2 of 6 October 2023 The 1805 Dispatches #23.05 Saturday, 21st October 2023 — 11.00 am You are invited to attend the formal wreath laying ceremony by the First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff (or his representative) in the crypt of St Paul’s Cathedral to commemorate the death of Admiral Lord Nelson. This year the ceremony at Lord Nelson’s tomb is on Saturday, 21st October 2023 at 11.00 am. The ceremony was designed by The 1805 Club in conjunction with the Royal Navy, the Sea Cadets and the Dean of St Paul’s. Wreaths will be laid by: The First Sea Lord or his Representative The Royal Naval Association The Sea Cadets Corps The 1805 Club The Society for Nautical Research After the official wreath laying ceremony, which lasts about 15 minutes, there will be a short ceremony at the tomb of Admiral Lord Collingwood. Those attending may then lay wreaths if they so wish. You are welcome to bring a guest. Please arrive at the Cathedral by not later than 1045, entering the crypt by the North door opposite the Chapter House and Temple Bar. If you would like to attend please advise Barry Scrutton by email: barry@scruttonestates.co.uk by no later than lunchtime on Monday 16th October 2023. TRAFALGAR WREATHLAYING The History Department at the US Naval Academy, Annapolis, Maryland, hosted this biennial event on 21-22 September 2023, to highlight the latest research on naval and maritime history from academics and practitioners all over the globe. Held since 1973, the symposium has been described as the "largest regular meeting of naval historians in the world" and as the US Navy's "single most important interaction with an academic historical audience." This year your Editor was privileged to be able to attend, and, if asked to describe the experience in just one word, the only appropriate one he can use is “Wow!”, with the exclamation mark very necessary. The rationale for the United States Naval Academy (USNA) in Annapolis, Maryland, to hold the McMullen Naval History Symposium (MNHS) every two years since 1973 (except 2003 & 2005) is simple: enable today’s and future military leaders to learn from the mistakes and successes of yesterday’s military personnel. In other words, make the perspective of history relevant to today’s navy personnel. Who better to teach history than history practitioners – service and civilian academics steeped in history? That is why mishipmen at the US Naval Academy are allowed/required to attend the presentations, and, in many cases, required to write-up what they have learned as part of their course work. And very diligent they seemed to be, or at least the ones I observed seemed to be. But there are a couple of problems with teaching history: the first is that history is subject to being rewritten — not in the way described in George Orwell’s ‘1984’ but in the way history is open to interpretation by whoever is doing the research — history, like science, responds to the latest evidence or discovery. It was evident that many of the presentations were ‘works-inprogress’ and the presenters were still seeking answers to their personal subject. To paraphrase from earlier, who better to ask than a captive group of naval practitioners? So the presenters also gain something here. The answer to this problem of history's flexibility is to invite as many as possible, or available, of the top naval history people in the world and put on a big ‘show’. Nobody would disagree that the USNA knows how to do that! The second problem is how to stage the Extracted from Wikipedia: "In Ancient Greece, the symposium (Greek: συμπόσιον) was a part of a banquet that took place after the meal, when drinking for pleasure was accompanied by music, dancing, recitals, or conversation. [Ooh, this sounds interesting! Ed] In modern usage, it has come to mean an academic conference." [Oh – Might be good, though. Ed.] US NAVAL ACADEMY'S MCMULLEN NAVAL HISTORY SYMPOSIUM 2023 By Peter Turner ▻
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