appareled in a uniform dress belonging to the him at Teneriffe, with his shattered arm, going to the rescue of his companions and saving their lives, while every moment of delay increased the peril of his own by hemorrhage and exhaustion: see him walk up the ship's side-hear him command the surgeon to proceed to amputation; and see the fortitude with which he bore the agonising pain. Follow him to the Nile, and contemplate the destruction of the fleet of France, and the consequent loss of her vast army, led by Napoleon Buonaparte. How great was his professional knowledge and decision at Copenhagen, when, despising death, he refused to obey the signal of recall: because he knew that by such obedience, his country would have been disgraced, and the great object of the expedition frustrated; and Britain, overpowered by the increased energy of the northern confederacy, might have sunk under the multiplied force of her enemies. See him, on the same occasion, sit down in the midst of carnage, and address a letter to the Crown Prince of Denmark, which, while it gave a victory to his country, added to her glory by stop. ping the useless effusion of human blood. We have seen him the patient, watchful, and anxious guardian of our honour in the Mediterranean, where, for two years, he The following eulogium on the character sought an opportunity to engage an enemy of Lord Nelson, is from Brenton's Naval of superior force. Three times we have History :-" Thus fell the greatest sea officer seen him pursue the foes of his country to of this or any other nation recorded in his- Egypt, and once to the West Indies. And tory; his talents, his courage, his fidelity, his these great steps he took entirely on his zeal, his love for his king and country, were own responsibility, disregarding any personal exceeded by none. Never had any man the consideration, any calculation of force, or happy intuitive faculty of seizing the moment any allurement of gain. Coming at last to of propitious fortune, equal to Nelson. His the termination of his glorious career, the whole career, from his earliest entrance into end of his life was worthy of all his other the service, offers to the youth of the Bri- deeds. The battle of Trafalgar will stand, tish navy the most illustrious examples of without the aid of sculpture or painting, every manly virtue, whether we view him the greatest memorial of British naval as a midshipman, a lieutenant, as the cap- valour ever exhibited. No pen can do justice, tain of a frigate, or a commander-in-chief. no description can convey an adequate idea We have seen him as captain of the Aga- of that day, and the event which deprived memnon, in Larma Bay, writing his des- us of our favourite chief, consummated his patches while his ship lay aground in an earthly fame, and rendered his name ever enemy's port; we have seen him as captain dear to his country. Had not his tranof a 74-gun ship, on the 14th of February, scendent virtues been shaded by a fault, we lay a Spanish first-rate and an 84-gun might have been accused of Hattery. No ship on board, and with his little band of human being was ever perfect; and however heroes take to them both. Equally great we may regret the affair of Caraccioli, we in the hour of defeat as of victory, we see must ever acknowledge that the character + When the late admiral's flag was about to be pieces and distributed the fragments amongst themlowered into the grave, the sailors-namely, forty-selves; the leaden coffin in which he had been eight seamen and marines of the Victory, and the brought home, was cut to pieces and distributed as crew of Nelson's barge-with one accord rent it in relics through the fleet. of Nelson, as a public servant, is not exceeded in the history of the world."* As everything connected with such a victory as Trafalgar is of the utmost interest, we shall now lay before the reader Nelson's general orders to his captains; and Vice-admiral Collingwood's despatch to the Admiralty, containing the account of the battle. "Victory-off Cadiz, Oct. 18th, 1805. Thinking it almost impossible to bring a fleet of forty sail-of-the-line into a battle in variable winds, thick weather, and other circumstances which must occur, without such a loss of time that the opportunity would be lost of bringing the enemy to battle in such a manner as to make the business decisive, I have, therefore, made up my mind to keep the fleet in that position of sailing (with the exception of the first and second in command), that the order of sailing is to be the order of battle, placing the fleet in two lines, sixteen ships each, with an advanced squadron of eight of the fastest sailing two-decked ships, which will always make, when wanted, a line of twentyfour sail on whichever line the commanderin-chief may direct; the second in command will, after my intentions are made known to him, have the entire direction of his line to make the attack upon the enemy, and follow up the blow till they are captured or destroyed. If the enemy's fleet are seen to windward in line of battle, and that the two lines and the advanced squadron could fetch them, they would probably be so extended that their van could not succour their rear; I should therefore probably make the second in command a signal to lead through about the twelfth ship from their rear (or wherever he could fetch, if not able to get so far advanced.) My line would lead through about their centre; and the advanced squadron two, three, or four ships ahead of their centre, so as to ensure getting at their commander-in-chief, whom every effort must be made to capture. "The whole impression of the British fleet must be to overpower two or three ships ahead of their commander-in-chief (supposed to be in the centre.) To the rear of their fleet, I will suppose twenty sail of Southey has well said :-"Nelson has left us, not indeed his mantle of inspiration, but a name and an example which are at this hour inspiring thousands of the youth of England: a name which is our guide, and an example which will continue to be our shield and our strength." The reason that Lord Nelson estimated the their line to remain untouched: it must be some time before they could perform a manœuvre to bring their force compact to attack any part of the British fleet, or succour their own ships, which, indeed, would be impossible without mixing with the ships engaged. The enemy's fleet is supposed to consist of forty-six sail-of-theline; British, forty :† if either is less, only a proportion of the enemy to be cut off. British to be one-fourth superior to the enemy cut off: something must be left to chance; nothing is sure in a sea-fight, beyond all others. Shots will carry