Cape Trafalgar (; es, Cabo Trafalgar ) is a headland in the Province of Cádiz in the southwest of

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. The 1805 naval

Battle of Trafalgar The Battle of Trafalgar (21 October 1805) was a naval engagement between the British Royal Navy and the combined fleets of the French and Spanish Navies during the War of the Third Coalition (August–December 1805) of the Napoleonic Wars (180 ...

, in which the

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commanded by Admiral Horatio Nelson decisively defeated

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

's combined

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

and French fleet, took place just off the cape. Cape Trafalgar lies on the shore of the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

, northwest of the Strait of Gibraltar. The

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defines the western limit of the strait and the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ...

as a line that joins Cape Trafalgar to the north with Cape Spartel to the south. CapeTrafalgar2

The most prominent structure on the cape is a lighthouse (totaling 51 metres or 167 feet above sea level), the ', which was first illuminated on 15 July 1862.

Etymology

The name is of Arabic origin, deriving either from ''Taraf al-Ghar'' ( 'cape of the cave/laurel'), or from ''Taraf al-Gharb'' ( 'cape of the west').

Richard Burton Richard Burton (; born Richard Walter Jenkins Jr.; 10 November 1925 – 5 August 1984) was a Welsh actor. Noted for his baritone voice, Burton established himself as a formidable Shakespearean actor in the 1950s, and he gave a memorable pe ...

''The Arabian Nights''
(vol. 9)'s footnote 82 In both cases, ''taraf'' () means 'edge' or 'extremity' and refers to a promontory. In modern

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...

, however, the place is sometimes re-transcribed as ''al-Taraf al-Aghar'' ().

Archaeology

In May 2021, 2,000-year-old Roman baths emerged from the sand dunes of Cape Trafalgar, including entire walls, windows and doors.

References

External links

*
Libro de Faros (todos los faros de España)
Trafalgar Trafalgar Shipping Forecast areas {{Andalusia-geo-stub

Etymology

Archaeology

See also

References

External links