Episodes from Southey's Life of Nelson Author:Robert Southey Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: III. COPENHAGEN. For his great victory in Egypt Nelson was made Baron Nelson of the Nile, and by the King of Naples Duke of Bronte' in Sicily. In March, 1801... more », he was sent under the command of Sir Hyde Parker to break up the Northern League, which the three Baltic powers, Denmark, Sweden, and Russia, were forming against England. This he succeeded in doing by his victory at Copenhagen. REAT actions, whether military or naval, VJ have generally given celebrity to the scenes from whence they are denominated; and thus 10 petty villages, and capes and bays, known only to the coasting trader, become associated with mighty deeds, and their names are made conspicuous in the history of the world. Here, however, the scene was every way worthy of the drama. The political importance of the Sound is such, that grand objects are not needed there to impress the imagination ; yet is the channel full of grand and interesting objects, both of art and nature. This passage, which 20 Denmark had so long considered as the key of the Baltic, is, in its narrowest part, about three miles wide; and here the city of Elsineur is situated ; except Copenhagen, the most flourishing of the Danish towns. Every vessel which passes lowers her top-gallant-sails, and pays toll at Elsineur: a toll which is believed to have had its origin in the consent of the traders to that sea, Denmark taking upon itself the charge of constructing light-houses, and erecting signals, to 10 mark the shoals and rocks from the Cattegat to the Baltic: and they, on their part, agreeing that all ships should pass this way, in order that all might pay their shares: none from that time using the passage of the Belt; because it was not fitting that they, who enjoyed the benefit of the beacons in dark and stormy weather, should ev...« less