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150-862: At the close of the War of the Sixth Coalition , Marmont went over to the Restoration and remained loyal to the Bourbons through the Hundred Days . This gave Marmont a reputation as a traitor among the remaining Bonapartists , and in French society more broadly. He led the royalist Paris garrison during the July Revolution in 1830, but his efforts proved incapable of quelling the revolution, leading King Charles X to accuse Marmont of betraying

300-516: A Danish declaration that they would hold the city for Napoleon, irrevocably binding Denmark to France, an action that would guarantee full Swedish cooperation in North Germany. The Swedish occupation of Hamburg came as welcome news to the Allies, insofar as holding a wealthy center of finance was a blow against Napoleon. However, Bernadotte's initial misgivings at extending his troops so far from

450-572: A French general as well as his familiarity with Napoleon. The result was the Trachenberg Plan , authored primarily by Carl Johan of Sweden and the Austrian Chief of Staff, Field-Marshal Lieutenant Joseph Radetzky , that sought to wear down the French using a Fabian strategy , avoiding direct combat with Napoleon, engaging and defeating his marshals whenever possible and slowly encircling the French with three independent armies until

600-501: A bandit, as his raids, expansion and threats to destabilise British authority suddenly increased in 1800. The death of Tipu Sultan had created a power vacuum and Waugh was seeking to fill it. Given independent command of a combined East India Company and British Army force, Wellesley ventured north to confront Waugh in June 1800, with an army of 8,000 infantry and cavalry, having learnt that Waugh's forces numbered over 50,000, although

750-513: A breach was opened in the main walls of the fortress of Seringapatam. An attack led by Major-General Baird secured the fortress. Wellesley secured the rear of the advance, posting guards at the breach and then stationed his regiment at the main palace. After hearing news of the death of the Tipu Sultan, Wellesley was the first at the scene to confirm his death, checking his pulse. Over the coming day, Wellesley grew increasingly concerned over

900-527: A breakdown of communications, MacDonald's several corps found themselves isolated from one another with many bridges over the Katzback and Neisse rivers destroyed by surging waters. 200,000 Prussians and French collided in a confused battle that degenerated into hand-to-hand combat. However, Blücher and the Prussians rallied their scattered units and attacked an isolated French corps and pinned it against

1050-750: A call to arms to his subjects, An Mein Volk . Prussia had declared war on France on 13 March, which was received by the French on 16 March. The first armed conflict occurred on 5 April in the Battle of Möckern , where combined Prusso-Russian forces defeated French troops. Meanwhile, Napoleon withdrew some 20,000 troops from the ongoing Peninsular War to reinforce his position in Central Europe, which left his Iberian forces weakened and vulnerable to Anglo–Spanish–Portuguese attacks. On 17 March 1813, his brother King Joseph Bonaparte of Spain withdrew from Madrid,

1200-596: A clear sign of losing control. Wellington led a 123,000-strong army across northern Spain, taking Burgos in late May, and decisively defeating Jourdan at the Battle of Vitoria on 21 June. Marshal Soult failed to turn the tide in his large-scale Battle of the Pyrenees (25 July to 2 August). In June, the United Kingdom formally entered the coalition. Initially, Austria remained loyal to France, and foreign minister Metternich aimed to mediate in good faith

1350-511: A considerable time, first with severe diarrhoea from the water and then with fever, followed by a serious skin infection caused by trichophyton . Wellesley was in charge of raising an Anglo-Indian expeditionary force in Trincomali in early 1801 for the capture of Batavia and Mauritius from the French. However, on the eve of its departure, orders arrived from England that it was to be sent to Egypt to co-operate with Sir Ralph Abercromby in

1500-714: A few weeks later set sail for Calcutta with his regiment. Arriving in Calcutta in February 1797 he spent 5 months there, before being sent in August to a brief expedition to the Philippines , where he established a list of new hygiene precautions for his men to deal with the unfamiliar climate. Returning in November to India , he learnt that his elder brother Richard , now known as Lord Mornington, had been appointed as

1650-645: A friendship with Alexander, and gave him moral support, strategic and tactical advice on how to defeat the French, as well as valuable insights on Napoleon himself (having had much contact with Napoleon as a member of the extended Imperial Family). However Russia bore the brunt of the French onslaught on her territory alone. After the French Grande Armée retreated from Moscow on 18/19 October 1812 and suffered heavy casualties due to extreme cold, food shortages and repeated Russian attacks, Napoleon did not seem to be as invincible as before. On 14 December,

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1800-640: A household word in France that meant "to betray". Thirty years later, as an old man living in Venice, little children in the street would point and say, "There goes the man who betrayed Napoleon." He died in Venice in March 1852, the last living Napoleonic marshal. In his last years, Marmont spent much of his time working on his Mémoires , which are of great value to the military history of the time. His works are: In 1798, Marmont married Anne-Marie-Hortense Perregaux,

1950-645: A known figure after his victories at the Nile and Copenhagen, who was briefly in England after months pursuing the French Toulon fleet to the West Indies and back. Some 30 years later, Wellington recalled a conversation that Nelson began with him which Wellesley found "almost all on his side in a style so vain and silly as to surprise and almost disgust me". Nelson left the room to inquire who the young general

2100-582: A member of the Coalition. Napoleon withdrew with around 175,000 troops to Leipzig in Saxony where he thought he could fight a defensive action against the Allied armies converging on him. There, at the so-called Battle of Nations (16–19 October 1813) a French army, ultimately reinforced to 191,000, found itself faced by three Allied armies converging on it, ultimately totalling more than 430,000 troops. Over

2250-565: A military career in earnest. He became a major by purchase in the 33rd Regiment in 1793. A few months later, in September, his brother lent him more money and with it he purchased a lieutenant-colonelcy in the 33rd. In 1793, the Duke of York was sent to Flanders in command of the British contingent of an allied force destined for the invasion of France. In June 1794, Wellesley with

2400-646: A million Allied troops (not including the strategic reserve being formed in Germany). During the armistice, three Allied sovereigns, Alexander of Russia, Frederick William of Prussia, and Carl Johan of Sweden (by then Regent of the kingdom due to his adoptive father's illness) met at Trachenberg Castle in Silesia to coordinate the war effort. Allied staffs began creating a plan for the campaign wherein Bernadotte once again put to use his fifteen years of experience as

2550-405: A new army as large as that he had sent into Russia, and quickly built up his forces in the east from 30,000 to 130,000 and eventually to 400,000. Napoleon inflicted 40,000 casualties on the Allies at Lützen (near Leipzig, 2 May) and Bautzen (20–21 May 1813) but his army lost about the same number of men during those encounters. Both battles involved total forces of over 250,000 – making them among

2700-480: A new coalition against France. Sweden then signed the secret Treaty of Saint Petersburg with Russia against France and Denmark–Norway on 5 April 1812. On 18 July 1812, the Treaty of Örebro formally ended the wars between Britain and Sweden and Britain and Russia , forming the basis of coalition between Russia, Britain, and Sweden, though the exact parameters of a military alliance remained in negotiation throughout

