British Triumph: The Battle of Trafalgar Analyzed

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In October 1805, the Battle of Trafalgar took place between the British Royal Navy and the combined Navies of France and Spain. The results of said battle were devastating to the French and Spaniards, but proved to be a great victory for the British. This victory was accomplished by the superiority of the British Navy in three aspects: leadership, tactics, and gunnery. When it came to leadership, the British leadership appeared to be more capable than that of the combined force navy. Lord Nelson, who commanded the British fleet, studied the engagement of naval fleets of the time and understood the tactics used by opposing navies during a sea bound battle. Lord Nelson also spoke with his captains in detail about certain aspects of the battle and would keep them apprised of certain situations. Nelson also had his ships in complete understanding of things to look for, and had them ready to commit to orders without question. Comparatively, the combined forces Vice-Admiral Villanueva knew the tactics of the time, and set to use …show more content…

Due to the British Navy spending exuberant amounts of time at sea, the sailors of the fleet were drilled, practiced and honed for a battle such as this. The British naval man would be able to fire their cannons 3 times in 5 minutes compared to 1 time in 8 minutes of that Combined Navy. Along with this understanding of the gunnery, Nelson also understood the ships guns he was facing. The French and Spanish ships were scattered on capabilities of their guns, and Nelson used this to his advantage. Nelson also used the speed of his fleet to overwhelm the combined forces as well. From what we can see, leadership, understanding of tactics, and gunnery are three reasons the British Navy was superior to the Combined fleet during the Battle of Trafalgar. This battle also ended the hopes of Napoleon of invading the British Isles himself, and made Nelson a national hero, posthumously

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