Peninsular War

Battles of the Peninsular War 1808 to 1814:

Battle of Roliça:   The first battle fought by the British in the Peninsular War, on 17^th August 1808; also, the first of the string of victories over the French won by Sir Arthur Wellesley, later the Duke of Wellington. Podcast of the Battle of Roliça.

Battle of Vimeiro:  Sir Arthur Wellesley’s (later the Duke of Wellington) victory over the French army of Marshal Junot in Portugal on 21^st August 1808, in the opening stages of the Peninsular War; a battle that nearly  ruined Wellesley’s military career.  Podcast of The Battle of Vimeiro.

Battle of Sahagun:  The dawn attack by the British 15^th Hussars, on 21^st December 1808 in the snow, that routed a French cavalry brigade and set the standard for British cavalry in the Peninsular War; ‘Success to the Fifteenth; and ‘God Save the King’. Podcast of the Battle of Sahagun.

Battle of Benavente:  The second cavalry battle, fought on 29^th December 1808, establishing the early predominance of British cavalry over French in the Peninsular War. Podcast of The Battle of Benavente.

Battle of Cacabelos:  The battle fought at Cacabelos bridge on 3^rd January 1809 during Sir John Moore’s retreat to Corunna in the Peninsular War. Podcast of the Battle of Cacabelos.

Battle of Corunna:  The battle, also known as the Battle of Elviña, that ensured the escape of the British army from Spain on 16^th January 1809, during the Peninsular War, with the death of Sir John Moore at the moment of success. Podcast of the Battle of Corunna.

Battle of the Douro:  This battle, also known as the Second Battle of Oporto, saw Sir Arthur Wellesley’s (later the Duke of Wellington) successful passage of the River Douro at Oporto in Portugal, on 12^th May 1809 during the Peninsular War, forcing Marshal Soult’s French army into headlong and disastrous retreat to Spain. Podcast of the Battle of the Douro.

Battle of Talavera:  The British victory south of Madrid on 28^th July 1809 over Joseph Bonaparte, the King imposed on Spain by Napoleon and his French army in the Peninsular War. Podcast of the Battle of Talavera.

Battle of the River Coa:  The British Light Division’s fierce battle to escape from Marshal Ney’s French corps across the River Coa on 24^th July 1810 in the Peninsular War. Podcast of the Battle of the River Coa.

Battle of Busaco:  Wellington’s highly successful holding battle fought on 27^th September 1810 in Western Portugal against Marshal Massena’s invading French army, as the British and Portuguese withdrew to Lisbon and the Lines of Torres Vedras, during the Peninsular War. Podcast of the Battle of Busaco.

Battle of Barrosa:  General Graham’s notable victory over the French during the march to Cadiz on 5^th March 1811, in the Peninsular War. Podcast of the Battle of Barrosa.

Battle of Campo Maior:  The Peninsular War action fought on 25^th March 1811, where the British 13^th Light Dragoons charged and swept away a larger force of French cavalry before capturing a train of artillery. Podcast of the Battle of Campo Maior.

Battle of Redinha or Pombal:  The indecisive battle fought on 12^th March 1811 in Western Central Portugal, during Massena’s retreat from the Lines of Torres Vedras to the River Mondego, following the unsuccessful French attempt to capture Lisbon during the Peninsular War. Podcast of the Battle of Redinha or Pombal.

Battle of Sabugal:  The brilliant Peninsular War action fought on 3^rd April 1811 by the Light Division against Reynier’s French Second Corps on the north-eastern border of Portugal during Massena’s retreat to Spain. Podcast of the Battle of Sabugal.

Battle of Fuentes de Oñoro:  Wellington’s hard fought battle on 3^rd to 5^th May 1811 in the Peninsular War to prevent Massena relieving the fortress of Almeida. Podcast of the Battle of Fuentes de Oñoro.

Battle of Albuera: Marshal Beresford’s hard-fought battle against Marshal Soult on 16^th May 1811 during the Peninsular War, with his army of British, Portuguese and Spanish troops. Podcast of the Battle of Albuera.

Battle of Usagre:  The brisk battle fought on 25^th May 1811 in the Peninsular War, where a powerful force of French dragoons was overwhelmed by the British 3^rd Dragoon Guards and 4^th Dragoons with their Spanish and Portuguese allies.  Podcast of the Battle of Usagre.

