Arthur Wellesley, First Duke of Wellington

British military leader and prime minister (1828-1830)

• Born: May 1, 1769
• Birthplace: Dublin, Ireland
• Died: September 14, 1852
• Place of death: Walmer Castle, near Dover, Kent, England

Remembered as the conqueror of Napoleon I, Wellington was one of Great Britain’s finest military commanders. Through his victories in the Peninsular War and at Waterloo, he hastened the end of the Napoleonic Wars and was prime minister of his country.

Early Life

The duke of Wellington was born Arthur Wesley (after 1798, Wellesley) to an Anglo-Irish family in Ireland. His father was Garret Wesley, first earl of Mornington, and his mother was Anne Hill, daughter of Viscount Dungannon. The family attached little importance to Arthur’s education. He attended a preparatory school before going to Eton for two years. After his father’s death in 1781, his mother decided that young Wellesley should pursue a military career and sent him to a French riding school at Angers, where he learned French tactics and language.

In 1787, Wellesley obtained a commission in the army but did little, if any, military duty as he was also an aide to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland and a member of the Irish parliament. By his first military engagement in 1794 in Flanders, Wellesley was a lieutenant colonel in the Thirty-third Regiment of Foot.

Life’s Work

In 1796, Wellesley went to India with his regiment. The appointment of his brother Richard, Lord Mornington (later Marquis Wellesley), as governor-general of India helped his prospects. After the fall of Seringapatam in 1799, he became governor of Mysore. He became chief political and military agent in the southern Maratha states and the Decan in 1803. War broke out, and Wellesley led his troops into a fierce battle near the village of Assaye. The British lost a third of their strength before the enemy broke. Wellesley would forever compare battle losses to those at Assaye. In December, 1803, the fortress of Gawilghur surrendered to his forces. For his Indian service, he received thanks from Parliament, a sword from the people of Calcutta, and the Order of the Bath. He resigned his Indian appointments early in 1805 and arrived in England on September 10, 1805, after eight years’ service in India.

Sir Arthur Wellesley, as he was then known, was a handsome figure upon his return to England. He was of medium height and slim build, with closely cropped brown hair (defying both fashion and military regulations), piercing light-blue eyes, and an aquiline nose. He dressed simply and neatly, wearing military dress only when necessary. He was a man of honor and integrity and expected the same of others. He always did his duty regardless of his personal feelings.

Upon his return from India, Wellesley commanded an infantry brigade sent to reinforce British troops on the Elbe. There he learned of French emperor Napoleon I’s victory at Austerlitz, which left Great Britain alone against France. Upon his return to England, Wellesley married the Honorable Catherine Dorothea Sarah (Kitty) Pakenham (daughter of Edward Pakenham, second Baron Longford) on April 10, 1806, in Dublin. They had two sons: Arthur Richard, born on February 3, 1807, and Charles, born on January 16, 1808. Wellesley became chief secretary of Ireland in 1807, a difficult and frustrating position that made him welcome the opportunity to join a military expedition to Denmark.

Foreign Secretary George Canning believed that Napoleon might use the fleet of neutral Denmark against England and demanded that it be placed in British custody until the end of the war. When Denmark refused, Canning sent the Royal Navy to Copenhagen in July, 1807, with a small land force including a brigade commanded by Wellesley. He played a small, but key, role in the successful British operation there.

In May, 1808, revolt broke out in Spain against Napoleon when he placed his brother, Joseph Bonaparte, on the Spanish throne. Delegations from Spain and Portugal urged English intervention in the Iberian Peninsula, and in July, Wellesley (now a lieutenant general) was given temporary command of an expeditionary force to Portugal. The British army landed in Mondego Bay and moved toward Lisbon. Wellesley’s force fought the French on August 14 at Roliça, where he salvaged a desperate situation. Nevertheless, the French escaped. Wellesley moved to Vimeiro to cover British troop landings and was surprised by French forces. After heavy fighting, the French withdrew, leaving the road to Lisbon open. One senior officer prevented Wellesley from pursuing the French, while a second negotiated and persuaded him to sign an armistice. Published in London as the Convention of Sintra, it was extremely unpopular, and the three generals faced a Court of Inquiry, which approved the convention.

