Conrad Heinrich Kuchler, 1805
1969N780

Following Nelson’s famous victory at Trafalgar in October 1805, Boulton had the idea of striking a medal to all the sailers and marines who had served in the battle.

The portrait of Nelson on the obverse was engraved by Boulton’s chief designer Conrad Heinrich Kuchler, based on a wax relief by Catherine Andras. The battle scene on the reverse of the medal was based on a sketch by Robert Clevely who had also composed the scene of the Battle of the Nile on Boulton’s earlier Nile Medal of 1798.

A note in Birmingham City Archives indicates that Boulton produced 17,264 medals for distribution to the veterans of Trafalgar.

For a more detailed account of the story of the Trafalgar Medal, see Nicholas Goodison’s Matthew Boulton’s Trafalgar Medal booklet (available from Birmingham Museums & Art Gallery, price £3 plus p&p).

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