Horatio Nelson, Trafalgar and the aftermath

    

While, to visitors to the crypt of St Paul’s Cathedral, Horatio Nelson’s tomb appears as a black marble sarcophagus with a replica of the Viscount’s coronet sitting on top of it, the body, however, is not enclosed in the sarcophagus but in the oblong granite tomb beneath it.
    The black sarcophagus was originally made for Cardinal Wolsey (died 1540), but when the Cardinal fell from Grace and was stripped of most of his land and titles, the object was withheld by the Crown.
    After Nelson’s burial on 9 January 1806, King George III decreed that the sarcophagus that had been intended for the Cardinal should be used for the naval hero

   Even when writing fiction, you can't beat primary sources for information.
   This little book (ordered through Amazon) is a transcript of the words of William Beatty (1807), the surgeon who attended Lord Nelson on his death bed aboard Victory and also supervised the preparation of his body to preserve it on its journey to London.
    The second picture from Wikipedia is reputedly Nelson's hair and queue which were cut off by William Beatty

   In the body of St Paul's Cathedral in London, is a marble statue to Nelson. He is depicted holding an anchor with Britannia and the British Lion at his feet. The monument is engraved with his great victories - Copenhagen, The Nile and Trafalgar.

    While many memorials to honour Lord Nelson followed his death, He was not the only sailor to fall at Trafalgar.
    Amongst those in the British fleet who died on 21 October 1805 that are memorialized close to him in the crypt are Captain John Cooke killed while commanding "Bellerophon" and Captain George Duff, commanding the "Mars".
    Captain Duff's head was severed by a cannon ball. He was buried at sea with 28 of his men who all died on the same day.

   At the culmination of the funeral ceremony, Nelson's coffin was to be removed to the crypt beneath the main floor of the Cathedral. But the sarcophagus containing both a lead and wooden coffin enclosing the body was too large and heavy to be maneuvered down the stone steps and into the crypt.
    For this reason a hole had to be cut into the Cathedral's floor for the coffin to be lowered through.
The hole that was cut is still visible in the roof of the crypt.

   While the colours are perhaps more intense than in 1806, the interior of St Paul's Cathedral has changed little since the time of Nelson's funeral.
    I took these pics when I visited London in late 2019.

   At the time of Nelson's funeral, 58 mourning rings were produced in 1806 and given to members of Nelson's family, the pallbearers and close associates. Today 32 of these rings have survived.
    George III Admiral Lord Nelson official mourning ring by Salters, Strand c1806. Rectangular cushion head in black enamel with white boarder bearing a Viscount's coronet above the initial 'N' (Nelson) and a ducal crown above the initial 'B' (Bronte) both over the word 'Trafalgar'.

   On 9th January, 1806 - almost two and half months since he died at Trafalgar, Nelson was entombed at St Paul's Cathedral (Pic 1896). Prior to the service, tiers of wooden seats - 15 layers high were erected to accommodate all the invited mourners. From the central dome an enormous light lit the church - made up of 200 piteni lamps.

    From the walls hung the massive flags of Spain (red and orange - on the left) and France (Blue White and red - on the right) - when the Great door was opened a breeze blew through and the flags wavered eliciting a round of huzzas from the mourners.
    Directly beneath the dome was the coffin covered in a black canopy surrounded by chief mourners and members of the Royal Family

   It was Nelson's choice (if not to be buried at Burnham Thorpe and to be give a state funeral) to be buried at St Paul's Cathedral and not Westminster Abbey. His reason was that St Paul's was built on Ludgate Hill, the highest point in the City of London, whereas Westminster Abbey had been built on an area of riverbank that had been reclaimed from swamp.
    It was Nelson's opinion that the Abbey would one day sink into the Thames.
While tens of thousands lined the streets and took part in the procession, only mourners with invitations were allowed into the Cathedral for the service

   On arriving at Westminster, the coffin was removed from the boat and carried to the Admiralty where it remained until the day of the funeral.
    During this time huge preparations took place. Tiers of seats for spectators were erected along the route to St Paul's and gravel was laid on the street to fill all the potholes.
    On the day of the funeral over 100 carriages assembled in Hyde Park and St James Park including Royal carriages to accompany Nelson's coffin to St Paul's. At Horse Guards, the Prince of Wales and his royal brothers, all mounted, joined the procession.

