Arthur Wellesley , 1st Duke of Wellington Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley , 1st Duke of Wellington , ( 1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852 ) , was a British soldier and statesman , a native of Ireland from the Anglo - Irish Ascendancy , and one of the leading military and political figures of the 19th century . He is often referred to as the " Duke of Wellington " , even after his death , even though there have been subsequent Dukes of Wellington . Wellesley was commissioned as an ensign in the British Army in 1787 . Serving in Ireland as aide - de - camp to two successive Lords Lieutenant of Ireland he was also elected as a Member of Parliament in the Irish House of Commons . A colonel by 1796 , Wellesley saw action in the Netherlands and later in India , where he fought in the Fourth Anglo - Mysore War at the Battle of Seringapatam . He was appointed governor of Seringapatam and Mysore in 1799 , and as a newly appointed major - general won a decisive victory over the Maratha Confederacy at the Battle of Assaye in 1803 . Wellesley rose to prominence as a general during the Peninsular campaign of the Napoleonic Wars , and was promoted to the rank of field marshal after leading the allied forces to victory against the French at the Battle of Vitoria in 1813 . Following Napoleon ' s exile in 1814 , he served as the ambassador to France and was granted a dukedom . During the Hundred Days in 1815 , he commanded the allied army which , together with a Prussian army under Blücher , defeated Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo . Wellesley ' s battle record is exemplary , ultimately participating in some 60 battles throughout his military career . Wellesley is famous for his adaptive defensive style of warfare , and extensive planning before battles , which allowed him to choose the battlefield and force his enemy to come to him , resulting in several victories against a numerically superior force whilst minimising his own losses . He is regarded as one of the greatest defensive commanders of all time , and many of his tactics and battle plans are still studied in military academies around the world . He was twice prime minister under the Tory party and oversaw the passage of the Catholic Relief Act 1829 . He was prime minister from 1828 – 30 and served briefly in 1834 . He was unable to prevent the passage of the Reform Act 1832 and continued as one of the leading figures in the House of Lords until his retirement . He remained Commander - in - Chief of the British Army until his death . Early life and education . Wellesley was born into a wealthy Anglo - Irish aristocratic family in the Kingdom of Ireland as " The Honourable Arthur Wesley " , the fourth son — third of five surviving sons — to The 1st Earl of Mornington and his wife Anne , the eldest daughter of The 1st Viscount Dungannon . He was most likely born at their townhouse , 24 Upper Merrion Street , Dublin , now " The Merrion Hotel " . His biographers mostly follow the contemporary newspaper evidence in saying he was born 1 May 1769 , the day he was baptised . His mother , Anne , Countess of Mornington , recalled in 1815 that he had been born at 6 Merrion Street , Dublin . Other places which have been put forward as the location of his birth include Mornington House ( the house which used to be next door ) - as his father had asserted , the Dublin packet boat and the family estate of Athy ( which perished in the fires of 1916 ) - as the Duke apparently put on his 1851 census return . He spent most of his childhood at his family ' s two homes , the first a large house in Dublin and the second , Dangan Castle , north of Summerhill on the Trim road in County Meath . In 1781 , Arthur ' s father died and his eldest brother Richard inherited his father ' s earldom . He went to the diocesan school in Trim when at Dangan , Mr . Whyte ' s Academy when in Dublin , and at Brown ' s School in Chelsea when in London . He then enrolled at Eton , where he studied from 1781 to 1784 . His loneliness there caused him to hate it , and makes it highly unlikely that he actually said , " The Battle of Waterloo was won on the playing fields of Eton " . Moreover , Eton had no playing fields at the time . In 1785 , a lack of success at Eton , combined with a shortage of family funds due to his father ' s death , forced the young Wellesley and his mother to move to Brussels . Until his early twenties , Arthur continued to show little sign of distinction and his mother grew increasingly concerned at his idleness , stating , " I don ' t know what I shall do with my awkward son Arthur " . A year later , Arthur