John Cooke ( Royal Navy officer ) John Cooke ( c . 1762 – 21 October 1805 ) was an experienced and highly regarded officer of the Royal Navy during the American War of Independence , the French Revolutionary Wars and the first years of the Napoleonic Wars . Cooke is best known for his death in hand - to - hand combat with French forces during the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805 . During the action , his ship was badly damaged and boarded by sailors and marines from the French ship of the line . Cooke was killed in the ensuing melee , but his crew successfully drove off their opponents and ultimately forced the surrender of " Aigle " . Aside from his death , remarkably little is known of Cooke ' s circumstances . Even his date of birth is unclear , and unlike many of his fellow officers , Cooke was never a notable society figure . He was however well respected in his profession and following his death was the subject of tributes from officers who had served alongside him . Memorials to him were placed in St Paul ' s Cathedral and his local church in Wiltshire . Early life . John Cooke was baptised on 5 March 1762 at St . Mary , Whitechapel , the second son of Francis Cooke , an Admiralty clerk , and his wife Margaret . John Cooke first went to sea at the age of eleven aboard the cutter under Lieutenant John Bazely , before going ashore to spend time at Mr Braken ' s naval academy at Greenwich . He was entered onto the books of one of the royal yachts by Sir Alexander Hood , who would become an enduring patron of Cooke ' s . In 1776 he obtained a position as a midshipman on the ship of the line , aged thirteen . Cooke served aboard " Eagle " , the flagship of the North American Station , during the next three years , seeing extensive action along the eastern seaboard . Notable among these actions were the naval operations around the Battle of Rhode Island in 1778 , when " Eagle " was closely engaged with American units ashore . He distinguished himself in the assault , causing Admiral Lord Howe to remark " Why , young man , you wish to become a Lieutenant before you are of sufficient age . " On 21 January 1779 , Cooke was promoted to lieutenant and joined in the East Indies under Sir Edward Hughes , but was forced to take a leave of absence due to ill - health . Cooke returned to England and then went to France to spend a year studying , before rejoining the navy in 1782 with an appointment to the 90 - gun under Captain Alan Gardner . Cooke saw action at the Battle of the Saintes , at which " Duke " was heavily engaged . He remained with Gardner following the signing of the Treaty of Paris in 1783 , bringing an end to the American War of Independence , and served as his first - lieutenant aboard his next command , the 50 - gun . Gardner became commodore at Jamaica , flying his broad pennant aboard " Europa " and retaining Cooke as his first - lieutenant until Cooke was injured in a bad fall and had to be invalided home . He had recovered sufficiently by the time of the Spanish Armament in 1790 to be able to take up an appointment from his old patron , Sir Alexander Hood , to be third - lieutenant of his flagship , the 90 - gun . When the crisis passed without breaking into open war , " London " was paid off and Cooke went ashore . Frigate command . With the outbreak of the French Revolutionary Wars in February 1793 , Cooke rejoined Hood and became first - lieutenant of his new flagship , the 100 - gun , part of the Channel Fleet . On 21 February 1794 , Cooke was promoted to commander and given his first independent command , the small fireship . Three months later , " Incendiary " was a signal repeater for the Channel Fleet during the Atlantic campaign of May 1794 , relaying Lord Howe ' s signals to the fleet and operating as a scout in the search for the French fleet under Villaret de Joyeuse . On 1 June 1794 , Cooke was a witness to the battle of the Glorious First of June , although his tiny ship was far too small to engage in combat . In the action ' s aftermath , Cooke was included in the general promotions issued to the fleet , becoming a post captain on 23 July 1794 . For a year , Cooke was stationed off Newfoundland as flag captain to Sir James Wallace aboard the 74 - gun , before returning to Britain and being offered command of the 28 - gun . Cooke accepted , but when he found out she was ordered to the West Indies , he resigned it , having been told by Gardner that further service in the West Indies would likely kill him . Instead in early 1796 he took command of the 36 - gun frigate . " Nymphe " was employed in the blockade of the French Atlantic ports over the next year , and on 9 March 1797 was in company with when they encountered the returning ships of a short - lived French invasion attempt of Britain that had been defeated at Fishguard in Wales . The French ships attempted to escape into Brest , but were hunted down by the British , who forced the surrender of " Résistance " and " Constance " in turn after successive short engagements . Neither of the British ships suffered a single casualty in the combat , and both French ships were subsequently purchased into the Royal Navy , bringing prize money to Cooke and his crew . Despite this success , Cooke was unpopular with his men due to the strict discipline he enforced aboard his ship . This was graphically demonstrated just two months after the action off Brest , when " Nymphe " became embroiled in the Spithead mutiny . Cooke attempted to assist Admiral John Colpoys at the mutiny ' s outbreak , and was ordered ashore by his crew when he tried to return to his ship . Cooke was tactfully removed from command by the Admiralty following the mutiny , although he was returned to service two years later aboard the new frigate in preparation for the Anglo - Russian invasion of the Batavian Republic . During the invasion , " Amethyst " conveyed the Duke of York to the Netherlands and later participated in the evacuation of the force following the campaign ' s collapse . Cooke was involved in operations in Quiberon Bay during the remainder of 1799 , and in 1800 participated in an abortive invasion of Ferrol . During this time , " Amethyst " captured six French merchant ships and small privateers . During 1801 , Cooke participated in the capture of the off Cape Finisterre , helping Samuel Hood Linzee and Richard King chase her down on 26 January . " Amethyst " was not heavily engaged