   Following the period of Wake and public viewing Nelson's body was removed from the Greenwich Painted Hall and transferred to a boat to carry if on its last journey on water for the burial at St Paul's Cathedral.

    Dozens of barges made up the procession and the Thames was almost blocked, while hundreds of thousands of mourners lined the river on both sides. The boat carrying the Admiral's coffin was the Royal barge of Charles 11 (built 1670) today this is housed in the Royal Navy dockyard museum, Portsmouth

   When Nelson's Body finally arrived back in England for burial (via Gibraltar, Portsmouth and Chatham) it was conveyed to the Painted Hall at the Greenwich Seaman's Hospital.
Here it remained for the public to pay their respects for a period of three days - being the traditional period for a Wake.

    Tens of thousands of mourners descended on London and Greenwich to farewell their naval hero.

   The George Hotel on Portsmouth High Street is the place where Horatio Nelson enjoyed his last meal before departing to join "Victory" at Spithead.

    Unfortunately the hotel was bombed in 1941 and demolished. However, the gas lamp posts remain on the street to show the spot where the London coaches came to a halt outside the original George Hotel’s front entrance. It was here Lord Nelson had stepped from his post-chaise from Merton and entered the building.
    A plaque on the wall commemorated the very place.

   Nelson’s diary entry of Saturday Sept 14th 1805 reads, “… embarked at the Bathing Machines with Mr Rose and Mr Canning at 2: got on board Victory at St Helen’s..." 

    Nelson headed across a narrow bridge to the triangular shaped fortification – the Spur Redoubt, and to the beachfront beyond. Here, with pebbles crunching under his feet, he was able to gaze across Spithead and see the fleet gathering for departure.

    Fred Roe’s 1905 stylized painting "Good bye, my lads" depicts Lord Nelson, with a ship-of-the-line in the background, waving farewell when he departed Portsmouth. This, however, is a far cry from a senior naval officer standing on a shingle beach with bathing machines close by and swimmers splashing about in the water.

   This bronze statue of Admiral Lord Nelson stands in Portsmouth. It depicts him in an informal pose wearing the undress uniform which he was wearing when he died at the Battle of Trafalgar. It faces the place (the Spur Redoubt) on the beach where he stepped into a small boat that carried him across Spithead to St Helens Road where he embarked on HMS Victory for his final fateful journey.

Nelson’s Prayer:
    On the morning of 21st October, 1805, the day of Nelson's death at Trafalgar, he made an entry into his journal of the following prayer:
   ‘May the great God, whom I worship, grant to my country and for the benefit of Europe in general, a great and glorious victory, and may no misconduct in anyone tarnish it; and may humanity after victory be the predominant feature in the British fleet. For myself individually, I commit my life to him that made me; and may His blessing alight on my endeavours for serving my country faithfully. To him I resign myself, and the just cause which is entrusted to me to defend. Amen.’
    A framed plaque leans against his sarcophagus in the crypt at St Paul's Cathedral.

   Visiting London during the writing of this novel, and stepping down into the crypt below St Paul's Cathedral, re-enforced to me the magnitude of feeling that must have swept over the populace when Nelson was buried in 1806.

   Published this week - NELSON'S WAKE - Book 6 in the popular Oliver Quintrell series. 

  Be transported from Cape Trafalgar to Spithead to Greenwich and on to St Paul’s Cathedral to feel abject sorrow experienced by the public at the news of the Admiral Lord Nelson’s death.

   After witnessing HMS Victory's return to Portsmouth and seeing the shocking condition it is in, Captain Oliver Quintrell joins the tens of thousands of mourners who travel to Greenwich to pay their respects during the 3 days the body is lying in state.

