The Battle of Trafalgar shown in maritime
naval prints by Bill Bishop, William Stuart, Brian Wood, T Whitcombe, Ivan
Berryman and E
Sartorious. Naval prints published by Cranston Fine Arts.
Undoubtedly the most famous battle in
the history of naval warfare. The battle of Trafalgar was fought on a
calm, almost windless day, on 21st October 1805. Nelson's revolutionary
battle plan was to cut apart the larger Franco-Spanish fleet of
Vice-Admiral Villeneuve by sailing in two single column divisions
directly at right angles into the combined fleet and thus rendering
almost half of the leading ships useless until they could turn and join
the fight, which in such calm conditions could take hours. The battle
raged for five hours, in which time not one single British ship was
lost, however, Nelson would tragically lose his life at the very moment
of his triumph, a triumph which rendered the British Navy unchallenged
in supremacy for over a century.
