3 back and I soon lost count of the number of times we dined out at the Pizza Express in Mayfair to discuss the Trafalgar Festival, sometimes bizarrely to the sound of modern jazz! Admired and respected internationally, by royalty, the Royal Navy, historians and enthusiasts of Nelson and naval history, Colin was the right man in the right place at the right time. His apogee was the Trafalgar bicentenary, which he steered with considerable aplomb. In the wake of his extensive research, which identified new sources (which he was happy to share with others – a rarity) and ‘revealed new insights’ (a favourite phrase), he launched a fleet of Nelson books culminating in the landmark Nelson-The New Letters, fired a broadside of spellbinding lectures and justly earned the description of being the admiral's "representative on earth". While Colin’s patience could be tested when things did not work out as he would like, he always had time for people whatever their walk of life and was equally at home with royalty as he was with a young student. He encouraged and mentored, and would also remember and later enquire after some small but important personal detail. Moreover, he gave credit where credit was due. Colin displayed a boyish charm whenever some ‘new’ Nelson artefact was shown to him. More than occasionally he made his own discoveries and the most famous was Nelson’s hurried sketch of his fleet dispositions for Trafalgar. Colin was carefully going through papers at the National Maritime Museum, when he caught sight of an apparently unremarkable scrap of paper on which Nelson had jotted reminder notes about patronage. Then Colin did what all good researchers should do; he turned it over, and there as if it were a Eureka moment, he recognized that what looked like a scribble was in fact Nelson’s strategy. I always loved the way in his lectures he would enthuse about the urgency of Nelson’s hand and how the ink flowed freely from his pen where he cut the enemy line. For me the essence of all that was good about Colin arose from his understanding of human nature, his generosity of spirit, warmth and charm, and his ability to make everyone know they mattered. He inspired a sort of loyalty and affection that made us believe in him – and that was the White Touch. It helped that he was a marvellous communicator with a vivid historical imagination and a fantastic theatrical ability to bring history to life. We remember how he would often say, ‘Ladies and gentlemen, imagine that you are sitting with Nelson in the Great Cabin of Victory on the eve of Trafalgar…’ and then transport us there. At the Club Trafalgar Dinner at Newhouse in 2003 he had the guests in tears as he took us back, with the lights dimmed and candles burning, to St Paul’s Cathedral and Nelson’s funeral on that wintry afternoon of 9 January 1806. The 1805 Club owes Colin an immense debt of gratitude for his vision and leadership and for his utter dedication to our cause. We treasured his support, enthusiasm and loyalty and we were always thrilled when he took part in our activities, which he did frequently. The most visible and lasting legacy of his work for the Club is The Trafalgar Captains’ Memorial, which found and surveyed the graves and memorials of the British commanding officers at Trafalgar, conserved those at risk, and published their stories in the highly successful The Trafalgar Captains: Their Monuments and Memorials. As I cast my eye over Colin’s life, personality and achievements I realise how humble are my own words compared to those of others in similar situations and would therefore like to reinforce mine with a quotation from Robert Louis Stevenson: ‘The man is a success who has lived well, and laughed often, and loved much; who has gained the respect of intelligent men and the love of children; who has filled his niche and accomplished his task; who has left the world better than he found it, who has never lacked appreciation of earth’s beauty, or failed to express it; who has always looked for the best in others and gave the best he had, whose life was an inspiration, whose memory is benediction.’ Our present sadness will be assuaged by the brightness of his legacy, leaving us with the cherished memories of a remarkable man. For certain we shall not see his like again. With all good wishes, Peter Peter Warwick Hon Chairman Left: Peter Warwick and Dr Kevin Fewster, Director of the NMM with Colin outside Newhouse, 2008.
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