Nelson: A Personal History

"Nelson; A Personal History" That title says it all, as this book is truly an account of the personal life and relations of the admiral. It is not an account or study of his tactics and influence on warfare, which may be the subject of greatest importance to the reader searching for Nelson literature. This fact originally presented the book poorly to me, but as I read on through the book it becomes clear that Nelson was more than "The Hero of the Nile" or "Victor of Trafalgar" for which he is so fondly remembered, but rather am actual living man with real problems and actions. After reading this book it becomes apparent that understanding Nelson truly requires a study beyond his victories in battle, for those alone do little to truly present who Lord Nelson was. For someone seeking literature on warfare and tactics, I would recommend this book, but for those seeking an understanding of the figures behind the development of warfare and the influence of true personality in conflict, I would readily suggest this book. For a deeper understanding of the man beyond his exploits, this book is great.

I had wanted to read a biography of Nelson for some time, having become interested in him thanks to Patrick O'Brian. This one is the right price, and is a good starting point, but I find I still need to read more to get all the information I want, as this is a biography of Nelson ON LAND. I know other people have written copiously of his tactics, and I figured this wasn't solely a textbook of strategy, written with the clarity and generosity of hindsight, but I also figured I would come out of it with some sense of Nelson as a sailor. I didn't. There is one mention of a ship missing stays, and another of his gunnery crews firing broadsides at the astounding rate of one per minute (I don't know how many minutes that lasted), but I have no sense of how he must have impressed his superiors to advance to post-captain so quickly. I can't tell, based on reading this book, just how he liked to sail. Here's an example of how the book is weighted: It gave four pages to the famous Battle of the Nile (Abu Qir), quite a bit of which was dedicated to the admittedly horrible sight of L'Orient blowing up, and the next fifty pages, approximately, on his dalliance in Naples with Lady Hamilton. I understand her importance in his life--after reading this book, I can hardly be unaware of it--but I want to know which qualities Nelson most valued in his ships and crews. He seems to have been a reasonably friendly captain and admiral, but I wish Mr. Hibbert had documented his career at sea with the impressive attention he gave his life ashore.