Nelson’s early life Born on 29 September 1758 in Burnham Thorpe, Norfolk, Horatio Nelson was the sixth of the 11 children of a clergyman. He joined the navy aged 12, on a ship commanded by a maternal uncle. He became a captain at 20, and saw service in the West Indies, Baltic and Canada.

Nelson’s personality He married Frances Nisbet in 1787 in Nevis, and returned to England with his bride to spend the next five years on half-pay, frustrated at the lack of a command.

Nelson’s early career When Britain entered the French Revolutionary Wars in 1793, Nelson was given command of the Agamemnon. He served in the Mediterranean, helped capture Corsica and saw battle at Calvi (where he lost the sight in his right eye). He would later lose his right arm at the Battle of Santa Cruz de Tenerife in 1797.

Nelson’s attitude As a commander he was known for bold action, and the occasional disregard of orders from his seniors. This defiance brought him victories against the Spanish off Cape Vincent in 1797, and at the Battle of Copenhagen four years later, where he ignored orders to cease action by putting his telescope to his blind eye and claiming he couldn't seen the signal to withdraw.

Nelson’s affaire Nelson's next posting took him to Naples, where he fell in love with Emma, Lady Hamilton. Although they remained in their respective marriages, Nelson and Emma Hamilton considered each other soul-mates and had a child together, Horatia, in 1801.

Nelson’s military record Over the period 1794 to 1805, under Nelson's leadership, the Royal Navy proved its supremacy over the French. His most famous engagement, at Cape Trafalgar, saved Britain from threat of invasion by Napoleon.

Nelson’s death On 21 October 1805, Nelson sent out the famous signal to his fleet 'England expects that every man will do his duty'. He was killed by a French sniper a few hours later while leading the attack on the combined French and Spanish fleet. His body was preserved in brandy and transported back to England where he was given a state funeral.

Nelson and punishment Brutal punishment was common on board British navy ships, it was one of the only ways to keep people in line. Nelson did not approve of harsh punishments, he felt they would make a good man bad and a bad man worse.

Nelson’s strategy Nelson had been taught the traditional way to command a fleet of ships as a young man but knew that Napoleon was a great tactician and needed to be inventive. At the battle of Trafalgar Nelson’s bold move to sail straight at the French ships to break them up was arguably what won the battle for the English.

Nelson as seen today Nelson’s statue sits on top of ‘Nelson’s Column’ in Trafalgar square London. The column is the height of the tallest mast on Nelson’s ship ‘The Victory’.

Wellington’s early life An unhappy, lonely boy, Wellington exhibited few of the talents that would come to make his name. Lazy and socially awkward, his early schooling was fragmented, his performance uninspired. Only his violin playing showed any real promise.

Wellington’s education and training Wellington was not one for school. When his family ran short of money they decided to send his younger brother to school as he was a better prospect. Seemingly uninterested the best option for him was to join the army. After 6 years he had climbed high and already had 5 commissions. How much of his success was down to his brothers reputation was unknown.

Wellington takes control When the French revolution broke out Wellington could no longer rely on his brother’s influence to help him climb through the ranks. He began to focus on being a good soldier and gained promotion from his own merits.

Wellington’s resilience After being sent to fight in the Netherlands Wellington was seen as a good soldier and commander of his regiment but the campaign ended in defeat. Wellington felt the commanders had not done enough and decided to start learning about military history in an attempt to gain a better understanding of battle strategy and tactics.

Wellington’s rejection As a young man with little money he proposed to Kitty Pakenham but her family would not allow the marriage. Now that he was a successful soldier with more money he asked her again and was accepted into the family. Kitty had changed over the years however and the marriage was one of duty. They had two sons but were not thought to be happy together.

Wellington’s military record By 1812 Wellington was commanding large armies. In July of 1812 he won a decisive victory over the French which gave him a great reputation back home as a military genius.

Wellington to the rescue Having made a name for himself as an important leader and military expert he was called upon to save the day when Napoleon returned to re-take Europe. Wellington is probably best known for his victory at Waterloo, but he did not fight Napoleon’s army alone, he had the Prussians to help. All the same it was seen as a great victory.

Wellington and scandal Wellington and his wife did not get on and it was generally well known that he had affairs. One of his lovers wrote a book about their affair and this was published. The press had a field day picking apart Wellington’s reputation.

Wellington’s last battle The battle of Waterloo ended the Napoleonic wars and brought peace to the people of Britain for almost 100 years, but the event traumatized him. Wellington never fought another battle and left the army for politics.

Wellington as seen today Wellington’s victory is remembered today a monument in central London called the Wellington Arch.

Napoleon’s early life Napoleon came from a humble background. His family claimed to have noble decent but this was never taken seriously, there was nothing to suggest what Napoleon would become from his early life.

Napoleon’s tough youth Aged 9 Napoleon moved from his home of Corsica to France to be educated as an outsider. He spent most of his time at a military school where did not do particularly well. Aged 16 his father died and, although not the eldest son, returned to Corsica to be head of the family.

Napoleon’s identity crisis Napoleon’s homeland of Corsica had been taken over by the French when he was very young and he felt proud to be Corsican. When the French revolution happened and leaders changed Napoleon’s family were rejected and asked to leave Corsica. He returned to France where he got caught up in the revolution that was taking place and decided he would adopt French as his new nationality.

Napoleon’s early success Napoleon was promoted to Brigadier General at the age of just 24. This was following a great victory over the British were he recaptured a port for the French. He had finally proven his military worth and his loyalty to France.

Napoleon’s military record Napoleon had great success as a military leaders he won far more battles than he lost and was put in charge of the whole Italian army on behalf of the French. He would go on to have great success leading the French army to victories over almost all of its European neighbours at one point or another.

Napoleon’s Coup D’etat In 1799 the new French leader feared that the Monarchy might return and that a strong military leader was the only way to stop this. Napoleon took his opportunity and managed to make himself the Military and Political leader of all France and her Empire… essentially a dictator.

Napoleon & the other 2 Emperors In 1805 Napoleon won a battle against the Emperors of Austria and Russia at the same time. His army was said to have killed 26,000 of his enemy and only took 9,000 losses of their own. This victory clearly marked Napoleon as one of Europe's greatest military leaders.

Napoleon bounces back Eventually the nations of Europe fighting against Napoleon defeated him and he was imprisoned on the Island of Elba, from which he escaped. He went on to retake power in France and was only defeated at the Battle of Waterloo by Wellington.

Napoleon and marriage Napoleon married Josephine whom he loved dearly. Unfortunately for him she was a widow who needed to marry and was not particularly interested in him. Napoleon only had his first child with his second wife after his reluctant divorce from Josephine.

Napoleon as seen today Napoleons body is entombed beneath the dome of a magnificent building in Paris.