They resume practically the same standpoint which the Duke of York had reached a century and a half before.
Spanish tacticians seem also to have shared the opinion that Trafalgar had really done nothing to dethrone the line.

One of the highest reputation, on December 17, 1805, had sent to his government a thoughtful criticism of the action, and his view of Nelson's attack was this: 'Nothing,' he says, 'is more seamanlike or better tactics than for a fleet which is well to windward of another to bear down upon it in separate columns, and deploy at gun-shot from the enemy into a line which, as it comes into action, will inflict at least as much damage upon them as it is likely to suffer.

But Admiral Nelson did not deploy his columns at gun-shot from our line, but ran up within pistol-shot and broke through it, so as to reduce the battle to a series of single-ship actions.

It was a manoeuvre in which I do not think he will find many imitators.

Where two fleets are equally well trained, that which attacks in this manner must be defeated.'[7] So it was our enemies rightly read the lesson of Trafalgar.