2850-672: A peace between France and its continental enemies, but it became apparent that the price was to be the dismantling of the Confederation of the Rhine , the Napoleon-controlled union of all German states aside from Prussia and Austria, and the return to France's pre-Revolutionary borders. Napoleon was not interested in any such compromise that would in effect end his empire, so Austria joined the allies and declared war on France in August 1813. Napoleon vowed that he would create

3000-483: A period of reconstruction and recuperation" and Napoleon needed time to acquire horses for his depleted cavalry and bring up more reinforcements. Therefore, Napoleon was amiable to the armistice offered by the Allies despite the Allies being in a grave condition. During the armistice, a disastrous interview with Austrian Chancellor Metternich , in which Napoleon heaped recriminations on the Austrians and threw his hat to

3150-414: A pointless prolonging of a war that France would now assuredly lose. Marmont contacted the Allies and reached a secret agreement with them. As the Allies closed on Montmartre, Marmont—together with marshals Mortier and Moncey —marched to a position where they were quickly surrounded by Allied troops and then surrendered their forces. Marmont stayed loyal to the restored Bourbon king Louis XVIII during

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3300-546: A proclamation by the Swedish Crown Prince urging the Saxon Army (Bernadotte had commanded the Saxon Army at the Battle of Wagram and was well liked by them) to come over to the Allied cause, Saxon generals could no longer answer for the fidelity of their troops and the French now considered their remaining German allies unreliable. Later, on 8 October 1813, Bavaria officially ranged itself against Napoleon as

3450-454: A retreat, so Wellesley decided to launch an attack immediately. On 23 September, Wellesley led his forces over a ford in the river Kaitna and the Battle of Assaye commenced. After crossing the ford the infantry was reorganised into several lines and advanced against the Maratha infantry. Wellesley ordered his cavalry to exploit the flank of the Maratha army just near the village. During

3600-557: A reward for his service in India he was made a Knight of the Bath in September. While in India, Wellesley had amassed a fortune of £42,000 (considerable at the time, equivalent to £4 million in 2023), consisting mainly of prize money from his campaign. When his brother's term as Governor-General of India ended in March 1805, the brothers returned together to England on HMS  Howe . Wellesley, coincidentally, stopped on his voyage at

3750-423: A soldier his duty was to break through, but as a Prussian patriot his position was more difficult. He had to judge whether the moment was favorable for starting a war of liberation; and, whatever might be the enthusiasm of his junior staff-officers, Yorck had no illusions as to the safety of his own head, and negotiated with Clausewitz. The Convention of Tauroggen armistice, signed by Diebitsch and Yorck, "neutralized"

3900-494: Is exemplary; he ultimately participated in some 60 battles during the course of his military career, and although not undefeated, he "never lost" a major engagement. Wellington is famous for his adaptive defensive style of warfare, resulting in several victories against numerically superior forces while minimising his own losses. He is regarded as one of the greatest commanders in the modern era , and many of his tactics and battle plans are still studied in military academies around

4050-665: Is his study and evaluation of the Spanish theater of the war. He studied Wellington's nature of war, refusing to give battle against the British unless the ground was of Marmont's choosing. This led to a series of manoeuvres where Marmont frequently had the upper hand. Marmont understood the importance of cooperation in the Peninsula by supporting his fellow marshals. Tactically Marmont was deadly and quick to strike, but prone to sloppiness which caused him his two defeats. War of

4200-554: Is the army's choice Marmont is friendship's choice. Marmont was appointed governor-general of all the Illyrian provinces of the empire. This region included the Croatian port city state of Ragusa . In May 1811, Marmont was hastily summoned to succeed Masséna in the command of the French army in northern Spain. Despite the presence of the British army, his relief of Ciudad Rodrigo was a great feat. The manoeuvering which preceded

4350-460: The Battle of Kulm (29–30 August 1813), losing 13,000 men further weakening his army. Realizing that the Allies would continue to defeat his subordinates, Napoleon began to consolidate his troops to force a decisive battle. The French then suffered another grievous loss at the hands of Bernadotte's army on 6 September at Dennewitz where Ney was now in command, with Oudinot now as his deputy. The French were once again attempting to capture Berlin,

4500-504: The Battle of Salamanca was not successful, however, as Wellington ordered his cavalry to charge Marmont's unsuspecting left flank in the battle and inflicted a great defeat on the French. Marmont and his deputy commander Comte Jean-Pierre François Bonet were both struck by shrapnel very early in the battle. Marmont was gravely wounded in the right arm and side, and command of the battle passed to Bertrand Clauzel . He retired to France to recover. In April 1813, Napoleon again gave Marmont

4650-502: The Duke of Rutland (then Lord Lieutenant of Ireland ) to consider Arthur for a commission in the Army. Soon afterward, on 7 March 1787, he was gazetted ensign in the 73rd Regiment of Foot . In October, with the assistance of his brother, he was assigned as aide-de-camp , on ten shillings a day (twice his pay as an ensign), to the new Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, Lord Buckingham . He

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4800-555: The East India Company having pursued and destroyed his forces once already, forcing him into retreat in August 1799, he raised a sizeable force composed of disbanded Mysore soldiers, captured small outposts and forts in Mysore, and was receiving the support of several Maratha killedars opposed to British occupation. This drew the attention of the British administration, who were beginning to recognise him as more than just

4950-591: The Hundred Days , and following Waterloo , voted in favour of the execution of Marshal Ney . He was made a Peer of France and a major-general of the royal guard, and in 1820, a knight of the Order of the Holy Spirit and a grand officer of the Order of Saint Louis . He was the major-general of the guard on duty in July 1830 during the July Revolution and was ordered to put down with a strong hand any opposition to

5100-475: The Imperial Russian Army . According to the Treaty of Tilsit (9 July 1807), Prussia had to support Napoleon's invasion of Russia. This resulted in some Prussians leaving their army to avoid serving the French, like Carl von Clausewitz , who joined Russian service. When Yorck's immediate French superior Marshal MacDonald , retreated before the corps of Diebitsch, Yorck found himself isolated. As

5250-502: The July Ordinances . Himself opposed to the court policy, he nevertheless tried to do his duty and only gave up the attempt to suppress the revolution when it became clear that his troops were outmatched. This brought more obloquy upon him, and Charles X even ordered him arrested, saying: Will you betray us, as you betrayed him? Marmont accompanied the king into exile and forfeited his marshalate. His desire to return to France

5400-540: The Merrion Hotel . His mother, Anne, Countess of Mornington, recalled in 1815 that he had been born at 6 Merrion Street . His family's home at Dangan Castle , Dangan near Summerhill , County Meath has also been purported to have been his birthplace. In his obituary, published in The Times in 1852, it was reported that Dangan was unanimously believed to have been the place of his birth, though suggested it

5550-721: The Peninsular War . These included a strong sense of discipline through drill and order, the use of diplomacy to gain allies, and the vital necessity of a secure supply line. He also established high regard for the acquisition of intelligence through scouts and spies. His personal tastes also developed, including dressing himself in white trousers, a dark tunic, with Hessian boots and black cocked hat (that later became synonymous as his style). Wellesley had grown tired of his time in India, remarking "I have served as long in India as any man ought who can serve anywhere else". In June 1804 he applied for permission to return home and as

