A pair of bone miniatures, depicting the Royal Navy vessels HMS Victory and HMS Foudroyant, used by Vice-Admiral Horatio Nelson, 19th century
England’s most iconic Lady, and i’m not talking about the Queen, the HMS Victory had a long and proud history before she served as Nelson’s flagship 1805. Although she 40 years old, considerably past the normal life span of a ship-of-the-line, she went on to further service in the Baltic and other areas. Her career as a fighting ship effectively ended 1812. She was 47 years old, the same age Nelson had been when he died.
In 1831 she was listed for disposal, but when the First Sea Lord Thomas Masterman Hardy, once her captain, told his wife that he had just signed an order for this, Lady
Louisa Emily Anna Hardy is said have to burst into tears and sent him straight back to the Admiralty to rescind the order. Curiously, the page of the duty log containing the orders for that day is missing. There was probably still someone not so enthusiastic that this lady should be destroyed. Thanks to them, without them we had lost her.
A pair of reverse-glass silhouette paintings of HMS Albert (above) and HMS Victory, both depicted with standing and
running rigging in the company of other shipping, 19th century
The foretop sail of HMS Victory which was salvaged and secured after the battle of Trafalgar. From 1886 - 1905 it was on display in Portsmouth together with cannons from different periods for the glory of the Royal Navy
HMS Victory in Portsmouth Dockyard. By William Lionel Wyllie (1851 – 1931)
Last September I visited the Historic Dockyard at Portsmouth which is home to not only HMS Victory but also HMS Warrior, the Monitor HMS M33 and the preserved Mary Rose as well as historic Royal Navy Dockyard buildings containing museums and exhibitions. With today (21st October, 2019) being Trafalgar Day and the 214th anniversary of the momentous Napoleonic Naval Battle I thought I’d post some of the photographs I took during my visit to Victory - Admiral Nelson’s flagship and the last surviving ship of the line to take part in the battle.
Victory is currently painted as she would have been during the Battle of Trafalgar following research into just how she would have looked. Rather than her original red, the much later black and white or the famous bright yellow and black (with the black gun ports of the so-called Nelson-chequer) she is painted in a paler yellow/orange with a dark grey.
Some of Victory’s long 12 pounder guns on her maindeck with a carpenter’s chest open on display.
A view down one of Victory’s three gun decks which contain 32, 24, and 12 pounder guns. If memory serves these are some of the 32 pounders one the lower gun deck.
It is interesting to contrast the next few photos showing how officers and then ordinary seamen slept aboard Victory.
The hammocks slung here represent a small portion of how packed the deck would have been.
Some information about the ship and a beautifully painted Royal Coat of Arms above it.
Another shot of Victory’s main gun deck.
The stern window in HMS Victory’s Great Cabin on the upper gun deck. These would have been Nelson’s quarters.
The Victory had a crew of over 800 and were fed by a large galley. Each man received one hot meal per day. This is Victory’s large Brodie stove.
When Nelson was shot and mortally wounded on the quarterdeck of Victory at around 1pm, by a French marksman aboard Redoutable. Nelson was quietly carried below dying three hours later. The wreath and lantern mark where he spent his last hours in the ship’s cockpit on the orlop deck, below the waterline.
One of Victory’s 68 pounder carronades on her forecastle aiming out over some of the historic dockyard buildings. Carronades were short, relatively lightweight guns for their calibre. They were invented in the late 1770s and packed a huge short-range punch.
Finally here’s a look at the hydraulic jacks which support Victory in dry dock.
I’ve written more about the historic 1805 battle previously, find that here.
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The Heavyweight Punch by Geoff Hunt.
In the misty calm of the morning of 21st October 1805, three of Great Britain’s most powerful ships - Victory (100 guns), Temeraire (98) and Neptune (98) are seen under full sail, bearing down majestically on the enemy line off Cape Trafalgar. The colossal might of Victory, Temeraire and Neptune, combined firepower of 296 guns, is seen from the French and Spanish line as they close to deliver the famous “Heavyweight Punch”
The Heavyweight Punch by Geoff Hunt.
In the misty calm of the morning of 21st October 1805, three of Great Britain’s most powerful ships - Victory (100 guns), Temeraire (98) and Neptune (98) are seen under full sail, bearing down majestically on the enemy line off Cape Trafalgar. The colossal might of Victory, Temeraire and Neptune, combined firepower of 296 guns, is seen from the French and Spanish line as they close to deliver the famous “Heavyweight Punch”
HMS Victory at high sails.
Richard C. Moore
Pretty
My Random Trek Rewatch today is Elementary Dear Data (it may not be so random episode, I may be going for period dressups :P)
Data is still so, so literal at the beginning of this episode. And there’s what’s her face from Mad About You (Anne Ramsay).
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