Trafalgar Secures Britain: Nelson's Final Victory
Admiral Horatio Nelson divided his fleet into two columns and drove them perpendicular into the Franco-Spanish line off Cape Trafalgar on October 21, 1805, shattering the combined fleet of 33 ships in a five-hour battle that killed or captured nearly 4,500 enemy sailors. Nelson was shot by a French musketeer from the rigging of the Redoutable and died below decks three hours later, having received confirmation of victory. His body was preserved in a cask of brandy for the voyage home. Britain lost no ships. The victory eliminated any realistic threat of a French invasion and secured British naval supremacy for the next century. Napoleon, who had been waiting at Boulogne with 200,000 troops to cross the Channel, abandoned the plan entirely and marched his army east toward Austerlitz instead.
October 21, 1805
221 years ago
Key Figures & Places
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