wjfox
September 16th, 2005, 02:14 PM
http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/40808000/jpg/_40808800_nelson3.jpg
Nelson funeral flotilla sets sail
Admiral Lord Nelson's historic waterborne funeral procession is being re-enacted on the Thames.
Dozens of boats manned by hundreds of volunteers - the largest flotilla ever seen on the river - set sail from Greenwich, south-east London, to Whitehall.
The event commemorates the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Trafalgar and the death of Admiral Lord Nelson.
A state funeral with five days of elaborate ceremonies was held for the admiral from 8 January, 1806.
Lord Nelson was killed by a French sniper's bullet in the Battle of Trafalgar, in which the Royal Navy defeated Napoleon's combined French and Spanish fleet.
Battle descendents
Friday's flotilla includes HMS Victory's Cutter, the Jubilant as well as shallops and barges.
A further 40 oared boats have been arranged and dressed to recreate the order and appearance of the original procession.
Descendents from the Battle of Trafalgar are being joined on the boats by Lord Mayors of London.
The New Trafalgar Dispatch, a ceremonial document produced for the Trafalgar bicentenary, will take the place of Nelson's coffin.
It has been on display at The Painted Hall in Greenwich since its arrival in London on 9 September, imitating Nelson's lying in state.
It will be ceremonially taken aboard the Jubilant for the journey up river so it can be presented to St Paul's Cathedral where Nelson is buried.
Lord Nelson, who joined the Royal Navy at 12, was considered one of Britain's first national heroes.
Some 100,000 people crowded onto riverbanks, decks and rigging of every vessel along the water's edge to catch a glimpse of his funeral procession.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/london/content/images/2005/04/21/nelson_150x180.jpg
Nelson funeral flotilla sets sail
Admiral Lord Nelson's historic waterborne funeral procession is being re-enacted on the Thames.
Dozens of boats manned by hundreds of volunteers - the largest flotilla ever seen on the river - set sail from Greenwich, south-east London, to Whitehall.
The event commemorates the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Trafalgar and the death of Admiral Lord Nelson.
A state funeral with five days of elaborate ceremonies was held for the admiral from 8 January, 1806.
Lord Nelson was killed by a French sniper's bullet in the Battle of Trafalgar, in which the Royal Navy defeated Napoleon's combined French and Spanish fleet.
Battle descendents
Friday's flotilla includes HMS Victory's Cutter, the Jubilant as well as shallops and barges.
A further 40 oared boats have been arranged and dressed to recreate the order and appearance of the original procession.
Descendents from the Battle of Trafalgar are being joined on the boats by Lord Mayors of London.
The New Trafalgar Dispatch, a ceremonial document produced for the Trafalgar bicentenary, will take the place of Nelson's coffin.
It has been on display at The Painted Hall in Greenwich since its arrival in London on 9 September, imitating Nelson's lying in state.
It will be ceremonially taken aboard the Jubilant for the journey up river so it can be presented to St Paul's Cathedral where Nelson is buried.
Lord Nelson, who joined the Royal Navy at 12, was considered one of Britain's first national heroes.
Some 100,000 people crowded onto riverbanks, decks and rigging of every vessel along the water's edge to catch a glimpse of his funeral procession.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/london/content/images/2005/04/21/nelson_150x180.jpg