LORD Nelson did not say “Kiss me, Hardy” as he died, says a newly found account of the Battle of Trafalgar.
Instead he said the less dramatic: “Thanks be to God but I have lived this day and now I die content.”
The claim is made by George Sievers, a master-at-arms on HMS Belleisle near Nelson’s HMS Victory.
His account is part of a letter written six days after Nelson was killed by a French musket ball off Cape Trafalgar, Spain, in October 1805.
Sievers’ two-page letter to his Lincolnshire-based landlord Thomas Tunnard is up for auction at £1,600 until this evening.
Darren Sutherland, at Bonhams New York, said: “This provides a fascinating look at the Battle of Trafalgar.
“The accepted version of Nelson’s last words often includes ‘Kiss me, Hardy’.
“This particular construction has not been seen before and was conveyed within a week of his death.
“Although Sievers was not present on Victory, he would have picked up the story very near the event.”
The National Maritime Museum says Nelson said “Kiss me Hardy” to Vice-Admiral Sir Thomas Hardy.
The Belleisle was wrecked early in the battle but the French defeat helped save Britain from invasion by Napoleon.
