Reburying the dead

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British sailors carrying the coffins of their soldiers; map showing the initial position of fleets at the Battle of the Nile

THE REMAINS of a British naval unit, a commander and some of his crew who died during a history-making naval battle off Egypt's northern coast over 200 years ago, were reburied on Monday in a ceremony at a British commonwealth military cemetery in Al-Chatby, east of Egypt's Mediterranean port city of Alexandria.

The remains were discovered by Italian archaeologist Paulo Gallo, who has been searching, for the past two years, for Graeco-Roman artifacts on an island in Abu Qir Bay. The island is the site of the historically-famed "Battle of the Nile" in 1798, in which a British fleet of 14 ships commanded by Lord Nelson destroyed a French fleet of 17 ships. One commander's remains, which were identified by his uniform, were buried in a cemetery on Abu Qir Island, together with other remains that possibly belonged to some of the sailors.

Some of the estimated 30 bodies uncovered included those of women and children; although they most probably date from the 1798 battle, some of the Britons could have died in 1801, when Britain landed an expeditionary force in the area.

The fierce, day-long battle in 1798 resulted in Britain losing 218 soldiers; France lost more than 1,200 men, and most of the French fleet was destroyed. The battle was part of long-standing British efforts to dislodge Napoleon's expeditionary force from Egypt, which they deemed a threat to Britain's colonies in India.

Fleet Chaplain Rev Godfery Hilliard RN conducted Monday's ceremony with sailors from visiting British warship HMS Chatham. Alexandria Governor Abdel-Salam El-Mahgoub and British Ambassador to Egypt Sir Derek Plumbly were in attendance.

Archaeologist Gallo said on Monday that his work would resume as planned, as he continues to excavate for the remains of an ancient trading port at the mouth of the Nile in Abu Qir Bay.