HMS Agamemnon was a 64-gun ship of the line which in her 29-year career became one of the best known vessels of the Royal Navy, commanded between 1793 and 1796 by Horatio Nelson, who always referred to her as his favourite ship. This narrative of the life of a famous warship and the characters involved with it includes extensive technical details of the building and operation of the wooden walls; accounts of the conditions of life at sea during the Napoleonic wars; histories of the operations in which Agamemnon was involved, including the Trafalgar campaign; and a full account of Nelson's first command of a ship of the line. Agamemnon is placed firmly in her historical context, making the story of her career an insight into both the human and technical aspects of naval service during three of the most crucial decades in British history, when the Royal Navy in general and the Agamemnon in particular were at the centre of events. This work should not only attract all those wanting to know more about Nelson in the run-up to the 200th anniversary of Trafalgar in 2005, but also all naval enthusiasts and historians of the Napoleonic wars. The recent discovery of the wreck of the Agamemnon in Maldonado Bay, Argentina, should add interest in this ship for maritime archaeologists and historians.