During the Napoleonic wars some 200 years ago, one of the most decisive victories in the war came when Lord Horatio Nelson of the British Royal Navy soundly trounced the French and Spanish fleets off the coast of Spain, securing British domination of the seas for the next century. One wouldn’t know that by watching the “reenactment” of the battle.
Nelson, in his terrifying blow against Napoleon’s Combined Fleet changed the direction of the war and kept Napoleon from invading the Britain directly. Lord Nelson received a fatal wound during close action with the French frigate, Redoubtable. Although the ship was defeated, a sniper drilled a shot straight into Nelson.
Today, Britain and France prepare to reenact the legendary battle back in October of 1805. The largest international fleet review ever was inspected by Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh. The fleet, composed of 35 navies and 174 vessels was highlighted by the French nuclear carrier, the Charles DeGaulle.
One would think Nelson would’ve appreciated the naval spectacle. Many prideful Englishmen feel that the big carrier is a bit of scandal because it looks like the French navy is stronger than the British. It’s a matter of pride.
The naval reenactment has been changed to have two sides of reds and blues with no clear winner. Obviously, political play takes precedent over actually history. Particularly with the real problems Britain and France have been feuding about in the EU.
Now, as a fan of reenactments, I am all for something like this. From a nation of re-enactors, we see tons of reenactments all over the nation. Right here in our vicinity, the Battle of Perryville and the Battle of Richmond are reenacted annually. But the results of the fights don’t change. While there are still occasionally folks who think the south should’ve won the War of the Rebellion, it’s generally accepted to run the battles based on who actually won.
In far too many cases, history gets rewritten to suit political leanings of the period. The rule used to be the victors write the history. Then revisionists elect to change things. While I understand the need to “keep it clean,” sometimes we must make sure the facts of history are told and told correctly in order to prevent them from happening again.
John Stith is a staff writer for Murdok covering technology and business.
