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Friday, September 13th, 1805. Journey to Portsmouth. http://www.nelsonandhisworld.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=1785 |
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Author: | the Snef [ Tue Sep 13, 2016 2:18 pm ] |
Post subject: | Friday, September 13th, 1805. Journey to Portsmouth. |
Dear Forum, I have read with interest the posts on the Post subject: Re: Burford Bridge? in this forum, and whilst reading the topic, I wondered if there was any account of Nelson having a Royal Marine guard for the journey down to Portsmouth - whatever route was taken? We know that he left Merton, (on his own), around 10:30pm, in a hired/private Post-Chaise. Would that have been a two horse or four horse team? Given the perilous nature of the times, and the fact that this was a road, (Brighton and Portsmouth), that was frequently traveled down by Admirals, sailors, merchants as well as bandits, (I know this is 100+ years after the great Highwaymen era, but robbers are robbers), surely, it must have crossed the minds of the French, or Spanish, to assassinate Nelson, given his reputation as a courageous and superior tactical leader at sea - and that he had spent the best part of the past 2 years blockading and harassing the enemy fleet back and forth across the Atlantic and Med. It's not as if the British didn't suspect or in-fact, encourage this sort of thing themselves; Thomas Hickey, The plot of the rue Saint-Nicaise, and the The Despard Plot of 1802. Travelling alone, at the reported 6 to 9mph, without an escort, would have been an incredibly risky endeavor. ps Wasn't the order from the Admiralty for Nelson to get to Portsmouth as a consequence of the French and Spanish fleets combining at anchor in Cádiz. Given that news would reach England, and knowing Nelson was at Merton...etc etc etc. |
Author: | tycho [ Thu Sep 15, 2016 9:28 am ] |
Post subject: | Re: Friday, September 13th, 1805. Journey to Portsmouth. |
I can't comment on your speculation re: assassination but it's not to be dismissed. Rumours that this practice was not unknown to the French have been aired: wasn't there some suspicion that Admiral de Villeneuve's 'suicide' was, in fact, an assassination? Welcome to the forum, by the way! |
Author: | the Snef [ Thu Sep 15, 2016 10:24 am ] |
Post subject: | Re: Friday, September 13th, 1805. Journey to Portsmouth. |
Many thanks Anna. Yes, 'six stab wounds in the left lung and one in the heart' would take some doing to yourself. I would find it extraordinarily odd, that The Admiralty would have sanctioned a lone, (un-guarded) trip, however, as his departure point was from Merton, around 10:30pm, and ordered in a but of a hurry, then I suppose one can accept he did. Also, it's very easy to view those times with our own 21st century sensibilities. The fact may have been that as Nelson was a reasonable shot and swordsman, and prone to bad moods and temper, perhaps it was best to leave the Vice-Admiral well enough alone. |
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