enrolled in the French Royal Academy of Equitation in Angers , where he progressed significantly , becoming a good horseman and learning French , which was later to prove very useful . Upon returning to England in late 1786 , he astonished his mother with his improvement . Military career . Early career . Despite his new promise he had yet to find a job and his family was still short of money , so upon the advice of his mother , his brother Richard asked his friend The 4th Duke of Rutland ( then Lord Lieutenant of Ireland ) to consider Arthur for a commission in the army . Soon after , on 7 March 1787 he was gazetted ensign in the 73rd Regiment of Foot . In October , with the assistance of his brother , he was assigned as aide - de - camp , on ten shillings a day ( twice his pay as an ensign ) , to the new Lord Lieutenant of Ireland Lord Buckingham . He was also transferred to the new 76th Regiment forming in Ireland and on Christmas Day , 1787 , was promoted to lieutenant . During his time in Dublin his duties were mainly social ; attending balls , entertaining guests and providing advice to Buckingham . While in Ireland , he over extended himself in borrowing due to his occasional gambling , but in his defence stated that " I have often known what it was to be in want of money , but I have never got helplessly into debt " . On 23 January 1788 , he transferred into the 41st Regiment of Foot , then again on 25 June 1789 , still a lieutenant , he transferred to the 12th ( Prince of Wales ' s ) Regiment of ( Light ) Dragoons and , according to military historian Richard Holmes , he also dipped a reluctant toe into politics . Shortly before the general election of 1789 , he went to the " rotten borough " of Trim to speak against the granting of the title " Freeman " of Dublin to the parliamentary leader of the Irish Patriot Party , Henry Grattan . Succeeding , he was later nominated and duly elected as a Member of Parliament for Trim in the Irish House of Commons . Because of the limited suffrage at the time , he sat in a parliament where at least two - thirds of the members owed their election to the landowners of fewer than a hundred boroughs . Wellesley continued to serve at Dublin Castle , voting with the government in the Irish parliament over the next two years . On 30 January 1791 he became a captain and was transferred to the 58th Regiment of Foot . On 31 October , he transferred to the 18th Light Dragoons and it was during this period that he grew increasingly attracted to Kitty Pakenham , the daughter of Edward Pakenham , 2nd Baron Longford . She was described as being full of ' gaiety and charm ' . In 1793 , he sought her hand , but was turned down by her brother Thomas , Earl of Longford , who considered Wellesley to be a young man , in debt , with very poor prospects . An aspiring amateur musician , Wellesley , devastated by the rejection , burnt his violins in anger , and resolved to pursue a military career in earnest . Gaining further promotion ( largely by purchasing his rank , which was common in the British Army at the time ) , he became a major in the 33rd Regiment in 1793 . A few months later , in September , his brother lent him more money and with it he purchased a lieutenant - colonelcy in the 33rd . Netherlands . In 1793 , the Duke of York was sent to Flanders in command of the British contingent of an allied force destined for the invasion of France . In 1794 , the 33rd regiment was sent to join the force and Wellesley , having just purchased his major ity on 30 April 1793 , set sail from Cork for Flanders in June , destined for his first real battle experience . Three months later on 30 September 1793 he purchased the lieutenant colonel cy of his regiment . During the campaign he rose to command a brigade and in September Wellesley ' s unit came under fire just east of Breda , just before the Battle of Boxtel . For the latter part of the campaign , during the winter , his unit defended the line of the Waal River , during which time he became ill for a while , owing to the damp environment . Though the campaign was to prove unsuccessful , with the Duke of York ' s force returning in 1795 , Wellesley was to learn several valuable lessons , including the use of steady fire lines against advancing columns and of the merits of supporting sea - power . He concluded that many of the campaign ' s blunders were due to the faults of the leaders and the poor organisation at headquarters . He remarked later of his time in the Netherlands that " At least I learned what not to do , and that is always a valuable lesson " . Returning to England in March 1795 , he was returned as a