5700-528: The Rhineland (the west bank of the Rhine river), while giving up control of all the rest, including all of Poland, Spain and the Netherlands, and most of Italy and Germany. Metternich told Napoleon these were the best terms the Allies were likely to offer; after further victories, the terms would be harsher and harsher. Metternich aimed to maintain France as a balance against Russian threats, while ending

5850-747: The Seventh Coalition defeated Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815. Wellesley was born into a Protestant Ascendancy family in Ireland . He was commissioned as an ensign in the British Army in 1787, serving in Ireland as aide-de-camp to two successive lords lieutenant of Ireland . He was also elected as a member of Parliament in the Irish House of Commons . Rising to the rank of colonel by 1796, Wellesley saw service in

6000-598: The War of the Fifth Coalition , he defeated an Austrian holding force in the Dalmatian Campaign of May 1809 and captured the opposing commander. Breaking out of Dalmatia, he reached Ljubljana (Laibach) in early June. After he defeated Ignaz Gyulai 's corps in the Battle of Graz , Napoleon summoned the XI Corps to Vienna. Marmont arrived in time to fight in the Battle of Wagram on 5 and 6 July. In

6150-450: The Wars of Liberation ( German : Befreiungskriege ), a coalition of Austria , Prussia , Russia , Spain , Great Britain , Portugal , Sweden , Sardinia , and a number of German States defeated France and drove Napoleon into exile on Elba . After the disastrous French invasion of Russia of 1812 in which they had been forced to support France, Prussia and Austria joined Russia,

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6300-470: The rotten borough of Trim to speak against the granting of the title " Freeman " of Dublin to the parliamentary leader of the Irish Patriot Party , Henry Grattan . Succeeding, he was later nominated and duly elected as a Member of Parliament (MP) for Trim in the Irish House of Commons . Because of the limited suffrage at the time, he sat in a parliament where at least two-thirds of

6450-750: The 100,000 French troops still garrisoned in fortresses throughout northern Germany. Despite several attempts by the Russian General Bennigsen to storm the city, Marshal Davout held Hamburg for France until after Napoleon's abdication in April 1814. However, whilst Bernadotte cleared the Low Countries of the French in Spring 1814, the people of Norway objected to being bartered between kings, declared independence and adopted their own constitution on 17 May 1814. Even as fighting between

6600-498: The 33rd regiment set sail from Cork bound for Ostend as part of an expedition bringing reinforcements for the army in Flanders. They arrived too late to participate, and joined the Duke of York as he was pulling back towards the Netherlands. On 15 September 1794, at the Battle of Boxtel , east of Breda , Wellington, in temporary command of his brigade, had his first experience of battle. During General Abercromby's withdrawal in

6750-548: The 33rd sailed to join them in August. After extensive and careful logistic preparation (which would become one of Wellesley's main attributes) the 33rd left with the main force in December and travelled across 250 miles (402 km) of jungle from Madras to Mysore. On account of his brother, during the journey, Wellesley was given an additional command, that of chief advisor to the Nizam of Hyderabad 's army (sent to accompany

6900-609: The Allied armies. In total the Allies now had around 800,000 frontline troops in the German theatre, with a strategic reserve of 350,000. As a consequence of the armistice, the French lost their initial advantage in numbers as the Austrians, and Russia's huge manpower reserves, were brought to the front. Napoleon succeeded in bringing the total imperial forces in the region up to around 650,000 (although only 250,000 were under his direct command, with another 120,000 under Nicolas Charles Oudinot and 30,000 under Davout). The Confederation of

7050-405: The Allied lines, with British General Hope calling Döbeln, who was later court-martialed for disobeying orders "the mad Swedish General," were validated when Marshal Davout approached Hamburg with a French force of 34,000, intent on retaking the city. The Swedes quietly withdrew on 26 May and Davout would occupy the city until after Napoleon's abdication in 1814. It would be the last major action of

7200-449: The Allies narrowly slipped the noose. So while Napoleon had struck a heavy blow against the Allies, several tactical errors had allowed the Allies to withdraw, thus ruining Napoleon's best chance at ending the war in a single battle. Nonetheless, Napoleon had once again inflicted a heavy loss on the primary Allied Army despite being outnumbered and for some weeks after Dresden Schwarzenberg declined to take offensive action. However at about

7350-545: The Allies. Napoleon turned the Allied Left Flank, and in skilful use of terrain, pinned it against the flooded Weißeritz river and isolated it from the rest of the Coalition Army. He then gave his famed cavalry commander, and King of Naples, Joachim Murat leave to destroy the surrounded Austrians. The day's torrential rain had dampened gunpowder, rendering the Austrians' muskets and cannon useless against

7500-805: The Bourbons as he had betrayed the Bonapartes. Marmont departed France with Charles's entourage and never returned to France. Spending his exile mostly in Vienna and other lands of the Austrian Empire , he died in Venice in 1852. Marmont was born at Châtillon-sur-Seine , the son of an ex-officer in the army who belonged to the petite noblesse and adopted the principles of the Revolution . His love of soldiering soon showed itself, and his father took him to Dijon to learn mathematics before entering

7650-463: The British advance. On 10 September, at the Battle of Conaghul , Wellesley personally led a charge of 1,400 British dragoons and Indian cavalry, in single line with no reserve, against Dhoondiah and his remaining 5,000 cavalry. Dhoondiah was killed during the clash; his body was discovered and taken to the British camp tied to a cannon. With this victory, Wellesley's campaign was concluded, and British authority had been restored. Wellesley then paid for

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7800-400: The British force). This position was to cause friction among many of the senior officers (some of whom were senior to Wellesley). Much of this friction was put to rest after the Battle of Mallavelly , some 20 miles (32 km) from Seringapatam, in which Harris' army attacked a large part of the sultan's army. During the battle, Wellesley led his men, in a line of battle of two ranks, against

7950-593: The Coalition and France ended with Napoleon's abdication, codified in the Treaty of Fontainbleau on 11 April 1814, Bernadotte found himself planning and leading yet another campaign to see the results of the Treaty of Kiel fully realized. It would be the final campaign of the War of the Sixth Coalition. On 27 July 1814, Bernadotte, supported by the Swedish and British fleets, invaded Norway on two fronts, intending to envelop

8100-436: The Danish Auxiliary Corps scored a minor victory at Sehested . However, while the Danish victory managed to ensure the retreat of the main Danish army from immediate destruction, and brought about a three-week armistice, it could not change the course of war. Following a breakdown of negotiations, the armistice concluded and on 14 January 1814 Bernadotte invaded Schleswig , swiftly invested and reduced its fortresses and occupied

8250-625: The Empire. His reputation, like many French generals in Spain, was tarnished by his defeats in the Peninsular War . However, on the whole, Marmont's military career was quite impressive. He was perhaps the most educated of the marshals and one of the few to write a thesis on the art of war. He was a talented strategist, understanding the art of command and the movement of troops. He performed wonderfully in Dalmatia making what John Elting calls "a remarkable 300-mile march through frequently roadless country, scattering two Austrian forces, but clinging to his independent status..." Perhaps even more impressive

