1st Viscount Horatio Nelson, 1st Duke of Bronté, KBYesterday's nostalgia has spilled over into today as I say good-bye to my shipmate Huck and head in the direction of yet another who I have seen with more regularity over the last 3 decades. There is of course the subject of the rest of Sunday's pictures which are as follows:-
HMS Victory, Lord Nelson's flagship at the Battle of Trafalgar, seen yesterday without her 'top gallants' as they are being refitted.
The stern of HMS VICTORY which has as long as I can remember lain in Number 1 dock in the Portsmouth Dockyard. Behind this facade lies a wealth of English Maritime History unparalleled in our history.
The Wardroom or Officer's Mess which even today
is the setting for lavished dinner parties and gatherings, as well as the occasional Court Martial.
No 2 Gun Deck
Lead & Line the only method of depth finding in those days. Trivia:- The 'pen name' of US novelist Samuel Langhorne Clemens, 1835-1910, derives from the use of the Lead & Line. On reporting the depth the Linesman would report in Middle English the number of fathoms (marks) as "by the mark twain (2)", hence the author of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, having heard this on a Mississippi River Boat, took the name Mark Twain.
The Death of Nelson
Up to the Quarter Deck
Nelson's day Cabin
Nelson's Cot
A Canon Emplacement
The Galley
Brodie's Patent Galley (1780) provided roasting, boiling and baking.
These huge, ship borne ranges made Scotsman Alexander Brodie a multi-millionaire.
No 3 Gun Deck each canon bore the name of one of The Saints and when a Gunner was blessed with a boy child it was usually named after one of these armaments. This is where the expression 'Son of a Gun' comes from.
The Bosun's Locker
A moving tableaux of a Victory Gun Deck at the height of battle.
This macabre scene gave a whole new meaning to the order "all hands on deck"!
The Strategy that was Trafalgar
Admiral Collingwood's Regalia
HMS Vanguard a ship of the line.
Figure Heads
More Figure Heads & Ships Plaques
King Charles II Barge used as part of Lord nelson's funeral.
A view across Portsmouth Harbour
Not at all easy to photograph given the size and the low light, this unique sail was well worth a look
I left Four Marks at 10:00 and arrived at Emsworth, both in Hampshire, having very much enjoyed my 4 days with Huck after our absence of 38 years. Rest assured a return bout (to Weymouth) will be arranged in the very near future!
My 'Winger' was polishing the AC Cobra as I arrived but Tess was undertaking Grand Children duties, but as usual was very quick
to get the Gin & Tonics underway,
while Paul took up the sitting position. We are just about to a 'rib of beef' and a nice drop of Claret, so I'll be off!
Sunday Divisions (Parade) HMS St Vincent 1961, me fourth row second from left - yea alright!
HMS Keppel where, after a year in training together, Huck and I served together spending most of our 'sea time' on the Fishery Protection Squadron which, by definition, was mostly inside the Arctic Circle. In stark contrast, we then both served for 2 and a half years on HMS Eskimo part of the Persian Gulf Squadron.
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