A Union Jack that survived the Battle of Trafalgar | Christie's

Discover the story of this Union Jack which survived Nelson’s victory in the Battle of Trafalgar. One of just three British flags that survived in Nelson's victory against the French and Spanish fleets, this Union Jack was flown by HMS Spartiate.

On 21 October 1805, the fate of Europe hung in the balance, as the British navy, under the command of Vice-Admiral Lord Horatio Nelson, clashed with combined French and Spanish forces in the Atlantic, off Cape Trafalgar, southwest Spain.

The British were vastly outnumbered: the enemy fleet had six more ships, carrying an extra 484 guns, and almost 30,000 men to fight a force of 18,000. But thanks to Nelson’s unorthodox tactics, he achieved one of the most spectacular and consequential naval victories in history. During the fight he lost his life, but set the scene for more than a century of British dominance of the seas.

In The Exceptional Sale on 1 July 2025, Christie’s will offer one of just three British flags known to have survived the Battle of Trafalgar. The flag was flown by HMS Spartiate, then presented to the ship’s lieutenant, and its surface is blistered by gunfire and embedded with splinters of wood and cannonball shrapnel.