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Facing the French Threat on Land 1793-1815 - Coggle Diagram
Facing the French Threat on Land 1793-1815
The British Army 1793-1815
Defeat in the American revolutionary war tarnished the British Army's image
The Problem of recruitment
France had a system of conscription and so could muster massive forces to fight.
100s of thousands
The British had no such system
Only muster around 40,000 voulenteers
Support for volunteers low as pay was poor and discipline harsh
Army officers
Most officers were from the Landed Gentry
The wealthy could buy promotions as vacancies appeared
Wealth often mattered more than talent
However, the purchase system is often exagereted because of...
Commissions were not purchased in the Royal attilliary or the Royal engineers
Duke of York introduced reforms which meant that officers had to serve for two years before purchasing a captaincy.
Many officers, such as Wellington, led efficiently and courageously
Army composition
Cavalry (horses)
1808, Britain had 20 cavalry regiments.
Technically comprised 900 men but really only numbered around 650
Infantry (foot soldiers)
1808, 103 regiments
Each regiment made up of two battalions, one fought while the other remained at home.
BAtallions should have had 950 men each but disease and injury meant that they rarely numbered more than 500 men.
Main weapon was the Brown Bess musket
Accurate up to 100 yards
Event the most experienced could not fire more than 3 per minute
Soldiers stood in a line 2 ranks deep and fired continually
French always attacked on columns of 170 men, 24 men deep
May have looked threatening but as the first two ranks were the only ones that could fire, the French could rarely break the British line
Artillery (Guns)
Could hit a target 1000 yards away
Could be used to batter down forces and fortresses
The Military situation 1793-1809
French revolutionary war, 1793-1809
Main British effort was against French possessions in the Caribbean
By 1798, forced had captured several French, Spanish and Dutch islands.
40,000 died of yellow fever and other diseases.
British successes in India
1797, Arthur Wellesley was sent on military duty to India
1803, war broke out with the Mahratta Confederacy.
September 1803, Wellesley with 7,000 men attacked an Indian army of 40,000 men at Assaye.
Major victory
Napoleonic wars 1803-1809
After 1803, British forces began to re-capture colonies given to French by the treaty of Amiens
Efforts to capture Spanish colonies in South America ended in failure in 1807
In 1809, a 44,000 strong force was sent to Flushing and Antwerp, 4,000 died of disease and the army had to return to Britain
Role of Wellington
Waterloo