Battle of Trafalgar bicentenary celebrations

[Blackleaf]

Britain celebrates victory over Napoleon - 200 years on.

The biggest gathering of warships, during peacetime, IN HISTORY celebrated Nelson's victory yesterday, a victory which paved the way for Britain to dominate the world's seas for a century. Today, the Royal Navy is still the world's 2nd-most powerful navy.

The fleet's lit up
By David Derbyshire
(Filed: 29/06/2005)

The Grand Turk, standing in for Nelson's ship HMS Victory, during one of the biggest fireworks display that the world has ever seen.

In pictures: Trafalgar's 200th anniversary

The Solent was illuminated last night by 10,000 fireworks in a spectacular climax to celebrations marking the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Trafalgar.
Fireworks light up a tall ship
A tall ship is lit up by a volley of fireworks

Tens of thousands of spectators along the seafronts of Portsmouth, Gosport and the Isle of Wight watched the display at the end of a son et lumière re-enactment of Adml Lord Nelson's glorious victory. At the end of a day of pomp and tradition, tall ships manoeuvred amid smoke and explosions in imitation of the action that secured British naval dominance for a century.



But the fleets, made up of ships from around the world, were referred to only as "red" and "blue" in deference to Franco-Spanish sensibilities. Music, booming from enormous speakers, was also neutral, Rule Britannia being noticeably absent. Holst's Jupiter, the music used for the hymn I Vow to Thee My Country, provided the closest encounter with patriotism.

The Grand Turk
Grand Turk fires its cannon during the re-enactment

One of the greatest armadas seen in peace time had assembled for the occasion and the crowds were rewarded with fly-pasts of maritime aircraft and a sail-past of graceful tall ships. The might of the modern military shared the Solent with thousands of yachts and pleasure dinghies as the Queen and Prince Philip reviewed the international fleet of 167 ships. Sixty-seven vessels belonged to the Royal Navy; the rest came from 35 allies, including Russia, Korea, Nigeria and Japan.

France sent its biggest warship, the 856ft nuclear-powered aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle.



In a written message, the Queen paid tribute to Nelson, who died as he led the Navy in the decisive victory against the French and Spanish fleets. "Admiral Lord Nelson's supreme qualities of seamanship, leadership with humanity and courage in the face of danger are shared among our maritime community today," she said. "He could wish for no greater legacy."

 

[Blackleaf]

A tallship drifts into through smoke during the battle re-enactment in the Solent.
Photo: Chris Young/PA
Interactive guide: Trafalgar


Playing Victory

The Grand Turk takes part in a firework display during the battle re-enactment.
Photo: Julian Herbert/Getty
150,000 review historic fleet


The fleet's lit up

Fireworks explode over tallships in the Solent.
Photo: Stephen Hird/Reuters

 

[Blackleaf]

What about England's old pals (not) the French?



The boats there were far from petty. 67 of the 167 ships were Royal Navy warships - aircraft carriers, destroyers and frigates. But there were some little boats.

The French ship, the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle, is a colossus. It is the largest warship in Western Europe -



The mighty Charles de Gaulle. A French aircraft carrier. It is the largest warship in Western Europe, twice as large as Britain's aircraft carriers, and larger than helicopter carrier HMS Ocean, Britain's largest warship. However, it is the only aircraft carrier that France has (compared to Britain's three aircraft carriers + the helicopter carrier) and has a tendency to break down.

French put on their best dress, despite mutterings below deck

By Alan Hamilton
Our correspondent on the Charles de Gaulle tests knowledge of French naval victories (and there aren't many)

Crew from the French aircraft carrier the Charles de Gaulle prepare to be inspected by the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh on the flight deck in Portsmouth (PAUL ROGERS)


IT WAS good of the losers to turn up; you’d think they’d prefer to forget defeat. But if they were going to come at all, they were going to make a show of it.

The French had the biggest foreign contingent and the largest ship at yesterday’s fleet review, six vessels led by the Charles de Gaulle, a gargantuan, nuclear-powered aircraft carrier of 42,000 tonnes, twice as big as anything the Royal Navy possesses, and with a flight deck 857ft (261m) long.



Vice-Admiral Jacques Mazars, the most senior officer on board, said: “If you are invited to your cousin’s wedding you wear your best dress; that’s what we have done.”

He added that he was happy to be commemorating France’s old adversary Nelson while at the same time “celebrating the great brotherhood of the sea. We do not have an equivalent hero to Nelson because there is no English admiral in the French Navy,” the Vice-Admiral joked to The Times in a small conference room deep in the bowels of this behemoth. He conceded that Nelson was a great man and a great admiral, if only because: “he took account of all the skills of his adversary Admiral Villeneuve.”

