Get all your news in one place.
100's of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
World

Sailors on the USS Abraham Lincoln had it a lot easier than Nelson’s crews

An 1850 lithograph of the Battle of Trafalgar
An 1850 lithograph of the Battle of Trafalgar. Photograph: Fototeca Storica Nazionale./Getty Images

You report (4 September) that sailors from the USS Abraham Lincoln spent a “record uninterrupted 286 days at sea”. That’s nowhere near a record: Nelson and his fleet blockaded Toulon for two years, 1803-05, without going ashore.

The American sailors complain about the food on their carrier; Nelson’s ships were exposed to terrible weather in which they pitched and rolled violently, and were cold, wet and plagued by rats. No electricity, let alone fridges; they ate salt pork and rock-hard bread full of weevils, drank green water, and every so often fought a battle or sailed to the Caribbean and back.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100's of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.