Nelson: Britannia's God of War (74 page)

BOOK: Nelson: Britannia's God of War
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Noszlopy, G. T. ‘A Note on West’s ‘Apotheosis of Nelson’,
Burlington
Magazine
112(1970), pp. 813–17

Pratt, L. ‘The Naval Thanksgiving of 1797’,
Journal
of
Maritime
Research
(2000)

Roberston, J. ‘Enlightenment and Revolution: Naples 1799’,
Transactions
of
the
Royal
Historical
Society
VIth Series, 10 (2000)

Rodger, N. A. M. ‘Image and Reality in Eighteenth Century Naval Tactics’,
Mariner’s
Mirror
83 (2003), pp. 280–96

Salmon, F. ‘The Impact of the Archaeology of Rome on British Architects and their Work 1750-1840” in Hornsby, C. ed.
The
Impact
of
Italy:
The
Grand
Tour
and
Beyond.
2000, pp. 219–44

Southey, R. ‘Lives of Nelson’,
Quarterly
Review
(1810), pp. 218–62

Tomlinson, B. ‘The Battle Sanctified’, in Duffy, M. and Morriss, R.
The
Glorious
First
of
June.
Exeter, 2001

White, C. ‘Nelson’s 1805 Battle Plan’,
Journal
of
Maritime
Research
(2002)

– ‘The Wife’s Tale: Frances, Lady Nelson and the Break-up of her Marriage’,
Journal
of
Maritime
Research
(2003)

– ed. ‘The Public Order Book of Vice Admiral Lord Nelson July-October 1801’ in Duffy, M. ed.
Naval
Miscellany
VI
pp. 221_55

Exhibition:
Mad,
Bad
and
Dangerous:
The
Cult
of
Lord
Byron.
Exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery, Jan-Feb 2003

Unpublished Ph.D. thesis: Colville, Q. ‘An analysis of the significance of material culture in constructing notions of class among male Royal Naval personnel, 1930–1960,’ University of London, 2004

Notes
 
 
INTRODUCTION
 

1 The Articles of War, 1749, second article

2 Lukacs,
The
Hitler
of
History:
Hitler’s
Biographers
on
Trial
, p. 73. Genius is, of course, a value-free concept. Hitler was undoubtedly one, as was Napoleon.

3 Howard, M.,
The
Causes
of 
Wars
, 1983, p. 215–16.

4 Clausewitz, C. von,
On
War
, ed. P. Paret and M. Howard, Princeton, 1976, p.  87.

5 Cookson,
The
British
Armed
Nation,
1793–1815,
pp. 38–95

6 de la Gravière, J,
Sketches
of
the
Late
Naval
War
, 2 vols., trans. Captain Plunkett, 1848, provides a clear-eyed assessment of the issues.

7 Rodger, ‘Image and Reality in Eighteenth Century Naval Tactics’

8 This system opened a Pandora’s box of problems for admirals who wanted to micromanage their fleets. See Gordon,
The
Rules
of
the
Game:
Jutland
and
British
Naval
Command
for a powerful study of the problems this would cause between Trafalgar and Jutland in 1916.

9 Collingwood to Alexander Carlyle 24.8.1801; Hughes, ed.
The
Private
Correspondence
of
Admiral
Lord
Collingwood
, p. 130

10 Collingwood to Admiral Pasley 16.12.1805; Nicolas VII p. 241

11 Heuser,
Reading
Clausewitz
, pp. 72–3

CHAPTER I
 

1 For details of this, and every other ship on which Nelson served, with a wealth of period detail and operational history, see Goodwin,
Nelson’s
Ships:
A
History
of
the
Vessels
in
which
he
Served,
1771

1805

2 Goodwin, p. 3 5

3 Nelson to Cornwallis 1790;
Manuscripts
of
Cornwallis
Wykeham
Martin
, pp. 341–2

4 Clarke and McArthur (1840) [hereafter C&M] I p. 24

5 C&M I p. 14.

6
Nicolas I pp. 21–2

7 Vincent,
Nelson,
Love
and
Fame
, p. 3 3

8 McNairn, A.,
Behold
the
Hero:
General
Wolfe
and
the
Arts
in
the
18th
Century.
Liverpool, 1997

9 Pocock,
Young
Nelson
in
the
Americas
, offers a comprehensive and rewarding study of this episode.

10 Lambert, ‘Sir William Cornwallis’, in LeFevre and Harding,
Precursors
of
Nelson

11 Mahan p. 27, Oman, p. 40 and Warner p. 38, attribute it to his merit. Southey, Laughton and Vincent pp. 42–3 simply accept the appointment.

