They by degrees got so close that, at noon, the French ship Fougueux opened fire upon the Royal Sovereign (Collingwood’s flag-ship), then upon her port bow and well within shot. Immediately upon the first gun-shot, the three British Admirals hoisted their respective flags, and the rest of the ships the white, or St. George’s ensign, a measure adopted to prevent any confusion, in the heat of action, from a variety of national flags.
Each British ship also carried a union-jack at her main-top-mast stay, and another at her fore-top-gallant stay. The combined fleet hoisted their ensigns then, and their Admirals their flags.
Soon after the Fougueux and the ships next ahead and astern of her had opened fire the Royal Sovereign returned it, but Nelson made signal to engage more closely, and Collingwood ceased firing.
Soon after midday Collingwood had reached a position close astern of the Santa Anna, 112, and fired into her, with double-shotted guns, and with such precision that, by the subsequent admission of Spanish officers, she killed or wounded nearly four hundred of her crew. With the starboard broadside similarly shotted, the Royal Sovereign raked the Fougueux, but, owing to distance, with less effect. In a short time the British ship Belleisle followed through the combined line, which, owing to some of the ships astern of the Fougueux pressing forward to support the centre, while others kept their sails aback, or shivering, was fast losing the tolerably regular form it had had.
It was about this time that Nelson said, “See that noble fellow, Collingwood, how he carries his ship into action!” while Collingwood was remarking to his flag-Captain, “what Nelson would give to be here!”
The British lee column approached its enemy in such a slanting direction that it enabled most of them to discharge their starboard guns at the enemy’s rear, and an interchange of animated firing took place, the smoke from which, for lack of a strong breeze to carry it off, spread over the combatants, and increased the confusion into which the rear of the combined line had already been thrown, by the crashing charge upon its centre.
Twenty minutes after the Fougueux had opened fire upon the Royal Sovereign, and shortly after the latter had passed under the stern of the Santa Anna, the Bucentaure (Villeneuve’s flag-ship) fired a shot at the Victory, which latter had studding-sails set on both sides, and was going through the water very slowly. The shot fell short. Another fell alongside, after an interval, and then a third passed through the Victory’s main-top gallant sail. Things were getting warm, but the Victory did not immediately reply; and a minute or two of awful silence followed, the ships creeping together, and then, almost as if by signal, the whole Allied van opened fire upon the Victory, conspicuous from bearing Nelson’s flag. Such a fire has seldom been directed at a single ship. Almost immediately a round shot killed Nelson’s Secretary, Mr. Scott, while he was conversing with Captain Hardy. Shortly after a double-headed shot killed eight marines on the poop of the Victory, on which the Admiral ordered Captain Adair, the Marine Officer, to disperse his men around the ship, so that they should not suffer from being drawn up together. Presently a shot came through a thickness of four hammocks, carried away a part of the launch, as she lay on the booms, struck the fore-brace bitts on the quarter-deck, and then passed between Lord Nelson and Hardy. A splinter from the bitts tore the buckle from one of Nelson’s shoes. Dr. Beatty, the Surgeon of the Victory, says “they both instantly stopped, and were observed by the officers on deck to survey each other with inquiring looks, each supposing the other to be wounded. His Lordship smiled, and said ‘This is too warm work, Hardy, to last long!’ and he soon after declared to Captain Hardy that, in all his battles, he had never seen cooler courage displayed than that by the Victory’s men, on this occasion.” To be sure, they were fighting under Nelson’s own eye, and well-drilled men can stand almost any fire when well commanded.
The Allied ships directly ahead of the British weather column, seeing, by her movements, that the Victory was about to follow the example of the Royal Sovereign, closed up around her. The Bucentaure came up near the huge Santissima Trinidada, 130, but still left a small opening between herself and the latter. In hopes of passing through this interval in the line, Lord Nelson himself ordered the man at the wheel to steer east by south.
The Victory, by the change thus made in her course, having brought her port guns to bear upon the combined van, commenced firing from that side. She had already, from the concentrated fire she had encountered, lost twenty officers and men killed, and thirty wounded. This loss would have been greater had not the enemy endeavored to disable her by aiming rather at her spars and rigging. In consequence of this every studding-sail boom, on both sides, had been shot away, and every sail riddled.
This shows that if the centre and rear of the Allies had opened fire earlier upon the Royal Sovereign, as she went in, they would, probably, have entirely disabled her.