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Friday October 21 2005 is a very special day, when many people remember an historic sea battle and the man who led the British fleet to victory. That man was Lord Horatio Nelson - one of Britain's most famous war heroes.
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Nelson was an Admiral in the British Navy and 200 years ago he won his most important battle at Trafalgar on the Spanish coast. Here he is in the painting on the left.
He is so famous that there are loads of events going on all across the country to remember what he did and to remember the day of the Battle of Trafalgar.
Picture: Viscount Nelson, by Johann Heinrich Schmidt, pastel on paper, 1800.
© National Maritime Museum, London
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Admirals were in charge of whole fleets of warships that in those days were made of wood, powered by sails and had rows of cannon along their sides for attacking enemy ships.
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Nelson had become famous in Britain by winning several important battles in places like Egypt, the Caribbean and Denmark, and had become a very popular celebrity.
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People would crowd around him in the street and cheer when he returned to Britain from his adventures.
Picture: The Battle of Trafalgar, 21 October 1805. Joseph Mallord William Turner, oil on canvas, 1824
© National Maritime Museum, London, Greenwich Hospital Collection
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He also took great care to look after his men, and although life in the navy was hard, they were very loyal to him.
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Nelson was born in 1758 and after joining the navy at the age of 12 he had many adventures at sea in the Caribbean and Arctic while he was still a boy.
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Not all of these adventures were happy ones, as this painting on the left shows.
Nelson injured his right arm so badly in one battle he had to have it removed. Another time, he lost the sight in his right eye, when an enemy cannonball landed near him, throwing gravel into his eye.
© National Maritime Museum, London
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These injuries didn't hold Nelson back, and he became an Admiral in 1797. See how grand he looked in his naval uniform (below)!
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By the year 1805 Britain was at war with France, who were led by Napoleon Bonaparte. Napoleon had conquered much of Europe and people in Britain were afraid that he was planning to invade them next.
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Nelson was sent to destroy the French fleet to stop this happening.
The French and the Spanish navies got together to fight the British, and met Nelson's fleet at Trafalgar on October 21 1805.
Rear-Admiral Sir Horatio Nelson,
1758-1805,
Lemuel Francis Abbott Oil on canvas, 1800,
© National Maritime Museum, London, Greenwich Hospital Co.
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Nelson was on the lead ship The Victory but during the battle a bullet hit him in the back.
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He was taken below decks on his ship where he later died, but not before finding out that his ships had won the battle.
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Amazingly, The Victory survived the Battle of Trafalgar, and, 200 years on, YOU can pace the decks of this famous warship.
The Victory is moored at Portsmouth Historic Dockyard in the south of England.
Although it is no longer able to sail, you can see the rows of cannon, and the spot where Nelson died.
© Jon Pratty
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Before he died Nelson spoke his last words to Captain Hardy, who was in charge of The Victory, but no-one can agree on exactly what he said.
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Some people say it was "kiss me, Hardy" and others say what he really said was "kismet, Hardy". Kismet is a word some people use to mean fate or destiny. Did he really want Hardy to kiss him? They were good friends, so it's possible, but no one knows for sure. What do you think he meant? Let us know.
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Do you think the battle would have really looked like this painting?
Picture: The Fall of Nelson, Battle of Trafalgar, 21 October 1805.
Denis Dighton, oil on canvas, about 1825
© National Maritime Museum, London
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The victory at Trafalgar meant that Britain was safe from invasion and was the world's biggest naval power for many years.
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All across the country people put up statues of Nelson and named roads and pubs after him and his victories.
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Nelson's Column in London's Trafalgar Square is the best-known of the monuments to him, but there are many others.
Maybe there is a Trafalgar Street in your town? Now you know how it got its name.
© 24 Hour Museum/Richard Moss
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Check out what's going on near you to celebrate Trafalgar Day by looking at the SeaBritain 2005 events page (you might need a grown-up to help you).
As well as visiting the Victory, you can find out more about Nelson, Napoleon and naval history at the National Maritime Museum in London, which has loads of amazing exhibits.
And if you fancy dressing the part, you can print out these instructions from the SeaBritain website, and have a go at making your own Nelson hat.
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