Sharpe's Trafalgar: Richard Sharpe & the Battle of Trafalgar, October 21, 1805 (Richard Sharpe's Adventure Series #4)

444 Pages·2002·9.46 MB·English

by  Bernard Cornwell

ByBernardCornwell
TheSharpenovels
(inchronologicalorder)
sharpe’s tiger
RichardSharpeandtheSiegeofSeringapatam(1799)
sharpe’s triumph
RichardSharpeandtheBattleofAssaye(1803)
sharpe’s fortress
RichardSharpeandtheSiegeofGawilghur(1803)
sharpe’s trafalgar
RichardSharpeandtheBattleofTrafalgar(1805)
sharpe’s rifles
RichardSharpeandtheFrenchInvasionofGalicia(1809)
sharpe’s eagle
RichardSharpeandtheTalaveraCampaign(1809)
sharpe’s gold
RichardSharpeandtheDestructionofAlmeida(1810)
sharpe’s battle
RichardSharpeandtheBattleofFuentesdeOn˜oro(1811)
sharpe’s company
RichardSharpeandtheSiegeofBadajoz(1812)
sharpe’s sword
RichardSharpeandtheSalamancaCampaign(1812)
sharpe’s enemy
RichardSharpeandtheDefenceofPortugal(1812)
sharpe’s honour
RichardSharpeandtheVitoriaCampaign(1813)
sharpe’s regiment
RichardSharpeandtheInvasionofFrance(1813)
sharpe’s siege
RichardSharpeandtheWinterCampaign(1814)
sharpe’s revenge
RichardSharpeandthePeaceof1814
sharpe’s waterloo
RichardSharpeandtheWaterlooCampaign(1815)
sharpe’s devil
RichardSharpeandtheEmperor(1820–21)
TheStarbuckChronicles
rebel
copperhead
battle flag
the bloody ground
stonehenge: a novel of 2000bc
BERNARD CORNWELL
Sharpe’s Trafalgar
Richard Sharpe and
the Battle of Trafalgar,
21 October 1805
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents
either are the products of the author’s imagination or are used ficti-
tiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or
persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental and beyond the
intent of either the author or the publisher.
SHARPE’S TRAFALGAR. Copyright © 2000 by Bernard Cornwell.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced
in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the
case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
SHARPE’S SKIRMISH. Copyright © 1999 by Bernard Cornwell. All
rights reserved.
Bernard Cornwell asserts the moral right to be identified as the
author of this work.
Adobe E-Reader edition v 1. March 2001 ISBN 0-06-621328-2
First print edition published in Great Britain by
HarperCollinsPublishers
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Sharpe’s Trafalgar is for
Wanda Pan, Anne Knowles, Janet Eastham,
Elinor and Rosemary Davenhill,
and Maureen Shettle

BattleofTrafalgar,21October1805.TheFleetsapproachbattle.
Contents
CHAPTER1
CHAPTER2
CHAPTER3
CHAPTER4
CHAPTER5
CHAPTER6
CHAPTER7
CHAPTER8
CHAPTER9
CHAPTER10
CHAPTER11
CHAPTER12
Historical Note
SHARPE’SSKIRMISH: Richard Sharpe and the Defence
of the Tormes, August 1812
About the Author
Credits
About the Publisher

CHAPTER 1
‘Ahundredandfifteenrupees,’EnsignRichardSharpe
said, counting the money onto the table.
Nana Rao hissed in disapproval, rattled some beads
along the wire bars of his abacus and shook his head.
‘A hundred and thirty-eight rupees, sahib.’
‘One hundred and bloody fifteen!’ Sharpe insisted.
‘It were fourteen pounds, seven shillings and three-
pence ha’penny.’
Nana Rao examined his customer, gauging whether
to continue the argument. He saw a young officer, a
mere ensign of no importance, but this lowly English-
manhadaveryhardface,ascaronhisrightcheekand
showed no apprehension of the two hulking body-
guardswhoprotectedNanaRaoandhiswarehouse.‘A
hundred and fifteen, as you say,’ the merchant con-
ceded, scooping the coins into a large black cash box.
He offered Sharpe an apologetic shrug. ‘I get older,
sahib, and find I cannot count!’
‘You can count, all right,’ Sharpe said, ‘but you
reckon I can’t.’
‘But you will be very happy with your purchases,’
Nana Rao said, for Sharpe had just become the pos-
sessor of a hanging bed, two blankets, a teak travelling
chest, a lantern and a box of candles, a hogshead of
arrack, a wooden bucket, a box of soap, another of
tobacco, and a brass and elmwood filtering machine
which he had been assured would render water from
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