Wellington’s conviction that things always went wrong when he wasn’t there was to come true again further south. General Beresford, with and army of 35.000 men, was besieging the great fortress of Badajoz but his efforts were not just held up by the great strength of the walls of the place but also because he lacked the heavy artillery to do the job properly, in fact the lack of artillery, especially heavy artillery, was to plague Wellington throughout the entire war. As they picked away at it, news arrived of the approach of a French army of 24.000 men under Marshall Soult, so Beresford turned about and went out to meet it. They both came together at the town of Albuera, where one of the most extraordinary examples of raw courage and sheer doggedness was to take place and holds a pantheon place in the annals of the British army.

The battle began with a feint to Beresford’s centre and when he moved to reinforce it, Soult struck from the right with a force that had remained hidden behind a hill. The first to meet this threat were the Spanish, who performed commandingly well and held on until the Brits arrived to shore them up. Unfortunately, this arrival was suddenly met by a torrential downpour, which soaked the men’s powder, which rendered their weapons temporarily useless. It was then the French cavalry, most notably Polish Lancers, attacked with devastating consequences. The Kents lost 80% of its men and the 57th Middlesex regiment 66%. Other regiments also suffered shocking losses but despite this, they held their ground and refused to budge. It appears that Beresford had a bit of a mental blank at this point and taking it upon himself General Cole moved his division forward without orders to help the beleaguered men. The French now attacked in overwhelming numbers, hoping to sweep the right away and secure victory and what followed was one of the most prestigious fire and bayonet fights in British history. To two armies clashed and following the initial slaughter, Cole’s brigade began to slowly move forward, loading and firing and bayonetting their way along, only really knowing they were making progress amidst the smoke, noise and carnage when the colour of the uniforms of the dead beneath their feet were finally French. Eventually the French gave way and were pushed down the slope in a disorganised rout. The British left had been turned and held, so had the centre. Finally Soult, realising he could not win the war of attrition, called off his attacks and retired.

Sir William Napier wrote of it…. and then was seen with what strength and majesty the British soldier fights. Nothing could stop that astonishing infantry. The Middlesex lost 428 of its 647 men and as their Colonel lay mortally wounded at their feet, he continually cried out to them ‘die hard 57th, die hard.’ Following this battle their regimental nickname became The Diehards.                                                                                                                                                                                                       General Beresford said after the battle, ‘Our dead, particularly the 57th lay in line, where they had fought in the ranks, every wound in the front. Marshall Soult wrote, ‘there is no defeating these men despite their generals. I had turned their right and pierced their centre, everywhere victory was mine and yet they did not know it and did not know how to run. The British lost approximately 6000 and the French 8000. Wellington killed two horses galloping to the battlefield but it was all over by the time he got there. Many of the soldiers would look upon the absence of Wellington as a bad omen in future.

Despite the victories, there remained the problem of the two great fortresses of Badajoz and Cuidad Rodrigo, which both remained in French hands. They were both festering sores in Wellington’s sides because they were always a stepping stone to a reinvasion of Portugal, if left unchecked. He made a half hearted attempt at taking Badajoz but made no progress and recognising that he could not take it with a French army hovering hereabouts, he moved on to have a crack at Cuidad Rodrigo. Alas the lack of heavy cannon was to hamper him once more and it was not until General (daddy) Hill finally arrived with a decent siege train that they could finally consider an assault but the weather was so cold it froze the water in the men’s canteens and a number of them froze to death. When the weather turned they began the siege and when two decent breeches had been made, they stormed it. The French fought hard but in the end the Brits got a foothold in the town and the French being aware of the fact that if an enemy does not surrender a town when resistance is futile, they can expect no quarter, so they put up their arms. The Brits then ran wild in the town, pillaging everything in sight and getting hopelessly drunk. The next morning they stumbled out of their holes and marched past Wellington, carrying loaves and hams stuck on their bayonets, some even had French hats and clothing on. Wellington was taken aback because here we have looters, who he normally hung, brazenly marching straight past him. “who are those damn fellows” he asked and was told they were the 95th Rifle Brigade. Suddenly one of the men called for a cheer from him, which he would give a regiment if it performed well, by taking off his hat and waving it over his head and shouting hurrah. The 95th had lost a lot of men in that breech but had taken it all the same, so Wellington obliged them, raised his hat and shouted 'damn you impudent fellows.' They cheered and marched off happy but a precedence had been set in Cuidad and the next time they took a fort, it would turn into an infamous affair.