Member of Parliament for Trim for a second time . He hoped to be given the position of secretary of war in the new Irish government but the new lord - lieutenant , Lord Camden , was only able to offer him the post of Surveyor - General of the Ordnance . Declining the post , he returned to his regiment , now at Southampton preparing to set sail for the West Indies . After seven weeks at sea , a storm forced the fleet back to Poole , England . The 33rd was given time to convalesce and a few months later , Whitehall decided to send the regiment to India . Wellesley was promoted full colonel by seniority on 3 May 1796 and a few weeks later set sail for Calcutta with his regiment . India . Arriving in Calcutta in February 1797 he spent several months there , before being sent on a brief expedition to the Philippines , where he established a list of new hygiene precautions for his men to deal with the unfamiliar climate . Returning in November to India , he learnt that his elder brother Richard , now known as Lord Mornington , had been appointed as the new Governor - General of India . In 1798 , he changed the spelling of his surname to " Wellesley " ; up to this time he was still known as Wesley , which his oldest brother considered the ancient and proper spelling . Fourth Anglo - Mysore War . As part of the campaign to extend the rule of the British East India Company , the Fourth Anglo - Mysore War broke out in 1798 against the Sultan of Mysore , Tipu Sultan . Arthur ' s brother Richard ordered that an armed force be sent to capture Seringapatam and defeat Tipu . Under the command of General Harris , some 24 , 000 troops were dispatched to Madras ( to join an equal force being sent from Bombay in the west ) . Arthur and the 33rd sailed to join them in August . After extensive and careful logistic preparation ( which would become one of Wellesley ' s main attributes ) the 33rd left with the main force in December and travelled across of jungle from Madras to Mysore . On account of his brother , during the journey , Wellesley was given an additional command , that of chief advisor to the Nizam of Hyderabad ' s army ( sent to accompany the British force ) . This position was to cause friction amongst many of the senior officers ( some of whom were senior to Wellesley ) . Much of this friction was put to rest after the Battle of Mallavelly , some from Seringapatam , in which Harris ' s army attacked a large part of the sultan ' s army . During the battle , Wellesley led his men , in a line of battle of two ranks , against the enemy to a gentle ridge and gave the order to fire . After an extensive repetition of volleys , followed by a bayonet charge , the 33rd , in conjunction with the rest of Harris ' s force , forced Tipu ' s infantry to retreat . Seringapatam . Immediately after their arrival at Seringapatam on 5 April 1799 , the Battle of Seringapatam began and Wellesley was ordered to lead a night attack on the village of Sultanpettah , adjacent to the fortress to clear the way for the artillery . Because of the enemy ' s strong defensive preparations , and the darkness , with the resulting confusion , the attack failed with 25 casualties . Wellesley suffered a minor injury to his knee from a spent musket - ball . Although they would re - attack successfully the next day , after time to scout ahead the enemy ' s positions , the affair had an impact on Wellesley . He resolved " never to attack an enemy who is preparing and strongly posted , and whose posts have not been reconnoitered by daylight " . Lewin Bentham Bowring gives this alternative account : A few weeks later , after extensive artillery bombardment , a breach was opened in the main walls of the fortress of Seringapatam . An attack led by Major - General Baird secured the fortress . Wellesley secured the rear of the advance , posting guards at the breach and then stationed his regiment at the main palace . After hearing news of the death of the Tipu Sultan , Wellesley was the first at the scene to confirm his death , checking his pulse . Over the coming day , Wellesley grew increasingly concerned over the lack of discipline amongst his men , who drank and pillaged the fortress and city . To restore order , several soldiers were flogged and four hanged . After battle and the resulting end of the war , the main force under General Harris left Seringapatam and Wellesley , aged 30 , stayed behind to command the area as the new Governor of Seringapatam and Mysore . He was promoted to brigadier - general on 17 July 1801 . He took residence within the Sultan ' s summer palace and reformed the tax and justice systems in his province to maintain order