8400-410: The Forces until his death . Wellesley was born into an aristocratic Anglo-Irish family, belonging to the Protestant Ascendancy , beginning life as The Hon. Arthur Wesley. Wellesley was born the son of Anne, Countess of Mornington , and Garret Wesley, 1st Earl of Mornington . His father was himself the son of Richard Wesley, 1st Baron Mornington , and had a short career in politics representing

8550-411: The French Emperor could be cornered and brought to battle against vastly superior numbers. Following the conference, the Allies stood up their three armies: The Army of Silesia, with 95,000 Prussians and Russians, commanded by Field Marshal Gebhard von Blücher ; the Army of the North, 120,000 Swedes, Russians, Prussians, and German troops from Mecklenburg , the Hanseatic cities and North Germany, under

8700-431: The French Royal Academy of Equitation in Angers , where he progressed significantly, becoming a good horseman and learning French, which later proved very useful. Upon returning to England later the same year, he astonished his mother with his improvement. Despite his new promise, Wellesley had yet to find a job and his family was still short of money, so upon the advice of his mother, his brother Richard asked his friend

8850-455: The French in the abandoned city of Moscow with little food or shelter (large parts of Moscow had burned down ) and winter approaching. In these circumstances, and with no clear path to victory, Napoleon was forced to withdraw from Moscow. So began the disastrous Great Retreat , during which the retreating army came under increasing pressure due to lack of food, desertions, and increasingly harsh winter weather, all while under continual attack by

9000-411: The Katzbach, annihilating it; forcing the French into the raging waters where many drowned. The French suffered 13,000 killed and wounded and 20,000 captured. The Prussians lost but 4,000 men. Napoleon himself, lacking reliable and numerous cavalry, was unable to prevent the destruction of a whole army corps, which had isolated itself pursuing the enemy following the Battle of Dresden without support, at

9150-434: The Kingdom of Norway was to be ceded to the King of Sweden. Believing his primary goal of detaching Norway from Denmark and binding it with Sweden had been fully achieved, Bernadotte and the Swedish and Russian corps of his Army of the North advanced into and occupied the Low Countries. Other elements of the Army of the North were also tasked with besieging Marshal Davout's 40,000 French and Danish troops in Hamburg, as well as

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9300-410: The Low Countries and India , where he fought in the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War at the Siege of Seringapatam . He was appointed governor of Seringapatam and Mysore in 1799 and, as a newly appointed major-general , won a decisive victory over the Maratha Confederacy at the Battle of Assaye in 1803. Rising to prominence as a general officer during the Peninsular War , Wellesley was promoted to

9450-452: The Norwegian forces with a combined Swedish army of 40,000 well-trained, well-equipped men, many of whom were veterans of the recent Leipzig and Danish Campaigns. Facing them were 30,000 Norwegian militia, who were short on equipment, training and munitions, but full of patriotic ardor and acquitted themselves well in the face of overwhelming odds. The Norwegians fought well, winning defensive battles at Lier and Matrand , but could not stop

9600-416: The Portuguese and Spanish in the Peninsular War for more than three years. Russia and Sweden, which had opposed Napoleon up to 1807 and 1810 respectively, had been forced to join his Continental System against Britain, but continued to trade secretly with her. On 9 January 1812, French troops suddenly occupied Swedish Pomerania , ostensibly to end the illegal trade with the United Kingdom from Sweden, which

9750-429: The Prussian corps without consent of their king. The news was received with the wildest enthusiasm in Prussia, but the Prussian Court dared not yet throw off the mask, and an order was despatched suspending Yorck from his command pending a court-martial. Diebitsch refused to let the bearer pass through his lines, and the general was finally absolved when the Treaty of Kalisch (28 February 1813) definitely ranged Prussia on

9900-435: The Prussians and Russians, French losses had been heavy and a chronic lack of horses for his cavalry meant that Napoleon could not fully exploit his victories and inflict a decisive defeat in the same vein as Austerlitz or Friedland . Napoleon's new army was filled with fresh conscripts, lacked many necessities and was exhausted from their long march from France and Napoleon's rapid maneuvering. The French were "in dire need of

10050-509: The Rhine furnished Napoleon with the bulk of the remainder of the forces, with Saxony and Bavaria as principal contributors. In addition, to the south, Murat's Kingdom of Naples and Eugène de Beauharnais 's Kingdom of Italy had a combined total of 100,000 men under arms. In Spain an additional 150–200,000 French troops were being steadily beaten back by Spanish and British forces numbering around 150,000. Thus in total around 900,000 French troops were opposed in all theatres by somewhere around

10200-414: The Russian army led by Commander-in-Chief Mikhail Kutuzov , and other militias. Total losses of the Grand Army were at least 370,000 casualties as a result of fighting, starvation and the freezing weather conditions, and 200,000 captured. By November, only 27,000 fit soldiers re-crossed the Berezina river. Napoleon now left his army to return to Paris and prepare a defence of the Duchy of Warsaw against

10350-430: The Seventh Coalition was triggered in 1815 when Napoleon escaped from his captivity on Elba and returned to power in France. He was defeated again for the final time at Waterloo , ending the Napoleonic Wars . In June 1812, Napoleon invaded Russia to compel Emperor Alexander I to remain in the Continental System . The Grande Armée , consisting of as many as 650,000 men (roughly half of whom were French, with

10500-444: The Sixth Coalition After the Armistice of Pläswitz After the Battle of Leipzig After 20 November 1813 [REDACTED] Netherlands After January 1814 [REDACTED] Denmark [REDACTED]   France Until January 1814 ( 1813–1814 ) 526,000 610,000 In the War of the Sixth Coalition ( French : Guerre de la Sixième Coalition ) (December 1812 – May 1814), sometimes known in Germany as

10650-532: The Spring before the Armistice of Pläswitz . The belligerents declared an armistice from 4 June 1813 which lasted until 13 August, during which time both sides attempted to recover from approximately a quarter of a million losses since April. During this time Allied negotiations finally brought Austria out in open opposition to France (like Prussia, Austria had moved from nominal ally of France in 1812 to armed neutral in 1813). Two principal Austrian armies deployed in Bohemia and Northern Italy, adding 300,000 troops to

10800-571: The United Kingdom, Sweden, and Portugal, and the rebels in Spain who were already at war with France. The War of the Sixth Coalition saw battles at Lützen , Bautzen , and Dresden . The even larger Battle of Leipzig (also known as the Battle of Nations) was the largest battle in European history before World War I . Ultimately, Napoleon's earlier setbacks in Spain, Portugal and Russia proved to be

10950-562: The advancing Russians. The situation was not as dire as it might at first have seemed; the Russians had also lost around 400,000 men, and their army was similarly depleted. However, they had the advantage of shorter supply lines and were able to replenish their armies with greater speed than the French, especially because Napoleon's losses of cavalry and wagons were irreplaceable. At the beginning of 1812 Britain had already been at war with France for eight years, and had been fighting alongside

11100-611: The advancing Swedish columns. As a consequence, an armistice (the Convention of Moss ) was concluded on 14 August followed by swift negotiations. The terms of Union were generous to the Norwegians as Bernadotte and the Swedes had no wish to inaugurate the union of Sweden and Norway with further bloodshed. Norway agreed to enter into a personal union with Sweden as a separate state with its own constitution and institutions, except for

