A “pell-mell battle” was how Vice-Admiral Lord Nelson predicted the British would triumph at Trafalgar. And on 21 October 1805, as they attacked the combined Spanish and French fleets off the coast of Cádiz, he achieved exactly that. Going against the grain of traditional naval warfare, Nelson split his ships into two parallel lines. His plan was simple: HMS Victory, his flagship, leading the windward column, was to smash through the middle of the French lines, while the other column would rout the enemy’s rear. It worked perfectly, but at a terrible cost. Victory lost 51 of her 821 crew during the battle (11 others later died from their wounds), including Nelson himself. The ship, too, very nearly succumbed. Cannon fire pockmarked the hull.