Thoroughly enjoyed this one. There's just the right balance of narrative and technical detail to make a book that's intereting all the way through.

An interesting book written from the logs and writings of the Bellerophon and its captains, but nothing insightful or illuminating for someone who has read Patrick O'Brien or the Hornblower series. Of course, that is non-fiction versus fiction, so it was good to get validation for the fiction versions of the Battle of the Nile and Trafalgar that I had already read. Cordingly plumped for the death of Napoleon from stomach cancer as claimed by the doctor doing the autopsy in 1821. However, I believe the 1960's tests are more accurate than anything they could come up with in 1821, so I was surprised he did not even mention that Napoleon was probably murdered with arsenic, a little at a time. Not that it made much difference. The stomach cancer would have gotten him sooner rather than later. An interesting book but don't read it for any insights into Napoleon (although Cordingly does point out several differences between what actually happened and what Napoleon's memoirs claimed happened). Read it to get a feel for what it was like to be on a British man of war from beginning to end.

Interesting book packed full of facts and information.

The subtitle ‘The biography of a ship of the line, 1782-1836’ nicely sums up David Cordingly’s Billy Ruffian. This is a book about the life of the third rate, 74 gun, warship Bellerophon from its’ initial conception on the drawing boards of Sir Thomas Slade (even though dead by the time!) through to the breakers half a century later. The Bellerophon served in some of the most famous actions of the period; The Glorious 1st of June, the Nile, and Trafalgar. But she is best known as the ship Napoleon Bonaparte surrendered to in 1815 after losing the battle of Waterloo.

The actions are solidly told but it is the period with Napoleon onboard that really shines. This is the end note to the Napoleonic wars when the ship briefly takes centre stage in momentous events of high politics. It is a rich account of the weeks leading up to his surrender and the 24 days in which Napoleon was on board as guest come prisoner.

The life of a ship of the line is not all glory and battles. Endless patrolling off Ushant is mentioned in the book but understandably skated over. But I feel it could have benefited from a more in depth look at a single otherwise dull, boring and uninteresting patrol as an example precisely because it is such an important part of what Bellerophon spent her time doing.

We do get an impression of the crew in 1806 due to a survey the ship’s Captain carried out (p.209) and this is followed by a few pages on the day to day life on board (pp.213-16). Given Cordingly has made good use of diaries and letters as well as logs I would be surprised if there were not more individual details that could have been mined to provide further colour and individuality on a particular voyage.

The retirement of a ship like this is not something that is often told. As a prison hulk a ship of the line must have undertaken a dramatic change from a certain elegance to a dark and brooding prison with little light or air. Yet I wonder if this is not overdone – while the poor conditions are dwelt upon the numbers of prisoners mentioned, 450 (p.286), is less than the complement of 550 (p.50) she would have had as a functioning warship.

Billy Ruffian then is an interesting concept well put together and brought to fruition.

This book is an attempt to tell the story of Nelson's navy from a fresh angle, and in that largely succeeds. Bellerophon was a Zelig-ship, present at Trafalgar, but also the ship to which Napoleon surrendered after Waterloo, when he entered British custody. Cordingly's description of the ship's later role as a prison hulk ties Nelson's navy to the world of Great Expectations and The Fatal Shore.

Not enough stars for this book.

The biography of a British 74 gun ship of the line, from her construction to the auction of her remains, with an epilogue covering the fates of some of her captains and her most famous passenger.

The Bellerophon had the distinction of being an important player in three of the most important naval battles of the Napoleonic Wars, and of being the ship that Napoleon surrendered to after Waterloo. Following her history gives an interesting look at the history behind the historical fiction of C.S. Forester and Patrick O'Brian.

Well worth reading, although I felt the last quarter necessarily dragged a bit as it deals with Napoleon's time on the ship, and its history as a prison hulk. Important parts of its history for which a lot of documentation exists, but less interesting from the perspective of someone primarily interested in the ship's history as an active duty warship.