Battle of El Bodon:  The successful rear-guard actions fought on 25^th September 1811 in the Peninsular War, west and south of Ciudad Rodrigo, by Wellington’s troops against French cavalry. Podcast of the Battle of El Bodon.

Battle of Arroyo Molinos:  The spectacular destruction of Girard’s French Division by General Rowland Hill on 28^th October 1811 in the Peninsular War. Podcast of the Battle of Arroyo Molinos.

Storming of Ciudad Rodrigo:  The sudden capture by Wellington, on 19^th January 1812, of Marmont’s ‘base of operations’ for the intended French third invasion of Portugal, during the Peninsular War. Podcast of the Storming of Ciudad Rodrigo

Storming of Badajoz:  Wellington’s hard-fought capture, on 6^th April 1812, of the second French base on the Portuguese border, the southern gateway for the British invasion of Spain, during the Peninsular War. Podcast of the Storming of Badajoz

Battle of Villagarcia:  The successful cavalry action against the French on 11^th April 1812 in the Peninsular War.  Podcast of the Battle of Villagarcia

Battle of Almaraz: Rowland Hill’s resourceful destruction of the fortified French bridge of boats at Almaraz over the River Tagus on 19th May 1812, during the Peninsular War. Podcast on the Battle of Almaraz

Battle of Salamanca: Wellington’s victory on 22^nd July 1812 over the French army of Marshal Marmont, during the Peninsular War, leading to the re-capture of Madrid; also known as the Battle of Los Arapiles or Les Arapiles. Podcast of the Battle of Salamanca

Battle of Garcia Hernandez:  The Second Day of the Battle of Salamanca, on 23^rd July 1812, during the Peninsular War, when King’s German Legion Dragoons overwhelmed French infantry squares during the French retreat. Podcast on the Battle of Garcia Hernandez

Battle of Majadahonda:  The engagement on 11^th August 1812 in the Peninsular War between Wellington’s advanced guard and Joseph Buonaparte’s cavalry rear-guard. Podcast on the Battle of Majadahonda

Attack on Burgos:  Wellington’s unsuccessful assault on the Spanish City of Burgos, between 19^th September and 25^th October 1812, during the Peninsular War, following the Battle of Salamanca. Podcast on the Attack on Burgos

Retreat from Burgos:  Wellington’s retreat to Ciudad Rodrigo following the unsuccessful Attack on Burgos in the autumn of 1812 in the Peninsular War. Podcast on the Retreat from Burgos

Battle of Morales de Toro: The successful cavalry action fought by the British Hussar Brigade against the French 16^th and 21^st Dragoons on 1^st June 1813, during the Peninsular War. Podcast on the Battle of Morales de Toro

Battle of San Millan and Osma:  The clash in the mountains of Northern Spain on 18^th June 1813, during the Peninsular War, between the van of Wellington’s advancing army and General Reille’s French ‘Army of Portugal’, withdrawing on Vitoria. Podcast on the Battle of San Millan and Osma

Battle of Vitoria:  Wellington’s decisive defeat of Joseph Bonaparte’s French army on 21^st June 1813, in the Peninsular War. Podcast of the Battle of Vitoria

Storming of San Sebastian:  The hard-fought struggle to capture San Sebastian, the city port on the north-east coast of Spain near the French border, between 11^th July and 9^th September 1813 in the Peninsular War. Podcast on the Storming of San Sebastian

Battle of the Pyrenees:  The series of battles fought between 25^th July and 2^nd August 1813 in the western Pyrenees Mountains, during the Peninsular War; Wellington decisively repelling Marshal Soult’s incursion across the border to relieve the French garrisons in Pamplona and San Sebastian. Podcast on the Battle of the Pyrenees

Battle of San Marcial: The Battle fought on 31^st August and 1^st September 1813 along the French border, during the Peninsular War; with Spanish troops decisively repelling the French attack. Podcast on the Battle of San Marcial

Battle of the Bidassoa: The Battle fought on 7^th October 1813, during the Peninsular War; Wellington’s army crossing the River Bidassoa into France. Podcast on the Battle of the Bidassoa

Battle of the Nivelle: The Battle fought on 10^th November 1813, during the Peninsular War; Wellington’s army crossing the River Nivelle and moving from the Pyrenees Mountains into the plains of France. Podcast on the Battle of the Nivelle

