The Battle of Trafalgar, 21 October 1805; partial plan towards the end of the action

This ink plan by Pocock, including compass points, shows a detail of the battle towards its end. The partly dismasted 'Victory' is in the centre near Collingwood's 'Royal Sovereign' and the Spanish 'Santa Anna'. While the burning French 'Achille' is shown to their south before it blew up about 5.30 p.m. To their south-west the 'Minotaur' and 'Spartiate' engage the tail-end of Dumanoir's five escaping ships. To the west of the 'Victory' lies the French flagship 'Bucentaure' of Admiral Villeneuve, the Commander-in-Chief of the Combined Fleet, and to her east the British 'Temeraire' is still locked between the 'Fougueux' and 'Redoutable'. The dotted lines represent the artist's viewpoint from the north in sketches to which the plan relates. Pocock’s oil painting of the action, which is dated 1807, also takes this viewpoint of the end of the action (BHC0549). Probably no. 89 in the NMM Pocock exhib. (1975). The paper is noted as watermarked 'E&P 1806'.

Object Details

ID: PAD8785
Collection: Fine art; Special collections
Type: Drawing
Display location: Not on display
Creator: Pocock, Nicholas
Events: Napoleonic Wars: Battle of Trafalgar, 1805
Date made: 1805; circa 1806 circa 1806-07
People: Pocock, Nicholas
Credit: National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, London
Measurements: Mount: 182 mm x 222 mm