French Wars 1793-1815 Flashcards
What was the Royal Navy like in 1790 for officers
. Learned the ropes as lowly shipmen
. Come from professional middle classes
.Family influence could ensure that some officers were fast-tracked
What was the Royal Navy like in 1790 for recruitment
. Did not impose conscription
. Press gangs rounded up men
. A quota system was used where each country was required to supply a certain number of volunteers
. Many sailors were not British
What were conditions like in the Royal Navy in 1790
. Payed a low wage of 22 shillings
. Sailors slept on hammocks
. At sea for years at a time
. Fresh food and veg was served to prevent scurvy
What was discipline like in the Royal Navy in 1790
. Officers respected sailors to make them work better
. Continuous threat of punishment
. Used cat’o’nine tail whip
What were tactics like in the Royal Navy in 1790
. Daily gun practice
. Guns manned by 7 men
. Used a closed blockade to surround enemy ports
. Could unleash a broad side every 1min 30 seconds and were quicker than enemies
What occurred at the start of the Peninsular wars
. Napoleon enforced the continental system on Great Britain
. Portugal however was still trading with Britain
. In 1807, the french army under Junot marched through Spain and took control of Portugal
. Joseph Bonaparte become the king of Spain
. In June 1808 Spain was unhappy with french occupation and local assemblies emerged and began to use guerrilla warfare
. Junot was now cut off in Portugal and the French only maintained control of Lisbon
. The British government realised that now was the time for invasion and they began to plan an attack
What occurred at the battle of Trafalgar
. Lord Admiral Nelson chased the french fleet across the Atlantic and to the Caribbean and back
. The 2 fleets met on 21st October 1805 off the coast of cape Trafalgar
. Nelson divided his fleet into 2
. Vice admiral coming-wood attacked with the south fleet, Nelson attacked with the north fleet
. Positioning of the french navy meant their second line couldn’t be used effectively
. Nelson ordered a false manoeuvre that meant he was positioned in between the French flagship and the smaller ships
. HMS victory sustained lots of damaged but managed to repel french troops from boarding
. Nelson was fatally wounded from a french sharpshooter and died at the battle
. The combined french + Spanish fleet lost 17 ships
What occurred at the battle of the Nile 1798
. Nelson attacked at Night and caught the french off guard
. Nelson led the attack and even after he was blinded continued to lead his ships
. He used the nigh time to his advantage
. Left napoleons army cut off from France and stranded
. French plans for India were threatened
What occurred at the battle of Copenhagen 1801
. Nelson ignored Admiral Parkers signal to discontinue the attack and carried on fighting and held up signals to get closer
. The navy was successful as they anchored at close range and opened fire, three British ships ran abroad on shoals, which weakened the defence
. The impact was that Britain and Denmark achieved an indefinite armistice, a final peace agreement was later signed in October
What occurred at the battle of Camperdown
. Major Victory for the British, restored National morale and Navy’s reputation
. Admiral Lord Duncans north fleet of 16 ships of the line encountered a similar size Dutch fleet of the Dutch coast
. They smashed the enemy line and captured 14 ships
What occurred at the battle of Cape St Vincent
. Sir john jervis navy commander of the Mediterranean, stationed a bulk of his force of Càdiz, facing the main Spanish fleet
. On 14th February 1797, jervis fleet encountered a Spanish force almost double the size of his own at the battle of cape st Vincent
. Jervis was confident of his men’s skills and thus cut through the enemy lines
. Nelson courageously boarded and captured ‘ San Josef ‘ a large Spanish Ship
. Jervis who had captured four ships and driven the enemies back into càdiz was nobles as the earl of Saint Vincent
What developments occurred in the Royal Navy between 1795-96
. In 1795 Sir john jervis took over command in the Mediterranean
. Jervis set about whipping the fleet into shape and forged excellent relationships with officers he respected and trusted
What occurred at Toulon and the battle of the glorious first of June
. Admiral Hood seized Toulon
. Arrived of the french navy forced him to abandon the part in December but before he left he captured and destroyed a large number of french ships
. The Royal Navy blockaded french ports of the Atlantic coast
. 400 miles out in the Atlantic on the 1st June 1794 the 2 fleets met, the french had 26 ships of the line, the British 25
. Howes fleet captured or sank 7 ships resulting in 7000 french sailors being killed or captured, the British had 1200 casualties
What reforms were put into place 1783-93
. Dockyards were more closely monitored to eliminate waste and corruption
