French Wars 1793-1815

Question 1

How had the navy gained experience of warfare prior to 1793?

Answer 1

The American War of Independence - had ended in British defeat but commanders had recent battle experience.

Question 2

What types of ships did the navy have in the French Wars?

Answer 2

Ships of the line, frigates, sloops and gunboats.

Question 3

How did the navy recruit sailors for the French Wars?

Answer 3

Impressment - press gangs were sent around ports to force men to join by getting them drunk, etc. By 1805, 50% of sailors were pressed men.
Quota System - every county had to supply a certain number of volunteers for the armed forces, coastal areas supplied more to the navy. Many offered criminals the option of joining the navy instead of doing time.

Question 4

What background did many navy officers come from?

Answer 4

The professional middle classes, many started as midshipmen but family influence could fast-tracked appointments.

Question 5

What were the naval reforms 1783-93?

Answer 5

PM Pitt the Younger and Rear Admiral Middleton introduced reforms:
- Dockyards were more closely observed to eliminate corruption and waste.
- Coppering the fleet - needed less repairs.
Built up stocks of timber and rope.
- New docks at Plymouth and Portsmouth.
- Investment in the carronade.
- Each new gun had to be fired 30 times before it was accepted.

Question 6

What happened at the Battle of the Glorious First of June 1794?

Answer 6

Lord How sailed his fleet west to attack a French grain convoy which was returning to France escorted by a large fleet. The British fleet were outnumbered by ship but managed to capture 7 ships. However, the grain still made it to port.

Question 7

Who took over the Mediterranean fleet in 1795?

Answer 7

Sir John Jervis - he hated inefficiency and had an excellent relationship with his officers.

Question 8

When did the Netherlands and Spain change sides to join the French?

Answer 8

1796

Question 9

What happened in Dec. 1796?

Answer 9

44 French ships with 14,000 troops tried to land in Ireland to invade Britain but were unable to due the bad weather.

Question 10

What happened at the Battle of Cape St. Vincent?

Answer 10

14th Feb. 797 - Jervis’ Fleet attacked a Spanish fleet almost x2 its size. 4 ships were captured. Nelson boarded the San Josef and became a naval hero.

Question 11

What was the Spithead Mutiny?

Answer 11

On the 16th Apr. 1797 the fleet at Spithead refused to go to sea on grounds of poor pay, bad quality of food and brutality of officers. Many officers sympathised and a petition was sent to the Admiralty. The government agreed to raise wages and make concessions on the other issues. This legislation was struggling to get through parliament so another mutiny led by the petty officer (backbone of the navy) began on the 7th May and Lord Howe met with them to restore trust.

Question 12

What was the Nore Mutiny?

Answer 12

12th May 1797 - ships at Nore (mouthb of the Thames) mutinied, demanding the power to vero officers, longer leave and pardon for all deserters. They were joined by the North Sea Fleet which had been blockading the Dutch navy. The mutineers tried to blockade the Thames to stop merchant ships. Pitt’s government decided to isolate and starve them and in mid-June moderate sailors seized control from the radicals and the 29 leaders were hanged.

Question 13

What happened at the Battle of Camperdown?

Answer 13

11th Oct. 1797 - Lord Duncan’s North Sea Fleet defeated the Dutch Navy near the Dutch coast taking 11 battleships and 3 frigates.

Question 14

What happened at the Battle of the Nile -1798?

Answer 14

Nelson (Rear Admiral) commanded his ships to sneak through a narrow ga between French ships and the shore at night so that the French were taken off guard. This gave the Royal navy control of the Mediterranean, thwarted French colonial designs on India and Africa and resulted in more countries joining the second coalition.

Question 15

What happened at the Battle of Copenhagen - 1801?

Answer 15

Nelson (Vice Admiral) ignored Admiral Parker’s call to discontinue the action. They attacked Danish ships in Copenhagen harbour in a battle of endurance which led to Danish ships being so damaged they had to cease firing. Nelson negotiated a truce and 24hr ceasefire which led to further peace negotiations. After this battle the Armed Neutrality (Russia, Prussia and the Scandinavian countries) was suspended.

Question 16

When was the Peace of Amiens?

Answer 16

March 1802

Question 17

When did war recommence and Napoleon began to gather a force of 100,000 men at Boulogne to invade Britain?

Answer 17

May 1803

Question 18

In December 1804, Spain allied with France, how many ships did they have compared to the Royal Navy?

Answer 18

Napoleon had 102 ships in total, the Royal Navy only had 83.

Question 19

What did Villeneuve do in April 1805?

Answer 19

He lead his fleet to join the Spanish and sail across towards the Caribbean. Nelson gave chase with 11 ships to Villeneuve’s 18.

Question 20

What happened on 22nd of July 1805?

Answer 20

A British fleet under Calder captured 2 Spanish ships and prevented Villeneuve getting to Boulogne but he did get to Ferrol so Calder was savaged in the British press.

Question 21

When did Napoleon leave Boulogne lifting the threat of invasion?

Answer 21

18th August 1805

Question 22

Who were the commanders at the Battle of Trafalgar?

Answer 22

Nelson commanded 13 ships in one column and Collingwood commanded 14 in another column. Villeneuve commanded the French and Spanish fleets but had a tense relationship with the Spanish commanders.

Question 23

When was the Battle of Trafalgar?