and prevent bribery . He also hunted down the mercenary ' King ' Dhoondiah Waugh , who had escaped from prison in Seringapatam during the battle . Wellesley , with command of four regiments , defeated Dhoondiah ' s larger rebel force , along with Dhoondiah himself who was killed in the battle . He paid for the future upkeep of Dhoondiah ' s orphaned son . Whilst in India , Wellesley was ill for a considerable time , first with severe diarrhoea from the water and then with fever , followed by a serious skin infection caused by trichophyton . He received good news when in September 1802 he learnt that he had been promoted to the rank of major - general . Wellesley had been gazetted on 29 April 1802 , but the news took several months to reach him by sea . He remained at Mysore until November when he was sent to command an army in the Second Anglo - Maratha War . Second Anglo - Maratha War . When he determined that a long defensive war would ruin his army , Wellesley decided to act boldly to defeat the numerically larger force of the Maratha Empire . With the logistic assembly of his army complete ( 24 , 000 men in total ) he gave the order to break camp and attack the nearest Maratha fort on 8 August 1803 . The fort surrendered on 12 August after an infantry attack had exploited an artillery - made breach in the wall . With the fort now in British control Wellesley was able to extend control southwards to the river Godavari . Assaye . Splitting his army into two forces , to pursue and locate the main Marathas army , ( the second force , commanded by Colonel Stevenson was far smaller ) Wellesley was preparing to rejoin his forces on 24 September . His intelligence , however , reported the location of the Marathas ' main army , between two rivers near Assaye . If he waited for the arrival of his second force , the Marathas would be able to mount a retreat , so Wellesley decided to launch an attack immediately . On 23 September , Wellesley led his forces over a ford in the river Kaitna and the Battle of Assaye commenced . After crossing the ford the infantry was reorganised into several lines and advanced against the Maratha infantry . Wellesley ordered his cavalry to exploit the flank of the Maratha army just near the village . During the battle Wellesley himself came under fire ; two of his horses were shot from under him and he had to mount a third . At a crucial moment , Wellesley regrouped his forces and ordered Colonel Maxwell ( later killed in the attack ) to attack the eastern end of the Maratha position while Wellesley himself directed a renewed infantry attack against the centre . An officer in the attack wrote of the importance of Wellesley ' s personal leadership : " The General was in the thick of the action the whole time . . . I never saw a man so cool and collected as he was . . . though I can assure you , ' til our troops got the order to advance the fate of the day seemed doubtful . . . " With some 6 , 000 Marathas killed or wounded , the enemy was routed , though Wellesley ' s force was in no condition to pursue . British casualties were heavy : the British losses were counted as 409 soldiers being killed out of which 164 were Europeans and the remaining 245 were Indian ; a further 1 , 622 British soldiers were wounded and 26 soldiers were reported missing ( the British casualty figures were taken from Wellesley ' s own despatch ) . Wellesley was troubled by the loss of men and remarked that he hoped " I should not like to see again such loss as I sustained on 23 September , even if attended by such gain " . Years later , however , he remarked that Assaye was the best battle he ever fought . Argaum and Gawilghur . Despite the damage done to the Maratha army , the battle did not end the war . A few months later in November , Wellesley attacked a larger force near Argaum , leading his army to victory again , with an astonishing 5 , 000 enemy dead at the cost of only 361 British casualties . A further successful attack at the fortress at Gawilghur , combined with the victory of General Lake at Delhi forced the Maratha to sign a peace settlement at Anjangaon ( not concluded until a year later ) called as the Treaty of Surji - Anjangaon . Military historian Richard Holmes remarked that Wellesley ' s experiences in India had an important influence on his personality and military tactics , teaching him much about military matters that would prove vital to his success in the Peninsular War . These included a strong sense of discipline through drill and order , the use of diplomacy to gain allies , and the vital necessity for a secure supply line . He also established a high regard for the