Trafalgar

‘Admiral Collingwood, was to break in upon the enemy about the twelfth ship from the rear, and Nelson himself determined to bear down on the centre.  The effect of these manoeuvers must of course be a close and general action; for the rest, Nelson knew he could trust to the determination of his officers and seamen. ..With such dispositions on either side, the two gallant fleets met on the memorable 21^st of October.  Admiral Collingwood, who led the van, went down on the enemy with all sails set. ..Nelson run his vessel , the Victory, on board the French Redoubtable…’

On October 21, 1805, the British Royal Navy under Horatio Nelson met Napoleon's fleet, which was led by Admiral Villeneuve.  In this, the Battle of Trafalgar, the British scored a resounding victory.  As Walter Scott describes in his "The Life of Napoleon Buonaparte", Nelson's partner, Admiral Collingwood sailed the Royal Sovereign to attack the line of the French fleet from the windward, while Nelson approached from the leeward in the Victory.  Horatio Nelson, though victorious, died of a gunshot wound during the battle.