Nelson's battlefield: Google Earth finds the forgotten clumps of trees planted as a living map to commemorate Admiral's victory at Battle of the Nile



For two centuries they have stood in the heart of England, a landlocked tribute to the brilliance of Admiral Lord Nelson.



Planted across three-quarters of a mile of Wiltshire countryside, a series of tree clumps mark the positions of British and French ships during the Battle of the Nile.



But despite being one of the largest memorials of its kind in the world, the secret of the Nile Clumps has until now been known only to a few locals and military historians.

History taken root: The named clumps in the Wiltshire countryside were among the 14-strong British fleet commanded by Nelson

The National Trust has launched a campaign to change all that.

It is promoting the memorial as a tourist attraction for visitors to Salisbury Plain.

Historians are also urging the public to explore the site using Google Maps - the online collection of aerial photographs.



The living memorial lies about a mile east of Stonehenge. It is thought to have been planted by landowner Baron Douglas of Amesbury some years after Nelson's death in 1805, at the request of Captain Thomas Hardy and Nelson's mistress, Lady Hamilton.

Tribute: Admiral Lord Nelson

It is believed there were originally 31 clumps, representing the 17 French and 14 British ships, but only 19 remain after the rest were felled or blown over during the centuries.



'The Battle of the Nile in 1798 was one of Nelson's most significant clashes with Napoleon,' said National Trust volunteer Stephen Fisher.



'Forget Trafalgar, this was Nelson's finest hour and at the time was his most famous victory.



'Not only did this battle halt Napoleon's ambitions for Egypt, but it was one of the most decisive victories over the French fleet. Only two of their ships survived the encounter while not a single British ship was lost.'



The clumps consist of beech, maple and hawthorn, and 1,400 of the original trees still survive.



Some of the gaps were filled in a replanting operation by Amesbury Rotary Club a decade ago.



Richard Whitney, of the National Trust, said: 'Each clump carries the name of a different vessel - like the Vanguard, Goliath or Bellerophon. Before now that information has only been mentioned in a few guidebooks, on the internet or embedded in local knowledge.



'With images from the Royal Naval Museum, the information will finally make it clear to visitors the story of these trees.'



The tall beeches in the middle of the clumps were designed to represent the soaring sails of the military boats, with the maple and hawthorn representing the body.

Finest hour: A 19th-century painting of the battle

Many historians agree that the Battle of the Nile was more significant than Trafalgar, the battle in which Nelson died. In August 1798, the French were at anchor in Aboukir Bay in shallow water, using the shore to protect the south-western side of the fleet, while the north-eastern faced open sea.



Although the ships were chained together, Nelson believed the chain between the last ship in the line and the shore was sunk deep enough to let a vessel pass.



In a daring night-time manoeuvre, his fleet slipped through the gap and attacked the French on their unprotected side.



Lord Nelson coming on deck during the battle

The battle established Britain as the dominant sea power during the French revolutionary wars and was immortalised in the poem Casablanca, known for its opening line 'The boy stood on the burning deck'.



Nelson's flagship during the battle was the Vanguard. Other British ships commemorated by surviving copses include the Minotaur, Defence, Swiftsure, Theseus, Orion, Bellerophon and Alexander.



The Nile Clumps stand behind King Barrow Ridge on the Stonehenge landscape between the stones and the Countess Roundabout.



This is not the only wooded tribute to the Battle of the Nile. On the former Swarland Estate near Alnwick, Northumberland, a line of trees takes the shape of the coastline of the Nile delta. Other trees appear to be in the positions of the British and French fleet.



