Another of the _Britannia’s_ officers, who made use of his opportunities for seeing what was going on round him, was 2nd Lieutenant L.B. Halloran of the Royal Marines. He noted this down in his private diary from his own personal experiences and observations: “We piped to breakfast at eight o’clock, and the ship being clear and ready about nine o’clock, we went to quarters. The Fleet then formed in two lines, standing slowly and steadily, with every sail set, before the light breeze, with ensigns and colours flying. Our ship, the _Britannia_, was the third from the _Victory_, which led the Larboard or Lee line; we were next the _Neptune_, 98 guns. For some time after the men were at quarters, before the firing began we heard many of them amusing themselves with nautical jokes, or reciting scraps from a Prologue which I had spoken at one of our last Dramatic performances. Among the lines repeatedly quoted the following seemed the favourite:— We have great guns of Tragedy loaded so well, If they do but go off, they will certainly tell. “About 11.30, the _Royal Sovereign_, Admiral Collingwood, which led the Starboard or Weather line, after sustaining for nearly half an hour severe firing from the enemy as she approached without returning a shot, opened her tremendous Broadsides close alongside the _Sta. Anna_, a Spanish Admiral’s ship. Our people were highly amused, and passed many jokes on seeing the _Sta. Anna_, almost immediately dismasted and falling out of line with her colours down. We had not much time to admire the gallantry of the _Royal Sovereign_ and the ships succeeding her, for it was our turn to commence, and in passing we poured a most destructive fire (the guns being double-shotted) into the _Bucentaur_, which ship had already received the first fire of the _Victory_ and _Neptune_. Her masts were at once swept away, and her galleries and stern broken to pieces; her Colours being shot away, some-one waved a white handkerchief from the remains of the Larboard Gallery in token of Surrender. “We then encountered the _Santisima Trinidada_, 240 guns [_sic_] on four decks (the largest ship then known). We passed under stern of this magnificent Ship, and gave her a Broadside which shattered the rich display of sculpture, figures, ornaments, and inscriptions with which she was adorned. I never saw so beautiful a ship. Luffing up alongside her four-decked side, of a rich lake colour, she had an imposing effect.