Naturally the Commander of the joint French-Spanish force that faced Nelson “could be a great man also. We know from his letters that he was not in good shape to take on the British Navy, but he still put to sea.”

Fair enough, Vice-Admiral, but you cannot escape the fact that Villeneuve was defeated.

“Navy people are lucky in the UK because they were the first service and so to win a battle like Trafalgar was very important to them. Bu for the French it was not so important and it didn’t worry Napoleon because he was much more land-minded. Remember that in the same year as Trafalgar he won the Battle of Austerlitz.”

Perhaps that is why there are so few admirals who are French national heroes, apart perhaps from de Grasse, who defeated the Royal Navy at Chesapeake Bay in 1781 and opened the way to victory for George Washington, and the grander named Pierre André de Suffren de Saint Tropez, who caused us a lot of bother in the Indian Ocean in the late 18th century.

The Vice-Admiral was anxious to emphasise that the presence of six French ships at a Trafalgar celebration was less about history than about present-day co-operation between allied navies. There were, however, mutterings from below decks that it was a strange thing to be doing.

Ensign Stéphane Lombardo, one of the carrier’s fighter pilots, said: “Given the choice, half the crew would not have come to a celebration of a French defeat.”

In the captain’s cabin Xavier Magne, commanding officer of the Charles de Gaulle, expressed pride in his warship, the biggest in Western Europe. “We can go without refuelling for seven years,” he boasted. Ah, but does that include the Chablis? “Mais oui,” said the captain. “I can always pick up wine from replenishment ships.” No Chablis, but a perfectly acceptable carafe of rosé was served in the junior officers’ mess with an excellent lunch of asparagus, pork casserole and an extensive cheese board. The only obvious concession to Nato integration was a bottle of Heinz tomato ketchup.

Captain Magne heads a crew of 1,900 officers, men and women, of whom the latter constitutes 10 per cent of the total. “When men are alone they just grunt and talk football. When there are females onboard — and we even have one woman fighter pilot — they smile and make an effort.”

For an unofficial view on the women we took Lieutenant David Pret aside. “You can have relationships onboard, but not while you’re working, and you cannot share a cabin. You can invite a girl for a drink in the mess; yes, of course you can drink but you cannot get drunk or you will be fired.” By the way Lieutenant, can you name any famous French naval victories? His eyes darted around and he laughed nervously. “Beeeep! No comment,” he giggled.

That’ll be a non, then? The Queen then came in sight passing down the line of ships. Charles de Gaulle’s impeccably turned-out crew lined the flight deck; above their heads she was dressed with a huge tricoleur flying at her stern and the Croix de Lorraine fluttering at her bow in memory of the Free French whom de Gaulle commanded. On board the Spanish carrier Principe de Asturias, next in line, there was a sudden scramble from below decks to line up; the royal arrival appeared to have surprised them in their siesta.

As the Queen passed the Charles de Gaulle, the carrier’s small and, for once, harmless salute gun fired 21 rounds and her loudspeakers played the British National Anthem. While La Reine was still well within earshot, the band of the Royal Marines playing the Monty Python theme tune on Her Majesty’s foredeck was drowned out by the Charles de Gaulle’s high-decibel broadcast of La Marseillaise. Just a reminder 200 years on, ma’am, as to who’s got the biggest toy now.



thetimesonline.co.uk

 

[Blackleaf]

Battle of Trafalgar

200 years of the navies



THE WAR

The battle of Trafalgar ensured British supremacy on the seas for a century

The battle resulted from Napoleon’s plans to gain control of the English Channel to invade Britain in the summer of 1805

The British fleet was highly skilled, having blockaded the French from the Channel for two years

Britain had a fleet of 27 ships pitted against a Franco-Spanish fleet of 33

The Spanish fleet included the world’s largest ship, the 136-gun Santissima Trinidad

On October 21 the British fleet was only 9 miles from the Franco-Spanish ships, and HMS Victory hoisted the signal, “England expects that every man will do his duty”

The British fleet overwhelmed its opponents by splitting into two columns to attack their centre and rear

The fighting was intense and bloody, with 8,500 dead on both sides

Britain captured 18 enemy ships, including the Santissima Trinidad


THE PEACE


France’s most prestigious warship, the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle, was the largest ship on display yesterday at the festivities

The French brought six ships, the largest of 35 countries attending

67 British ships took part

The Royal Navy ships on display included a number due to be scrapped

Britain currently has three aircraft carriers, four strategic missile submarines, three amphibious assault ships, eleven attack submarines and twenty-five destroyers and frigates and about 100 other ships, according to the Royal Navy. The Royal Navy's total tonnage and power are both second only to the United States Navy

Britain has the most submarines in Europe (not including Russia)

The Navy says it is currently building six new destroyers

 

[Jay]

Those are great pics...thanks for posting them.