It is reported Napoleon admired the qualities of ‘caution and courage’ in his adversary Wellington.

A painting of the Battle of Waterloo by M Dubourg
As Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports he had a residence at Walmer Castle in Kent which had become his favourite and it was here he passed away. Includes Genghis Khan, Saladin, Alexander the Great, Napoleon and Erwin Rommel. However, over in France a revolution was about to take place and the execution of King Louis XVI in January 1793 shook the British establishment to the core and the two countries were soon at war. He took not one day's leave as he campaigned backwards and forwards across Portugal and Spain, occasionally being forced to retreat because of the pressure of numbers opposing him, but never losing a battle or even so much as a single cannon. Strict, authoritarian and isolationist in foreign policy. Like most members of the Anglo-Irish community he probably considered himself to be British first and foremost but Irish, or Anglo-Irish, by birth. Arthur joined the army in 1787, fighting against the French in Flanders, and in 1796 was posted to India. Wellington was covered in honours by Britain and by all the European powers, but instead of retiring he entered the British Cabinet in 1818, staying there as Master-General of Ordinance until 1827. Sign up to receive our free monthly email covering the latest exhibitions, auctions and more. The Duke of Wellington had helped stop Napoleon’s march across Europe and ensured Britain’s role as a key player on the continent.

In 1808, he returned to the army and took control of the Allied forces fighting Napoleon’s army in Spain. As commander-in-chief of the British Army between 1827 and 1828, and from 1842 until his death in 1852, Wellington was a force for conservatism, and it has been argued that the lack of army reform under his leadership led to the British army being ill-prepared for the Crimean War. It now seems that the "speech" probably was never made by Wellington at all. Apr … He was somewhat suspicious and condescending towards the ordinary poor soldiers in his army – once famously describing them as the ‘scum of the earth’ – after the battle of Victoria. He was almost always outnumbered by the huge French forces that were occupying Spain in the name of Napoleon's brother, King Joseph of Spain. Wellington was a tough and uncompromising military officer; he did not wince at carrying out the strictest discipline in his army. Wellington also remarked on how much of a close thing, the Battle of Waterloo was: “It has been a damned nice (uncertain, delicately balanced) thing — the nearest run thing you ever saw in your life. Napoleon was forced to draw off many of the troops he had hoped to employ against Wellington, in order to deal with them. After the Battle of Waterloo, Wellington remarked: “My heart is broken by the terrible loss I have sustained in my old friends and companions and my poor soldiers. Being Prime Minister did not stop him challenging the Earl of Winchilsea to a duel in 1829 after the earl offended him during the debates over Catholic emancipation. However his opposition to reform saw his popularity fall heavily, to the point he needed to place iron bars on his London home, Apsley House, to prevent the windows being smashed by angry crowds. Following the battle he remained in France until 1818 as commander of the British army, before returning home as a national hero where he returned to politics and joined the government under Lord Liverpool. But, Wellington kept his cool and refused to be drawn into desperate strategies. This proved to be one of the main achievements of his time as Prime Minister as he believed it was for the greater good. … By God! The leadership Wellesley showed in the Peninsular campaign was exemplary... Having resumed command in Portugal in 1809, Wellesley - aided at all times by the Portuguese army and the Spanish guerrillas - spent the next five years trying to expel the French from the Peninsula. The spoils of war were too tempting for many of the victors as the French abandoned much of their baggage, with the level of looting helping the French to escape. Along with his younger brother, Wellesley attended Eton in 1781, the same year in which his father died. His political style matched his military style. At the time, Napoleon was at the height of his powers, winning a series of devastating victories leaving him in control of much of Europe. It was at Waterloo in Belgium on the 18th June that the Duke of Wellington won the battle which was to permanently enshrine his name in the annals of history. Soon after the Cintra inquiry closed, Wellesley returned to the Peninsula, once again in command. Famous It is claimed the Duke aimed to miss, while the Earl decided not to fire at all and honour was saved all round, although Winchilsea still wrote an apology to the Duke. © Although his mother decried the idea of a military career for him, believing him to have no aptitude for soldiering, he was commissioned as a lieutenant in an infantry regiment in 1787 and became a captain of dragoons five years later. His victories in Mysore, at Srirangapatna and over Dhoondiah Waugh won him promotion to major-general. I don’t think it would have been done if I had not been there.”. By 7pm, after his famed Imperial Guard had also failed to break Wellington's line, Napoleon was routed. It was a brave boast, but fully justified by subsequent events. Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington (1769-1852), was probably Britain's greatest military commander, but he was also perhaps one of her worst prime ministers. The tide was turned when the Prussian army under General Gebhard von Blucher reached the battle and the French, now heavily outnumbered themselves, fled the field. Wellington was a strict disciplinarian and a meticulous planner, traits he would take in to his political career following his return to England after Waterloo. In India, he proved an able commander, winning important battles in the Mysore War against the Tipu Sultan. When Spain chose to revolt against Napoleon's French occupation Wellesley was the choice to take command of British forces on the Iberian Peninsula in support of the Spanish and Portuguese. This document was included in the belief that it was genuine, since it came from a reliable source.

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