away masts and yards of friends as well as of foes; but I look with confidence to a victory before the van of the enemy could succour the rear, and then that the British fleet would be ready to receive the twenty sailof-the-line, or to pursue them, should they endeavour to make off. If the van of the enemy tacks, the captured ships must run to leeward of the British fleet. If the enemy wear, the British fleet must place themselves between the enemy and the captured and disabled ships; and should the enemy close, I have no fear of the result. The second in command will, in all possible things, direct the movement of his line by keeping them as compact as the nature of the circumstances will admit. Captains are to look to their particular line as a rallying point; but in case signals cannot be seen or clearly understood, no captain can do wrong if he places his ship alongside of an enemy. If the enemy's fleet are discovered in line of battle to leeward, the divisions of the British fleet will be brought nearly within gunshot of the enemy's centre; the signal will most probably be then made for the lee line to bring up together; to set all their sails their studding sails, in order to get as quickly as possible to the enemy's line, and to cut through, beginning at the twelfth ship from the rear. Some ships may not get through their expected place, but they will always be at hand to assist their friends: if any are thrown in the rear of the enemy, they will complete the business of twelve sail of the enemy; should the enemy wear together, or bear and sail large, still the twelve ships enemy's fleet at forty-six sail-of-the-line, was the probability that Villeneuve would be reinforced by the Carthagena and Rochefort squadrons; and he calculated the British fleet at forty sail-of-the-line, in expectation of its being augmented to that extent by reinforcements of other ships which he expected from home. even composing the first position of the enemy's ] has been highly meritorious) that they had rear are to be the object of attack of the lee not yet passed the Straits. line, unless otherwise drected by the com- "On Monday, the 21st instant, at daymander-in-chief, which is scarcely to be ex- light, when Cape Trafalgar bore east by south pected, as the entire division of the lee line about seven leagues, the enemy was dis(after the intentions of the commander-in-covered six or seven miles to the eastward, chief are signified) is intended to be left to the wind about west and very light. The the admiral commanding that line. commander-in-chief immediately made the "The remainder of the enemy's fleet signal for the fleet to bear up in two columns, (thirty-four sail-of-the-line) are to be left to as they were formed in order of sailing-a the management of the commander-in-mode of attack his lordship had previously chief, who will endeavour to take care that the movements of the second in command are as little interrupted as possible. "NELSON AND BRONTE." Referring to this plan of attack, which is a master-piece of nautical skill, Nelson, in a letter dated Victory, October 9th, 1805, says to Admiral Collingwood: "I send you my plan of attack,* as far as a man dare venture to guess at the very uncertain position the enemy may be found in. But, my dear friend, it is to place you perfectly at ease respecting my intentions, and to give full scope to your judgment for carrying them into effect. We can, my dear Coll., have no little jealousies. We have only one great object in view-that of annihilating our enemies, and getting a glorious peace for our country. No man has more confidence in another than I have in you; and no man will render your success more justice than your very old friend." directed, to avoid the inconvenience and delay in forming a line of battle in the usual manner. The enemy's line, consisting of thirty-three ships (of which eighteen were French and fifteen Spanish, commanded in chief by Admiral Villeneuve; the Spaniards under the direction of Gravina), were with their heads to the northward, and formed their line of battle with great closeness and correctness. But as the mode of attack was unusual, so the structure of their line was new: it formed a crescent, convexing to leeward; so that, in leading down to their centre, I had both their van and rear abaft. the beam before the fire opened. Every alternate ship was about a cable's length to windward of her second ahead and astern, forming a kind of double line, and appeared, when on their beam, to leave a very slight interval between them, and this without crowding their ships. Admiral Villeneuve was in the Bucentaure, in the centre; and The following is Vice-admiral Colling-the Prince Asturias bore Gravina's flag in wood's despatch relative to the battle of Trafalgar, addressed to the secretary of the Adiniralty : the rear; but the French and Spanish ships were mixed, without any apparent regard to order of national squadron. "Euryalus-off Cape Trafalgar, "As the mode of our attack had been pre"October 22nd, 1805. viously determined on, and communicated "Sir,-The ever-to-be-lamented death of to the flag-officers and captains, few signals Admiral Lord Viscount Nelson, who, in were necessary, and none were made, except the late conflict with the enemy, fell in the to direct close order as the line bore down. hour of victory, leaves to me the duty of in- The commander-in-chief, in the Victory, led forming my lords commissioners of the Ad- the weather column, and the Royal Sovereign, miralty that, on the 19th instant, it was which bore my flag, the lee. The action communicated to the commander-in-chief, began at twelve o'clock, by the leading ships from the ships watching the motions of the of the columns breaking through the enemy's enemy in Cadiz, that the combined fleet had line; the commander-in-chief about the put to sea. As they sailed with light winds tenth ship from the van; the second in comwesterly, his lordship concluded their desti- mand about the twelfth from the rear, leavnation was the Mediterranean, and imme-ing the van of the enemy unoccupied; the diately made all sail for the Straits' entrance succeeding ships breaking through in all with the British squadron, consisting of twenty-seven ships (three of them 64's), when his lordship was informed by Captain Blackwood (whose, vigilance in watching and giving notice of the enemy's movements In his Diary, he called it The Nelson Touch. parts astern of their leaders, and engaging the enemy at the muzzles of their guns. The conflict was severe; the enemy's ships were fought with a gallantry highly honourable to their officers; but the attack on them was irresistible: and it pleased the Almighty |