Gareth Glover - Wellingtons Lieutenant Napoleons Gaoler: The Peninsula Letters & St Helena Diaries of Sir George Rideout Bingham

Although Britain and France had been almost continually at war since 1793, except during the short lived Peace of Amiens of 1802, it had in many ways been a limited war. Britain, through its navy, had gained complete supremacy of the seas; whilst Napoleon and his ever growing French Empire dominated the European land mass. For most of this period, therefore, neither was in a position to seriously challenge the others control of their given element. France had cowed all of the major powers in Europe, frustrating Britains attempts to bring her Empire to its knees through grand alliances with the other traditional power houses of Austria, Prussia or Russia. Britain had used her navy to capture virtually all of the French, Dutch and Danish outposts throughout the world. This had a hugely beneficial effect on the economy of Britain but was extremely detrimental to the British forces, which had to be thinly spread across these pestilential islands and suffered frighteningly high mortality rates. The few attempts to land a substantial British army on the continent of Europe generally led to abject failure or, where victory was gained over the local French forces such as at the Battle of Maida in Southern Italy, the inability to maintain sufficient numbers to stand against the French forces summoned to counter the threat, caused a rapid re-embarkation. Such pyrrhic victories gave some cheer to the besieged British populace, but proved a merely temporary irritant to Napoleons driving ambition and Britain could only look upon the minor peripheral states of Sweden and Portugal as her allies.

This all suddenly changed in 18078, when Napoleon made the fatal decision not merely to eradicate Portugal but also to enforce his own brand of democracy on his erstwhile ally, Spain, the final bastion of the venal and arrogant Bourbon dynasty. His usurping of the Spanish throne for his brother Joseph was the catalyst for a general insurrection throughout the country. Spanish representatives were soon in London demanding support in the form of money and arms, which they did receive in copious amounts; but were reluctant about troops, as the enthusiastic insurgents were convinced that they were capable of defeating the French hordes alone; a belief that was unfortunately strengthened by the fortuitous defeat of a French corps at Bailen.

Ten thousand troops under the command of Sir Arthur Wellesley, later to become famous as the Duke of Wellington, was formed into an expedition to aid Portugal oust the French invaders. This army landed at Mondego Bay in August 1808 and, following victories at Rolica and Vimiero, General Jean Andoche Junot agreed to sign the Convention of Cintra by which the French forces would leave Portugal on British ships! The convention was heavily criticized in Britain and Generals Sir Hew Dalrymple and Sir Harry Burrard with Wellesley, who had been supplanted by these senior officers as the British Army in Portugal significantly increased in numbers, were called home to face an enquiry. Only Wellesley was exonerated although the agreement had achieved the complete removal of French troops from Portugal including two significant fortresses, without further loss.