   A few days later, he attends the unforgettable spectacle of his funeral at St Paul's Cathedral. The story is expanded in the new fiction story; "Nelson's Wake"(UK-link) published this week.

   Sourcing facts from the records of that time, the reader can almost hear and see the events which took place in London.

NELSON'S WAKE (USA-link) is a nautical fiction story unlike most others.

With the events based on fact from 1805 and 1806 this is a must read for both naval and history enthusiasts.

'Nelson's Wake' is book 6 in the popular Oliver Quintrell Series.

Released on Amazon on 29 March 2020 as an e-book. A paperback edition will follow soon.
Also available in UK and other countries.

Pics courtesy of M. C. Muir (author) and Wikimedia and Wikicommons - all copyright free.

The Portsmouth Road aka The Sailors' Highway

Old Portsmouth - Thomas Rowlandson the British caricaturist (1756–1827)

The Portsmouth road was the direct link between London and England’s greatest naval port and, because it was frequented by seaman from foremast Jacks to Admirals, it was dubbed The Sailors' Highway.

In 1805, there was no glamour or romance attached to coach travel. Being ‘cabin’d, cribb’d or confin’d’ in a wooden box on wheels that rolled, pitched and creaked like a ship at sea, and being ‘hauled by four horses, charging along an uneven road at the breakneck-speed of 8 mph’, was regarded as an evil best avoided.

But for those who were obliged to travel, the tedious journey began at Stone’s End (Southwark) – literally the place where the paved streets of the London Borough ended and the unmetalled country roads began. The distance of 71 miles and 7 furlongs was interrupted by six toll-houses and turnpike bars, and at least one stop at a coaching inn for a change of horses, and a chance for the passengers to eat a meal and catch a little sleep.

'The Jolly Tars of Old England’ Cruickshank

While images such as those of caricaturist, Isaac Cruickshank represent a jolly coach load of inebriated passengers, the biting cold, the inclement weather and the likelihood of falling in with thieves and robbers along the way dulled many a spirit.

Passenger had little choice but to accept the various minor miseries of the journey. For example, it was not unusual to arrive at the coach, having booked a seat in advance, only to find the coach full. Also, having to ‘ease the horses’ at the bottom of a steep hill, meant getting out and walking. And if driving through torrential rain, it was not unusual for an passenger seated outside, who was dripping wet, to take shelter by climbing into the already crowded cabin. The bad language and aggressive behaviour of drunks and beggars, who descended on the coach when it arrived at a coaching stop, could not be avoided.

The Royal Mail coach in a thunderstorm - James Pollard - 1827

Prior to 1784 and the establishment of mail coaches, the journey from London to Portsmouth took 14 hours – depending on the condition of the road. But from the turn of the century, services increased and several coaches departed London every day including the Regulator, which left at 8 am and reached Portsmouth at five in the afternoon. The Rocket and Light Post also travelled in daylight. The Royal Mail, picked up passengers at The Angel in the Strand at 7.15 pm and arrived, ‘with God’s good Grace’ at The George in Portsmouth at 6.10 the following morning. The Night Post coach, as its name indicated, also travelled through the night.

Of the hundreds of naval officers and common sailors heading to the seaport to join a ship, admirals and captains usually made use of their private carriages or hired a post chaise. These conveyances not only allowed for faster travel but offered a greater degree of privacy and comfort than the regular services. It also allowed the passenger to decide which inn he wished to stop at along the way. Lower ranked naval officers travelled by the regular coaches, whereas common sailors often covered the distance on foot or in the back of an open stage-wagon hauled by eight horses. These conveyances took three days to cover the 72 miles travelling with the ‘tripping step of a tortoise’.

The Royal Anchor Inn - Liphook

Breaking the journey at a coaching house such as The Anchor (later renamed The Royal Anchor) at Liphook offered the opportunity for a meal and a bed for those who could afford it. For sailors, clean straw on the floor of the outhouses was made available.

