Just Finished Reading: Wellington by S G P Ward (FP: 1963) [146pp]

Arthur Wellesley, known to posterity as the Duke of Wellington, is most famous for being the head of the combined forces that ultimately defeated Napoleon Bonaparte at Waterloo. However, he did not spring onto the world stage from nowhere. Joining the army in 1787, “by custom reserved for the not so bright younger sons”, he was initially posted to Dublin in a junior staff position before being sent to India in 1797 where his elder brother Richard had just become Governor-General. Involved in various military campaigns Wellesley soon amassed a reputation as a talented strategist and logistician. Returning to England with his brother in 1805 he applied for a further commission and was briefly involved in the war with Denmark in 1807 before being transferred to Portugal in 1808 to prosecute the war against France. Finally expelling the French from Portugal, Wellington pushed on into Spain and subsequently into France itself. The rest, as they say is history, culminating (at the pinnacle of Napoleon’s 100 days after his return to France and command of the French forces) in the Battle of Waterloo in 1815. After that….. Wellington did not fade into obscurity. After his successful finale of the Napoleonic Wars he spent some time reorganising and modernising the Army as Master-General of the Ordnance – despite being an arch conservative – before becoming more involved in government despite his reluctance to do so and the sea change from command to compromise eventually becoming Prime Minister in 1828. As PM he was intimately involved in the Catholic Emancipation Act but fell from power in November 1830 over the rising appeal to increase the voting franchise which he was adamantly against.

Despite being a very short work this slim book packed a LOT in. I knew something of Wellington’s early years and was aware of his time in India (partially through the works of Bernard Cornwell) but wasn’t fully aware at just how much he shone in command there. Of course his big challenge was in the Peninsula war where, despite being expected to fail, he exceeded all expectations by not only holding on to Portugal – a seemingly impossible task – but by taking the fight into Spain and subsequently onto Napoleons home turf. It can credibly be argued that Wellington’s successes in Portugal gave the British government enough ammunition to continue with an unpopular and expensive war against the French. Rather surprisingly the author covers his most famous battle – Waterloo – in a mere 6 pages as it “is so familiar it hardly bears repeating”. But what I found particularly interesting is his post-war political career of which I knew almost nothing except that he was, briefly at least, Prime Minister (twice indeed but the second time for only 23 days as ‘caretaker’ in Robert Peel’s absence). His role in Catholic Emancipation – of which more about later – was quite fascinating especially for someone so bound by tradition. All in all this was a surprisingly interesting book. It had, like so many others, been on my shelves for many years unread and unloved and I’m glad I finally got around to it prompted by my musings on reading about British Prime Ministers. Recommended if you can find a copy and more PM’s to come.