News of the fall of Cuidad Rodrigo sent Napoleon into a fit of rage and at one point he was considering taking control himself but he was too engrossed in his forthcoming invasion of his old ally, Russia, to spare himself. In fact he ordered 7000 Grenadiers, some of Soult’s finest men, to march to Prussia, ready for his invasion. Wellington by contrast remained confident and although he was mostly dismayed by the Spanish, his Portuguese contingent more than made up. Trained and equipped by Britain, they were performing with courage and élan and held in the highest respect from their fellow soldiers in the British and Hanoverian ranks. Wellington now turned his attention to the great fortress of Badajoz, which would be an altogether tougher nut to crack.This was a formidable structure, guarded on two sides by water and a great ditch at the base of the walls, which were 16ft thick, guarded by 140 cannon and mined on the approaches. It was garrisoned by some 4000 French soldiers and much of the town’s inhabitants. Fortunately, a French officer defected to the Brits before the siege began, with plans of where all of the mines were placed. Preparation went ahead for the breeching with new cannon, which had been supplied and delivered by the navy, however, on hearing of the possible approach of a French army under Soult, Wellington decided to attempt a somewhat premature  assault by ladder, which was repeatedly repulsed fourteen times, with the French taunting them from the walls, which only added to swelling anger and frustration the attackers were feeling. To add to this, the French made a surprise attack out of the fortress at night and wrecked many of the siege cannon and in a hard fought and confused battle they were finally repelled. There was nothing for it, but to breech the wall before a conventional storming of the place.

Steady progress was being made on the walls in two separate places but before they could be at the most advantageous height for an entry, news reached Wellington that an army under Marmont was on its way to relieve the city, so his hand was forced and he ordered it to be stormed. What followed was impossible courage followed by outrageous barbarity. The attack would consist of a frontal assault on the two breeches, whilst simultaneously men would attempt to scale the thirty foot walls with ladders. The soldiers approaching had to do so under a hale of shot and shell, before reaching the ditch at the base of the walls, then begin their climb up the rubble and into the breech. The French had prepared them well, by clearing away any rubble that might afford them any cover. Numerous planks, with spikes and even swords buried in them were strewn across the openings, along with mines and barrels of powder. The French were armed with numerous fused grenades and the men on their front lines were the best shots and behind them were scores of men reloading rifles for them, so there was no respite between volleys. Men falling off the scaling ladders were sometimes killed by the fall into the surrounding ditch and others, who were badly wounded actually drowned in the shallow water. More than forty separate attacks were repulsed and from the walls the French taunted them, asking if they really wanted to enter the city. Wave after wave came forward and after each time the men following had to climb ever higher and higher to get over the mounting stack of bodies over twenty feet high but still they came on and on. Approximately 3,500 men were to die in those breeches and the surrounding ditch alone. Wellington went pale and shook at the sight of his men’s sacrifice. He sent orders for General Picton to have one last try and whilst his men battled through the carnage once more, suddenly they spotted a single redcoat on the top of the wall. A cheer went up and suddenly there were more redcoats gaining the top. That single man, who was  quite possibly the reason the fortress would fall, was Colonel Henry Ridge of the Northumberland Fusileers but within a minute he lay dead but by now others had made the top and were beginning to clear the French and bring down fire on the defenders. The rest of the army now poured over the breech’s and into the town where they embarked on a drunken orgy of destruction, rape and murder that was to last three days. Only when Wellington had a gallows built in the town square was some order gained. Nobody was actually hanged but many were flogged. It cast a dark shadow on the Spanish, who were meant to be their allies and although the occupants were siding with the French and had refused to surrender, which even in those days solicited a policy of no quarter, the action after the fall of the town was to sour relations long after and as far as the town is concerned, even today it is still remembered with bitterness. Some years ago the Fusileers applied to the town to have a plaque erected to the men who died fighting there and they were refused.

