Nelson's Anchorage

Nelson's Anchorage at Rosia Bay marks one of the most specific and tangible connections Gibraltar has to British naval history. On 28 October 1805, HMS Victory sailed into Gibraltar carrying the body of Admiral Horatio Nelson, killed at the Battle of Trafalgar three days earlier. The ship anchored in what is now Rosia Bay for water, repairs, and to transfer Nelson's body to a more suitable vessel for the passage to England, where he was eventually buried at St Paul's Cathedral. The anchorage is marked by a 100-ton Armstrong gun, one of only three surviving in the world, mounted on a reconstructed carriage and positioned facing out over the bay. The gun dates from 1870, well after Trafalgar, but its scale gives an immediate sense of the firepower that coastal defence positions like Rosia Bay could bring to bear against enemy shipping. The barrel alone weighs 100 tons and required a hydraulic mounting to operate. Rosia Bay is a quiet corner of Gibraltar, away from the main town and the Upper Rock tourist circuit, and the anchorage site has a peaceful quality that suits the history. The bay was used as a Royal Navy victualling yard for most of the 18th and 19th centuries, and the remnants of that infrastructure are still visible in the surrounding area. The site is freely accessible and well signposted from the Europa Road. Parson's Lodge Battery, another significant fortification, overlooks the bay from the southern shore. The combination of the two sites, along with the Trafalgar Cemetery a short drive away, makes Rosia Bay a worthwhile destination for anyone following the Trafalgar thread through Gibraltar's history. Allow 30 to 40 minutes at the anchorage itself.