Books by Robert Southey

Romantic poet Robert Southey (1774-1843) was poet laureate from 1813 to 1843. He was also a noted Portuguese scholar and between 1810 and 1819 published this influential three-volume work. Volume 1 begins with the discovery of Brazil by the Portuguese in 1500 and concludes in 1639.

Robert Southey, the poet and contemporary of Nelson, captures the essence of Nelson's personality and the spirit of the times, in what is widely regarded as the finest biography yet of Lord Admiral Nelson. Southey was thirty-one years old when the Battle of Trafalgar was fought and he breathed in all the heady atmosphere.

As Southey states in this two-volume 1813 work, his account is intended to be 'clear and concise enough to become a manual for the young sailor'. Volume 1 covers the period from Nelson's birth and early experiences at sea, up to the battle of the Nile.