Meanwhile, Spanish resistance to the French collapsed and British forces were driven from Spain in December, 1808. By the end of March, 1809, the French were in Oporto and the Portuguese were demanding British aid. Wellesley, in command of a force to defend Portugal, arrived there April 22, 1809. On May 12, the British forces crossed the Douro River, captured Oporto, and then marched for Spain. On July 27 and 28, they defeated French forces in a fierce battle at Talavera. Wellesley (after September, 1809, Viscount Wellington of Talavera) retreated in the face of French reinforcements.

Because of inadequate supplies and transport, Wellington’s army wintered in Portugal, where he ordered the secret construction of the Lines of Torres Vedras, defensive hill fortifications connected by natural escarpments. In 1810, the French took the key border fortresses of Ciudad-Rodrigo (Spain) and Almeida (Portugal). Wellington again withdrew his forces to Portugal, luring the French into the wasted countryside only to repel them on September 27 at Bussaco, where the French sustained heavy losses. By October, Wellington had the allied army inside the Lines of Torres Vedras.

Early in 1811, Wellington forced the French from Portugal, overextending his supply lines in the process. The French attempt to strengthen the garrison at Almeida ended with the Battle of Fuentes de Oñoro (May 3-5). Wellington’s army took Almeida, but the garrison escaped. Increased French strength again caused Wellington’s withdrawal to Portugal, where his army could be supplied by sea. In 1812, Wellington took the vital fortresses of Ciudad-Rodrigo (January 19) and Badajoz (April 16), liberated Salamanca (June 17), defeated the French at the Battle of Salamanca (July 22), and entered Madrid (August 12). Although the 1812 campaign had been his most successful to date, Wellington abandoned the siege of Burgos and retreated to Portugal to correct the deficiencies of the previous campaign.

In 1813, the French began withdrawing from Spain. Wellington’s forces moved quickly north; a major victory at Vitoria (June 21) liberated Spain and opened France to invasion. On July 25, French forces crossed the Pyrenees but were stopped at Sorauren on July 28. On October 7, Wellington’s forces were victorious at the Bidassoa and crossed into France. British victories followed at the Nivelle and the Nive. On February 27, 1814, Wellington bested the French at the Battle of Orthez. In April, he took Toulouse just before learning that the allies were in Paris and Napoleon had abdicated.

Wellington (now a duke) went to Paris and then to Madrid for twelve days, trying to prevent civil war. He bade farewell to his troops at Bordeaux and on June 23, after an absence of five years, arrived in England to a tumultuous reception. He served as British ambassador to France and then as delegate to the Congress of Vienna.

When news of Napoleon’s escape from Elba reached Vienna, Wellington was given command of the joint allied force. He took command in Brussels on April 15, 1815, and began training his polyglot army. On June 15, Napoleon led the French army into Belgium. On June 18, Wellington deployed his forces near the village of Waterloo, where, in a hard-fought battle with heavy losses, the allies prevailed. Napoleon withdrew to France. Wellington led the allied armies in pursuit, crossing into France on June 21. Napoleon abdicated on June 22, the same day that Wellington became commander of the army of occupation. Wellington remained in France most of the time until the occupation ended in August, 1818.

Upon his return to England in 1818, Wellington’s involvement in politics and public life seemed inevitable. After he joined the cabinet in December, he held several offices, including prime minister (January, 1828, to November, 1829). He was Lord High Constable at the coronations of George IV, William IV, and Victoria. He represented Great Britain at the Congress of Verona in 1822 and in Russia in 1826. He was commander in chief of the British army periodically from 1827 until his death. Though his career as a party politician ended in 1846, he was a close adviser to Queen Victoria and godfather to her third son. Wellington died at Walmer Castle on September 14, 1852, and was buried at St. Paul’s, London, after a magnificent funeral.

Significance

The duke of Wellington became for many the symbol of British success in the Napoleonic Wars. Ironically, during the war, his cautious military strategy drew much criticism. Wellington knew that his was the only army England had and that, if he lost it, it could not be replaced. He never lost a military battle, although he often retreated to avoid untenable situations. Until Waterloo, many people believed that he was unbeaten only because he had never faced Napoleon.

