the British Army (1793-1815) Flashcards

1
Q

where did the BA fight until 1802?

A

in the Caribbean

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2
Q

why did the BA target French Caribbean territories?

A

they were hubs of piracy against British merchant ships
they had plantations

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3
Q

when did the BA capture Cape Colony?

A

1795

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4
Q

when did the BA defeat the French in Egypt?

A

1801 at the Battle of Alexandria

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5
Q

who was the East India Company at war with in India?

A

the Kingdom of Mysore supported by France

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6
Q

who captured Seringapatam in 1793?

A

Lord Cornwallis

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7
Q

when did W arrive in India?

A

1797

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8
Q

when and where did W defeat Doondia?

A

Conagul in September 1800

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9
Q

what were W’s major victories in India?

A

at Assaye and Argaum

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10
Q

Battle of Assaye

A

British victory despite being outnumbered

7000 vs 40,000

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11
Q

Battle of Argaum

A

British victory despite being outnumbered

11000 vs 30000

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12
Q

what battle proved that British lines were superior to French columns?

A

Battle of Maida 1806

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13
Q

how many BA troops sent to Flushing to create a distraction in 1809?

A

44,000

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14
Q

when was Cape Colony recaptured?

A

1806

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15
Q

which country was still trading with Britain despite the Continental System being in place?

A

Portugal

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16
Q

who does Napoleon send to invade Portugal?

A

Junot

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17
Q

when did Charles and Ferdinand abdicate in Spain?

A

April 1808

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18
Q

who became the new Spanish King?

A

Joseph Bonaparte, Napoleon’s brother

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19
Q

why was Junot cut off from the Spain in 1808?

A

in June 1808, Spanish got angry by the abdication and began to resist the French in Spain

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20
Q

why was Junot pushed back to Lisbon?

A

the Portugese see the Spanish rebellion and also rebel against Junot to push him back to Lisbon

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21
Q

why did the British govt decide to attack the French in Portugal?

A

they saw the rebellions as the perfect time to push the French out of the Peninsula

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22
Q

where was W stationed before the Peninsular War?

A

Cork

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23
Q

when did W leave Cork?

A

12 July 1808

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24
Q

where do the BA troops land in Portugal?

A

Mondego Bay

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25
Q

why did the Duke of York replace W?

A

he believed that he was too inexperienced

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26
Q

who did the DofY replace W with?

A

Dalrymple, Burrard and Moore

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27
Q

when was the Battle of Rolica?

A

17 August 1808

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28
Q

when was the Battle of Vimeiro?

A

21 August 1808

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29
Q

what tactic did W use at Vimeiro?

A

reverse slope tactic

surprised the French which forced them to retreat back to Lisbon

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30
Q

what was the Convention of Cintra?

A

an Anglo-French armistice which allowed 24000 French to return to France

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31
Q

what happened to Burrard and Dalrymple after the Convention of Cintra?

A

they were never given command again

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32
Q

how many men did Moore command when he invaded Spain?

A

35,000

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33
Q

when did Moore march into Spain?

A

October 1808

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34
Q

how many troops did Napoleon send to Spain to retake it?

A

200,000

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35
Q

why did Moore retreat to Corunna?

A

he was notified that Napoleon was marching his troops north

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36
Q

when did Moore reach Corunna?

A

11 January 1809

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37
Q

when was the Battle of Corunna?

A

16 January 1809

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38
Q

result of the Battle of Corunna?

A

French victory
Moore dead

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39
Q

how many BA troops returned to England after Corunna?

A

26,000

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40
Q

why can Corunna be seen as a positive?

A

prevented French troops from attacking Portugal and South Spain

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41
Q

who did Napoleon put in charge to chase Moore to Corunna?

A

Soult

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42
Q

when was W put in charge of the BA in Portugal?

A

April 1809

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43
Q

who was put in charge of the Portugese Army?

A

Beresford

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44
Q

how many men did Soult hold Porto with?

A

20,000

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45
Q

when was the Battle of Porto?

A

12 May 1809

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46
Q

how did W get his troops into Porto?

A

he ferried 600 across the River Duoro in wine barrels provided by Portugese

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47
Q

how many men did Soult lose at Porto?

A

4,000

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48
Q

why were there no more French reinforcements in Spain in 1809?

A

Austria declared war on France so all French troops were occupied

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49
Q

when did W march into Spain?

A

July 1809

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50
Q

who led the Spanish troops in Spain?

A

General Cuesta

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51
Q

when was the Battle of Talavera?

A

21 July 1809

52
Q

how were the Spanish troops at Talavera?

A

they were rubbish
2,000 fled at the sound of gunfire
the rest hid behind walls in fear

53
Q

who was Roland Hill?

A

popular general who supported the men
known as daddy
drove back a French night attack at Talavera

54
Q

result of the Battle of Talavera?

A

W retreated to Portugal in the winter
W became Viscount Wellington

55
Q

how many French died at Talavera?

A

7300

56
Q

why was the British victory at Talavera also a loss?

A

they lost 5400 men

57
Q

why did W retreat to Portugal after Talavera?

A

gave time for Beresford to train the Portugese troops to British standards

58
Q

by 1810 how many Portugese troops were ready to fight?

A

25,000

59
Q

who did Napoleon appoint to invade Portugal in 1810?

A

Massena

60
Q

how strong was Massena’s Portugese Army?

A

138,000

61
Q

when did Cuidad Rodrigo surrender to Massena?

A

10 July 1810

62
Q

when did Almeida surrender to Massena?

A

28 August 1810

63
Q

what policy did W use when retreating from Massena?