Answer 23

21st Oct. 1805

Question 24

What tactics did Nelson use at Trafalgar?

Answer 24

Nelson organised his ships into 2 columns to break the French and Spanish line but they were going too slowly so he also ordered a fake manoeuvre to trick Villeneuve before quickly turning to shoot. The columns allowed close combat which Nelson liked but the French had sharp shooters which killed many including Nelson.

Question 25

What was the outcome of the Battle of Trafalgar?

Answer 25

The British captured 17 ships and the French suffered over 3000 casualties. It was the last major sea battle of the French Ward and made the British navy seem invincible.

Question 26

What were the Duke of York’s reforms (1795)?

Answer 26

Established the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst, standardised tactical drills and procedures, and created light infantry regiments.

Question 27

What formations did the British army use?

Answer 27

The British used a line structure so that they could fire en masse instead of the columns structure preferred by the French. They also used squares.

Question 28

During the Peninsular Wars what proportion of officers had used the purchase system?

Answer 28

1/5

Question 29

Why weren’t Congreve’s rockets usually used despite having a range of 3000 yards?

Answer 29

They weren’t accurate

Question 30

How many cavalry regiments were there in 1808?

Answer 30

20

Question 31

How many engineers were in the army before the French wars?

Answer 31

100

Question 32

What was the situation in Spain in 1807?

Answer 32

Napoleon forced the Spanish King to abdicate and replaced him with Joseph (Napoleon’s brother). The French army had to be stationed in Spain to stop a revolt but were attacked by Spanish partisan groups and the army who were supported by the Portuguese. Portugal was not part of the Continental System so Britain shipped weapons to them and Wellesley landed in Portugal with a small force to help them.

Question 33

What happened at the Battle of Vimeiro in 1808 and what was it followed by?

Answer 33

Wellesley beat Junot’s main ar,y on 21st August, Dalyrymple (commander of the British troops) agreed to repatriate the troops (Convention of Cintra) and this caused outrage in Britain. Napoleon then returned with his Grand Armee and retook Madrid.

Question 34

What happened during the Retreat to Corunna (1809)?

Answer 34

Moore marched his troops from Lisbon to Salamanca unaware that Napoleon had retaken Madrid. Napoleon began to advance towards Moore’s much smaller force so he retreated towards the sea in Jan. 1809. The British lost discipline apart from the rear-guard who had long-range weapons and green uniform to aid camouflage so were able to delay the French. The British reached Corunna and the navy arrived to rescue them but Marshall Soult arrived and set t-up strategic positions to stop them leaving. The British won however as the terrain was very bad so the French could not use their cavalry.

Question 35

What happened at the Battle of Talavera (1809)?

Answer 35

Wellesley’s small force and the Portuguese led a co-ordinated attack against King Joseph at Talavera in July. Wellesley also worked with the Spanish despite having a bad relationship with their commanders.

Question 36

What were the lines of Torres Vedras?

Answer 36

The British and Portuguese built two defensive lines to protect Lisbon in 1809-1810. The lines were manned by 30,000 men and had over 100 forts and batteries. In 1810, Wellington retreated to Lisbon pursued by the French under Marshall Mesena. The British followed a scorched earth policy as they retreated and partisan groups disrupted French supply lines so they were forced to abandon their hope of taking Lisbon.

Question 37

What happened at the Battle of Fuentes de Onoro (1811)?

Answer 37

Wellington’s forces besieged Almeida and fought Mesena’s troops on the 30th May 1811. Almeida fell but Wellington felt that it should have been a greater victory and was angry that the French troops had been allowed to escape.

Question 38

What happened at the Capture of Ciudad Rodrigo and Badajoz (1812)?

Answer 38

Taking advantage of the French troops being overstretched following Napoleon’s invasion of Russia, Wellington laid siege to Ciudad Rodrigo and attacked after 10 days before French troops could arrive. After the city fell, Wellington attacked Badajoz but he was angry at the loss of discipline amongst British troops who had begun to loot/kill civilians.

Question 39

What happened at the Battle of Salamanca (1812) ?

Answer 39

22nd July - Wellington had strategic ground obscured by could and hills so Marmont believed that they were retreating so sent some troops to cut this off which meant his left flank was strung out so Wellington ordered his 3rd division to attack. the British won the battle of Salamanca and Wellington marched towards Madrid taking it in August and the French moved out of southern Spain however Madrid was soon retaken.

Question 40

What happened at the Battle of Vitoria (1813)?

Answer 40

Wellington had had control of the Spanish as well as British and Portuguese forces - 80,000 men and he was informed by Spanish guerrillas about French movements. On the 21st June, Wellington attacked Joseph’s army (66,000 men) at Vitoria. The French lost 8,000 men and had to retreat leaving 3000 convoy wagons and 153 guns. The British attacked from the front and back to hinder the retreat. The victory ensured the coalition of Russia, Prussia, Sweden and Austria against Napoleon.

Question 41

When did Napoleon abdicate?

Answer 41

1814

Question 42

What happened during the Hundred Days?

Answer 42

In Feb. 1815, Napoleon escaped from Elba and arrived in France with 600 soldiers. He declared himself emperor and Britain, Prussia, Russia and Austria mobilised for war. Wellington led a coalition of British, Belgian, Dutch and German troops. On the 16th of June there were 2 battles at Quatre Bras and Ligny. The British held their position at Quatre Bras but the Dutch were defeated at Ligny.