. Introduced coppering to the fleet, meaning ships needed less repairs
. Massive stocks of timber and rope were built up
. New docks were built at Plymouth and Portsmouth
. New cannon introduced, light and able to swivel and had a short fat muzzle
. Became known as the smasher
. Could be loaded with grapeshot
. Ordinance board sinister that every gun had to be fired 30 times before it was accepted
. Gunlocks replaced slow matches, became more efficient and accurate
What occurred at the retreat of Corunna at 1809
. Napoleon headed for John Moores army, Moore was outnumbered 2:1 so he attempted to retreat 250 miles to Corunna and get evacuated by the Royal Navy
. Discipline collapsed on the way and led to looting and drunkenness
. Moores army arrived on January 11th
. Naval transport arrived on he 14th
. John Moore was fatally wounded and later died
. The British army silently retreated at night and the french were slow to react
. British losses were light and it was a successor retreat
What occurred at the lines of Torres Vedras
. Lines were constructed in secret for more than a year
. More than 100 forts + batteries, 30,000 troops, 250 guns
. Portuguese troops attacked french supplies
. Thousands of Portuguese peasants died of starvation and disease
. The lines put the french in a predicament, they were too weak to attack but didn’t want to retreat
What occurred at the Battle of Fuentes De Orono in 1811
. Two days of heavy fighting
. Massena failed to break through wellingtons position
. Wellington was furious because discipline broke down and the french garrison was allowed to escape
. Massena was ordered back to France as a result of the loss
What occurred at the capture of Cuidad Rodrigo and Badajoz in 1812
. Wellington struck first with his assault of Ciudad Rodrigo on 19th July
. The attack was a success with only 300 British losses
.
What occurred at the battle of Salamanca in 1812
. The assault was at night on the 6th April, city soon fell but cost the British 3700 casualties
. Lots of looting and drinking after the victory before the British officers could reestablish control
. Wellington had secured the 2 main roads into Portugal
What occurred at the battle of Vitoria in 1813
. By the summer of 1813 the french had fallen back to Vitoria
. Wellington attacked from the front and the rear, cutting off their retreat
. The British pursuit was interrupted only when soldiers began to loot
. The french defeat finished the war in Spain
What occurred in 1814 with Napoleon and Wellington
. Wellington invaded southern France in 1814
. The peninsular war had restored the reputation of the British army
. Napoleon was forced to abdicate in April to the island of Elba
What occurred during the 100 days in 1815
. In February 1815 Napoleon escaped and arrived in France with 600 soldiers
. Troops sent to arrest him joined him, as did Marshall Nay and other generals
. Loui XVIII fled to England
. Napoleon entered Paris as emperor again
. The European powers (Britain,Prussia,Russia and Austria ) declared War
Why was the Navy important in the French wars
. Securing alliances - Austria, Russia, Naples and Turkey joined the second coalition after the battle of the Nile
. Preventing invasion - Napoleon had invasion plans in place in 1804 but the Navy had control over the channel so the plans had to be abandoned
. Securing trade - routes to the empire were secure and in 1807 even when the continental system was in place they could still trade
. Defeating french Navy- - french navy totally defeated at Trafalgar 1805
. Blockading France - France was now more reliant on overland trade and it made France weaker in the long run
. Supporting the army - Navy played a big role in the Peninsular War like at Corunna
What was the significance of the battle of Waterloo
. It symbolised the defeat of Napoleon and the end of the French Wars
. Showed to the world the strength of the British empire and the discipline they had
Why did allied forces win at the battle of Waterloo
. Planning and preparation - Wellington delayed the start of the battle due to heavy summer showers the night before, started at midday instead of dawn, positioning his troops behind a ridge
. Wellingtons tactics - rode up and down his line of soldiers throughout the day, positioned his men in squares instead of tradition lines
. French mistakes - the french mistakenly thought the British were retreating and as such launched a mass cavalry charge that was humiliated
. Prussian support - the Prussian came in the late afternoon and threatened the French’s right flank and led to Napoleon diverting some of his forces, overall making him weaker
How was the french wars funded
. Raising loans from the city of London
. 21 goods and services were newly taxed during the war, over the period of the war this generated £51 million and £9 Million from horses
. In 1799 income tax was introduced by prime minister Pitt, the tax was unpopular but raised £155 by 1815