11250-531: The affair affected Wellesley. He resolved "never to attack an enemy who is preparing and strongly posted, and whose posts have not been reconnoitred by daylight". Lewin Bentham Bowring gives this alternative account: One of these groves, called the Sultanpet Tope, was intersected by deep ditches, watered from a channel running in an easterly direction about a mile from the fort. General Baird

11400-479: The artillery. There, he made the acquaintance of Napoleon Bonaparte, which he renewed after obtaining his commission when he served in Toulon . The acquaintance ripened into intimacy; Marmont became General Bonaparte's aide-de-camp , remained with him during his disgrace and accompanied him to Italy and Egypt, winning distinction and promotion to general of brigade. In 1799, he returned to Europe with his chief. He

11550-457: The battle Wellesley himself came under fire; two of his horses were shot from under him and he had to mount a third. At a crucial moment, Wellesley regrouped his forces and ordered Colonel Maxwell (later killed in the attack) to attack the eastern end of the Maratha position while Wellesley himself directed a renewed infantry attack against the centre. An officer in the attack wrote of the importance of Wellesley's personal leadership: "The General

11700-431: The central position. Having lost the initiative, he was now forced to concentrate his army and seek a decisive battle at Leipzig . Compounding the heavy military losses suffered at Dennewitz, the French were now losing the support of their German vassal states as well. News of Bernadotte's victory at Dennewitz sent shock waves across Germany, where French rule had become unpopular, inducing Tyrol to rise in rebellion and

11850-404: The command of a corps, which he led at the battles of Lützen , Bautzen and Dresden . He then fought throughout the great defensive campaign of 1814 until the last battle before Paris . Marmont's forces fought a fighting retreat back to the commanding position of Essonne, inflicting high casualties on the enemy. Marmont then took upon himself a political role, seeking to halt what he now saw as

12000-455: The command of a corps, with which he did good service at Ulm . He was then directed to take possession of Dalmatia with his army and occupied the Republic of Ragusa . For the next five years, he was military and civil governor of Dalmatia , and traces of his beneficent régime still survive both in great public works and in the memories of the people. In 1808, he was made Duke of Ragusa. In

12150-591: The common king and foreign service. The Union between Sweden and Norway was formally established on 4 November 1814, when the Storting adopted the necessary constitutional amendments, and elected Charles XIII of Sweden as King of Norway. The Convention of Moss, signed on 14 August 1814, concluded the last active campaign of the War of the Sixth Coalition. Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington , ( né   Wesley ; 1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852)

12300-410: The constituency of Trim in the Irish House of Commons before succeeding his father as Baron Mornington in 1758. Garret Mornington was also an accomplished composer , and in recognition of his musical and philanthropic achievements was elevated to the rank of Earl of Mornington in 1760. Wellesley's mother was the eldest daughter of Arthur Hill-Trevor, 1st Viscount Dungannon , after whom Wellesley

12450-527: The cost of only 361 British casualties. A further successful attack at the fortress at Gawilghur , combined with the victory of General Lake at Delhi , forced the Maratha to sign a peace settlement at Anjangaon (not concluded until a year later) called the Treaty of Surji-Anjangaon . Military historian Richard Holmes remarked that Wellesley's experiences in India had an important influence on his personality and military tactics, teaching him much about military matters that would prove vital to his success in

12600-468: The damp environment. Though the campaign was to end disastrously, with the British army driven out of the United Provinces into the German states, Wellesley became more aware of battle tactics, including the use of lines of infantry against advancing columns, and the merits of supporting sea-power. He understood that the failure of the campaign was due in part to the faults of the leaders and

12750-405: The daughter of Edward Pakenham, 2nd Baron Longford . She was described as being full of 'gaiety and charm'. In 1793, he proposed, but was turned down by her brother Thomas , 2nd Earl of Longford , who considered Wellesley to be a young man, in debt, with very poor prospects. An aspiring amateur musician, Wellesley, devastated by the rejection, burnt his violins in anger, and resolved to pursue

12900-531: The daughter of Jean-Frédéric Perregaux, a Swiss (and Protestant) banker, later a founder and regent of the Banque de France, and Adélaïde de Praël de Surville, herself the natural daughter of the banker to the court of Louis XV, Nicolas Beaujon . They had no children and were divorced in 1817. She outlived him by five years, dying in Paris in 1857. Marmont is perhaps one of the most controversial marshals created under

13050-400: The east and from Prussian recruiting depots. Many Russian officers yearned to return to Russia having achieved their goal of ridding Russia of the French. Frederick William of Prussia had always viewed a renewed war with France as dubious, and the two defeats at Lützen and Bautzen had led him to reconsider peace. Moreover, the Prussians and the Russians were hopeful of bringing the Austrians into

13200-419: The enemy to a gentle ridge and gave the order to fire. After an extensive repetition of volleys, followed by a bayonet charge, the 33rd, in conjunction with the rest of Harris's force, forced Tipu's infantry to retreat. Immediately after their arrival at Seringapatam on 5 April 1799, the Battle of Seringapatam began and Wellesley was ordered to lead a night attack on the village of Sultanpettah, adjacent to

13350-402: The entire province. The Danes, heavily outnumbered, could not prevent an Allied advance on Jutland or Copenhagen , and sued for peace. It would be the final chapter in the long and bloody history of conflicts between Sweden and Denmark with the former definitively victorious. On 14 January 1814, the Treaty of Kiel was concluded between Sweden and Denmark–Norway . By the terms of the treaty,

13500-561: The expulsion of the French from Egypt . Wellesley had been appointed second in command to Baird, but owing to ill health did not accompany the expedition on 9 April 1801. This was fortunate for Wellesley, since the vessel on which he was to have sailed sank in the Red Sea. He was promoted to brigadier-general on 17 July 1801. He took residence within the Sultan's summer palace and reformed

13650-462: The face of superior French forces, the 33rd held off enemy cavalry, allowing neighbouring units to retreat safely. During the extremely harsh winter that followed, Wellesley and his regiment formed part of an allied force holding the defence line along the Waal River . The 33rd, along with the rest of the army, suffered heavy losses from attrition and illness. Wellesley's health was also affected by

13800-403: The field. Further losses occurred during the pursuit that evening, and into the following day, as the Swedish and Prussian cavalry took a further 13,000–14,000 French prisoners. Ney retreated to Wittenberg with the remains of his command and made no further attempt at capturing Berlin. Napoleon's bid to knock Prussia out of the war had failed; as had his operational plan to fight the battle of

13950-502: The following days the battle resulted in a defeat for Napoleon, who however was still able to manage a relatively orderly retreat westwards. However, as the French forces were pulling across the White Elster , the bridge was prematurely blown and 30,000 troops were stranded to be taken prisoner by the Allied forces. Napoleon defeated an army of his former ally Bavaria at the Battle of Hanau (30–31 October 1813) before pulling what

14100-468: The fortress to clear the way for the artillery. Because of a variety of factors including the Mysorean army's strong defensive preparations and the darkness the attack failed with 25 casualties due to confusion among the British. Wellesley suffered a minor injury to his knee from a spent musket-ball. Although they would re-attack successfully the next day, after time to scout ahead the enemy's positions,