acquisition of intelligence through scouts and spies . His personal tastes also developed , including dressing himself in white trousers , a dark tunic , with Hessian boot s and black cocked hat ( that later became synonymous as his style ) . Leaving India . Wellesley had grown tired of his time in India , remarking " I have served as long in India as any man ought who can serve anywhere else " . In June 1804 he applied for permission to return home and as a reward for his service in India he was made a Knight of the Bath in September . Whilst in India , Wellesley had amassed a fortune of £42 , 000 ( considerable at the time ) , consisting mainly of prize money from his campaign . When his brother ' s term as Governor - General of India ended in March 1805 , the brothers returned together to England on HMS " Howe " . Arthur , coincidentally , stopped on his voyage at the little island of Saint Helena and stayed in the same building to which Napoleon I would later be exiled . Back in Britain . Wellesley then served in the abortive Anglo - Russian expedition to north Germany in 1805 , taking a brigade to Elbe . Upon this return from the campaign , Wellesley received good news ; owing to his new title and status , Kitty Pakenham ' s family had consented to his marrying her . Wellesley and Kitty were married in Dublin on 10 April 1806 . The marriage would later prove to be unsatisfactory and the two would spend years apart while Wellesley was campaigning . He then took a period of extended leave from the army and was elected Tory member of Parliament for Rye in January 1806 . A year later , he was elected MP for Newport on the Isle of Wight and was then appointed to serve as Chief Secretary for Ireland , under the Duke of Richmond . At the same time , he was made a privy counsellor . While in Ireland , he gave a verbal promise that the remaining Penal Laws would be enforced with great moderation , perhaps an indication of his later willingness to support Catholic Emancipation . War on Denmark . Wellesley was in Ireland in May 1807 when he heard of the British expedition to Denmark . He decided to go , stepping down from his political appointments and was appointed to command an infantry brigade in the Second Battle of Copenhagen which took place in August . He fought at the Køge , during which the men under his command took 1 , 500 prisoners , with Wellesley later present during the surrender . By 30 September , he had returned to England and was raised to the rank of lieutenant general on 25 April 1808 . In June 1808 he accepted the command of an expedition of 9 , 000 men . Preparing to sail for an attack on the Spanish colonies in South America ( to assist the Latin American patriot Francisco de Miranda ) his force was instead ordered to sail for Portugal , to take part in the Peninsular Campaign and rendezvous with 5 , 000 troops from Gibraltar . To the Peninsula . Ready for battle , he left Cork on 12 July 1808 to participate in the war against French forces in the Iberian Peninsula , with his skills as a commander tested and developed . According to the historian Robin Neillands , " Wellesley had by now acquired the experience on which his later successes were founded . He knew about command from the ground up , about the importance of logistics , about campaigning in a hostile environment . He enjoyed political influence and realised the need to maintain support at home . Above all , he had gained a clear idea of how , by setting attainable objectives and relying on his own force and abilities , a campaign could be fought and won . " Peninsular War . 1808 . Wellesley defeated the French at the Battle of Roliça and the Battle of Vimeiro in 1808 but was superseded in command immediately after the latter battle . General Dalrymple then signed the controversial Convention of Sintra , which stipulated that the British Royal Navy transport the French army out of Lisbon with all their loot , and insisted on the association of the only available government minister , Wellesley . Dalrymple and Wellesley were recalled to Britain to face a Court of Enquiry . Wellesley had agreed to sign the preliminary armistice , but had not signed the convention , and was cleared . Meanwhile , Napoleon himself entered Spain with his veteran troops to put down the revolt ; the new commander of the British forces in the Peninsula , Sir John Moore , died during the Battle of Corunna in January 1809 . Although overall the land war with France was not going well from a British perspective , the Peninsula was the one theatre where they , with the Portuguese , had provided strong resistance against France and her allies . This contrasted with the disastrous Walcheren expedition , which was typical of the mismanaged British operations of the time . Wellesley submitted a memorandum to Lord Castlereagh on the defence of Portugal . He stressed its mountainous frontiers and advocated Lisbon as the main base because the Royal Navy could help to defend it . Castlereagh and the cabinet approved the memo , appointed him head of all British forces in Portugal . 