Cape Trafalgar
At 5:40 a.m. on 21 October, the British were about 21 miles (34 km) to the northwest of Cape Trafalgar, with the Franco-Spanish fleet between the British and the Cape. About 6 a.m., Nelson gave the order to prepare for battle. At 8 a.m., the British frigate "Euryalus", which had been keeping watch on the Combined Fleet overnight, observed the British fleet still "forming the lines" in which it would attack.