Trafalgar: The Nelson Touch (Great Battles) [Paperback]

David Howarth (Author)

Book Description

Series: Great Battles | Publication Date: May 1997

This classic book about the Battle of Trafalgar and the death of Nelson is now re-issued in paperback alongside its sister volume, Waterloo: A Near Run Thing

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

David Howarth, who died in 1991, was one of Britain's best writers of historical events. He himself had worked as war correspondent for the BBC in the Second World War, reporting the chaos of Dunkirk, but with the fall of France he joined the Navy and then came under the command of the SOE (Special Operating Service) running clandestine operations between Shetland and Norway. For this he was awarded the highest honours that Norway could award a foreigner. His own naval experiences in wartime and those in peacetime as an experienced sailor and boatmaker in Shetland, allow him to write with great understanding about a battle amidst the perils of the sea,

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Windrush Press, Ltd. (May 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1900624036
• ISBN-13: 978-1900624039
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 5.9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,308,415 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Portrait of the magic of Nelson's leadership and Trafalgar, August 28, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Trafalgar: The Nelson Touch (Great Battles) (Paperback)

This book by David Howarth is one of two that portrays the great Lord Nelson. Nelson is portayed as a leader with uncommon touch for bold military strategy and even more uncommon touch for leading men with affection and raport. This was very unusual in 1800. This book also portrays the battle of Trafalgar in the terrible ways of naval battle with 800 men ships demolishing eachother at point blank range. The French loss was inevitable and Lond Nelson was the man who build the winning ways of the British Navy over a 30 year period. The background and mood of the times are compelling.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Napoleon's Big Blunder, October 18, 2005

By 

Barnes and Noble Junkie (Barnes And Noble, Midlothian, Virginia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Trafalgar: The Nelson Touch (Great Battles) (Paperback)

With the 200 year anniversary of the Battle of Trafalgar approaching, several books have recently been released about the battle. "Companion" books are being published, books describing all of the roughly 73 vessels involved are being published, and while some of these may be good, I would be willing to bet that they don't compare to Howarth's.

In Trafalgar - The Nelson Touch, you get it all. The blockade. How and why the particular Navies were positioned where they were. The events leading up to the battle and why it was fought were it was fought. The character and moral of the Navy's as well as the character of the men involved.

You get insight into Napoleon's failed attempts to direct his Navy like he did his Army. Howarth describes the abilities (or lack of) of the Navies as well as the quality of the ships and armament. He describes the 'novel' strategy used by Nelson, and how although it appears to be a bad one on paper, given the circumstances, it was ingenious.

You get the betrayals, including Napoleon's ultimate betrayal of one of his Admirals that led to a suicide.

And finally you get the disastrous aftermath of the battle, including the storm which elevated the casualties of the battle.

...and you get all of this in 180 fact filled pages, as opposed to the 300 - 400+ pages of some of the more recent books.

The book does bog down a bit during the actual battle(s). This is not so much Howarth's fault as the subject matter. Due to the fact that he was outnumbered vessel-wise, Nelson wanted the battle to be a melee, in which he separated the French/Spanish fleet and then attacked the confused boats individually. This led to a series of engagements, and by the midway point, the battle consisted of two fleets of de-masted vessels floating around blasting any vessel that happened to float across her path.

The reader does get a great glimpse as to what it must have been like on board as the vessels blasted each other with their cannons, as well as the 'brotherhood' that the Navies demonstrated by helping to rescue each other during the ensuing storm.

So if you are interested in Trafalgar, and have a empty afternoon in front of you, pick up this book and give it a read.

You will not be disapointed..

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant Writing and Description, December 15, 2004

By 

Sandra Wilson "Gloucestershire Girl" (Gloucestershire, England) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Trafalgar: The Nelson Touch (Great Battles) (Paperback)

I have just read this book for the first time, and it will not be the last. David Howarth brings Trafalgar and its period to life in a way that leaves me filled with admiration. This is a very fair assessment of the great battle, giving credit where credit is due. This is especially so where Admiral Villeneuve is concerned. His is a tragic story that is often overlooked because of the brilliance of Nelson. Villeneuve, a man of honor, was not without talent, but lacked the charisma that so set Nelson apart. He wasn't a coward, but a realist who knew the French navy was no match for the British. Napoleon was an army man who knew nothing about the navy, and issued impossible orders that no admiral could have carried out to satisfaction. Villeneuve faced up to Trafalgar, betrayed alike by his emperor and by so-called friends behind the scenes. Nelson was the admiral who died that day in 1805, but Villeneuve must have wished he had too. Within six months he was indeed dead, although whether by his own hand or assassination might never really be known.

For an account that conjures the battle in all its glory and horror, and that offers a considered judgment of both sides, this is the book to read. Again, and again, and again.