A

scorched earth policy

64
Q

what was the Portugese home guard?

A

the Ordenanza

65
Q

when was W forced to retreat to Lisbon?

A

28 September 1810

66
Q

what were the Lines of Torres Vedras?

A

3 rings of walls enclosing Lisbon which ran for 30 miles

67
Q

who constructed the Lines of Torres Vedras?

A

the Royal Engineers in 1809

68
Q

who led the Royal Engineers?

A

Colonel Richard Fletcher

69
Q

how many BA men defended Torres Vedras?

A

60,000

70
Q

when did Massena give up trying to attack the walls?

A

mid November 1810

71
Q

why did W not attack the retreating Massena?

A

he knew that starvation and disease would hurt the French more than the British

72
Q

when did Massena retreat to Spain?

A

March 1811

73
Q

how many men had Massena lost in his campaign in Portugal?

A

30,000 men

74
Q

when was the Battle of Fuentes de Onoro?

A

3 May 1811

75
Q

who replaced Massena?

A

Marshal Mormont

76
Q

how many men did Beresford besiege Badajoz with?

A

20,000

77
Q

when was the Battle of Albuera?

A

16 May 1811

78
Q

why did the allies abandon Badajoz

A

French reinforcements arrived

79
Q

when did Wellington take Cuidad Rodrigo?

A

January 1812

80
Q

how did Wellington take Cuidad Rodrigo?

A

he made 2 breaches in the wall and attacked

81
Q

when did Wellington take Badajoz back?

A

6 April 1812

82
Q

how did Wellington retake Badajoz?

A

he made 3 breaches in the walls

83
Q

how many Brits were lost in the Siege of Badajoz?

A

5,000

84
Q

when was the Battle of Salamanca?

A

22 July 1812

85
Q

why were the French weaker in 1812?

A

they were having a terrible time in their invasion of Russia

86
Q

how many French were lost at the Battle of Salamanca?

A

14,000

87
Q

when did W march into Madrid?

A

12 August 1812

88
Q

why did W abandon his siege of Burgos?

A

he was threatened at his rear by French armies

89
Q

where did W retreat after Burgos?

A

to Portugal

90
Q

why did morale amongst the British troops increase?

A

they received new clothes and equipment
more reinforcements
news of French struggles in Russia

91
Q

how many miles did W march in 30 days?

A

300 miles

92
Q

how did the Spanish help W at the Battle of Vittoria?

A

Spanish guerrillas would scout ahead and inform W about the positions of French troops

93
Q

when was the Battle of Vittoria?

A

21 June 1813

94
Q

who led the French at the Battle of Vittoria?

A

Joseph Bonaparte

95
Q

which 3 French strongholds remained in Spain after the Battle of Vittoria?

A

Pamplona
Vera
San Sebastian

96
Q

how long did it take for W to take Pamplona?

A

9 days

97
Q

when did W take San Sebastian?

A

31 August 1813

98
Q

why was W reluctant to invade France after pushing the French out of Spain?

A

he wanted to be certain that Napoleon would lose against the allies in the rest of Europe

99
Q

which river did the allies cross to enter France?

A

Bidasoa

100
Q

when was the Battle of Leipzig and what was its outcome?

A

19 October 1813

Napoleon forced to retreat to the Rhine and fall back to France

101
Q

when did the British cross the River Nivelle?

A

10 November 1813

102
Q

why did W send his Spanish troops back to Spain?

A

he knew that they would likely seek retribution for French atrocities in Spain by plundering

W wanted the French civilians on his side

103
Q

when did Napoleon abdicate?

A

6 April 1814

104
Q

throughout the Peninsular Wars, how many enemy troops did W’s forces kill?

A

200,000

105
Q

throughout the Peninsular Wars, how many troops did W lose?

A

36,000

106
Q

when was the Treaty of Ghent signed?

A

October 1814

107
Q

when did Napoleon escape exile?

A

February 1815

108
Q

who became King of France after Napoleon abdicated?

A

Louis XVIII

109
Q

what did Napoleon do once he retook power?

A

he marched his troops north and looked to defeat the British and Prussian armies in one sweep

110
Q

when was the Battle of Waterloo?

A

18 June 1815

111
Q

who was in charge of the Prussian army at Waterloo?

A

Marshal Blucher

112
Q

how large was Napoleon’s army at Waterloo?

A

75,000

113
Q

when was the Battle of Ligny?

A

16 June 1815

114
Q

what was the outcome of the Battle of Ligny?

A

Napoleon had defeated the Prussians

115
Q

what was the outcome of the Battle of Quatre Bras?

A

the British had managed to hold of the French

116
Q

who did Napoleon send to attack the Prussians?

A

Grouchy

117
Q

why was the French attack at Waterloo delayed?

A

heavy rainfall made artillery difficult to move

118
Q

to what time did Napoleon delay the French attack at Waterloo?

A

11:30 am

119
Q

how large was W’s army at Waterloo?

A

68,000

120
Q

what were the 3 main points at Waterloo?

A

Hougemont
La Haye Sainte
Papelotte

121
Q

when did Blucher’s Prussians arrive?

A

1:30 pm

122
Q

what failures did Ney lead at Waterloo?

A

he led many stupid cavalry charges which were destroyed by British squares

123
Q

what was the last French attack?

A

the Imperial Guard led one final attack which was repelled by British forces

124
Q

how many British died at Waterloo?

A

15,000

125
Q

how many French died at Waterloo?

A

25,000

126
Q

when did Napoleon surrender?

A

15 July 1815