British Army: Peninsular War 1807-1814 Flashcards
What were the French Revolutionary war 1793-1802?
French islands in the Caribbean for they plantations.
—> 1798, British forces had captured a number of french islands like St Lucia and Grenada
—> 40K died of yellow fever whilst 40K were dismissed
French Revolutionary war: 1795 and 1801
1795: Combined British army and naval force captured Dutch Cape Colony, a vital strategic point on the voyage to India. Another British force captured the Dutch colony of Trincomalee in Ceylon.
1801: Army defeated French forces, left in Egypt after battle of Nile ( Battle of Alexandria)
What was the situation in India during this time?
East India Company was at war with the Kingdom of Mysore ( supported by france)
—> British regiments were core for the army and forces under Lord Cornwallis eventually captured the main city Seringapatam in 1793.
Who was Arthur Wellesley and why was he so prominent in India?
1797 he was sent
1799 assisted in the capture of seringapatam
1800 he engaged in his first campaign as an independent commander against Doondia Wao (defeated them September 1800)
What happened in 1803 with the Mahratta Confederacy?
War broke out, Wellesley was given command of an army comprising 19K men (mainly sepoys)
Sept 1803: 7K men with Wellesley attacked army of Indian army 40K at Assaye and won a major victory.
Two months: triumphed again at Argaum with 11k beating 30K Indians.
For his actions, how was Wellesley rewarded?
He was knighted for his exploits.
—> had immense ability
How long did the Peninsular war last?
1807-1814
Starting off the Peninsular war, what happened in 1807?
A French army under Junot marched through Spain and seized control of Portugal, which was still standing with Britain
After taking over Portugal in 1807, where did Napoleon move to?
Early 1808, he moved French troops into Spain, taking over key cities
–> April he ‘convinced’ King Charles to abdicate and his brother Joseph Bonaparte took over
Contrary to Napoleon’s belief, how did the public react to Joseph Bonaparte?
Napoleon believed there would be no opposition
–> Spaniards had no wish to be ruled by France
–> June 1808, whole of Spain was in arms, juntas emerged and began raising forces.
What had happened to Junot when Napoleon invaded Spain? Why was in Oporto?
Junot was completely cut of from France and due to French arrogance and plundering, there was a rebellion in Oporto mid-June 1808.
–> caused Junot’s hold on Portugal to shrink to vicinity of Lisbon
Where were the British planning to attack after hearing about the Oporto rebellion?
9k men led by Castlereagh were assembling at Cork to attack Venezuela .
When did Wellesley leave cork? Where did he end up actually going?
12 July 1808 Wellesley’s transport left Cork and he went ahead in a fast frigate but was informed that the Spanish did not need his assistance. Therefore, he sailed to Portugal instead.
Which 3 senior officers were ‘in command’ instead of Wellesley?
Sir John Moore
Sir Hew Dalrymple as overall commander(only seen 1 active service)
Sir Harry Burrard as second in command (inexperienced)
Battle of Rolica what happened?
Wellesley set off to march on Lisbon 10th August.
Junot had 26k troops but could only gather 15k against Wellesley.
17th August 1808: won at Rolica, driving 5K French troops from a strong position.
–> marched till Vimeiro where his army was reinforced by 4K arriving in Maceira
When did Sir harry Burrard arrive and what did he do?
20th August 1808 he arrived off Maceira but decided to sleep whilst on board.
However later, Wellesley was informed that Junot was advancing with 14k men
Battle of Vimeiro: What happened?
Hearing the news, Wellesley positioned his army on High ground, his light infantry held Junot’s tirailleurs at bay to protect the British line.
- Line stood on a reverse slope at the hill, lessening the effectiveness of French artillery as gunners could not see target.
- On reaching the crest, French columns were shot to pieces by musket fire and fled as Brits advanced.
Outcome: Burrard refused to pursue beaten French, allowing Junot to retreat to Lisbon.
- Battle over in less than 3 hours, French lost 2K men whilst Brits lost 720
Who arrived the following day and what did he do?
Sir Hew Dalrymple arrived and disdained on Wellesley’s advice to march on Lisbon.
Instead, he accepted Junot’s armistice, agreeing on the Convention of Cintra that 24K French soldiers in Portugal should be transported back to France on British ships
How did the British public react to the Convention of Cintra?
Horrified and all commanders came under subject of ridicule
December 1808, a military inquiry concluded that Wellesley should be praised whilst Burrard and Dalrymple would never hold command again
Who took over Dalrymple and Burrard? Who else landed alongside him?
Sir John Moore took over, commanding a 35k strong army and was ordered to co-operate with Spanish.
–> he marched into Spain in October 1808 (10K men left in Lisbon)
Sir David Baird landed in Corunna mid October with 10K troops.
–> Moore had planned to group together with Baird in Salamanca
Why was Moore’s plan in ruins by late November?
Napoleon had crossed into Spain with 200K troops in November, defeating the Spanish troops
–> Moore wanted to retreat but British ambassador pressured him to stay. Whilst being undecisive for days, Napoleon had captured Madrid.
When did Moore’s army leave Salamanca?
12-13th December
20th Dec, he and Baird joined forces at Mayorga
23rd: Moore had little option but to retreat through Galician mountains to Corunna (had found out Napoleon was heading North)
On the way to Corunna, what were the conditions like for Moore’s army.
Low morale due to worsening weather, shoes and clothes worn out, scarce food supplies
Battle of Corunna: What happened
11 January 1809 Moore reached Corunna
16th: most wounded and artillery were on board troop transports.
15K Brits held position against similar sized French force
Battle of Corunna: Outcome
Both sides lost 700-900 men and Moore passed away too.
- 26K British men were able to retreat while losing 7K during the retreat
- Moore blamed but he was able to prevent French troops from attacking Portugal and southern Spain
When and how did Wellesley return to war?
Although the Portuguese government approached Wellesley with an offer of supreme command, he declined.
General William Beresford was appointed instead and Wellesley was given command of the new British army later in April 1809
What was the situation like when Wellesley arrived in Lisbon?
He arrived on 22 April 1809 to a desperate situation.
Soult had 20K men, invading Portugal from the north. He had managed to capture Oporto on the 29th of March.
Marshal Victor with 40K men threatened Lisbon form the east.
