Nelson: The Sword of Albion (John MacRae Books)

The most authoritative and intimate portrait written of Horatio Nelson

In this epic biography of history’s most celebrated naval commander, acclaimed historian John Sugden separates fact from myth to offer a powerful portrait of the hero of Trafalgar.

As was true of the Sugden’s riveting account of Horatio Nelson’s early years (Nelson: A Dream of Glory, 2005), this comprehensive life of Lord Nelson is built from largely overlooked primary documents, letters, and diaries that reach across two centuries to invite us to share Nelson’s multifaceted life.

The Sword of Albion offers the sweep and intimacy of first-rate historical fiction—revealing the interior lives, for example, of Lord Nelson’s wife, Fanny and family and the caring and more passionate Emma, Lady Hamilton, who nursed the war-weary hero back to health in Naples and London after his brilliant victory over the Spanish fleet at Cape St. Vincent in 1797 and the stunning defeat at Tenerife that cost Nelson his right arm.

Today’s reader comes to understand that every obstacle in Nelson’s path was attacked head-on with an Achilles-like ferocity and resolve. Yet his life was no steady upward trajectory; it was instead plagued by injuries and debt for the commoner admiral in a society dominated by lineage and property. As Sugden points out, “His life was a mission with the essence of a tour de force, hurrying toward a bloody climax that would change the fate of empires.”