Following the beginning of the
French Revolutionary Wars, in 1793, he was appointed captain of the
second-rate , the
flagship of Rear-Admiral
George Bowyer in the
Channel Fleet. Collingwood joined the ship in Plymouth, where it was fitted out and crewed (with manning being difficult) before heading to station at
Spithead. After sometime on station in the
Prince, Collingwood and Bowyer determined that the ship had poor sailing qualities so transferred to the second-rate . The
Barfleur sailed with the rest of the fleet under overall command of
Admiral Richard Howe in an effort to engage a large portion of the French Fleet and prevent a merchant convoy reaching France. This resulted in the battle of June 1794 that became known as the
Glorious First of June. The
Barfleur came under fire during the battle, during which time Bowyer lost his leg in action although Collingwood was not injured. Because he was not mentioned specifically in Howe's report to the Admiralty, whether by error or intention, Collingwood was disappointed not to receive a
Naval Gold Medal for the action unlike the other captains present. He would later receive the medal some years later with an apology. However, on returning to England he was one of a select group of captains who were invited to dine with
King George III. In late 1794, he was given command of the third-rate . Collingwood was onboard for the fitting out but delays in obtaining sufficient crew resulted in his ship being kept in port. He returned home briefly to see his family but after only a few days was recalled to Plymouth to command the third-rate , a ship which he would command for the next four years. After leaving England, the ship sailed for the Mediterranean Sea, protecting a merchant convoy to
Corsica before joining British forces in blockade off Italy at
Livorno (Leghorn), where Collingwood would again meet and serve with his friend Nelson. Collingwood and his ship would winter off Corsica until March 1796, during which time the ship had a minor collision in the darkness with the second-rate . Collingwood served on
Excellent in the fleet of
Admiral John Jervis, stationed off
Saint Florent. As the Spanish joined the French in war, the fleet sailed west to
Gibraltar at the end of 1796. The fleet took up station off
Lisbon in January 1797 with the aim being to bring the French and Spanish fleets to battle.
Battle of Cape St. Vincent In February 1797, on board
Excellent he participated in the victory of the
Battle of Cape St. Vincent. As the British fleet began to pass in parallel to the Spanish fleet, Jervis ordered his ships to
tack in succession and engage. Nelson saw an opportunity to engage the Spanish fleet directly and left the line of the fleet, heading straight for the Spanish van. Collingwood, who was at the rear of the line, saw Nelson's action and ordered his ship to follow and engage directly. Jervis later approved of their actions following victory. Collingwood and his ship directly engaged the far larger 112-gun
Salvador del Mundo and after several rapid and accurate broadsides against the Spanish ship, the
Salvador del Mundo struck her colours (though she would later attempt to fight again before being finally captured). The two ships had been "so close that a man might jump from one to another". He received a Gold Medal for his conduct as well as the one owed to him for the Glorious First of June. He had originally declined the medal as he argued to receive such a distinction now would be to acknowledge the propriety of the injustice of not receiving the earlier medal.
Lord Spencer, the
First Lord of the Admiralty who wrote "the former medal would have been transmitted to you some months ago if a proper and safe conveyance had been found for it". Nelson's and Collingwood's decision to leave the line of battle and engage the Spanish directly were seen as decisive to the British victory.
Promotion to rear-admiral After the battle, Collingwood and his ship would take up station blockading
Cádiz and he was promoted to the rank of
commodore. He is said to have written that the time on blockade was dreary. In late 1798, he returned to
Portsmouth with his ship to repair. By February 1799, he had returned home to Morpeth to spend time with his family. While at home, he learned that he was to be raised to the rank of
rear-admiral of the white (14 February 1799). In June 1799, Collingwood returned to sea, hoisting his flag in the third-rate , joined the Channel Fleet and sailed to the
Mediterranean where the principal naval forces of France and Spain were assembled. Several ships were captured and Collingwood's share of the prize money amounted to some £4,000. In 1800, he transferred his flag from
Triumph to the second-rate , which he had sailed on a few years earlier as captain. Collingwood remained active over the next several years on blockade duties until the 1802
Treaty of Amiens allowed him to return home. However, he was able to briefly spend time with his family in Plymouth who had travelled to join him where the
Barfleur repaired and took supplies. At this time, he also purchased the freehold of the house, later known as
Collingwood House that they had rented in Morpeth and had purchased a pet dog, Bounce, who joined him on his ship. When not at sea he resided at in the town of
Morpeth which lies some 15 miles north of Newcastle upon Tyne and
Chirton Hall in Chirton, now a western suburb of
North Shields. Of his time in Morpeth, he is known to have remarked, "whenever I think how I am to be happy again, my thoughts carry me back to Morpeth." He was elevated to
rear-admiral of the red on 1 January 1801. He remained on service until May 1802 when hostilities officially ceased and he was allowed to sign off his ship and return home for leave. With the resumption of hostilities with France in May 1803 he left home to the Admiralty and then a ship, never to return home again. Nearly two years were spent off Brest in anticipation for
Napoleon's planned invasion of the United Kingdom. Together, with his pet dog Bounce, Collingwood joined the fifth-rate
HMS Diamond and raised his flag. In August 1803, Collingwood was able to transfer his flag to larger third-rate . which then joined other ships and blockaded the French fleet off
Brest in late 1803. The
Venerable returned to Plymouth for repairs and to take food and supplies over Christmas.
Promotion to vice-admiral After discovering that great repairs were needed to the
Venerable, in February 1804, he transferred his flag to the third-rate resuming blockade with the fleet off France. He briefly moved his flag to the second-rate but returned after only a few months to the
Culloden again. On 23 April 1804, Collingwood was promoted to
vice-admiral of the blue. In August 1804, he transferred to the relatively new second-rate which would be his ship until shortly before the Battle of Trafalgar. The ship spent time on blockade in 1804 before supplying and repairing at
Cawsand Bay,
Cornwall until March 1805. When the French fleet sailed from
Toulon, Admiral Collingwood was appointed to command a squadron with orders to pursue them. The combined fleets of
France and
Spain, after sailing to the West Indies, returned to Cádiz. On their way they encountered Collingwood's small squadron off Cádiz in August 1805. He had only three ships with him; but he succeeded in avoiding them despite being chased by 16 ships of the line. Before half of the Franco-Spanish force had entered the harbour he resumed the blockade off Cádiz by shortening sail and standing towards the combined fleet for battle. Using false signals to disguise the small size of his squadron, the combined fleet believed Collingwood's force part of a much larger fleet and did not engage, returning to harbour. His action was seen as a tactical victory that would be one of several factors that led to the events of the Battle of Trafalgar. He was soon joined by several other ships, increasing the blockade and then by Nelson who took command of the squadron on 28 September, hoping to lure the combined fleet out into a major engagement. ==Battle of Trafalgar==