Trafalgar (Weidenfeld & Nicolson) - Hardcover

Best, Nicholas

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0297846221 ISBN 13: 9780297846222

Publisher: Orion, 2005

Synopsis

Nicholas Best is a master story teller, the author of several highly successul novels as well as serious history books. He was the FINANCIAL TIMES fiction critic for ten years and reviews regularly for the SUNDAY TIMES and TLS.
In his hands the story of Trafalgar comes to life as never before. Beginning with a vivid recreation of Napoleon's army assembling at Boulogne for the invasion of England, he tells how the French fleet joined with their Spanish allies and set out for a decisive battle with the Royal Navy. Following events through the eyes of eyewitnesses on the gundeck as well as the admiral's cabins, he takes us to the Mediterranean and the West Indies and back to the coast of Spain as the rival fleets manoeuvre for advantage. Then follows his gripping minute-by-minute account of the actual battle: a truly murderous affair as the rival fleets trade cannon shots as point blank range.
For the fans of MASTER AND COMMANDER, this combines absolute authenticity with real page-turning style.

About this title

Review:

Trafalgar was not only a great sea battle, it saved Britain from invasion by Napoleon. That is why this book, which rattles along excitingly, gave me fresh appetite for the subject. It sets Nelson's victory in context - the risks of 1940 were just as grave in 1805.... Nicholas Best's racy account of the prelude to the sea battle makes one realise how risky sea warfare was under sail. (Peter Lewis DAILY MAIL)

Nicholas Best uses eyewitness accounts to recreate the tension and uncertainty of the campaign that led to the battle, and to describe the carnage and the glory of Trafalgar itself. (CHURCH TIMES)

This gripping book tells the story of Britain's legendary naval victory on October 21, 1905 in which the national hero, Admiral Lord Nelson, was killed by a French sharpshooter... Nicholas Best has done an excellent job describing the build up to the Battle and the primative conditions on the ships... This book is replete with fascinating details. (ANTHONY LOOCH GLASGOW EVENING TIMES)

None are likely to be more comprehensive or gripping than this one, which describes the Royal Navy's triumph over the French which effectively scuppered Napoleon's threat to invade Britain... He is unsparing in his details of the bloodshed wrought by cannons and cutlass wielding seamen who boarded the shattered ships. (LEICESTER MERCURY)

Cambridge author Nicholas Best recreates the terrible tension and uncertainty of the naval campaign that led to the most famous sea fight in history. His original research draws on a wide range of eyewitnesses to craft a gripping minute-by-minute account. (CAMBRIDGESHIRE JOURNAL)

Book Description:

A brilliant page-turning account of the most famous sea fight in history

About this edition

• Publisher: Orion
• Publication date: 2005
• ISBN 10: 0297846221
• ISBN 13: 9780297846222
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 368