1809 . Wellesley arrived in Lisbon on 22 April 1809 onboard HMS " Surveillante " , after narrowly escaping shipwreck . Reinforced , he took to the offensive . In the Second Battle of Porto he crossed the Douro river in a daylight " coup de main " , and routed Marshal Soult ' s French troops in Porto . With Portugal secured , Wellesley advanced into Spain to unite with General Cuesta ' s forces . The combined allied force prepared for an assault on Victor ' s I Corps at Talavera , 23 July . Cuesta , however , was reluctant to agree , and was only persuaded to advance on the following day . The delay allowed the French to withdraw , but Cuesta sent his army headlong after Victor , and found himself faced by almost the entire French army in New Castile — Victor had been reinforced by the Toledo and Madrid garrisons . The Spanish retreated precipitously , necessitating the advance of two British divisions to cover their retreat . The next day , 27 July , at the Battle of Talavera the French advanced in three columns and were repulsed several times throughout the day by Wellesley , but at a heavy cost to the British force . In the aftermath Marshal Soult ' s army was discovered to be advancing south , threatening to cut Wellesley off from Portugal . Wellesley moved east on 3 August to block it , leaving 1 , 500 wounded in the care of the Spanish , intending to confront Soult before finding out that the French were in fact 30 , 000 strong . The British commander sent the Light Brigade on a dash to hold the bridge over the Tagus River at Almaraz . With communications and supply from Lisbon secured for now , Wellesley considered joining with Cuesta again but found out that his Spanish ally had abandoned the British wounded to the French and was thoroughly uncooperative , promising and then refusing to supply the British forces , aggravating Wellesley and causing considerable friction between the British and their Spanish allies . The lack of supplies , coupled with the threat of French reinforcement ( including the possible inclusion of Napoleon himself ) in the spring , led to the British deciding to retreat into Portugal . 1810 . In 1810 , a newly enlarged French army under Marshal André Masséna invaded Portugal . British opinion both at home and in the army was negative and there were suggestions that they must evacuate Portugal . Instead , Wellington first slowed the French down at Buçaco ; he then prevented them from taking the Lisbon Peninsula by the construction of his massive earthworks , the Lines of Torres Vedras , which had been assembled in complete secrecy and had flanks guarded by the Royal Navy . The baffled and starving French invasion forces retreated after six months . Wellington ' s pursuit was frustrated by a series of reverses inflicted by Marshal Ney in a much - lauded rear guard campaign . 1811 . In 1811 , Masséna returned toward Portugal to relieve Almeida ; Wellington narrowly checked the French at the Battle of Fuentes de Onoro . Simultaneously , his subordinate , Viscount Beresford , fought Soult ' s ' Army of the South ' to a mutual bloody standstill at the Battle of Albuera in May . Wellington was promoted to full General on 31 July for his services . The French abandoned Almeida , slipping away from British pursuit , but retained the twin Spanish fortresses of Ciudad Rodrigo and Badajoz , the ' Keys ' guarding the roads through the mountain passes into Portugal . For his actions for the Portuguese cause , Wellesley was conferred the title of Count of Vimeiro , in the Peerage of Portugal . 