The General who presided over the assault that led to the ultimate destruction of the French, was Welshman Sir Thomes Picton. Picton was an indespensible man in Wellington's army, a man whom Wellington described as 'a rough, foul mouthed devil as ever lived.' He was an avid fornicator, roisterer and keen duelist. Wellington would never have dreamt of mixing socially with him but he knew a winning formulae when he saw one and Picton was just that. His list of military achievements were legendary in the Peninsular and although he is still celebrated to a certain extent in his home country of Wales, the terminally sanctimonious of the left have always endevoured to have him excluded from any form of favourable recognition, although he does have towns named after him in Canada, Australia and New Zealnd. He is the only Welshman to be buried in St Paul's Cathedral, where his tomb sits close to Wellingtons. He was somewhat eccentric, wearing a top hat into battle and sometimes leading his men from the front, armed with nothing but a parasol over his head and swearing and cursing and lambasting them to the heavens and his men loved for it. His crime? He sanctioned a form of torture on a young black girl when he was Governer General of Trinidad, amongst other acts we would now call terrible crimes. The rulers being grossly outnumbered and constantly under the threat of insurrection, he ruled with a rod of iron. The girl in question was charged with stealing five hundred pounds, a vast amount at the time and to extract a confession he actually used a punishment that was widely used in the British army. It involved hanging the person up from their wrists and placing a dull peg of wood below their feet. It would not break the skin but caused great pain on one of the body's most sensitive parts. It's amazing to think that this act against a girl, over 200 years ago, resulted in Picton being recalled to Britain to stand trial himself and they even fetched the girl over to give testimony aswell and her somewhat exotic appearance beguiled too many important people. In the two years this took to come to trial, Picton's opponents had him on a par with Atilla the Hun. Eventually he won his case on the grounds that Trinidad was still under Spanish law, where torture was not forbiden. What does this tell the world about Britain at the time, when the misstreatment of a single black girl, all but a slave, on a Carribbean Island could bring down a Governer General? In the values of the world at that time, it's astonishing to say the least. Picton was wounded, probably fatally, at the battle of Quatra Bras, three days before Waterloo but he kept the seriouness to himself. On the day of Waterloo he was shot through the head leading his men once more from the front and so died a very courageous man. His top hat can be seen in the National Army Museum in Chelsea, complete with musket ball hole through the middle and his blood stains. And with Napoleon in mind, you can also view the skeleton of Napoleon's horse, Marengo, which is in a glass case.

And talking of Picton, before we move on. When Wellington went to the breeches, the sight of so many of his dead soldiers made him cry, just as Picton came hobbling up to him with his latest wound in the leg. Wellington tried to contain himself but he couldn't and seeing his tears Picton said to him..... my dear Wellington, whatever's the matter?

In-between the great battles, there were numerous smaller engagements taking place and far too many to mention here. There were approximately 230.000 French in Spain but they were split into five armies, with the separate commanders arguing amongst each other, thus making a single coherent strategy impossible. In France Napoleon was about to set off for Russia and had little time for what he called ‘his Spanish ulcer.’After securing and provisioning the fortresses, Wellington set off for the university city of Salamanca, where his army was greeted with an enthusiastic welcome. It was here where a French army under Marmont arrived on his doorstep. The French now naturally wary of Wellington and his army, refused to engage him without an advantage and if an army will not stop and fight, you can’t have a battle. Wellington was of the same thought and so these two armies followed each other on a parallel course, awaiting the right moment. Again, outlying pickets from both armies would easily fraternise as they went along but both armies suffered badly from the contrasting climate. It was oppressively hot during the daytime and ice cold at night, so much so, that soldiers even dug up graves to get the coffins for burning and Wellington noted that he had never been so cold in his entire life. During this stand off, Wellington again ventured too far to observe the French close up and was nearly killed again, having to draw his sword and cut his way out. Eventually Marmont was to make a mistake and misjudge a situation, thus sending out a large number of men to confront the perceived threat. They were in fact, marching across the front of the allies. Wellington was sat on his horse, eating a leg of chicken and observing the French, when suddenly he exclaimed, ‘my god, that will do,’ and turning to his fellow officers present said, ‘Marmont is lost.’ The battle of Salamanca was an example of Wellington’s skill as an attacking General. As was his way, he dashed across every inch of the battlefield, giving orders personally to every commander as his opportunity arrived. It is said that he defeated a French army of 40,000 in forty minutes, which sums up the crushing defeat the French suffered.