with " Dédaigneuse " and received no damage , but aided in pursuing and trapping the French ship so that she could be seized . " Dédaigneuse " was later purchased into the Royal Navy . Shortly afterwards , Cooke captured the Spanish ship " Carlotta " and the French privateer " Général Brune " in the same area . Trafalgar . With the Peace of Amiens , Cooke briefly retired on half - pay before being recalled to the fleet at the outbreak of the Napoleonic Wars in 1803 . Cooke was requested as flag captain by Admiral Sir William Young at Plymouth , but Cooke tactfully refused , instead applying for active service . He received command of on 25 April 1805 . In May , after the large combined French and Spanish fleet , under Admiral Pierre - Charles Villeneuve escaped from Toulon , beginning the Trafalgar Campaign , Cooke was ordered to join a flying squadron under Vice - Admiral Cuthbert Collingwood . The squadron arrived off Cadiz on 9 June and Collingwood detached " Bellerophon " and three other ships to blockade Cartagena under Rear - Admiral Sir Richard Bickerton . When the combined fleet entered Cadiz on 20 August , Collingwood recalled Bickerton ' s force and mounted a blockade of the port . Collingwood was reinforced with more ships , and was later superseded by Nelson . Cooke was heard to say at this time that " To be in a general engagement with Nelson would crown all my military ambition " . Nelson had Villeneuve ' s fleet trapped in Cadiz and was blockading the harbour awaiting their expected attempt to escape . The Franco - Spanish fleet escaped Cadiz on 18 October 1805 , but was soon chased down by Nelson and brought to battle on 21 October . Nelson formed his fleet into two divisions ; the weather column would attack to the north under his direct command and the lee column would operate to the south under the command of Cuthbert Collingwood in . Cooke was stationed fifth in Collingwood ' s line , and so was one of the first ships engaged in action with the combined fleet . Cooke took the unusual step of informing his first lieutenant William Pryce Cumby and his master Edward Overton of Nelson ' s orders , in case he should be killed . " Bellerophon " was soon closely engaged with the French , breaking through the enemy line and closing with " Aigle " . As with the other French ships in the fleet , " Aigle ' s " rigging and mastheads were occupied by musketeers and grenadiers , who kept up a steady fire on " Bellerophon " and took a heavy toll of sailors exposed on the British ship ' s deck . Much of the fire was directed at the quarterdeck , where Cooke , Cumby and Overton stood . Cumby noted with surprise that Cooke was still wearing his uniform coat , which sported epaulettes that marked him out as the ship ' s captain to French snipers . Cooke had forgotten to remove the epaulettes and recognised the danger they represented , but replied " It is too late to take them off . I see my situation , but I will die like a man " . As the action continued , the Captain Pierre - Paul Gourège of " Aigle " ordered his crew to board and seize " Bellerophon " , hoping to use their superiority of numbers to overwhelm the British crew . Cooke sent Cumby below to make sure that the lower - deck guns continued to fire into the French ship as the battle continued overhead , and threw himself at the French sailors pouring onto " Bellerophon ' s " quarterdeck , shooting an enemy officer dead and engaging in hand - to - hand combat with the men behind him . Within minutes Cumby had returned to the deck with reinforcements from below , passing the mortally wounded Overton on the ladder . The badly wounded ship ' s quartermaster was also present , and he informed Cumby that Cooke had fallen in the melee . Cumby ' s charge cleared the French from the deck of " Bellerophon " , and he found Cooke dead on the quarterdeck , two musket balls lodged in his chest . Cooke ' s last words had been " Let me lie quietly a minute . Tell Lieutenant Cumby never to strike . " Cumby took charge of the battered " Bellerophon " , directing her fire into " Aigle " and ultimately forcing the French ship ' s surrender after the arrival of other British vessels . " Bellerophon " had suffered grievously , losing 27 dead and 127 wounded . Although " Aigle " was lost in the chaotic storm which followed the battle , " Bellerophon " survived , primarily due to Cumby ' s leadership . He was later promoted to post captain for his services in the action . Cooke ' s body was buried at sea the day after the battle with the other fatal casualties from " Bellerophon " . Family and legacy . Cooke ' s death , as with those of George Duff and Admiral Nelson himself , was widely mourned in Britain . Cooke ' s widow Louisa and their eight - year old daughter were given numerous awards and presents , including the gold medal minted for the captains who had fought at the action , and a large silver vase presented by Lloyd ' s Patriotic Fund . At least some of the money the family received was spent on a large wall plaque mounted in St Andrew ' s Church in Donhead St Andrew in Wiltshire , close to the family home . The plaque commemorates Cooke ' s life and death and also that of his wife . A memorial was also raised to him in St Paul ' s Cathedral . Tributes from fellow officers were also forthcoming , including from the future explorer John Franklin , who had served on " Bellerophon " at Trafalgar and had said of Cooke that he was " very gentlemanly and active . I like his appearance very much . " A number of letters that Cooke wrote to his brother prior to Trafalgar are held by the National Maritime Museum . Cooke had married Louisa , née Hardy , on 15 June 1790 at St Leonard ' s , Shoreditch . Louisa was the fourth daughter of Josiah Hardy , the former Governor of New Jersey , and later consul at Cadiz . They had a single daughter together , born on 26 January 1797 at Stoke Damerel . Louisa died at Cheltenham on 5 February 1853 aged 96 . Notes . a . A number of sources , including T . A . Heathcote ' s " Nelson ' s Trafalgar Captains and Their Battles " , Colin White ' s " The Trafalgar Captains " and John Knox Laughton ' s entry for Cooke in the " Dictionary of National Biography " give a birth year of 1763 and omit most information about Cooke ' s early life . Nicholas Tracy ' s entry in " Who ' s Who in Nelson ' s Navy " provides fuller coverage of Cooke ' s early life , and includes a specific baptism date .