12 Nelson to Suckling 14.1.1784; Nicolas II p. 479

13 Jenkinson to Sandwich 12.2.1781; Add. MS 38,308 f. 81

14 Rodger,
The
Insatiable
Earl:
A
life
of
John
Montagu,
4
th
Earl
of
Sandwich,
pp. 176–9. See also Sandwich to Jenkinson 19.1.1781; BL Add. MS 38,217 f. 253

15 Nelson to William Nelson 7.5.1781; Nicolas I pp. 42–3

16 Jenkinson to Sandwich 10.4.1781; Add. MS 38,308 f. 113

17 Walker,
The
Nelson
Portraits
, pp. 13–18

18 Hood to Pigot 22.11.1782; Hannay ed.
Letters
of
Lord
Hood;
1781

83
, p. 15

19 C&M; 1. p. 52. The anecdote was supplied by the Duke after 1805 and is therefore suspect.

20 Nelson to Locker 25.2.1782; Nicolas I p. 723

CHAPTER II
 

1 Goodwin, pp. 106–13

2 Goodwin, pp. 113–17 lists the offences, and the number of lashes awarded.

3 According to his first lieutenant James Wallis, who retailed the story to C&M  [1840] p. 143. There is a complete transcript of this memo taken from Add. 34,990 in Rawson ed.
Nelson’s
Letters
from
the
Leeward
Islands
, pp. 47–54. Pocock,
Young
Nelson,
p.
194

4 Ritcheson,
Aftermath
of
Revolution:
British
Policy
Towards
the
United
States,
1783

1795
, PP. 3–17, 218–21

5 His letters to William frequently refer to this fraud. See 29.12.1786; Nicolas I p. 204

6 Nelson to William Nelson 29.3. and 2.4.1784: Nicolas I p. 101–2

7 Brewer,
The
Sinews
of
Power:
War,
Money
and
the
English
State
1688

1783,
pp. 101–5

8 Ehrman,
The
Younger
Pitt:
The
Years
of
Acclaim
. Nelson to Suckling 14.1.1784: Nicolas II, pp. 479–80

9 Nelson to Hughes January 1785, and copied to the Secretary to the Admiralty 18.1.1785: Nicolas I pp. 114–18

10 Rawson ed.
Nelson’s
Letters
from
the
Leeward
Islands
, pp. 23–40

11 Nelson to Suckling 25.9. and 14.11.1785; Nicolas I pp. 140–6

12 Nelson to Locker 5.3.1786; Nicolas I pp. 156–60

13 Nelson to Moutray 6.2.1785 and Nelson to Admiralty 17.2.1785; Nicolas I pp. 118–19, 121–3

14 Fanny’s letters to him were burnt on the eve of the attack on Tenerife.

15 Nelson to Fanny 4.5.1786; Nicolas I p. 167. Vincent notes at p. 71 that this was still being used as a homily for young naval officers in 1954.

16 Nelson to Fanny 6.3.1787; Naish ed.
Nelson’s
Letters
to
His
Wife
and
Other
Documents,
1785

1831
,
p. 50

17 William to Hood 9.2.1787: Ranft, ed. ‘Prince William and Lieutenant Schomberg’, in Lloyd, ed.
The
Naval
Miscellany:
Vol.
IV.
London, 1952 pp. 270–2

