Peninsular War

Peninsular War, 1808–14. Provoked by Napoleon's intervention in Portugal and his imposition of his brother Joseph on the throne of Spain, the war in the Iberian peninsula marked a turning point in the Napoleonic War. By closing Spanish and Portuguese ports to British trade Napoleon had hoped to compel Britain to sue for peace, but his intervention aroused massive popular hostility in Spain and Portugal. Although they were often defeated, the Spanish armies continued to defy the French, while Spanish guerrillas held down large numbers of French troops. When the Spaniards asked Britain for assistance the decision to commit an expeditionary force was a bold one. Initially British opinion exaggerated the likelihood of early success, and only in 1809 did the British accept that the war would be long and arduous. Under Wellington the British collaborated effectively with the Portuguese, whose army was retrained by British officers. In the winter of 1810–11 Masséna's attempt to drive the British into the sea was thwarted by the lines of Torres Vedras, a masterpiece of military engineering and a tribute to Anglo-Portuguese co-operation. Thereafter Wellington regularly challenged the French, knowing that his Portuguese base was secure. In 1812 he won the dramatic battle of Salamanca, and in 1813 he exploited British sea power to conduct a brilliant campaign in northern Spain which reached its climax at the battle of Vitoria. After expelling the French from Spain, Wellington invaded southern France in 1814. Throughout the Peninsular War, Wellington used the ‘reverse slope defence’ to establish the superiority of the line over the column. Choosing his ground carefully, he drew up his main force behind a ridge, while light infantry impeded the French advance. The French were handicapped by their lack of artillery and cavalry, which had ensured the success of the column elsewhere. The war in Spain sapped the energies of the French military machine and encouraged the Russians, Prussians, and Austrians in their resistance to Napoleon. It established Wellington's renown as a general and restored the reputation of the British army in the field.

John W. Derry