I’m not quite sure what to make of this book, 'Trafalgar: Napoleon’s Naval Waterloo’ by a French historian, Rene Maine, published by Thames & Hudson in 1957, so maybe a little out of date. I came across it by chance; and though I don’t know where Maine stands in the hierarchy of authoritative historians, I bought the book anyway, curious to see an assessment of Nelson and Trafalgar from the French perspective.
There was nothing particularly new or revisionist in his assessment of the two leaders. His judgement is remarkably detached and his conclusions concur with the general view that Napoleon’s interfering and controlling micro-management, coupled with his lack of understanding of naval warfare, undermined the confidence and paralysed the decision-making powers of his admirals. ‘The sea had no place in Napoleon’s make-up. It escaped his genius, tried his patience, and it bedevilled his normally clear vision’.
He is generous about Nelson, recognising his skill at delegation and the trust in his subordinates which bred initiative in his captains. He was ‘the most illustrious member of the Royal Navy. This was due less to his courage under fire –many captains in the British fleet were his equals on that score – than to the breadth and acuteness of his perception, the soundness and speed of his decisions, his talent for organisation, his gift for training men, his insatiable ambition, his supreme contempt for any adversary who was accorded the honour of engaging him, and lastly his unlimited love of fighting and of life itself.’
The detail in which he describes the events from the French point of view is interesting and new to me. He has an excellent grasp of historical events and quotes extensively from letters, despatches, orders, reports etc. (though without precise references; also there are few footnotes and no index) which the reader must therefore take on trust.
Though Maine quotes many anecdotes which enliven the narrative, the problem for me is that those regarding Nelson are quite often wrong in detail – for example, he claims it was Blackwood, not Pasco, who suggested ‘expects’ instead of ‘confides’ in the famous signal. This undermines confidence in the hitherto unknown (to me, at any rate) and unsourced anecdotes he repeats about Napoleon and his admirals. How far can we trust him on matters we know nothing of when he is shaky on the material we are familiar with?
For example, how authoritative is this exchange? Maybe there are creditable sources for it, but how is the reader to know without references?
Napoleon has demanded a review of the fleet. Weather conditions were unfavourable and Admiral Bruix refuses.
Maine continues:
QUOTE
‘Napoleon turned on him like a madman: ‘Obey me!”
‘Sire, I will not obey!”
‘You are insolent, sir!”
He had a riding crop in his hand, and he raised it; it looked as if he would strike. Bruix turned pale, stepped back a pace, and put his hand to his sword:
‘Take care, Sire!”
For several seconds, the two men glared defiantly at one another motionless, while members of the suite stood petrified with fright. Napoleon flung away his riding crop.
‘The review!” he cried. END QUOTE
It was Bruix’s second in command who gave the order, the admiral having turned on his heel. A storm of terrific ferocity arose and many craft and men were lost: ‘according to witnesses’, Maine says, a dozen ships and about 200 men; though the official figures in Marshal Soult’s report, were 8 craft and ‘about 50’ casualties.
Nevertheless, despite these uncertainties, it was extremely enlightening to see a more detailed exposition of the personalities of the principal French protagonists, and the relationships between them, and with Napoleon. The biographer’s revelation and analysis of character and the interplay of personalities, and their influence on historic events, are always of absorbing interest to me.
Maine writes (if the translation echoes the original) in a crisp, confident, bracing style, for the most part, though the brief references to Nelson’s personal life with Emma appear occasionally have an echo of Mills & Boon.
I wonder if anyone has come across the book and cares to comment. If anyone is interested in reading it, there are numerous cheap copies available on abebooks.
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