14250-532: The future upkeep of Dhoondiah's orphaned son. In September 1802, Wellesley learnt that he had been promoted to the rank of major-general . He had been gazetted on 29 April 1802, but the news took several months to reach him by sea. He remained at Mysore until November when he was sent to command an army in the Second Anglo-Maratha War . When he determined that a long defensive war would ruin his army, Wellesley decided to act boldly to defeat

14400-411: The ground and bound along in a serpentine motion until their force was spent. According to one British observer, a young English officer named Bayly: "So pestered were we with the rocket boys that there was no moving without danger from the destructive missiles ...". He continued: The rockets and musketry from 20,000 of the enemy were incessant. No hail could be thicker. Every illumination of blue lights

14550-421: The ground and stamped it with his foot, ensured that Austria would join the coalition against France. Napoleon did not know it at the time, but the armistice would turn out to be a grave mistake as the Allies gained far more from the suspension of hostilities than he did. Meanwhile, on 21 May 1813, a Swedish corps of 15,000 commanded by General Döbeln occupied Hamburg without orders from Bernadotte, following

14700-466: The highly destabilizing series of wars. Napoleon, expecting to win the war, delayed too long and lost this opportunity; by December the Allies had withdrawn the offer. When his back was to the wall in 1814 he tried to reopen peace negotiations on the basis of accepting the Frankfurt proposals. The Allies now had new, harsher terms that included the retreat of France to its 1791 boundaries, which meant

14850-574: The independent command of Sweden's Crown Prince Carl Johan; and the Army of Bohemia , the primary Allied force in the field, with which the Allied sovereigns Alexander, Francis and Frederick William oversaw the Campaign, numbering 225,000 Austrians, Russians, and Prussians commanded by Prince Karl von Schwarzenberg . Following the end of the armistice, Napoleon seemed to have regained the initiative at Dresden (26–27 August 1813), where he inflicted one of

15000-467: The invaders until giving battle at Borodino (7 September) where the two armies fought a devastating battle. Despite the fact that France won a tactical victory, the battle was inconclusive. Following the battle the Russians withdrew, thus opening the road to Moscow . By 14 September, the French had occupied Moscow but found the city practically empty. Alexander I (despite having almost lost the war by Western European standards) refused to capitulate, leaving

15150-554: The island of Saint Helena and stayed in the same building in which Napoleon I would live during his later exile. In September 1805, Major-General Wellesley was newly returned from his campaigns in India and was not yet particularly well known to the public. He reported to the office of the Secretary of State for War and the Colonies to request a new assignment. In the waiting room, he met Vice-Admiral Horatio Nelson , already

15300-400: The lack of discipline among his men, who drank and pillaged the fortress and city. To restore order, several soldiers were flogged and four hanged . After battle and the resulting end of the war, the main force under General Harris left Seringapatam and Wellesley, aged 30, stayed behind to command the area as the new Governor of Seringapatam and Mysore. While in India, Wellesley was ill for

15450-602: The largest battles of the Napoleonic Wars to that point in time. The lack of horses for Napoleon's cavalry did not allow him to follow up his victories with a vigorous pursuit, robbing him of decisive results. Despite losing as many men as the Allies, Napoleon's victories had greatly demoralized the Prussians and Russians. Losses were heavy, and the Russian and Prussian forces were a shambles. Both Allied armies were in dire need of substantial reinforcements en route from

15600-541: The last French troops had left Russian soil, and Paris' allies were seriously considering rebellion and joining the Tsar's side. The Convention of Tauroggen was a truce signed 30 December 1812 at Tauroggen between Generalleutnant Ludwig Yorck von Wartenburg on behalf of his Prussian troops (who had been compelled to augment the Grande Armée during the invasion of Russia), and by General Hans Karl von Diebitsch of

15750-545: The loss of Belgium and the Rhineland. Napoleon adamantly refused. Following the Battle of Leipzig , Bernadotte and his Army of the North parted ways with the rest of the Coalition armies, and liberated Bremen and Lübeck in late November 1813. In early December, Bernadotte launched his long projected invasion of Denmark to secure the Coalition's northern flank prior to the invasion of France scheduled for early 1814 and to see

15900-477: The loss of which Napoleon believed would knock Prussia out of the War. However, Ney blundered into a trap set by Bernadotte and was stopped cold by the Prussians, and then routed when the Crown Prince arrived with his Swedes and a Russian corps on their open flank. This second defeat at the hands of Napoleon's ex-Marshal was catastrophic for the French, with them losing 50 cannon, four Eagles and 10,000 men on

16050-432: The main battle, rocketeers maneuvered to the rear of the British encampment, then 'threw a great number of rockets at the same instant' to signal the beginning of an assault by 6,000 Indian infantry and a corps of Frenchmen, all ordered by Mir Golam Hussain and Mohomed Hulleen Mir Miran. The rockets had a range of about 1,000 yards. Some burst in the air like shells . Others, called ground rockets, would rise again on striking

16200-464: The majority (around 30,000) were irregular light cavalry and unlikely to pose a serious threat to British infantry and artillery. Throughout June–August 1800, Wellesley advanced through Waugh's territory, his troops escalading forts in turn and capturing each one with "trifling loss". The forts generally offered little resistance due to their poor construction and design. Wellesley did not have sufficient troops to garrison each fort and had to clear

16350-560: The members owed their election to the landowners of fewer than a hundred boroughs. Wellesley continued to serve at Dublin Castle , voting with the government in the Irish parliament over the next two years. He became a captain on 30 January 1791, and was transferred to the 58th Regiment of Foot . On 31 October, he transferred to the 18th Light Dragoons and it was during this period that he grew increasingly attracted to Kitty Pakenham ,

16500-585: The most lop-sided losses of the era on the Prussian-Russian-Austrian forces. On 26 August, the Allies under Prince von Schwarzenberg attacked the French garrison in Dresden. Napoleon arrived on the battlefield in the early hours of 27 August with the Guard and other reinforcements and despite being severely outnumbered having only 135,000 men to the Coalition's 215,000, Napoleon chose to attack

16650-663: The new Governor-General of India . In 1798, he changed the spelling of his surname to "Wellesley"; up to this time he was still known as Wesley, which his eldest brother considered the ancient and proper spelling. As part of the campaign to extend the rule of the British East India Company , the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War broke out in 1798 against the Sultan of Mysore , Tipu Sultan . Arthur's brother Richard ordered that an armed force be sent to capture Seringapatam and defeat Tipu. During

16800-473: The numerically larger force of the Maratha Empire . With the logistic assembly of his army complete (24,000 men in total) he gave the order to break camp and attack the nearest Maratha fort on 8 August 1803. The fort surrendered on 12 August after an infantry attack had exploited an artillery-made breach in the wall. With the fort now in British control Wellesley was able to extend control southwards to

16950-415: The poor organisation at headquarters. He remarked later of his time in the Netherlands that "At least I learned what not to do, and that is always a valuable lesson". Returning to England in March 1795, he was reinstated as a member of parliament for Trim. He hoped to be given the position of secretary of war in the new Irish government but the new lord-lieutenant, Lord Camden , was only able to offer him