But apart from the minor discomforts, journeying along the Portsmouth Road was considered a dangerous venture especially if travelling at night. Because of the fear factor, fellow passengers regarded each other suspiciously and sat ‘glum and nervous – with their money in their boots, their watches in the lining of their hats, and other light valuables secreted in unlikely parts of their persons, in the fond hope that the fine fellow, mounted on a mettlesome horse, and bristling with weapons, who would presently bring the coach to a stop in some gloomy bend of the road, might be either too unpractised or in too great a hurry to think of those very obvious hiding-places.’

'Rogues 1883' by F.Dodd 1859-1929 from Illustrated London News

The threat of the rope’s end did little to deter the highwaymen, who, since the 17^th century, had preyed on coaches travelling the lonely roads after nightfall. Sitting in the mail-coach’s dickey seat, the guard was armed with a musket, sword or blunderbuss.

Those passengers seated up-top were afforded the best views and when the coach neared Portsmouth, the sight of the British fleet at anchor would serve to remind them of what lay ahead. Occasionally, however, due to his excited or inebriated state, a sailor would tumble from the coach and break his leg, head, or arm, but that, in the circumstances, was not unexpected.

The Landport Gate

Arriving safely at the Landport Gate in the early hours of the morning, passengers breathed a sigh of relief – though perhaps it was unwise to inhale too deeply! Being a fortified town, the entry points to Portsmouth were locked every night from midnight to 4.00 am, so if the London coach arrived at that hour it would be obliged to wait for a line of night-soil wagons to pass out of the gate before it could enter. 

On 14^th September, 1805, the post chaise carrying Admiral Lord Nelson drove through the Landport Gate and allowed him to alight at The George on High Street at 6.00 am. From there the coach continued for a further mile through the streets to its final destination at Victoria Pier.

After eating breakfast at The George, Lord Nelson proceeded to the naval dockyard where he spent several hours assessing the ships being readied for sea and visiting the Block Mill (http://goo.gl/vYI0ba ).

 Lord Nelson statue- Portsmouth

Nelson’s journey from his home at Merton in south London was the last coach journey he ever took. At 2.00 o’clock that afternoon, he was rowed across Spithead to St Helens where he climbed aboard HMS Victory, the ship that would carry him to his final fateful battle at Trafalgar.

References: The Project Gutenberg EBook of “The Portsmouth Road and Its Tributaries”, by Charles G. Harper, 1895 AND “The Story of Nelson’s Portsmouth” by Jane Smith

Note: This blog post, by Margaret Muir, first appeared on the pages of English Historical Fiction Authors thanks to Deborah Brown

Nelson and Brunel linked by ship’s pulley-blocks

HMS Victory (2006)

The age-of-sail is often associated with the Napoleonic era. But the changes brought about by the Industrial Revolution and the construction of steam-powered iron ships, saw the era of wooden fighting ships rapidly draw to a close. One sign of impending change was noted in 1805, when Lord Nelson personally acknowledged how new technology was replacing the old ways.

Just 2 of the many blocks on Bark Endeavour (replica)

The wooden block, an essential component of any ship’s rigging, provides a link between Admiral Lord Nelson and Marc Isambard Brunel, father of Isambard Kingdom Brunel, the builder of some the greatest steam ships the world has ever seen.

'Deadeyes' used for tensioning rigging (Endeavour-replica)

At that time, a first rate ship of the line required about 1000 blocks of different sizes, and every year the Royal Navy required over 100,000 blocks. Traditionally, the sheaves over which the ropes ran were made from lignum vitae, a particularly hard timber with self-lubricating properties. HMS Victory alone carried over 900 blocks. For centuries, they had been hand-made by outside tradesmen but the resulting quality was inconsistent, the supply irregular and the blocks were expensive.

In 1802, Brunel proposed a system of making blocks using machinery and in August of that year he was authorized by the Admiralty to proceed.

With Brunel’s modern Block Mill established and operating at Portsmouth Dockyard, Lord Nelson was anxious to witness the new technology before he sailed. His diary schedule for 14^th September, 1805 included a visit to the Mill, to see how modern innovations applied to block making.

Admiral Nelson figurehead - Portsmouth dockyard.

