He entered the navy at the age of 12 and became a captain at the age of 20. He saw service in the West Indies, in the Baltic, and in Canada. During these years he became friendly with the duke of Clarence (later William IV) and married (1787) a widow, Frances Nisbet, in the West Indies. That same year he returned to England and remained inactive and somewhat in disfavor at the admiralty.
In 1793 Great Britain entered the French Revolutionary Wars, and Nelson was given command of the British ship Agamemnon. He served in the Mediterranean, fighting at Toulon and helping to capture Corsica. At Calvi he lost the sight in one eye. Under John Jervis, later earl of St. Vincent, he was largely responsible, acting boldly and without orders, for the victory over the Spanish off Cape St. Vincent (1797). He was made a rear admiral by seniority and was created a knight of the Bath. In the unsuccessful British attempt (1797) to capture Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Nelson lost his right arm and was returned to England.
Upon his return to service, he was sent on detached duty to find the French fleet. After a long pursuit the French fleet was destroyed in 1798 at Aboukir (the modern Abu Qir), stranding Napoleon I and the entire French army in Egypt. Nelson was showered with rewards and honors, but received only the comparatively modest title of Baron Nelson of the Nile. He was placed in command of a squadron assisting the kingdom of the Two Sicilies. Here he fell in love with Emma, Lady Hamilton, the wife of the British ambassador, who became his mistress.
After the French took possession of Naples (1799) and set up the Parthenopean Republic, Nelson blockaded the city. During his absence on one occasion, the royalist commander, Fabrizio Ruffo, made a generous peace with the Neapolitan republicans. But Nelson, on his return, annulled the treaty and executed the Neapolitan admiral, Francesco Caracciolo, for desertion to the French. When the British commander in chief in the Mediterranean ordered him to Minorca, Nelson refused to obey on the grounds that his presence in Naples was politically necessary, but it was suspected that he did not wish to leave Lady Hamilton.
In 1800 he returned to England with the Hamiltons and soon separated (1801) from his wife. The same year, Lady Hamilton bore him a daughter, Horatia. Nelson contrived his appointment as second in command, under Sir Hyde Parker, of the fleet sent against the armed neutrality of the Baltic powers. He defeated (1801) the Danes at Copenhagen, ignoring Parker's order to cease action by putting his telescope to his blind eye and saying that he could not see the signal. He was made a viscount, returned to England, and was given command of the Channel fleet to repel an expected French invasion. During the interlude of peace (1802-3), he lived in the country with the Hamiltons.
Upon the renewal of war (1803), Nelson was given command of the fleet in the Mediterranean and blockaded the French fleet at Toulon for 22 months. When the French finally escaped, he pursued the fleet across the Atlantic to the West Indies and back to Spain, where it took refuge with the Spanish fleet in Cadiz. On Oct. 21, 1805, the combined fleets ventured out of port, and found Nelson waiting for them off Cape Trafalgar. Before the battle he gave the famous signal, "England expects that every man will do his duty." He won his most spectacular victory but died in the action.
See biographies by R. Southey (1813, much repr.), A. T. Mahan (1897, repr. 1984), G. M. Bennett (1972), C. Lloyd (1973), D. and S. Howarth (1989), E. V. Yale (2003), E. Vincent (2003), and R. Knight (2005).
(born Sept. 29, 1758, Burnham Thorpe, Norfolk, Eng.—died Oct. 21, 1805, at sea, off Cape Trafalgar, Spain) British naval commander. He entered the navy in 1770 and served in the West Indies from 1777 to 1783. In 1793 he was sent to support the British allies against the French in the Mediterranean. After the British victory against the Spanish and French in the Battle of Cape St. Vincent (1797), he was promoted to rear admiral. In 1798 he pursued Napoleon's fleet to Egypt, where he won the decisive Battle of the Nile. During a prolonged stay in Naples for his ships' repairs, he pursued a love affair with Emma, Lady Hamilton. For helping restore the Neapolitan king Ferdinand I to power (1799), he was created duke di Bronte. As second in command of an expedition to attack Denmark, he skillfully won the Battle of Copenhagen (1801) and was appointed commander in chief of the navy. In 1805 he was sent to the Mediterranean to meet the threat posed by the French fleet in Napoleon's scheme to invade England. In the ensuing Battle of Trafalgar, Nelson, aboard his flagship Victory, was shot by a French sniper from the Redoutable and died just as the British fleet secured its victory. His death was widely mourned, and he became England's most popular hero. His brilliant tactical command assured British naval supremacy for over 100 years.
Learn more about Nelson, Horatio Nelson, Viscount with a free trial on Britannica.com.
(born Sept. 29, 1758, Burnham Thorpe, Norfolk, Eng.—died Oct. 21, 1805, at sea, off Cape Trafalgar, Spain) British naval commander. He entered the navy in 1770 and served in the West Indies from 1777 to 1783. In 1793 he was sent to support the British allies against the French in the Mediterranean. After the British victory against the Spanish and French in the Battle of Cape St. Vincent (1797), he was promoted to rear admiral. In 1798 he pursued Napoleon's fleet to Egypt, where he won the decisive Battle of the Nile. During a prolonged stay in Naples for his ships' repairs, he pursued a love affair with Emma, Lady Hamilton. For helping restore the Neapolitan king Ferdinand I to power (1799), he was created duke di Bronte. As second in command of an expedition to attack Denmark, he skillfully won the Battle of Copenhagen (1801) and was appointed commander in chief of the navy. In 1805 he was sent to the Mediterranean to meet the threat posed by the French fleet in Napoleon's scheme to invade England. In the ensuing Battle of Trafalgar, Nelson, aboard his flagship Victory, was shot by a French sniper from the Redoutable and died just as the British fleet secured its victory. His death was widely mourned, and he became England's most popular hero. His brilliant tactical command assured British naval supremacy for over 100 years.
Learn more about Nelson, Horatio Nelson, Viscount with a free trial on Britannica.com.
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