Horatio Nelson
Horatio Nelson, Viscount Nelson (29 September 1758 – 21 October 1805), British vice-admiral, commanded the British fleet at the Battle of Trafalgar. He is commonly referred to as Admiral Nelson in French (Lord Nelson , among the British).
Horatio Nelson was born in Burnham Thorpe, England to Reverend Edmund Nelson and Catherine Suckling Nelson. He lost his mother at the age of nine. He learned seafaring at Barton Broad, and by the age of 12 had joined the Royal Navy. His career began on January 1, 1771, when he became a midshipman on the warship Reasonable , commanded by his maternal uncle. In 1777 he was a lieutenant, assigned to the Caribbean (West Indies ), a period during which he participated in the American War of Independence on the English side. At the age of 20, in June 1779, he was appointed captain; the frigate Hitchenbroke was his first command.
He lost his right eye at the Battle of Calvi in 1794, and his right arm at Tenerife in 1797.
On August 1, 1798, the French squadron of the Egyptian expedition was surprised at anchor in Aboukir Bay by Nelson's fleet. The battle was appalling and, despite the balance of forces and often superior equipment, the engagement turned into a disaster for the French. Only two ships manage to escape. The battle will be decisive for the rest of the expedition. Deprived of its fleet, the army of the East will remain prisoner of Egypt.
He is especially famous, in particular for his fellow citizens of whom he remains a hero present in the memory, at the naval battle of Trafalgar, where the British fleet opposes a Franco-Spanish coalition. While the fleet he commands is outnumbered by his opponents, he manages to break the line giving him a decisive victory.
However, he leaves life during the fight.
His statue on a column dominates the famous Trafalgar Square in central London (as well as in front of the town hall of Montreal) and its flagship, the HMS Victory , the oldest ship in the world, is still accessible to the public in Portsmouth harbour. [edit]
Anecdotes
Statue of Admiral Nelson in Montreal, in front of City Hall. According to some sources, orders from the ground ordered him to retreat from the coalition, but he then placed his scope over his one-eyed eye and replied to his men "I don't see the message" ( I don't see the message ). According to various sources, he asked an officer named Hardy to kiss him (Kiss me, Hardy ), just before dying. According to other sources, his last words were:“Drink! ". The second largest statue in his honor is in Montreal, Quebec, although he never set foot in Canada.