William Beatty ( surgeon ) Dr . Sir William Beatty MD FRS ( April 1773 – 25 March 1842 ) was an Irish who served in the Royal Navy . Born in Derry , Ireland , he joined as a surgeon ' s mate in 1791 at the age of 18 . He is best known as the Ship ' s Surgeon on the during the Battle of Trafalgar , at which he witnessed the death of Admiral Horatio Nelson , and for authoring an account of that battle - " " . Biography . Early life and education . He was the eldest son of James Beatty , an officer in the Irish Revenue Service , and Ann Smyth . No records survive of his education , though he attended a local school , most likely Foyle Academy , before beginning his medical studies . He may have been apprenticed to his uncle George Smyth , a half - pay naval surgeon in nearby Buncrana , before studying at either the University of Glasgow or at the " The United Hospitals of the Borough " - the joint medical school of Guy ' s and St Thomas ' Hospital s in London . What is known is that on 5 May 1791 , the 18 year old Beatty was examined before the London Company of Surgeons , and found qualified for employment by the Navy . Surgeon ' s mate . Beatty was promptly appointed Second surgeon ' s mate aboard the 64 - gun third - rate ship , but was soon reassigned , moving to the 32 - gun frigate in September 1791 . He was promoted to First surgeon ' s mate of the 32 - gun frigate on 1 February 1793 , the same day that Revolutionary France declared war on Britain . The ship sailed for the Caribbean , where on 5 December 1793 , he was appointed acting - surgeon of the schooner . On 25 June 1794 he was appointed acting - surgeon of the 28 - gun frigate at Port - au - Prince , where he was immediately confronted with an epidemic of yellow fever in which fifty men , one - quarter of the crew , died . " Alligator " returned to England , where on 19 February 1795 Beatty was once again examined by the Company of Surgeons , and was judged qualified to serve as a ship ' s surgeon . Ship ' s surgeon . Beatty was appointed to the 28 - gun frigate on 8 March 1795 , but soon fell foul of his captain the Hon . Augustus Fitzroy . On 19 July , a discussion over the status of two men that Beatty had placed on the Sick List quickly became acrimonious , with Fitzroy accusing Beatty of incompetence and contempt , before ordering him to be arrested . Beatty ' s court martial was convened aboard the at the Nore on 4 August . After hearing the witnesses , which included the first and second lieutenants , a panel of twelve senior captains exonerated Beatty of all charges . In September 1795 , Beatty was posted to the 38 - gun frigate , but on 29 December , after barely three months , " Amethyst " was wrecked , having run aground near Guernsey in a heavy gale at night . The ship was forced to beach at Alderney . Beatty was more fortunate in his next posting , the 32 - gun frigate , which he joined on 26 March 1796 . He saw action on the coast of Portugal and Spain , and in the Mediterranean , taking many prizes . On 17 October 1799 , while cruising off Spain , the " Alcmene " , along with the frigates , and , fought and captured two Spanish frigates , the " Thetis " and " Santa Brigida " . The British were delighted to discover that the ships were loaded with gold bullion and other valuable cargoes , realizing prize money totalling £652 , 000 . Beatty ' s share came to £2 , 468 , equal to forty times his annual pay . Beatty left the " Alcmene " in March 1801 , to serve aboard the 36 - gun frigate until January 1802 , when the Peace of Amiens having been signed , the war between France and England came an end . Beatty became a half - pay surgeon , receiving 2s . 6d a day . The peace was short - lived however , and the Britain declared war in May 1803 . In July Beatty was warranted surgeon of the 74 - gun ship of the line , which was deployed in the blockade of Brest throughout the stormy winter months , and into the next year . In June 1804 " Spencer " , while blockading the north - western Spanish port of Ferrol , struck rocks and was forced to return to Plymouth for repairs , after which she was sent to the Mediterranean , arriving in August 1804 to join Nelson ' s blockade of the French fleet at Toulon . In December 1804 Beatty was appointed surgeon of the flagship , succeeding fellow Ulsterman George Magrath , whom Nelson had appointed surgeon of the naval hospital at Gibraltar . Battle of Trafalgar . On the day of the battle , 21 October 1805 , " Victory " had 815 crewmen aboard , 57 of whom would be killed and 109 wounded . Beatty was personally called upon to undertake 10 amputations , mostly legs , actions which saved many lives . Only six wounded men subsequently died . However , when Nelson was himself wounded , Beatty did not administer treatment , claiming that he believed that the admiral was beyond treatment . The admiral had expressed the wish to be buried in his native soil , rather than simply being thrown in the sea like other mariners of the time . Beatty had to preserve the admiral ' s body for the voyage back to Britain , and decided to place it in a barrel of brandy . Beatty relates how gases from the corpse caused the barrel lid to open on 28 October 1805 , alarming the posted marine guard . On arrival at Gibraltar , the barrel had to be topped up with spirits of wine because it had filled the cavities in the body . This incident may have led to the legend that British seamen had drunk the brandy surrounding the body . As " Victory " approached the Nore , Beatty performed an autopsy , removing the fatal musket ball , and later writing a report " A Concise History of the Wound " . Beatty then attended Nelson ' s state funeral in London . " Victory " was decommissioned in January 1806 and Beatty was posted as surgeon - in - charge of the " Sussex " , a hospital ship at Sheerness , where he wrote his " Authentic Narrative of the Death of Lord Nelson " , which was eventually published in early 1807 . Physician of the Fleet . Beatty was appointed Physician of the Channel Fleet on 25 September 1806 , having received the necessary medical degree from the University of Aberdeen on 28 February 1806 . His duties were shore - based and mostly administrative , though in 1807 he and number of other naval surgeons were active in promoting the new practice of . Beatty served in this capacity until August 1815 and the end of the war . Later career . Beatty returned to his medical studies in Edinburgh between 1815 – 17 , gaining a second medical degree from the University of St Andrews on 14 October 1817 and becoming a licentiate of the Royal College of Physicians of London on 22 December 1817 . He then served in civilian practice in Plymouth for the next five years . In April 1818 he was elected a member of the Linnean Society of London and was accepted as a Fellow of the Royal Society . In September 1822 , Beatty was appointed Physician at Greenwich Hospital , London , remaining there for the next 17 years , while also being appointed Physician Extraordinary to King George IV in Scotland , and in 1827 Physician Extraordinary to the Duke of Clarence , soon to become William IV , who presented him with a knighthood in 1831 . Beatty also became prominent figure in London ' s business and scientific community , becoming a director of the Clerical and Medical Insurance Company and of the London and Greenwich Railway , using his accumulated wealth to create a large collection of books and manuscripts . Retirement and death . Beatty retired on July 1839 , at the age of 66 , and in recognition of his forty - one years in service was awarded a pension of £200 per annum . He settled at 43 York Street , Paddington , London , and served as a member of the organizing committee for the building of Nelson ' s Column in Trafalgar Square . Beatty died in York Street on 25 March 1842 of acute bronchitis . He was buried at Kensal Green Cemetery in an unmarked vault , at his own request . A memorial plaque identifying his grave was erected in the 1990s by the 1805 Club , a society dedicated to maintaining the memory of the men of Trafalgar . Media . Beatty was portrayed by Francis Magee in the 2005 Channel 4 documentary " Trafalgar : Battle Surgeon " , which focused on his actions during that battle . Beatty ' s instrument case can be seen at the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow .