] The letter will be found in full in footnote 1, p. 175.
[60] See “Napoleon and the Invasion of England,” by H. F. B. Wheeler
and A. M. Broadley, especially vol. i. pp. 159-194.
[61] A volunteer corps enrolled for the purpose of defending the coast.
[62] See “Annual Register,” for 1801, p. 269.
[63] The _Aigle_ had taken refuge in Cadiz harbour.
[64] The despatch is quoted in French by Professor Sir W. Knox Laughton
in his edition of Sir N. Harris Nicolas’s great work (pp. 354-5).
[65] See Mahan’s “Nelson,” p. 661, and Laughton, p. 202.
[66] These were crippled ships detached by Villeneuve.
[67] Mahan accepts this, but Laughton discredits it.
[68] The total British broadside was 1000 lbs. less.
[69] Not by telegraph as we understand it, but by semaphore.
[70] De la Gravière, p. 252.
[71] Blackwood is, of course, generalising.
[72] “Seadrift,” p. 253.
[73] “The Three Dorset Captains at Trafalgar.” By A. M. Broadley and
R. G. Bartelot, M.A., p. 286.
[74] Eleven ships in all escaped into Cadiz.
[75] “Diary of the first Earl of Malmesbury,” vol. iv., p. 354.
[76] _Trafalgar_ in “W. V. Her Book and Various Verses.”
Transcriber’s Notes
Punctuation, hyphenation, and spelling were made consistent when a
predominant preference was found in this book; otherwise they were not
changed.
Simple typographical errors were corrected.
Ambiguous hyphens at the ends of lines were retained.
Index entries were not checked for proper alphabetization or correct
page references. They were not systematically compared with their
spellings on the pages they reference, but when differences were found,
the Index entries were changed to match the references.
In the Index, ships’ names were printed in italics and all other
entries were printed in boldface. To improve readability in this eBook,
the boldface entries are shown in normal weight.
Page 27: “walrusses” was printed that way.
Page 33: “Haïti” was printed that way; in the Index, it is printed as
“Häiti”.
Page 149: Closing quotation mark added after “command in the
Mediterranean.”
Page 246: “court-martialed” originally was printed as
“court-marshalled”.
End of Project Gutenberg's The Boys' Nelson, by Harold F. B. Wheeler