Aftermath

French dress sword of Vice-Admiral Villeneuve, about 1800–05, surrendered at the Battle of Trafalgar
Loaned by The Nelson Museum, Monmouth  Lloyds Patriotic Fund certificate, 3 December 1805
On loan from the Lloyd's of London At Trafalgar, 449 British sailors were killed and 1217 were wounded. French and Spanish losses were heavier: 4408 were dead, 2545 wounded and some 20,000 were taken prisoner.

More lives were lost in the storm that followed the battle, despite attempts between the British, French and Spaniards to co-operate and evacuate ships. The strategic importance of the overwhelming destruction of the French and Spanish fleets only became clear as the war dragged on.

The captors of an enemy warship were entitled to sell her and share the profit among themselves. But many of the valuable prizes captured at Trafalgar were lost in the storm that followed the battle. Prize crews had tried in vain to keep the remaining vessels afloat. Parliament made a special grant to all those who had participated in the battle to compensate them for the loss.

The fortunes of the battle's survivors were mixed. Collingwood, the second-in-command, was made a baron and there were significant promotions among the officers. All the captains received the King's naval gold medal and were also presented with either a silver vase or ceremonial sword by Lloyd's Patriotic Fund.

This Fund also provided pensions for the wounded and for the widows of those killed at Trafalgar, valuable additions to the funds provided by the Navy.

Nelson's funeral >>