1812 . In 1812 , Wellington finally captured Ciudad Rodrigo by a rapid movement as the French went into winter quarters , storming it before they could react . He then moved south quickly , besieged the fortress of Badajoz for a month and captured it during one bloody night . On viewing the aftermath of the Storming of Badajoz , Wellington lost his composure and cried at the sight of the bloody carnage in the breaches . His army now was a veteran British force reinforced by units of the retrained Portuguese army . Campaigning in Spain , he routed the French at the Battle of Salamanca , taking advantage of a minor French mispositioning . The victory liberated the Spanish capital of Madrid . As reward , he was created " Earl " and then " Marquess of Wellington " and given command of all Allied armies in Spain . Wellington attempted to take the vital fortress of Burgos , which linked Madrid to France . But failure , due in part to a lack of siege guns , forced him into a headlong retreat with the loss of over 2 , 000 casualties . The French abandoned Andalusia , and combined the troops of Soult and Marmont . Thus combined , the French outnumbered the British , putting the British forces in a precarious position . Wellington withdrew his army and , joined with the smaller corps commanded by Rowland Hill , began to retreat to Portugal . Marshal Soult declined to attack . In 1812 , Wellesley was granted the titles of Marquis of Torres Vedras and Duke of Vitória , both in Portuguese nobility , by decree of Queen Maria I of Portugal , for his actions in the name of the Portuguese nation . 1813 . In 1813 , Wellington led a new offensive , this time against the French line of communications . He struck through the hills north of Burgos , the Tras os Montes , and switched his supply line from Portugal to Santander on Spain ' s north coast ; this led to the French abandoning Madrid and Burgos . Continuing to outflank the French lines , Wellington caught up with and smashed the army of King Joseph Bonaparte in the Battle of Vitoria , for which he was promoted to field marshal on 21 June . He personally led a column against the French centre , while other columns were commanded by Sir Thomas Graham , Rowland Hill and the Earl of Dalhousie looped around the French right and left ( this battle became the subject of Beethoven ' s opus 114 , " Wellington ' s Victory " ) . The British troops broke ranks to loot the abandoned French wagons instead of pursuing the beaten foe . This gross abandonment of discipline caused an enraged Wellington to write in a famous dispatch to Earl Bathurst , " We have in the service the scum of the earth as common soldiers " . Although later , when his temper had cooled , he extended his comment to praise the men under his command saying that though many of the men were , " the scum of the earth ; it is really wonderful that we should have made them to the fine fellows they are " . After taking the small fortresses of Pamplona , Wellington invested San Sebastián but was frustrated by the obstinate French garrison , losing 693 dead and 316 captured in a failed assault and suspending the siege at the end of July . Soult ' s relief attempt was blocked by the Spanish Army of Galicia at San Marcial , allowing the Allies to consolidate their position and tighten the ring around the city , which fell in September after a second spirited defence . Wellington then forced Soult ' s demoralised and battered army into a fighting retreat into France , punctuated by battles at the Pyrenees , Bidassoa and Nivelle . Wellington invaded southern France , winning at the Nive and Orthez . Wellington ' s final battle against his rival Soult occurred at Toulouse , where the Allied divisions were badly mauled storming the French redoubt s , losing some 4 , 600 men . Despite this momentary victory , news arrived of Napoleon ' s defeat and abdication and Soult , seeing no reason to continue the fighting , agreed on a ceasefire with Wellington , allowing Soult to evacuate the city . Aftermath . Hailed as the conquering hero by the British , Wellington was created " Duke of Wellington " , a title still held by his descendants ( as he did not return to England until the Peninsular War was over , he was awarded all his patents of nobility in a unique ceremony lasting a full day ) . Although Wellesley spent nearly six years driving the French Army from Spain and removing Joseph Bonaparte from the Spanish throne , he has received little recognition in Spain : history , as taught in Spanish schools , minimises his contribution and those of the British and Portuguese soldiers that fought with him . He received some recognition during his lifetime ( the title of " Duque de Ciudad Rodrigo " ) and the Spanish King Ferdinand VII allowed him to keep part of the works of art from the Royal Collection which he had recovered from the French . His equestrian portrait features prominently in the Monument to the Battle of Vitoria , in present - day Vitoria - Gasteiz . His popularity in Britain was due to his image and his appearance as well as to his military triumphs . His victory fit well with the passion and intensity of the Romantic movement , with its emphasis on individuality . His personal style had an impact on the fashions on Britain at the time : his tall , lean figure and