During this battle the British main thrust was carried out in column. Whenever tactics of the Anglo French war of the Napoleonic times are discussed, they invariably concentrate on the British line versus the French column but the column formation was used by the British too. Both have their strengths and weaknesses. French columns could be huge, as much as forty men wide and sixty upwards deep. Their disadvantage being, only the fist two ranks and a limited amount down the sides could fire. They were also  prone to taking exaggerated casualties from cannon fire, being so densely packed. Their advantage being that once they reached the enemy, the impact was devastating, they literally rolled right over them and split armies or sections of armies in two. They had a tremendous shock value. These French columns had wreaked havoc across Europe and had proved irresistible. Unlike the French, the British columns had many tactics and variations, due to their regimental system. Regiments in the British army are fiercely independent in so many ways and if they’re not fighting the enemy, they’ll settle for fighting each other. The British army is not described as a loose amalgamation of warring tribes for nothing. The victory at Albuhera was achieved against all odds, because no regiment would dream of leaving the field of battle, whilst another remained upon it. It is easier to maintain order in a column, especially in the thick smoke produced in battles of those times. A column also lends itself to maintaining morale and despite their size, can be easily manoeuvred by those at the front. The line carries the same pros and cons. More men can fire and with well trained soldiers, they were like machine guns, but once pierced, they were broken. Unlike the column they had little or no protection against cavalry, who could ride them down at will, if they could not form a square in time.

Many people think that the line tactic of the British was developed by Wellington’s army, but that’s not true. There is a little known battle that took place in Italy in 1806 called the battle of Maida. Here General John Stuart led a British army to victory over an experienced French army, fresh from its numerous victories across Europe. Here, for the first time, the British used the line formation to devastating effect.

The victory at Salamanca rocketed Wellington into a new league, as far as all Europe was concerned, for at last, here was a General who could take on Napoleon. The Spanish promoted him Generalissimo of all their forces and at home the government granted him 100.000 towards building a home and made him a Marquis. His answer to that was, ‘what the devil is the use of making me a Marquis?’ Ironically, this large amount for a home was not at all what he needed, he was in debt at home, where his wife was spending him dry and his inability to delegate some of his oppressive workload in Spain was taking a heavy toll, both mentally and physically. His army had not been paid by the government and they continued to commit outrages against the population of his ally. The fact was, as they had no money for food, it was either pilfer or starve. One officer was summoned to a vineyard to attend the owner’s complaints and when he got there he actually found a dead soldier in the wine vat. At another vineyard a soldier had shot a ball through the giant vat and soldiers were unto their ankles in wine. Drunkenness was endemic amongst his men, not the Spanish, Germans or Portuguese, only the British. Morale was getting low and punishments were getting more common. When confronted by his officers over the indiscipline Wellington replied, ‘they will soon be themselves again once they face the French. It was at this time when he observed, ‘I don’t know what they do to the enemy but by god they frighten the life out of me.’ It was also at this time he laid siege to the fort of Burgos and it was a complete failure but news arrived that Napoleon had failed in Russia, which cheered all sides up and so on that news, Wellington retired to Portugal for the winter.

During the winter Wellington had time to reorganise his army, with new training and tactics on the agenda, but especially a new discipline. Reinforcements were arriving from Britain, along with adequate supplies at last. These included tents for the men, which could sleep twenty at a time and were robust and reasonably waterproof. They were issued with new, lighter cooking utensils, good food and at last, money. Morale was high. Naturally they had no idea what was going to happen from one day to the other, but then again, neither did anybody in Wellington’s army, as he would never confide in anybody. He still continued to administer every detail of the day to day management and refused to anoint a second in command, until one was foisted upon him from Horse Guards and even then he would not let his right hand know what his left hand was doing. On the 22nd of May his army crossed over into Spain and with his hat held high Wellington bid farewell to Portugal, adding, I hope I never see you again.During the winter Wellington had time to reorganise his army, with new training and tactics on the agenda, but especially a new discipline. Reinforcements were arriving from Britain, along with adequate supplies at last. These included tents for the men, which could sleep twenty at a time and were robust and reasonably waterproof. They were issued with new, lighter cooking utensils, good food and at last, money. Morale was high. Naturally they had no idea what was going to happen from one day to the other, but then again, neither did anybody in Wellington’s army, as he would never confide in anybody. He still continued to administer every detail of the day to day management and refused to anoint a second in command, until one was foisted upon him from Horse Guards and even then he would not let his right hand know what his left hand was doing. On the 22nd of May his army crossed over into Spain and with his hat held high Wellington bid farewell to Portugal, adding, I hope I never see you again. This new army had a spring in its step and for the first time in this entire campaign, was able to move as quick as the French, who were rightly held in high regard by the British officer class for their efficiency and speed. One officer went as far as to say, ‘the French are in all ways the superior to our men, except in courage. Wellington now had a very efficient intelligence service operating all around the country and news soon reached him that King Joseph (Napoleon’s brother) and General Jourdan had quit Madrid and were heading to meet up with another French army under Clausel in the north. Joseph (real name Giuseppe} had quit with his entire court and civil service, complete with a train of baggage. One French general called it a walking bordello. The British finally caught up to them at Vitoria, to find them in a strong defensive position on two hills, almost Wellingtonian one would say.