What Nelson witnessed that day was an assortment of machines driven by two 22.4 kw (30 hp) steam engines including circular saws, pin turning machines and mortising machines. By using these mechanical devices, 10 men could produce, in any given time, as many blocks as 110 skilled craftsmen.

Admiral Lord Nelson - Portsmouth

It seems fitting that on his last day on British soil before embarking on HMS Victory and heading south to Cape Trafalgar, Admiral Lord Nelson recognized that a new era of manufacturing was dawning, in particular in relation to sailing ships.

Refs: Wikipedia 
Pics: Mast and rigging HMS Victory (2006), HM Bark Endeavour and Nelson figure-head and statue - Portsmouth, England. (MM)

Is Patrick O'Brian the 'rightful heir' to Jane Austen? A question for readers.

Though their stories are set in a similar historical era, there is a vast gulf between the maritime fiction of Patrick O’Brian and the classics of English romance novelist, Jane Austen. The divide between these two extends beyond the obvious gender difference to the readership they attract.

Jane Austen is acknowledged as the quintessential Georgian Romance writer, while Patrick O’Brian is recognized as the master of nautical fiction set in the Napoleonic period. Born 100 years after Miss Austen’s death, Patrick O’Brian has been called ‘her rightful heir’ (Kirkus Reviews)**.

Jane Austen's empathy for naval officers stemmed from having two brothers who served in the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars. Both rose slowly through the ranks from mere midshipman to Admiral. But despite her close affiliation with, and reasonable knowledge of, life in the navy, Austen did not attempt to write in the sub-genre of maritime fiction, though she endowed some of her characters with naval connections.

Similarly, though Patrick O’Brian (Jack Aubrey/Stephen Maturin series) allowed love interests to filter into his novels, as did CS Forester (Horatio Hornblower), neither wrote genre Romance.

In the past, writing romance in the Austen-style has been and, for the most part, still is mainly the domain of female authors. Conversely, writing in the sub-genre of nautical fiction set in the age-of-sail has been, and still is, the domain of male writers.

But it was not only the writers who fell into this distinct divide. In the past, the readership they attracted reflected a similar distinct male/female split. Generally, females read romance novels while the gentlemen turned to action and adventure, including maritime fiction. These unsubstantiated variants still appear to apply to a greater extent, however, very slowly the tide is turning.

Of late, more male readers are attracted to Austen’s novels, and an increasing numbers of women are savouring heroic sea stories set during the Napoleonic wars. No doubt movie and TV presentations of ‘Pride and Prejudice’ and ‘Sense and Sensibility’ have introduced men to Miss Austen. Similarly, the ‘Hornblower’ series, and the epic movie ‘Master and Commander’ have brought nautical fiction to the screen and introduced this genre to a general, rather than a mostly select male audience.

So, apart from the media, what other factors are bridging this demographic divide?

Today, women feature strongly in ocean racing, sea-faring activities and achievements. Only a few decades ago, women who enlisted in the navy did not step aboard a ship, yet recently, a woman was appointed Commander of a British Royal Navy Frigate and in May 2014 the first women were appointed to serve as submariners.

RN submariners: Left to right: Lieutenants Maxine Stiles, Alex Olsson and Penny Thackray

Today, the navy is no longer an exclusive male domain. Recreational sailing is a pursuit enjoyed by both sexes, and replica tall ships, which provide a taste of life aboard a wooden ship, are crewed by an equal proportion of male and female enthusiasts. As such, nautical fiction is no longer read predominantly by men.

With so many women coming aboard, in my opinion, I think Jack Aubrey would turn in his grave. On the other hand, Patrick O'Brian would politely reserve comment whilst being quietly pleased.

**Kindly note: The words "Rightful heir" were coined by Kirkus Review. In the review of O'Brian's "The Commodore", I quote: "A mesmerizing performance on many levels -- as history, as story, as literature -- this novel transcends two genres in one stroke, the domestic romance and the seafaring hero's tale. In doing so, O'Brian bids to be considered the rightful heir not just of C.S. Forester, but of Jane Austen herself."