Battle of the Nive: (including the Battle of St Pierre):  The Battle fought between 9^th and 13^th December 1813; Wellington’s army crossing the River Nive and moving further into France; a battle with some of the fiercest fighting of the Peninsular War.  Podcast on the Battle of the Nive

Battle of St Pierre:  The Battle fought on the last day of the crossing of the River Nive by Wellington’s army, on 13^th December 1813; described as some of the fiercest fighting of the Peninsular War.  Podcast on the Battle of St Pierre

Battle of Orthez: The Battle fought on 2nd February 1814, during the Peninsular War, in the south-west of France, that saw Wellington push Marshal Soult’s Army of the Pyrenees back across the River Adour.  Podcast on the Battle of Orthez

Battle of Tarbes: The Action fought by Wellington against Marshal Soult on 20^th March 1814 in Southern France, during the Peninsular War; where the three Battalions of the 95^th Rifles distinguished themselves.  Podcast on the Battle of Tarbes

Battle of Toulouse:  The Battle fought by Wellington against Marshal Soult on 10^th April 1814 outside the French City of Toulouse in Southern France; the last battle fought by Wellington in the Peninsular War. Podcast on the Battle of Toulouse

Sortie from Bayonne: The terrible night-time clash outside Bayonne on 14^th April 1814, that marked the end of the Peninsular War, but occurred after the abdication of the Emperor Napoleon on 4^th April 1814. Podcast on the Sortie from Bayonne

Reference Works for the Peninsular War:

Authoritative Histories of the Peninsular War:

History of the Peninsular War by Sir William Napier

History of the Peninsular War by Sir Charles Oman

History of the British Army by John Fortescue

The life of His Grace Arthur, Duke, Marquis, and Earl of Wellington by Francis L. Clarke

Modern Accounts of the Peninsular War:

Wellington: The Road to the Lion’s Mound 1769-1815 by Daniel Res

The Peninsular War: A Concise Military History by Michael Glover

The Peninsular War by Ian Fletcher

The Peninsular War by Charles Esdaile

Corps and Regimental Histories:

History of the King’s German Legion by North Ludlow Beamish

Historical Record of the Tenth, the Prince of Wales’s Own Regiment of Hussars

Origin and Services of the Coldstream Guards by Colonel Mckinnon

Historical Record of the 14^th (King’s) Hussars by Colonel Hamilton

History of the Rifle Brigade, formerly the 95^th by Sir William Cope

Works dealing with particular features of the Peninsular War:

Campaign of the Left Wing of the Allied Army, in the Western Pyrenees & South of France, in the Years 1813-1814, under Field-Marshal The Marquess of Wellington by Robert Batty (captain in 1^st Foot Guards)

Wellington’s Headquarters: The Command and Administration of the British Army during the Peninsular War by S.G.P. Ward

Life in Wellington’s Army by Antony Brett-James

Wellington’s Regiments by Ian Fletcher

Redcoats against Napoleon, the 30^th Regiment during the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars by Carole Divall

Inside the Regiment: The Officers and Men of the 30^th Regiment during the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars by Carole Divall

Wellington’s Army in the Peninsula 1808-1814 by Michael Glover

A History of the Medical Department by Lieutenant General Sir Neil Cantlie

Peninsular Preparation: The Reform of the British Army 1795-1809 by Richard Glover, Cambridge University Press

The Battle Honours of the British and Indian Armies 1695-1914 by NB Leslie

Wellington’s Men Remembered: A register of memorials to soldiers who fought in the Peninsular War and at Waterloo (2 vols) by Janet and David Bromley

Contemporary Recollections by soldiers:

Memoirs of a Sergeant in the 43rd Light Infantry Regiment

Intelligence Officer in the Peninsula (letters and diaries of Charles Somers Cocks) by Julia Page

Adventures with the Rifle Brigade by John Kincaid

Diary of a Cavalry Officer in the Peninsular War and Waterloo Campaign 1809-1815 by Lieutenant Colonel Tomkinson 16^th Light Dragoons

Letters of Private Wheeler edited by B.H. Lidell Hart

Recollections of the Peninsula by Moyle Sherer 34^th Regiment

The Private Journal of Judge-Advocate Larpent

An Ensign in the Peninsular War, letters of John Aitchison edited by W.F.K. Thompson

A Journal of a Cavalry Officer in the Corunna Campaign 1808-1809 by Captain Alexander Gordon of the 15^th Hussars