NELSON’S VICTORY AT TRAFALGAR.
On July 19th, 1805, the English fleet anchored in Gibraltar, and on the 20th Lord Nelson says, in his diary, “I went on shore for the first time since June 16th, 1803, and, from having my foot out of the Victory, two years, wanting ten days.”
He remained only three days on shore at Gibraltar, and then received information that the allied fleet had been seen, five weeks before, steering N. N. west, in latitude 33°, longitude 58° west. This was stale news, but the earliest, of a positive nature, which he had received. He, therefore, passed the Straits of Gibraltar, and at first went to the westward, but afterwards he went off Cape St. Vincent, to be ready to steer in any direction that circumstances might direct. On the third day of August the English fleet was in 39° north, and 16° west longitude.
Here Lord Nelson got some information from an American merchant ship, which had taken the log of a vessel which had been set on fire and abandoned, but not destroyed, and, from a scrap of paper containing a reckoning, he derived the fact that the vessel had been taken by the French fleet.
Nelson then proceeded north, but finding no news, either from Admiral Cornwallis, off Ushant, or the Channel fleet, proceeded, with the Victory, and another ship, to Portsmouth, leaving the rest of his fleet as a reinforcement to the Channel fleet.
In the meantime the combined fleet had had a most important action, on July 22d, with Sir Robert Calder’s squadron, between Ferrol and Finisterre, not necessary to be here gone into. It was a sort of drawn battle, with numbers in favor of the French. Sir Robert Calder was much blamed for the result.
Napoleon was terribly vexed that Villeneuve had not rendered a better account of Sir Robert Calder’s fleet, to which he was superior.
Bonaparte said that “Villeneuve was one of those men who require more spur than bridle,” and asked if it “would not be possible to find, in the navy, an enterprising man, with cool views, as one ought to see, either in battle, or in the manœuvres of a fleet.”
Villeneuve was ordered to go to Brest; but, in spite of that, went to Cadiz, the details of the reasons and movements being too long to be recounted here. The Emperor was furious, and charged him with dereliction in duty, disobedience of orders, refusing to fight the enemy, etc.
Part of Bonaparte’s vexation with Villeneuve no doubt arose from the loud complaints of the Spaniards, at having lost two ships in Calder’s action; and this was aggravated by the apparent unwillingness of the French Admiral, even with a powerful fleet under his command, to sail out, in the face of eleven English sail-of-the-line, cruising off Cadiz; and so enable the Spanish squadron at Carthagena to form a junction with Admiral Gravina, who commanded the Spanish portion of the allied fleet.