17100-530: The post of Surveyor-General of the Ordnance . Declining the post, he returned to his regiment, now at Southampton preparing to set sail for the West Indies . After seven weeks at sea, a storm forced the fleet back to Poole . The 33rd was given time to recuperate and a few months later, Whitehall decided to send the regiment to India. Wellesley was promoted full colonel by seniority on 3 May 1796 and

17250-546: The rank of field marshal after leading British-led forces to victory against the French at the Battle of Vitoria in 1813. Following Napoleon's first exile in 1814, he served as the British ambassador to France and was made Duke of Wellington . During the Hundred Days campaign in 1815, Wellington commanded another British-led army which, together with the Prussian Army under Field Marshal Gebhard von Blücher , defeated Napoleon at Waterloo. Wellington's battle record

17400-572: The remainder coming from allies or subject areas), crossed the Neman river on 24 June 1812. Russia proclaimed a Patriotic War, while Napoleon proclaimed a " Second Polish War ". But against the expectations of the Poles, who supplied almost 100,000 troops for the invasion force, and having in mind further negotiations with Russia, he avoided restoring the old Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth . Russian forces fell back, destroying everything potentially of use to

17550-487: The river Godavari . Splitting his army into two forces to pursue and locate the main Marathas army (the second force, commanded by Colonel Stevenson was far smaller), Wellesley was preparing to rejoin his forces on 24 September. His intelligence, however, reported the location of the Marathas' main army, between two rivers near Assaye . If he waited for the arrival of his second force, the Marathas would be able to mount

17700-473: The sabers and lances of Murat's Cuirassiers and Lancers who tore the Austrians to shreds, capturing 15 standards and forcing the balance of three divisions, 13,000 men, to surrender. The Allies were forced to retreat in some disorder having lost nearly 40,000 men to only 10,000 French. However, Napoleon's forces were also hampered by the weather and unable to close the encirclement the Emperor had planned before

17850-729: The same contemporary newspaper evidence, which states that he was born on 1 May 1769, the day before he was baptised in St. Peter's Church on Aungier Street in Dublin. However, Ernest Lloyd states "registry of St. Peter's Church, Dublin, shows that he was christened there on 30 April 1769". His baptismal font was donated to St. Nahi's Church in Dundrum, Dublin , in 1914. Wellesley may have been born at his parents' townhouse, Mornington House at 6 Merrion Street (the address later became known as 24 Upper Merrion Street), Dublin, which now forms part of

18000-549: The same time the French sustained several serious defeats, first at the hands of Bernadotte's Army of the North on 23 August, with Oudinot's thrust towards Berlin beaten back by the Prussians, at Großbeeren . At the Katzbach the Prussians, commanded by Blücher, took advantage of Napoleon's march toward Dresden to attack Marshal MacDonald's Army of the Bober. During a torrential rainstorm on 26 August, and due to conflicting orders and

18150-736: The second Dangan Castle , 3 miles (5 km) north of Summerhill in County Meath . In 1781, Arthur's father died and his eldest brother Richard inherited his father's earldom. He went to the diocesan school in Trim when at Dangan, Mr Whyte's Academy when in Dublin, and Brown's School in Chelsea when in London. He then enrolled at Eton College , where he studied from 1781 to 1784. His loneliness there caused him to hate it, and makes it highly unlikely that he actually said "The Battle of Waterloo

18300-532: The seeds of his undoing. With their armies reorganized, the allies drove Napoleon out of Germany in 1813 and invaded France in 1814. The Allies defeated the remaining French armies, occupied Paris, and forced Napoleon to abdicate and go into exile. The French monarchy was revived by the allies, who handed rule to the heir of the House of Bourbon in the Bourbon Restoration . The "Hundred Days" War of

18450-532: The side of the Allies. Meanwhile, Austria's alliance with France ended in February 1813, and Austria then moved to a position of armed neutrality. It would not declare war on France until half a year later, in August 1813. On 3 March 1813, after lengthy negotiations, the United Kingdom agreed to Swedish claims to Norway. Sweden entered a military alliance with the United Kingdom and declared war against France, liberating Swedish Pomerania shortly thereafter. On 17 March, King Frederick William III of Prussia published

18600-472: The subsequent pursuit of Archduke Charles , Marmont's corps was in a compromising position and was rescued only by the arrival of Napoleon with heavy reinforcements. Napoleon made him a Marshal of the Empire , though he said, "Between ourselves, you have not done enough to justify entirely my choice." Of the three marshals created after Wagram, the French soldiers said, MacDonald is France's choice Oudinot

18750-462: The surrounding area of insurgents before advancing to the next fort. On 31 July, he had "taken and destroyed Dhoondiah's baggage and six guns, and driven into the Malpoorba (where they were drowned) about five thousand people". Dhoondiah continued to retreat, but his forces were rapidly deserting, he had no infantry and due to the monsoon weather flooding river crossings he could no longer outpace

18900-481: The tax and justice systems in his province to maintain order and prevent bribery. In 1800, whilst serving as Governor of Mysore, Wellesley was tasked with putting down an insurgency led by Dhoondiah Waugh , formerly a Patan trooper for Tipu Sultan . Having escaped after the fall of Seringapatam he became a powerful brigand, raiding villages along the Maratha–Mysore border region. Despite initial setbacks,

19050-508: The theory that he was born in Dublin is generally accepted but by no means proved". Other places that have been put forward as the location of his birth include a coach between Meath and Dublin, the Dublin packet boat and the Wellesley townhouse in Trim, County Meath. Wellesley spent most of his childhood at his family's two homes, the first a large house in Dublin, Mornington House , and

19200-456: The tope, was at once attacked in the darkness of night by a tremendous fire of musketry and rockets. The men, floundering about amidst the trees and the water-courses, at last broke, and fell back in disorder, some being killed and a few taken prisoners. In the confusion Colonel Wellesley was himself struck on the knee by a spent ball, and narrowly escaped falling into the hands of the enemy. A few weeks later, after extensive artillery bombardment,

19350-744: The treaty guarantees over the Danish cession of Norway to Sweden enforced. Bernadotte's Army, now some 65,000, composed only of Swedish, North German and Russian troops following the secondment of the Prussian troops to Blücher's army, attacked the Royal Danish Army in Holstein . In a lightning campaign of only two weeks the Swedes subdued the Danes. General Anders Skjöldebrand defeated the Danes at Bornhöved on 7 December 1813. Three days later,

19500-406: The war and a break in the fighting would give them time to negotiate with Vienna. Another victory by Napoleon may very well have led to a favorable peace as not only were the Russians and Prussians at their nadir, but the Austrians, with their 150,000 troops would have seen a decisive French victory as ample proof that another war with France would be most undesirable. Despite the two victories over

19650-434: The war, rockets were used on several occasions. Wellesley was almost defeated by Tipu's Diwan, Purnaiah , at the Battle of Sultanpet Tope . Quoting Forrest, At this point (near the village of Sultanpet, Figure 5) there was a large tope, or grove, which gave shelter to Tipu's rocketmen and had obviously to be cleaned out before the siege could be pressed closer to Srirangapattana island. The commander chosen for this operation

