The Battle of the Nile: The History of the Decisive Royal Navy Victory that Trapped Napoleon in Egypt

Before Trafalgar, Admiral Horatio Nelson had already earned enduring fame for the British victory at the Battle of the Nile. In 1798, he was given command of a small squadron and sent ahead to Gibraltar, and eventually given instructions to hunt down and destroy Napoleon’s fleet.

With Nelson’s decisive victory, the Royal Navy had once again asserted itself as the dominant power in the Mediterranean. At the same time, Nelson’s inability to intercept Napoleon at sea allowed the French transports and ground forces to survive unscathed, and they eventually made their way back to France. The stage was now set for over a decade of massive campaigns and battles that would only end more than 15 years later at Waterloo.