Nelson’s Folly

Author/Guide: Oliver Greeves

Why a Booktrail?

1792 – 1811: Sometimes the hero isn’t the one we all knew…

ISBN: 978-0645023701
Genre: Historical

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What you need to know before your trail

The French Revolutionary Wars have begun, and as fighting intensifies, Horatio is recalled to sea.

As the years pass and the war rages on, Horatio Nelson becomes a lauded hero, while Fanny loyally manages their affairs back in England. But Horatio’s success in battle has changed him – he’s proud, arrogant, bitter. How can a woman like Fanny, self-reliant but bound by 18th century attitudes, face down the Navy’s superstar without losing everything?

A compelling exploration of duty in all its forms, Nelson’s Folly is a sweeping, historically rich novel based on the true story of Horatio and Fanny Nelson and their lives together – and apart.

Locations

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France - Meditteranean
E: Toulon
F: Corsica

Travel Guide

Discover the truth about Horatio Nelson

Burnham Thorpe is a small village and civil parish on the River Burn famous for being the birthplace of Vice Admiral Horatio Nelson. At the time of his birth, Nelson’s father, Edmund Nelson, was rector of the church in Burnham Thorpe.

The house in which Nelson was born was demolished soon after his father’s death, though the rectory that replaced it and the church at which his father preached still exists. There is a roadside plaque where the church used to be.

Nelson’s death at Trafalgar secured his position as one of Britain’s most heroic figures. His signal just prior to the commencement of the battle, “England expects that every man will do his duty”, is regularly quoted, paraphrased and referenced. Numerous monuments, including Nelson’s Column in Trafalgar Square, London, and the Nelson Monument in Edinburgh, have been created in his memory, and his legacy remains highly influential.