The document provides details from a tour of HMS Victory, Lord Nelson's flagship at the Battle of Trafalgar. It describes that there were 821 men onboard during the battle, with 57 dead and 102 wounded. It discusses areas of the ship like the gun deck, where 500 men lived in close quarters, and the orlop deck where Nelson passed away after being wounded. The document encourages visiting HMS Victory to learn more about life on the historic warship.

1. A Short Visit to HMS Victory Lord Nelson’s Flagship at the Battle of Trafalgar 21 October 1805 There were 821 men onboard on the day of the Battle. The battle causalities were 57 dead and 102 wounded I was a Victory Guide for 12 years. These are just a few of the pictures I was able to take. Ron Bannister

2. Lord Nelson’s“Great Cabin” Victory is the Flagship of the Second Sea Lord and is still used to entertain High Ranking Dignitaries Nelson’s Cot, a Hammock with supported sides. The drapes are replicas of those produced by Emma Hamilton

3. The Quarterdeck, with The Binnacle and Ship’s Wheel This was also the area where ‘punishment’ was witnessed by the whole crew This was normally a beating with the ‘Cat O’ Nine Tails’

4. The Lower Gun Deck, home of the 32lbs cannon and ‘home’ for 500 men The Men lived together in ‘messes’ of up to 12 men They were given “3 square meals a day”

5. The ‘Brodie Stove’ produced the food for over 800 men. Coal fired, it was only lit when required, in order to conserve the fuel. Using a distiller it could also produce clean water for the sick, or the Officers shaving water Unfortunately, it was also the favoured spot of the local ‘rodent ‘population. When ‘times was hard’ these were taken as food

6. The stores necessary to sustain over 800 men for 6 months were kept deep in the ship’s Hold. The ‘Sailing Master’ supervised the loading of the stores in order to ‘trim’ the ship to improve her sailing qualities The men stored their ‘worldly possessions’ in sea chests and ‘havre sacs’ on the Orlop Deck

7. After being wounded on the Quarterdeck Nelson finally passed away on the Orlop Deck propped against a ships knee. His final words were:- “ Thank God I have done My Duty” The French musket ball that killed Lord Nelson can still be seen today in the Queens Collection at Windsor Castle

8. The Shipwright The Gunner The Boatswain The Surgeon They ALL had their ‘Workshops’ on The Orlop Deck

9. Visit HMS Victory, the ‘Oldest Commissioned warship in the World’ in the Portsmouth Dockyard Heritage area. Watch this space for more ‘visits’ to Victory