You might have heard of Nelson and his victories, but did you know he ate rats and frogs, and was pickled in beer after he died? When you have a assignment to read Dead Famous Nelson, read this instead.
To impress your teacher, you can use a few details such as the ranks of the crew on board the ship HMS Victory, Nelson’s ship.
The captain is the head of the ship, and the one who steers the ship.
The first lieutenant was the one who took over the ship if the captain was absent or ill. Up to 6 other lieutenants helped run the ship and commanded sections of the guns in battle.
The midshipmen were young officers in training, and if they survived then would take a exam to a lieutenant. They were mainly 8-10 years old and the starting rank of Nelson was a midshipmen.
Warrant officers were the people with particular roles, such as the cook, or the armorer plus assistants to other smaller officers.
And at the bottom of the food chain, the seamen where the majority of the crew, up to 850 of them on the ship. They rowed the ship and did all the physical work around the ship.
Now for the life of Horatio Nelson.
Horatio was the middle child in the family of 7, making him the center of bullying from his older brothers. His uncle was a high ranking captain in the British Navy possibly inspiring Horatio to join the Navy. Horatio’s first adventure was going to the Arctic, to find a way to get to Japan and China without going through the treacherous seas of South America. After returning home, he went on another voyage and caught malaria, and had to leave the ship.
After sailing home, he was given the position of lieutenant, sailing to take some colonies in spain, succeeding in taking a few castles but losing a lot of men. His victory, even losing so many, was celebrated everywhere. After a few years he went to egypt, and defeated Napoleon, but lost his eye in the process. That was a massive win for britain, and Nelson was the bee’s knees for a while until he lost his arm in a battle, making him take a break from fighting for a while. Then at his final battle, The Battle of Trafalgar, Nelson was shot and died soon after the fighting.
The battle had been a major win for Britain, losing no ships but the enemy losing all ships. Napoleon had no other chance to seize the English Channel.
If you have a assignment on Horatio Nelson I highly recommend this book, it provides all the details, all the significant facts and all the dates your teacher wants. All of the information I used comes from Dead Famous: Horatio Nelson And His Victory.
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