Horatio Hornblower, a fictional character was based on a real British sailor who fought Napoleon's French Empire for the
full 23 years duration of war on every sector of the European continent.
The capture and escape down the river Loire in a rowing boat coupled with the recapture of a British schooner helped Hornblower greatly in his career.
Riga in Latvia was a port desperately needed by Napoleon to resupply his vast Grand Armee on the march on Moscow. Hornblower managed to bring bomb vessels near the French and Prussian attacking earthworks to destroy them at perilously close range. The besieging forces withdrew with Hornblower arranging the Prussians to desert from Napoleon's forces in 1813.
Le Havre was the backdrop to a British naval mutiny. Hornblower masqueraded as the sister ship of the mutineer and sailed into le Havre to damage the quays under cover of darkness. The mutineer was abandoned and both ships sailed into le Havre to accept the city's surrender for the French Royalists, other cities followed and Toulouse surrendered. Napoleon abdicated in 1814. Peace in Europe.
Hornblower in the West Indies after 23 years of war disarms a proposed rescue of Napoleon from St Helena and prevents a privateer from helping Simon Bolivar liberate Venezuela from Spain.
In short, Hornblower, who was based on a very real life character, almost certainly appeared wherever the action was and wherever British fair play was needed.
An excellent read with the historical facts quite accurate.