First posted July 2014.

The Portsmouth Sally Port

I found three portals/doorways/sally ports within 50 yards of each other in the old Portsmouth fortification wall sea-wall. They plaques (detailed below are immediately are adjacent to the Square Tower. All three cut through to the beach from which many naval heros left England's shore.

Here are a couple of the plaques:

Apart from this place marking NELSON's departure for the Battle of Trafalgar, the plaques mark the departure of the FIRST FLEET to Australia, also MATTHEW FLINDERS departure south in 1802, plus Sir Walter Raleigh's expedition across the Atlantic to establish ROANOKE in Virginia. This is also the spot where CATHERINE OF BRAGANZA landed in 1662 for her marriage to Charles 11.
If you we could only see the ghosts of those who passed through this very special place. But we can imagine.

The ROANOKE VOYAGES to VIRGINIA (now N. Carolina 1584 and 1587)
The plaque on the wall at the Portsmouth sally point remembers Sir Walter Raleigh’s second expedition which left this place April 1587, 91 men, 17 women and 9 children to establish on ROANOKE Island - THE CITTIE OF RALEIGH – the first English village in America. The colony disappeared between 1587 and 1590.
For the author on the HNS site who plans to write this story.

The George - Portsmouth

THE GEORGE HOTEL - When I visited Portsmouth a few weeks ago (from Australia), I made a special point of booking into The George Hotel – mentioned by Nelson in his letters and POB in his books. Located only a stone’s throw from the entrance to the Portsmouth Dockyard, I was disappointed to find this 18th century building was not the lodging house in question.
The original George Hotel, where on Se
pt 14, 1805, Nelson spent his last hours in England, fell victim to the WW11 bombings of Portsmouth. The inn, from which the Royal Mail and ‘Regulator’ left daily for London, was situated on High Street and backed onto Penny Lane. It was a stone’s throw from the Cathedral and only a few hundred yards from the Sally Port and Saluting Platform.
Today it is the site for a small block of flats but a plaque on the pavement and two gas lamps mark the entrance to the old George which was so popular with senior naval officers.

The Trafalgar sail - from HMS Victory

 

 

Note: This post was published in 2012. I have now updated it (Oct 2014) and the revised and improved post is at the link "Trafalgar Sail - a legacy of the Battle". 

Thank you
Margaret Muir

 

The Trafalgar Sail – Britain’s most important maritime textile – the fore-topsail from Nelson’s HMS VICTORY’s
For me the most poignant artefact held at the Portsmouth Historic Dockyard is this immense sail. Damaged at the Battle Trafalgar (1805), it reveals the holes made by French cannon balls during the famous sea battle.
It is enormous - the size of a tennis court and weighs more than a third of a ton. Taking up the whole top floor of one of the buildings, perhaps only a third of the sail is visible. Unfortunatley, photography was not permitted, so I can only show a copy of the poster describing it – but I stood within a meter of it and was awe-inspired at its sheer size and history.
For 100 years during the 19th century it was displayed at Chatham but for 30 years of the 20th century it was stored and ‘lost’.
In 1993, however, conservation work began which lasted 12 years. Today it is regarded as Britain’s most important maritime textile which provides information on sail making in the Nelson era.

‘NELSON’S FIRST FAREWELL’ - Joy

This painting, GW Joy imagines the 13-year-old Nelson - whose mother died when he was nine - dressed in his new midshipman's uniform and saying farewell to his grandmother on his first departure for sea in 1771.
It was exhibited in the Royal Academy in 1883.

A couple of years ago, I saw a framed print of this picture in an antique shop window, but it was over $100 so I walked on. Now I kick myself for not buying it!

Life in Nelson's Navy by Brian Lavery

Just finished reading, Brian Lavery's, LIFE IN NELSON'S NAVY.
It's a compact little book but full of useful information and terminology for those who read maritime fiction or venture to write about it. I 'bought' the kindle version which, if I remember rightly, cost me $0.

They don't come any cheaper.
Recommended.