ABSTRACT
The Victorian obsession with duty to crown and country began and ended with sea-faring men. The concept was most famously articulated by Lord Nelson in 1805 when he signalled before the battle of Trafalgar, ‘England expects that Every Man will do his Duty.’ In fact, Nelson had originally stated, ‘Nelson confides that every man will do his duty’ (Vincent 582). The signal officer suggested ‘expects’ rather than ‘confides’ as it is in the vocabulary of the telegraphic signal book and does not need to be spelled out letter by letter. The concept was broadened from the individual leader, ‘Nelson’, to the nation for which they fought, ‘England’, for loyalty was expected to the leader in battle but more importantly to the country they all served. ‘Duty’ had to be spelled out, but the word was retained. Nelson hoped his signal would inspire his men through confirmation of the accepted belief that men must sacrifice their lives to their commander and country, for a higher purpose and for the benefit of others within their society. Nelson was mortally wounded in this battle, and as he lay on his deathbed he said, ‘Thank God I have done my Duty’ (Vincent 582). For Nelson personally, his belief in acting appropriately brought him comfort as he died.