19800-422: The winter of 1812-1813. When Napoleon marched on Moscow in June 1812, neither Britain nor Sweden was able to give direct military support to Russia, though that same month the British and Spanish armies had advanced into central Spain , defeating the French at Salamanca and capturing Madrid , tying down a French army of 230,000. Britain also helped subsidize the Russian war effort while Charles John had struck up

19950-643: The world. After the end of his active military career, Wellington returned to politics. He was twice British prime minister as a member of the Tory party from 1828 to 1830 and for a little less than a month in 1834. Wellington oversaw the passage of the Roman Catholic Relief Act 1829 , while he opposed the Reform Act 1832 . He continued to be one of the leading figures in the House of Lords until his retirement and remained Commander-in-Chief of

20100-429: Was Col. Wellesley, but advancing towards the tope after dark on the 5th April 1799, he was set upon with rockets and musket-fires, lost his way and, as Beatson politely puts it, had to "postpone the attack" until a more favourable opportunity should offer. The following day, Wellesley launched a fresh attack with a larger force, and took the whole position without any killed in action. On 22 April 1799, twelve days before

20250-411: Was accompanied by a shower of rockets, some of which entered the head of the column, passing through to the rear, causing death, wounds, and dreadful lacerations from the long bamboos of twenty or thirty feet, which are invariably attached to them. Under the command of General Harris , some 24,000 troops were dispatched to Madras (to join an equal force being sent from Bombay in the west). Arthur and

20400-399: Was also transferred to the new 76th Regiment forming in Ireland and on Christmas Day, 1787, was promoted lieutenant . During his time in Dublin his duties were mainly social; attending balls, entertaining guests and providing advice to Buckingham. While in Ireland, he overextended himself in borrowing due to his occasional gambling, but in his defence stated that "I have often known what it

20550-531: Was an Anglo-Irish military officer and statesman who was one of the leading military and political figures in Britain during the late 18th and early 19th centuries, serving twice as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom . He is among the commanders who ended the Anglo-Mysore Wars when Tipu Sultan was killed in the fourth war in 1799 and among those who ended the Napoleonic Wars in a victory when

20700-416: Was and, on his return, switched to a very different tone, discussing the war, the state of the colonies, and the geopolitical situation as between equals. On this second discussion, Wellington recalled, "I don't know that I ever had a conversation that interested me more". This was the only time that the two men met; Nelson was killed at his victory at Trafalgar seven weeks later. Wellesley then served in

20850-497: Was directed to scour this grove and dislodge the enemy, but on his advancing with this object on the night of the 5th, he found the tope unoccupied. The next day, however, the Mysore troops again took possession of the ground, and as it was absolutely necessary to expel them, two columns were detached at sunset for the purpose. The first of these, under Colonel Shawe, got possession of a ruined village, which it successfully held. The second column, under Colonel Wellesley, on advancing into

21000-535: Was in the thick of the action the whole time ... I never saw a man so cool and collected as he was ... though I can assure you, till our troops got the order to advance the fate of the day seemed doubtful ..." With some 6,000 Marathas killed or wounded, the enemy was routed, though Wellesley's force was in no condition to pursue. British casualties were heavy: the British losses amounted to 428 killed, 1,138 wounded and 18 missing (the British casualty figures were taken from Wellesley's own despatch). Wellesley

21150-497: Was in violation of the Continental System. Swedish estates were confiscated and Swedish officers and soldiers were taken as prisoners. In response, Charles John, formerly French Marshal Jean Baptiste Bernadotte , now the Crown Prince and Regent of Sweden, declared neutrality, and though Sweden was still at war with Britain, and Russia was its perennial enemy, he dispatched diplomats to London and St. Petersburg to create

21300-536: Was left of his forces back into France. Meanwhile, Davout's corps continued to hold out in its Siege of Hamburg , where it became the last Imperial field force east of the Rhine . The Allies offered peace terms in the Frankfurt proposals in November 1813. Napoleon would remain as Emperor of France, but it would be reduced to its "natural frontiers". That meant that France could retain control of Belgium , Savoy and

21450-458: Was named. Through Elizabeth of Rhuddlan , Wellesley was a descendant of Edward I . Wellesley was the sixth of nine children born to the Earl and Countess of Mornington. His siblings included Richard, Viscount Wellesley , later 1st Marquess Wellesley , 2nd Earl of Mornington , and Baron Maryborough . The exact date and location of Wellesley's birth is not known, but biographers mostly follow

21600-508: Was never gratified and he wandered in central and eastern Europe, settling finally in Vienna, where he was well received by the Austrian government. Strangely, he was made tutor to the Duke of Reichstadt , the young man who had once for a few weeks been styled Napoleon II . Despite his long friendship with Napoleon, by this time the verb "raguser"—derived from his title, the Duke of Ragusa—was

21750-500: Was present at the coup d'état of the 18th Brumaire and organized the artillery for the expedition to Italy, which he commanded with great effect at Marengo . For this, he was at once made general of division. In 1801, he became inspector-general of artillery, and in 1804, grand officer of the Legion of Honour . However, he was greatly disappointed at being omitted from the list of officers who were made marshals. In 1805, he received

21900-450: Was the signal for the King of Bavaria to proclaim neutrality and begin negotiations with the Austrians (on the basis of territorial guarantees and Maximilian's retention of his crown) in preparation of joining the Allied cause. A body of Saxon troops had defected to Bernadotte's Army during the battle and Westphalian troops were now deserting King Jérôme 's army in large numbers. Following

22050-400: Was to be in want of money, but I have never got helplessly into debt". On 23 January 1788, he transferred into the 41st Regiment of Foot , then again on 25 June 1789 he transferred to the 12th (Prince of Wales's) Regiment of (Light) Dragoons and, according to military historian Richard Holmes , he also reluctantly entered politics. Shortly before the general election of 1789, he went to

22200-501: Was troubled by the loss of men and remarked that he hoped "I should not like to see again such loss as I sustained on 23 September, even if attended by such gain". Years later, however, he remarked that Assaye and not Waterloo was the best battle he ever fought. Despite the damage done to the Maratha army, the battle did not end the war. A few months later in November, Wellesley attacked a larger force near Argaum , leading his army to victory again, with an astonishing 5,000 enemy dead at

22350-426: Was unlikely, but not impossible, that the family had travelled to Dublin for his baptism. A pillar was erected in his honour near Dangan in 1817. The place of his birth has been much disputed following his death, with Sir J.B. Burke writing the following in 1873: "Isn't it remarkable that until recently all the old memoirs of the Duke of Wellington seemed to infer that County Meath was the place of birth. Nowadays

22500-531: Was won on the playing fields of Eton", a quotation which is often attributed to him. Moreover, Eton had no playing fields at the time. In 1785, a lack of success at Eton, combined with a shortage of family funds due to his father's death, forced the young Wellesley and his mother to move to Brussels . Until his early twenties, Arthur showed little sign of distinction and his mother grew increasingly concerned at his idleness, stating, "I don't know what I shall do with my awkward son Arthur." In 1786, Arthur enrolled in

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