18 William to Nelson 3.12.1787 and William to Hood 26.12.1787 and 5.1.1788; Ranft pp. 286–95

19 Howe to Hood 2.7.1787; Ranft p. 287

20 Rose recalled this meeting in conversation with Clarke or McArthur. See C&M (1840) I p. 150

21 Nelson to Clarence 10.12.1792; Nicolas I pp. 294–7

22 Ziegler,
King
William
IV
, pp. 37–95, for Prince William’s relationship with Nelson and the Navy.

23 Clarence to Nelson 3.10.1796; Add. 34,904 f. 400

24 Nelson to William 2.6.1788; Nicolas I pp. 275–6

25 Nicolas I p. 288

CHAPTER III
 

1 Goodwin, pp. 118–31; Deane,
Nelson’s
Favourite:
HMS
Agamemnon
at
War.
1781

1809
,
pp. 75–130

2 Sherwig,
Guineas
and
Gunpowder
,
p. 11

3 Sherwig, p. 25. Ehrman II p. 278

4 Ehrman II pp. 278–80

5 Nelson to Wife 15.3.1793; Naish pp. 74–5

6 Nelson to William Nelson 18.4.1793; Nicolas I p. 304.

7 Letters of 18, 20 and 25 May 1793; Nicolas I pp. 306–7. Naish pp. 80–1.

8 The Sea Journal, reproduced in Naish pp. 128–150, can be compared with the contemporary letters.

9 Nelson to Clarence 14.7.1793; Nicolas I pp. 311–15. Nelson still believed Clarence would be employed.

10 Nelson to Wife 15.7.1793; Naish pp. 84–5

11 Nelson to Wife 4.8.1793; Naish pp. 87–8

12 Nelson to Father 20.8.1793; Nicolas I pp. 319–20

13 Ehrman II p. 303

14 Nelson to Wife 7–10.9.1793,14.10.1793 and Nelson to Suckling 14.9.1793; Naish pp. 92–4, Nicolas I p. 327

15 Nelson to Suckling 11.10.1793: Nicolas I pp. 331–2

16 Nelson to Wife 12.10.1793; Naish pp. 93–4

17 Sea Journal 22.10.1793; Naish pp. 138–9

18 Sea Journal 6 and 10.11.1793; Naish pp. 139–40

19 Elliot to Wife 16 and 17.12.1793 Minto, Countess ed.
The
Life
and
Letters
of
Sir
Gilbert
Elliot
,
First
Earl
of
Minto
,
1751–1806
, II p. 199

CHAPTER IV
 

1 Rose, J. H. ‘British Rule in Corsica’ in Rose ed.
Pitt
and
Napoleon:
Essays
and
Letters.
London, 1912. pp. 60–2.

2 Hood to Nelson 15 and 28.12.1793; Godfrey, J. H, ed. ‘Corsica 1794’ in Lloyd, C. ed.
The
Naval
Miscellany
Volume
IV.
Navy Records Society (henceforth NRS) London. 1952, pp. 364–5.

3 Nelson to Wife 16.1.1794; Naish pp. 99–100

4 Nelson to Locker 17.1.1794; Nicolas pp. 347–8. It is significant that letters to naval correspondents are altogether more analytical, reflecting the cerebral aspect of his work, while those to his family are narratives interspersed with reflections on thwarted ambition.

5 Nelson to Wife 30.1.1794; Naish pp. 101–2

6 Journal 6.2.1794; Naish pp. 144–5

7 Fortescue, J. W.
A
History
of
the
British
Army.
Vol. IV, 1906 pp. 182–5. A severe critic of Hood, Fortescue provides a useful counter to the naval accounts. However, his bias is excessive, and largely self-defeating. His other target, Henry Dundas, is also now seen in a more favourable light.

8 Nelson to Wife 13.2. 1794; Naish pp. 102–3

9 Nelson to Wife 28.2.1794; Naish pp. 103–4

10 Hood, Nelson, Dundas and Elliot correspondence of 8–9.3.1794; see NRS, 371–3, Minto and Nicolas.

11 Minto II p. 247

12 D’Aubant to Henry Dundas 2.4.1794; NRS pp. 382–3

13 Moore Diary 21.3.1794. NRS; pp. 378–9. Nelson to Wife 22.3.1794; Naish pp. 106–7

14 Nelson to Hamilton 27.3.1794; Nicolas pp. 377–9

15 Hood to Nelson 20 and 21.4.1794; NRS pp. 387–8

16 Hood to Nelson 24–31.4.1794; NRS pp. 389–91

17 Nelson to Wife 1–4.5.1794; Naish pp. 109–111

18 Moore Diary 3.5.1794; NRS pp. 392–3

19 Hood to Nelson 5, 8,9, 11,13 and 15.5.1794; NRS pp. 393–7

20 Moore Diary 15.5.1794; NRS pp. 397–8

21 Hood to Nelson 22.5.1794; NRS p. 399

22 Nelson to Locker, William Nelson and Wife 30.5.1794; Naish, pp. 112–13, Nicolas pp. 402–4

23 Nelson to Hood 23.6.1794; Nicolas I p. 413

24 Hood to Elliot 15.7.1794; Naish p. 172

25 Hood to Elliot 3.7.1794; Moore Diary 19.6.1794; NRS pp. 403–4

26 Nelson to Hood 3, 4, 6 and 7.7.1794; Nicolas pp. 417–24 Stuart to Nelson 4.7.1794; NRS p. 405

27 Nelson to Pollard 14.7.1794; Nicolas p. 436

28 Moore Diary 13.7.1794; NRS pp. 405–6

29 Nelson to Hood and Hood to Nelson 12.7.1794; Nicolas pp. 432–3

30 The precise nature of the injury was never determined. Pugh,
Nelson
and
his
Surgeons
,
p. 8

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