Battle of Trafalgar: your chance to be Nelson

Channel 4 have a great new game out called Trafalgar Origins.

The aim of the game is to complete a series of missions with your 19th century frigate ship against the enemy French and Spanish fleets in the lead up to the 1805 Battle of Trafalgar.

Improve your score and stats by taking loot from the ships you sink and getting better crew members.

You will also have a choice of weapons for combat, including shot and powder barrels.

Screenshot courtesy Channel 4 Education

Show Me tests the game

My nine year old son who tested the game ended up playing it for well over an hour and gave Trafalgar Origins a big thumbs up.

He found manoeuvring his ship (moving it and getting it into position to fire at the other ships) quite tricky at first but he liked the practice missions and then taking part in the sea battles between the English, French and Spanish navies.

There's a multi-player mode too so you can play with your friends.

Game tip

If you want to find out about sea battle tactics to help you play Trafalgar Origins, we recommend the BBC Animated Map: Battle of Traflagar.

The interactive begins with detailed background but quickly takes you into battle ship manoeuvre tactics, such as broadside, raking and the Nelson Touch.

What was the Battle of Trafalgar?

The Battle of Trafalgar took place of October 21, 1805, off Cape Trafalgar on the Spanish coast. It saw the death of Admiral Lord Nelson but also the key defeat of the French and Spanish navies and so ended Napoleon Bonaparte's plans to invade Britain.

More for your school project

See a 360 degree tour of HMS Victory on the Portsmouth Historic Dockyard website.

Zoom into JMW Turner's painting The Battle of Trafalgar, 21 October 1805.

Turner based the painting upon his own sketches of HMS Victory. What do you think Turner is trying to say about the Battle in the painting?

Courtesy National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, London, Greenwich Hospital Collection

Test your knowledge

Try the Battle of Trafalgar CBBC Newsround Quiz to see how well you know your Battle of Britain facts.

Full details of the painting above: JMW Turner's The Battle of Trafalgar, 21 October. Courtesy National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, London, Greenwich Hospital Collection