Horatio Nelson, born in 1758, is regarded as the greatest naval hero in British history. Nelson, whose illustrious titles include 1st Viscount Nelson and 1st Duke of Bronte, achieved his fame for his heroic leadership during the Napoleonic Wars. His greatest victory was the 1805 Battle of Trafalgar, also the scene of his legendary and heroic death. Other key battles in Nelson’s naval career include the Battle of the Nile and the Battle of Santa Cruz de Tenerife.
The sixth of eleven children, Nelson was the son of Reverend Edmund Nelson and his wife Catherine who was the grand-niece of the first Prime Minister of Great Britain, Sir Robert Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford. He was born in Burnham Thorpe, England. Nelson attended grammar school until 1771 when he entered the Royal Navy at the age of twelve serving aboard his maternal uncle’s ship, the HMS Raisonnable. Nelson’s uncle, Captain Maurice Suckling, promoted Nelson from Ordinary Seaman and Coxswain to midshipman whereupon he began to train as an officer.
At age twenty Nelson assumed his first command in 1778 after quickly and competently moving up the ranks of service. In 1787 Nelson married Frances Nisbet during a stay in the Caribbean. Their union produced no children. In 1797 Nelson, then Commodore Nelson under the orders of Admiral Sir John Jervis, distinguished himself at the Battle of Cape St. Vincent and won immense acclaim. This battle is also noteworthy because Nelson disobeyed direct orders by following the line of the fleet. Instead, he wore ship and engaged the enemy, a 112-gun Spanish van in this case (the Spanish were allies with the French during this period). A significant battle ensued between the British and Spanish fleets. The British won the fight and four Spanish ships surrendered—two of them being Nelson’s captures. After this battle Nelson, according to seniority, was promoted to Rear Admiral of the Blue.
With a fleet of his own (fifteen ships), Nelson was next directed to the eastern Mediterranean where he was charged to discover the French fleet supporting Napoleon’s conquest of Egypt. He located the fleet near Alexandria, in Aboukir Bay, engaged them, and victoriously destroyed all but two of their ships. Another success followed in 1801 when Nelson defeated the Dutch in the Battle of Copenhagen. Nelson’s most famous battle occurred in 1805 at the Battle of Trafalgar where he demonstrated inventive tactics to heroically vanquish the enemy. Nelson was shot near the end of the battle, but was still conscious to acknowledge his great victory. He died four hours later.
Nelson was instrumental in safeguarding British control of the seas during the Napoleonic Wars. His tactics and strategy have been emulated and he continues to be regarded as one of England’s finest and most beloved heroes. His most famous monument, Nelson’s Column, is located in London’s Trafalgar Square which has become an important tourist attraction for the city. Nelson left behind one daughter, Horatia, who he had with his long-time mistress, Lady Hamilton.