Wellington was facing three French armies combined here and in another of his masterclasses his army swept them from the field. His intention was to stop them retreating into France but as his army swept forward, they overran King Joseph’s walking bordello, packed with a great horde of valuables, including gold and silver, much of which had been stolen in Spain and even his own private coach. This bonanza fetched the troops to a halt as they set about a frenzy of looting, which horrified Wellington as many of his officers were amongst the looters. The French had time to flee the field of battle, leaving behind 8,000 dead to the 5,000 of the allies. This new victory was celebrated enthusiastically all around Europe. Nations showered him with gifts and titles and even Beethoven composed music in his honour. The French were far from beaten yet though and the ever present Soult gathered another army and mounted a counter offensive, routing two allied detachments before being stopped by Wellington again at Sorauren. His next target was the fortress of San Sebastian, which gave the attackers a bloody nose, before it was finally stormed, where the all too familiar rampaging and looting followed. Once again Soult rallied and once again Wellington beat him at Bayonne. It was at this battle that Wellington was hit by a musket ball, which drove his sword hilt into his thigh, which cut him open and left him limping for a week. Wellington was hit by many spent musket balls over the years and because he survived them all, he was convinced god was on his side. Wellington advanced now into France and marched into Toulouse to an enthusiastic welcome. Whilst having dinner with all of his senior officers one evening, news arrived that Napoleon had abdicated and was on his way to Elba. The entire gathering spontaneously rose to their feet and in German, French, English, Spanish and Portuguese, acclaimed and drank a toast to the now Field Marshall Wellington and cheered him none stop for ten minutes, after which Wellington gave a discreet bow of his head and called for coffee.

One of the items looted from Joseph’s coach was his own private, silver chamber pot by the 14th Light Dragoons, which later became the King’s Hussars. They still have the silver chamber pot at their headquarters and use it on regimental celebration nights, where they fill it with Champagne and pass it around the table. They nicknamed it, The Emperor.

Well there you go again Major, making excuses for British atrocities. During WWII our G.I.'s were known as "Ambassadors of Good Will."  BTW, Salamanca N.Y. is about 20 miles from my estate & is the only city in the U.S. 100% on an Indian reservation. Nice casino there, along with cheaper gas & smokes. Seneca to be precise, part of the Iroquois Confederation that sided with the British during the Revolutionary War. After we won, we stole their land except for a pittance which we grudgingly gave back to them.  See Chief Cornplanter.

Ambassadors of Good Will, is that what you were taught? More like what the British called you Johnny come latelys. 

Over paid, over sexed and over here. 

I was discussed how Trump treated your native code talkers while in the White House and he just had to bring up Pocahontas to add more insult to them.

Then you get your Black Red Tail P-51 pilots who saved more of your bomber crews than any other group. When they get home they go back to being 3rd rate citizens who can't even go in a restuarant far less vote.

After his military service was over he turned to politics serving twice as Prime Minister. The first 1828-30 saw the Catholic Emancipation Act. His second was as a stopgap for a few weeks in 1834 when the man chosen, Sir Robert Peel was in Italy at the time, so Wellington stood in while Peel made his way back. One of Wellington's greatest 'inventions' was the civil police force. It was he who first suggested the idea to Robert Peel in 1820 but it would be a further eight years before Peel became Home Secretary and was thus able to put Wellington's idea to Parliament. He was only too aware of what soldiers were capable of when confronted by trouble, as the 'Peterloo' massacre had shown the year before, where the cavalry rode into a protesting crown and killed 15 people and injured hundreds more. Had the idea been taken up at the time, we might have ended up calling the police 'Arthurs or Arties' instead of Bobby's. The regularity with which rowdy crowds would gather on the streets perturbed him and he was almost unseated a couple of times by them, only managing to stay aboard by kicking his horse into action. One one occasion he was surrounded by the mob and only the intervention of two Chelsea pensioners saved him from possible harm. Crowds would gather outside his house and yell at him, throwing stones at his home, so he had iron shutters fixed to the windows, which is where he got the title 'The Iron Duke' from. He didn't much care for George iv, a man who idolised him in return, in contrast to his consort Caroline of Brunswick who hated him, probably through jealousy and Wellington despised her in return. When somebody said to Wellington that his greatest enemy had died, meaning Napoleon, Wellington replied 'has she by god!'