Of the many campaigns in the long history of Britain, naval and otherwise, there have been few more momentous than the campaign in the Mediterranean in 1804-5 culminating in the battle of Trafalgar. They spawned a national hero in the figure of heroic lord Nelson, one-armed and blind in one eye, dying at the moment of his greatest victory over a more numerous enemy. However, the story of the battle, much less the campaign, was more complex than the story of one man, however great. It is this web of sailings, counter-sailings, orders, alliances, courage and genius that Corbett elucidates with his great naval knowledge and lucid text. Sir Julian Corbett wrote this most important of studies, drawing on not only his comprehensive archive material at the Royal Naval college, but also important sources from French and Spanish sources. He was a prolific author and authority on British warfare, and more particularly the naval aspects, as well as a lecturer in history to the Royal Naval College. Author — Sir Julian Stafford Corbett, LLM. (1854-1922) Illustrations – 8 maps and plans.

Søgeord: 1805; Søkrigsslag; Pitt; Villeneuve; Collingwood; Vestindien; Brest; Calder; Cadiz; Nelson's Memorandum.

Trafalgar, the most famous and most strategically significant victory in the age of sail, was not an isolated event. Rather it was the culmination of a campaign that began as soon as war was resumed in May 1803 and aimed ultimately at the invasion of Great Britain. To this end Napoleon attempted by ruse and elaborately disguised manoeuvres to bring his scattered and blockaded squadrons together for long enough to give him command of the Channel, which he fondly believed was all that was necessary to ensure a successful landing. Therefore, this period becomes a perfect demonstration of the workings of seapower and reveals that, however great a strategic genius on land, Napoleon never really grasped the principles of British maritime defense, gleaned as it was from over two hundred years’ experience. This is not to say that the invasion threat was treated lightly, although some of the rumored devices belong to the world of science fiction’ on the other hand the anti-invasion operations included the first use of such futuristic weapons as torpedoes and rockets. Little of the naval warfare of this period is not in some way connected with the main campaign, and this volume is devoted to the great wars of 1793-1815, charts all the major naval events of 1803 to 1805, including America’s first full-bloodied naval war, with the Barbary States.

Presents the battle of Trafalgar in it's historical scope and context. Quotes extensively from journals and sources and brings to life the whole story of the British-French conflict, at sea and on land, at the dawn of the nineteenth century.

With the hindsight of a century, Julian S Corbett argues that the 1805 Trafalgar campaign was 'the crowning chapter in the history of naval warfare'. He takes it beyond merely using it as a valedictory encomium of Admiral Nelson, who died at Trafalgar; instead he explains the military side of the campaign and the decrees from Parliament which shaped the war. Corbett contrasts first-hand correspondence from Napoleon and other commanders with the rational orders of Pitt, Castlereagh and the English commanders. Before the account of the battle at Trafalgar, Corbett analyses the memorandum sent by Nelson that laid out what was to be done and by whom. The battle reinvigorated the British navy and gave them confidence in their superiority, yet Napoleon became 'dictator' of Europe in spite of the destruction of his own naval power. Corbett, the English narrator of the story, is partisan, using "our" and "us" frequently, and the tone is patriotic and proud of the naval and military might of what was then the bastion of the British Empire, which was beginning its century of subjugation to other European powers. The prose is full of florid phrases and emotional recollections of the past. Especially impressive are the descriptions of the campaign's key characters, including Barham, Allemand, Cornwallis, Ganteaume, Rochefort, Villeneuve, Gourdon, Calder, Gravina and Decrès. Corbett also illustrates the perils of seafaring in the early nineteenth century: scurvy, surprise counter-attacks and ships burning at sea all feature in the campaign. Above all, the discipline and daring of the campaign is evident in a masterful history of a conflict that is a key moment in European history, Julian S Corbett (1854-1922) was a naval historian and geo-strategist. He qualified as a lawyer and also wrote historical fiction before becoming a lecturer at the Royal Naval College. His works on naval history include a biography on Francis Drake and England in the Seven Years' War. Albion Press is an imprint of Endeavour Press, the UK's leading independent digital publisher. For more information on our titles please sign up to our newsletter at www.endeavourpress.com. Each week you will receive updates on free and discounted ebooks. Follow us on Twitter: @EndeavourPress and on Facebook via http://on.fb.me/1HweQV7. We are always interested in hearing from our readers. Endeavour Press believes that the future is now.

This is the true story of the Battle of Trafalgar, Britain's most significant sea battle, as seen through the smoke-hazed gunports of the fighting ships. In an atmosphere of choking fumes from cannon and musket fire, amid noise so intense it was almost tangible, the crews of the British, French and Spanish ships did their best to carry out their allotted tasks. For over five hours they were in constant danger from a terrifying array of iron and lead missiles fired from enemy guns, as well as the deadly wooden splinters smashed from the ships' hulls by the cannon-balls. While the men manoeuvred the ships and kept the cannons firing, the women helped the surgeons tend the sick or helped the boys - the 'powder monkeys' - in the hazardous job of carrying gunpowder cartridges from the central magazine to the gun decks. Trafalgar set the seal on British naval supremacy, which became the mainspring for the growth of the British Empire, and in the short term not only prevented Napoleon from invading Britain, but also enabled Britain and its Continental allies to mount the campaign that would eventually defeat the French Emperor: without Trafalgar there would be no Waterloo.

Excerpt from The Campaign of Trafalgar Amongst manuscript sources only recently accessible, we have the Pitt Papers, deposited at the Public Record Office, and, still more valuable, the Barham Papers, which have been entrusted for publication to the Navy Records Society. To these latter I have been permitted access, and have received invaluable assistance in examining them from the editor, Sir John Laughton. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

Two hundred years ago, Napoleon Bonaparte dominated Europe and threatened Britain with invasion. Against him stood the Royal Navy and the already legendary Admiral Horatio Nelson. On 21 October 1805, a massive naval battle off the coast of Spain decided mastery of the seas. Then, over the following days and nights, the battleships and their exhausted crews endured a gale of awesome fury. As Captain Charles Tyler wrote to his wife Margaret, 'the wind blew a perfect storm'. The authors of the bestselling FINEST HOUR tell this story not only through the diaries, letters and memoirs of the men who wrestled with the enemy and the elements, but also through the eyes of their wives and children. Whether you are already familiar with this period of history or are coming to it for the first time, TRAFALGAR is a book that will enthral as it illuminates an event whose repercussions still echo today.