The Battle of Trafalgar was a naval battle that took place off the west coast of southern Spain, near Cape Trafalgar, on October 21, 1805, during the Napoleonic Wars. It was fought between the British Royal Navy, commanded by Horatio Nelson, and the French-Spanish fleet, under Pierre Charles Villeneuve. Although the British commander died during the ferocious fighting, the Battle of Trafalgar was a decisive British victory, establishing British naval supremacy for many years.
The British fleet was composed of 27 warships of the line, while the French-Spanish fleet consisted of 33 ships. As in most of the naval battles of the 18th and 19th century, Trafalgar was a close fleet action, with ships maneuvering up to the enemy and shooting broadsides at a range not farther than a 100 yards. To take full advantage of the close range, guns were double shotted with grape shot on top of ball.
Great Britain had imposed a naval blockade on France, preventing the French from fully mobilizing their ships. Thus, the British were capable of attacking and laying siege to French ports. After the Treaty of Amiens (1802), the Third Coalition of European nations declared war on France in 1803. As a result, Napoleon Bonaparte got determined to invade Britain, but he needed to ensure that the Royal Navy would be unable to disrupt the invasion flotilla. This would require the destruction of the English fleet, clearing the English Channel of Royal Navy ships. In order to achieve this, Napoleon organized a combined fleet composed of French and Spanish ships, under the command of Villeneuve, in 1805. But the French and Spanish ships in the Mediterranean and Cadiz first had to break through the blockade and join forces in the Caribbean. Then, they would return to assist the main French fleet at Brest, in Brittany, and break through the blockade, and together clear the English Channel of British Royal Navy ships, thus ensuring a safe passage for the invasion transport ships.
Villeneuve passed through the Strait of Gibraltar, met with the Spanish fleet, and sailed as planned to the Caribbean. Once Nelson realized that the French had crossed the Atlantic Ocean, he put out to sea. As Villeneuve sailed northward toward Brest, he changed his mind and headed southward instead toward Cadiz on the southwestern coast of Spain. He did this maneuvers because he thought that the British were watching and studying his naval movement. By October 1805, Villeneuve was still in harbor in Cadiz. When Napoleon found out he was not at sea, through a missive the French General told Villeneuve he was a coward for not being out at sea and confront the British fleet. Then, Villelleneuve left harbor and sail for the Channel, but when he was off the coast of Trafalgar, his French-Spanish fleet was engaged by Nelson’s, suffering a complete defeat.
Below, a 19th century painting by Nicholas Pocock, depicting the Battle of Trafalgar.
