Hornblower in the West Indies

Hornblower in the West Indies, or alternately Admiral Hornblower in the West Indies is one of the novels in the series CS Forester wrote about fictional Royal Navy officer Horatio Hornblower.

All the other novels in the series take place during the 1793–1815 wars with revolutionary and Napoleonic France. This one takes place when Britain is at peace, May 1821 - October 1823. Hornblower has been promoted Rear-Admiral and has been named in command of the West Indies station, i.e. the Caribbean, with a squadron consisting of three frigates and fourteen brigs and schooners. While it is the last Hornblower novel chronologically, at least one short story is set after the events in this novel.

In the Royal Navy of the early nineteenth century, promotion from Captain to Admiral was based solely on seniority. Hornblower was made a Captain in 1805. Compared with the distinguished officer Edward Berry, who was promoted to Captain in 1797, and was not promoted to Rear-Admiral until 1821, seniority should not have brought promotion to Rear-Admiral to Hornblower until the mid 1830s or later.

Like some other Hornblower novels, Forester wrote it in the form of several novellas that can be read independently.

Plot summary

St. Elizabeth of Hungary

Hornblower raises his flag in the schooner HMS Crab and pays a courtesy call at New Orleans. There, he learns of a plot by Napoleon's most loyal followers to liberate him from his exile on the isolated island of St Helena. Hornblower...
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