Lecture 25: 1805 Trafalgar—Nelson Thwarts Napoleon
including a number of particularly large battleships, including the
biggest, most powerful ship in the world, the colossal four-deck,
136-gun Santissima Trinidad. On October 20, 1805, the combined
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a meeting of his captains, Nelson outlined a bold new strategy:
Rather than using the line of battle, Nelson planned to form his
ships into two shorter lines perpendicular to the French and charge
straight at them, cutting the French line of battle in two places. His
ships would then cluster around those of the enemy and attempt to
overwhelm them.x 7KHWZRÀHHWVPHWRII&DSH7UDIDOJDULQ6SDLQ,WZDVWKHELJJHVW
battle of the age, involving 60 ships of the line and 50,000 men.
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a message to his crews that has since become one of the most
famous in military history: “England expects that every man will
do his duty.”x The battle unfolded much as Nelson had intended, with the two
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as they approached. Nelson and the Victory led one of the English
lines, and one of his trusted captains led the other. Both succeeded
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turned into a confused melee of ships blasting at each other at point
blank range.x As the battle raged, the Victory was surrounded by several enemy
ships. Nelson was pacing back and forth on the deck when a musket
ball shot from the mast of the French ship Redoubtable struck him
in the shoulder, passed through his chest, and lodged in his spine.
Nelson immediately realized the wound was fatal, and he died later
that day. He lived long enough, however, to hear the news that his
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