Details
NELSON, Horatio, Viscount (1758-1805). Letter signed ('Nelson & Bronte') to William Parker (Captain of the Amazon), 'Victory off Toulon', 1 August 1803, 1½ pages, folio (integral leaf removed). Provenance: Collection of Edwin Wolf II, sold at Christie's, 21 June 1989 (lot 259)
WATCHING FOR THE FRENCH FLEET: an order listing signals which 'will be made to particular ships to look out, when the Commander in Chief may expect the Enemy to pass that way', comprising sixteen numerical signals (numbered '600'-'615') referring the recipients to stations off Corsica, Minorca, Sardinia, and neighbouring islands in the western Mediterranean, and commanding them to return to rendezvous after spotting the enemy.
Nelson maintained close contact with his scattered forces in the Mediterranean by a system of rendezvous developed by the Royal Navy over many years. Each of a number of chosen locations was designated by a code number, some being close to land, some at sea off various capes. By this device he could leave orders for the captains, inform them of his own movements, and receive their reports.
He had himself been vice-admiral on Parker's 38-gun frigate Amazon in the autumn of 1801. His flag was hoisted as commander-in-chief on Victory in May 1803.
WATCHING FOR THE FRENCH FLEET: an order listing signals which 'will be made to particular ships to look out, when the Commander in Chief may expect the Enemy to pass that way', comprising sixteen numerical signals (numbered '600'-'615') referring the recipients to stations off Corsica, Minorca, Sardinia, and neighbouring islands in the western Mediterranean, and commanding them to return to rendezvous after spotting the enemy.
Nelson maintained close contact with his scattered forces in the Mediterranean by a system of rendezvous developed by the Royal Navy over many years. Each of a number of chosen locations was designated by a code number, some being close to land, some at sea off various capes. By this device he could leave orders for the captains, inform them of his own movements, and receive their reports.
He had himself been vice-admiral on Parker's 38-gun frigate Amazon in the autumn of 1801. His flag was hoisted as commander-in-chief on Victory in May 1803.
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