Lord of Thunder

“Duty is the great business of a sea officer; all private considerations must give way to it, however painful it may be” wrote Nelson. You can’t help but feel the conviction of this statement. It speaks not to ones emotional being, or ones imagination, or even ones intellect. It speaks to ones very backbone!

I know it is terrifically popular to debunk anyone faintly heroic or famous, but the reassuring thing about Nelson is that his contemporaries knew his faults and still loved him. Whilst taking on board the fact that he was obsessed with glory and at times rather unpleasant to his wife, you have to feel the greatness of the man.

I was thinking about what to say to my children about Trafalgar and how to celebrate it. We are no longer at war with Spain or France so it’s not so much the victory that needs celebrating, but rather the spirit, intelligence and bravery of the Englishmen who delivered that victory.

On the 9th October, 1805, Nelson wrote his battle plan, aboard Victory, lying off Cadiz. He had a clear vision of his own abilities, and the abilities of his commanders, ships and men. He was keen to pursue his old strategy of going right at ‘em, but knew that chance played a significant part in any great endeavour.

The divisions of the British Fleet will be brought nearly within gun shot of the Enemy's Centre. The signal will most probably then be made for the Lee Line to bear up together, to set all their sails, even steering sails in order to get as quickly as possible to the Enemy's Line, and to cut through, beginning from the 12th Ship from the Enemy's Rear.

Something must be left to chance; nothing is sure in a Sea Fight beyond all others. Shot will carry away the masts and yards of friends as well as foes; but I look with confidence to a Victory before the Van of the Enemy could succour their Rear, and then that the British Fleet would most of them be ready to receive their twenty Sail of the Line, or to pursue them, should they endeavour to make off.

That tactical directness paid dividends for us as a nation, but… well we all know what happened on the 21st October.

Interestingly he signs his dispatches Nelson and Bronte. In 1799 Ferdinand, King of the Two Sicilies made Nelson Duke of Bronte in acknowledgement of his help in suppressing an uprising against Naples. I think there may yet be a fortress or ruin there called Castello Nelson.

Apparently he was rather proud of the title since it translates as Duke of Thunder – I am not sure if that is a sign of vanity? Perhaps it just made his mistress Emma Hamilton giggle with excitement - as it does my children.

Anyway. We talked about it in the end, my children and I, but did not celebrate. We will however go to church together on Sunday – 13th November. While we certainly remember the dead of two world wars, we might also think of all those men and women who have given their lives, down through the ages, to make this country free.