#jmw-turner

#jmw-turner

Nelson's flagship, Victory, looms larger than life at the centre of the composition, symbolising British naval supremacy rather than the precise realities of combat. Across its rigging, the signal flags spell out the final three letters of "duty", a deliberate nod both to Nelson's immortal command - "England expects every man to do his duty" - and his dying words: "Thank God I have done my duty."