Nelson's Trafalgar examines the man behind the legend, his affair with Lady Hamilton – one of the great romances of history, and the dark side of a hero whose exploits were described by.  A slightly light-hearted look at the Battle of Trafalgar. Nelson's Trafalgar examines the man behind the legend, his affair with Lady Hamilton – one of the great romances of history,.  In 1813, the year that he was appointed Poet Laureate, Robert Southey published The Life of Nelson. Horatio, Lord Viscount Nelson was Britain's greatest Naval hero who had been killed during.