This is a very well written account of the ship of the line, the 74 gun Bellerophon or the Billy Ruffian as the sailors called her. The author has a great narrative, going into detail but not getting bogged down in detail and using actual anecdotes from dispatches or letters from the sailors/officers on the Bellerophon which makes the battles very vivid to the reader. Even though I consider myself very knowledgeable about Britain's navy during the 7 Years War and Napoleonic wars, I didn't know much about Bellerophon.
For one, she was in the thick of all of the major battles of that era, the Glorious First of June, Battle of the Nile and the Battle of Trafalgar. The Bellerophon had a reputation for going after bigger ships than her due to her speed and got often mauled. In both Trafalgar and the Battle of Nile, she was completely dismasted and the sails and cordage shot away so badly that she had to be towed away from the battle once it finished. Secondly, the Bellerophon was known for the ship that intercepted Napoleon Bonaparte in Rochefort and brought him back to England in 1815.
I loved the beginning about how the ships of the line were built. I also understood another mystery. I knew that French built ships were much better than English built ships in terms of strength and speed. However, the British Navy in terms of battle were much better compared to the Spanish or French despite the poorer quality ships. The main reason was the British navy was very effective at blockading ports and escorting merchant convoys that were critical to support Britain's economy. Some of these blockades lasted years which kept the French and Spanish ships and sailors at port, which means that British sailors and officers were sailing in all kinds of conditions, practicing the guns regularly and they became an effective, well oiled war machine as a result.
Lastly, the one doesn't need a lot of knowledge about ships or sailing to understand, unlike some other nautical historical books I have read. Highly recommended for those who want to gain an insight to one of the most notable ship of the line in Britain's navy during the Napoleonic era.

Fascinating read, makes you proud to be English ,

The career of H.M.S. Bellerophon, a 74-gun ship-of-the-line which formed part of England's "Wooden Walls" and fought in three of the most decisive sea battles of the late 18th and early 19th centuries: The battle of the Glorious First of June, won by Admiral Lord Howe against the fleet of Revolutionary France in 1794; The Battle of the Nile, won by Admiral Lord Nelson in 1798, which ended Napoleon's eastward ambitions; and the Battle of Trafalgar, won by Amiral Nelson against the combined fleets of Imperial France and Spain.

The final crowning glory for the old "Billy Ruffian" was when her commander Captain Maitland accepted the surrender of Emperor Napoleon Bonapart, six weeks after his final defeat at the Battle of Waterloo.

A stimulating look at the career of a ship which exemplified the professionalism and ultimate triumph of Britain's Royal Navy over the forces of continental despotism.

Not as thrilling as my first foray into naval history. But good nonetheless. Left me wanting to learn more about 19th century europe and Napoleon. Seemed like a bad mf

I absolutely loved this book, but I am, admittedly, a Royal Navy history anorak! This book is a narrative of a crucial period in the history of the Royal Navy, including the Napoleonic Wars, when the RN was arguably at its peak. The narrative is cleverly told as a biography of a ship, from its birth in a shipyard in Rochester, in 1782, to its death in a breaker's yard in 1836, after several years of use as a prison hulk. The ship was HMS Bellerophon, charmingly nicknamed by its crew "Billy Ruffian". Her career in the RN was both celebrated and crucial. She played a conspicuous part in the most famous sea battles of her era: the battle of The Glorious First of June (1794) which was the opening action against Revolutionary France; the Battle of The Nile (1798) which halted Napoleon's eastward expansion; and the Battle of Trafalgar (1805) during which her captain was shot dead by a sniper an hour before Nelson was fatally wounded. Her crowning glory came in 1815, six weeks after Napoleon's defeat at Waterloo. Trapped in Rochefort, Napoleon surrendered to the captain of the Bellerophon, throwing himself to the mercy of his "ever constant foe, the English". On Bellerophon Napoleon traveled to England, and was kept on board as a guest until his fate was decided, exile on St Helena. Utterly fascinating, and rich with details of the period taken from accounts and log books. There are valuable lessons for today to be learned, for individuals and organisations, about how to really focus on a few core strengths in order to excel. The RN prevailed not because the ships were any better, they weren't. A few simple principles and technical advantages were enough: fast and accurate gunnery; the extreme aggression of the officers; naval discipline; copper-bottomed ships; superior navigation. This was enough to ensure that the enemy was blockaded in their ports, with ships and crews rotting, whilst the RN practiced the arts of seamanship. The Royal Navy's victory at the Battle of Trafalgar in October 1805, in which they lost no ships, and decimated the French navy, ensured that there was no serious competition for over a century. Nothing to hold back the growth of an Empire the likes of which had not been seen before or since. This book is a little gem, and an invaluable addition to the lexicon of this period.