"Where did the old iron cannon come from? " Topic

"…The Trafalgar question

Could some of these guns, re-used as street bollards in London and elsewhere, have been French cannon captured by Nelson's fleet at the Battle of Trafalgar (21 October 1805)?

Several personal 'blogs' about London's bollards assert that some were guns from French ships captured by Nelson's fleet at the Battle of Trafalgar. This is so unlikely that it seems certain to be a fanciful romanticised 'urban myth'. The evidence against this myth is:

By the end of the battle on October 21st, Nelson's fleet had captured 17 French and Spanish warships (Adkins, p. 219; Clayton & Craig, p. 252). All had severe battle damage and had lost one or more masts – as had most of the English ships-of-the-line. Eight captured ships ('prizes') were completely dismasted (James, Vol. 3, p. 452). The next day a violent storm began that lasted nearly a week. The storm, and a brief counter-attack by enemy ships out of Cadiz, made it necessary for the English ships to stop towing the captured 'prizes' and turn them loose. The French 74-gun Redoutable had been severely damaged early in the battle before surrendering. Around midnight on October 22/23…"
Main page
link

Amicalement
Armand

Hmm! An interesting post Armand, and well done for finding it.

Paul :)

I've seen so many of the old cannon bollards around lots of towns and harbours in the U.K. I have seen a number of plastic gun shape bollard in new developments. So the life and love of the old cannon bollard still lives on.
Be safe
Rory

Glad you enjoyed it my friend!. (smile)

Amicalement
Armand