Battle of Trafalgar Battle of Trafalgar The Battle of Trafalgar (21 October 1805) was a naval engagement fought by the British Royal Navy against the combined fleets of the French and Spanish Navies, during the War of the Third Coalition (August–December 1805) of the Napoleonic Wars (1796–1815). Twenty-seven British ships of the line led by Admiral Lord Nelson aboard defeated thirty-three French and Spanish ships of the line under French Admiral Villeneuve. The battle took place in the Atlantic Ocean off the southwest coast of Spain, just west of Cape Trafalgar, near the town of Los Caños de Meca. The Franco-Spanish fleet lost
Allied Naval Forces Southern Europe ships were to be called together and exercised at least once a year. Later the force was upgraded to standing status and renamed Standing Naval Force Mediterranean. Also formed later was the Mine Counter Measures Mediterranean Force (MCMFORMED) At the end of the Cold War the structure of Allied Naval Forces Southern Europe was as follows: In 2004, NAVSOUTH became Allied Maritime Command Naples. From 1992 to 1996, COMNAVSOUTH led the joint Western European Union (WEU)/NATO maritime operation known as Operation Sharp Guard in support of NATO operations in the Balkans. The operation replaced naval blockades Operation Maritime Guard (of