Buckler's Hard

Gill's birthday and we did 39 km on the ebikes over to Buckler's Hard.
Likely to be the best day while we are here so we thought we should do the longer ride while the weather is ok. 

Buckler's Hard is a historic village which would have been a hive of industry at the time of the Napoleonic wars.  Shipwrights, carpenters and labourers lived in these cottages working for Henry Adams who lived in the house at the end of the left hand row, down at the river end.

Ships would be built and launched here and then taken to Portsmouth for fitting out. The floating hull was the end of the process,  masts, rigging and armaments were added in Portsmouth.

The Euryalus was built here in 1803 and was involved in the Battle of Trafalgar.  Ordered to stand off from the initial engagement, Collingwood (Nelson's 2nd in Command) transferred to Eurylas when the Royal Sovereign was severely damaged.
From here he commanded the final stages of the battle and wrote the dispatch confirming Nelson's death.

Frances Chichester left from Buckler's Hard and returned here on his solo circumnavigation in 1966/67

Thanks to everyone who commented yesterday - connectivity is quite limited here so returning the compliment might have to have wait a few days.