Wellington’s success was based on learning from his mistakes. A disastrous night attack in India made him reluctant to attack at night without previous daylight reconnaissance. Problems with Spanish and Portuguese allies in the Peninsula made him distrust allies and avoid relying on them. The disasters of his first military engagement in Flanders made him realize the importance of keeping supply lines open and taking care of the men. Leaked information about his movements and plans appeared in British newspapers, making him reluctant to confide in anyone. Blunders by his staff officers made him attend to every detail himself.

Wellington was a gentleman and an officer. He always did his duty regardless of his personal feelings. As an officer he saw to the well-being of his men because it was his duty. His men had no affection for him, but they respected him because he took care of them. In battle he rode among them, calm and cool, always where fighting was thickest. He insisted upon strong discipline, using the lash and the gallows if necessary (and advocating corporal punishment for the army throughout his life). He recommended the Waterloo medal for all ranks, but he showed little gratitude to or interest in his men after the war.

Wellington was a die-hard aristocrat and fought change. In spite of difficulties with incompetent officers who bought commissions and promotions, he defended the system because it ensured that officers would come from the upper classes. He spent much of his early manhood outside England and never really understood the cares and concerns of the English people. He opposed reform in parliamentary representation despite gross inequities. His unwillingness to compromise on this made him the symbol of conservatism and the target of the mob. On several occasions, mobs surrounded Apsley House (his London home), throwing stones at the windows, which he had covered with iron shutters. He cared nothing for the opinions of his generation or of history.

Wellington’s immediate legacy to the British military was a tragic one. In the years after Waterloo, the British army modeled itself on Wellington’s army. It neglected training staff officers because Wellington considered the public school and the regiment the best training. Wellington did his own staff work, not trusting his officers. Later commanders did not have his ability or attention to detail. It took the British disasters in the Crimean War to change this system.

Bibliography

Bryant, Arthur. The Great Duke: Or, The Invincible General. New York: William Morrow, 1972. Objective, thorough account of Wellington’s military career. Gives attention to the often-neglected Indian period of his career.

Cooper, Leonard. The Age of Wellington: The Life and Times of the Duke of Wellington, 1769-1852. New York: Dodd, Mead, 1963. Popular treatment without documentation. Places Wellington’s life in context with contemporaneous events.

Corrigan, Gordon. Wellington: A Military Life. London: Hambledon and London, 2001. Corrigan, a former soldier, examines Wellington’s claims to military greatness, concluding he was the first modern general.

Davies, Godfrey. Wellington and His Army. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1974. Brief account of the military aspects of Wellington’s career (especially the Peninsula and Belgium). Generally uncritical of Wellington and harsh on his critics.

Guedalia, Philip. The Duke. Reprint. London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1974. Classic, literary biography. Guedalia believes that Wellington’s later unpopularity with the British people came not from his opposition to reform but from his success as a soldier, as the British prefer heroes to be slightly unsuccessful.

Holmes, Richard. Wellington: The Iron Duke. London: HarperCollins, 2002. Holmes, a military historian, chronicles Wellington’s career, depicting a man of great courage and sense of duty, who was idealistic in politics and cynical in love.

Jupp, Peter. British Politics on the Eve of Reform: The Duke of Wellington’s Administration, 1829-1830. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1998. Analyzes the British monarchy, prime ministry, Parliament, and other political institutions before adoption of the Great Reform Act of 1832. Jupp concludes that pre-Reform politics was characterized by unpredictability and openness of parliamentary affairs.

Longford, Elizabeth. Wellington: The Pillar of State. New York: Harper and Row, 1972. Excellent and useful account of Wellington’s life after Waterloo, a period often slighted.

‗‗‗‗‗‗‗. Wellington: The Years of the Sword. New York: Harper and Row, 1969. Detailed, factual account of Wellington’s life from 1769 to 1815. The most useful and thorough of recent works.

Philips, C. H. The Young Wellington in India. London: Athlone Press, 1973. Originally given as the Creighton Lectures in History in 1972. Philips focuses on Wellington’s years in India and how they contributed to his military leadership.