21st October is the anniversary of the Battle of Trafalgar and so we take the opportunity to remember the black sailors who served in Admiral Nelson’s fleet that day in 1805:
John Ephraim. HMS Temeraire:
John Francois. HMS Victory:
Jacob Loring. HMS Conqueror:
Cato Mumford. HMS Agamemnon:
Cato doesn’t (yet!) have his own page on Historycal Roots but is mentioned in John’s article about the York Rangers where he has this to say about him:
Cato Mumford. Cato Mumford appears to have become a Rating in the Royal Navy: In 1805 Ordinary Seaman Cato Mumford served on HMS Agamemnon at the Battle of Trafalgar. It was noted that he had joined from “Resolute G.Bg”, was 38 years old and had been born at Rhode Island, USA. (The Mumford family were one of the earliest English settlers on Rhode Island)[1]https://www.historycalroots.com/a-black-and-asian-british-regiment-the-york-rangers-a-regiment-of-lascars-mulattoes-c-c-1803-1805/
Charles Phillips. HMS Ajax:
Thomas Stanley. HMS Leviathan:
Although this painting depicts the Temeraire on her final journey rather than at the Battle of Trafalgar, it is a magnificent painting and seems a fitting way to close this post.