Nelsons Trafalgar Battle Changed World

Nelsons Trafalgar Battle Changed World

An explosive chronicle of history’s biggest sea battle

In the tradition of Antony Beevor’s Stalingrad, Nelson’s Trafalgar presents the definitive blow-by-blow account of the world’s most widely known and esteemed naval battle, when the British Royal Navy under Lord Horatio Nelson dealt a decisive blow to the forces of Napoleon. The Battle of Trafalgar comes boldly to life in this definitive work that re-creates those five momentous, piercing hours with unrivaled detail and intensity.

From BooklistAdkins’ account focuses on the day of the Battle of Trafalgar, October 21, 1805, commenting upon the engineering science and tactics of sailing-ship navies and the readiness of the queer fleets that met at Trafalgar. An comprehensible statement of the strategic circumstance of France’s threatened invasion of Britain frames the center stage of the narrative, a broadside-by-broadside description of which ship was where for the duration of the battle. Amid this structure, Adkins incorporates excerpts from survivors’ accounts, which retain their gory power to appall. Trafalgar was a slaughter, a consequence of the near impossibility of sinking a wooden ship-of-the-line; hence, the British commander’s decision to gain victory by closing with and killing enemy gunners. Writing in the established way in regards to Nelson, Adkins knowledgeably narrates events for readers just discovering the blood-and-guts chronology of Trafalgar.

Gilbert Taylor
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

ReviewCaptures the din, confusion, and sheer carnage of the battle. — The Wall Street Journal

Captures the din, confusion, and sheer carnage of the battle. (The Wall Street Journal)

Nelsons Trafalgar Battle Changed World Photo

Nelsons Trafalgar Battle Changed World Picture

Nelsons Trafalgar Battle Changed World Picture

Nelsons Trafalgar Battle Changed World Image

Most helpful client reviews

43 of 46 persons found the following review helpful.
I prefer the British Title, “the Biography of a Battle” – much more illustratative I think
By A. Woodley
The british subtitled this book, “The biography of a battle” – which seems to much more accurately describes precisely what this book is – it treats the whole battle as a biography, permitting all the info to speak to build up a comprehensive picture of just what this battle meant – both in the lead up, and in the aftermath.

25 of 26 persons found the following review helpful.
The battle that changed the world
By A. McDonald
This is in the remainder an splendid work of naval history and veritably readable. It is a well-paced account of the pivotal naval battle of the Napoleonic Wars, where a British fleet commanded by Lord Horatio Nelson engaged the combined fleet of the Spanish and French near Cadiz. The British decisively discomfited the Combined Fleet, efficaciously ending Napoleon’s naval ambitions and any question of a cross-channel invasion of England. Trafalgar was the last great naval battle among fleets of sailing ships, and led the way to the British domination of the seas for the duration of the 19th century.

22 of 25 humans found the following review helpful.
A Great Read!
By John T. Cullen
I’m a huge fan of Roy Adkins, having read his books on archaeology–which I treasure on my bookshelves. Adkins magnificently details this historic naval battle among the French and Spanish on the one side and the British on the other. Adkins not only gives a unforgettable overview of the battle, but he likewise takes the time to explain respective distinct features of life at the time on board ship, as well as the reasons leading to the battle. What is also a great surprise is that there was a big storm afterwards, in which more far humans lost their lives than in the battle itself. The author then goes on to recount how the news was brought to England after the battle and how it disseminate to the rest of the world. This is a very stirring and often times sad story, much recommended.

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