his plumed black hat and grand yet classic uniform and white trousers became very popular . He was appointed ambassador to France , then took Lord Castlereagh ' s place as first plenipotentiary to the Congress of Vienna , where he strongly advocated allowing France to keep its place in the European balance of power . On 2 January 1815 the title of his Knighthood of the Bath was converted to Knight Grand Cross upon the expansion of that order . Waterloo campaign . On 26 February 1815 , Napoleon escaped from Elba and returned to France . He regained control of the country by May and faced a renewed alliance against him . Wellington left Vienna for what became known as the Waterloo Campaign . He arrived in Belgium to take command of the British - German army and their allied Dutch - Belgians , all stationed alongside the Prussia n forces of Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher . Napoleon ' s strategy was to isolate the Allied and Prussian armies , and annihilate each one separately before the Austrians and Russians arrived . In doing so the vast superiority in numbers of the Coalition would be greatly diminished . He would then seek the possibility of a peace with Austria and Russia . The French invaded Belgium , defeated the Prussians at Ligny , and fought an indecisive battle with Wellington at the Battle of Quatre Bras . These events compelled the Anglo - Allied army to retreat to a ridge on the Brussels road , just south of the small town of Waterloo . On 17 June , a torrential rain soaked in , hampering movement . The next day , on 18 June , the Battle of Waterloo was fought . This was the first time Wellington had encountered Napoleon , and he commanded an Anglo - Dutch - German army that consisted of approximately 73 , 000 troops , 26 , 000 ( 36 percent ) of whom were British . Battle . The Battle of Waterloo commenced with a diversionary attack on Hougoumont by a division of French soldiers . After a barrage of 80 cannons the first French infantry attack was launched by Comte D ' Erlon ' s I Corps . D ' Erlon ' s troops advanced through the Allied centre , resulting in Allied troops in front of the ridge retreating in disorder through the main position . D ' Erlon ' s corps stormed the most fortified Allied position , La Haye Sainte , but failed to take it . An Allied division under Thomas Picton met the remainder of D ' Erlon ' s corps head to head , engaging them in an infantry duel in which Picton fell . During this struggle Lord Uxbridge launched two of his cavalry brigades at the enemy , catching the French infantry off guard , driving them to the bottom of the slope , and capturing two French Imperial Eagle s . The charge , however , over - reached itself , and the British cavalry , crushed by fresh French horsemen hurled at them by Napoleon , were driven back , suffering tremendous losses . A little before 16 : 00 , Marshal Ney noted an apparent exodus from Wellington ' s centre . He mistook the movement of casualties to the rear for the beginnings of a retreat , and sought to exploit it . Ney at this time had few infantry reserves left , as most of the infantry had been committed either to the futile Hougoumont attack or to the defence of the French right . Ney therefore tried to break Wellington ' s centre with a cavalry charge alone . At about 16 : 30 , the first Prussian corps arrived . Commanded by Freiherr von Bülow , IV Corps arrived as the French cavalry attack was in full spate . Bülow sent the 15th Brigade to link up with Wellington ' s left flank in the Frichermont - La Haie area while the brigade ' s horse artillery battery and additional brigade artillery deployed to its left in support . Napoleon sent Lobau ' s corps to intercept the rest of Bülow ' s IV Corps proceeding to Plancenoit . The 15th Brigade sent Lobau ' s corps into retreat to the Plancenoit area . Von Hiller ' s 16th Brigade also pushed forward with six battalions against Plancenoit . Napoleon had dispatched all eight battalions of the Young Guard to reinforce Lobau , who was now seriously pressed by the enemy . Napoleon ' s Young Guard counter - attacked and , after very hard fighting , secured Plancenoit , but were themselves counter - attacked and driven out . Napoleon then resorted to sending two battalions of the Middle / Old Guard into Plancenoit and after ferocious fighting they recaptured the village . The French cavalry attacked the British infantry squares many times , each at heavy cost to the French but with few British casualties . Ney himself was displaced from his horse four times . Eventually it became obvious , even to Ney , that cavalry alone were achieving little . Belatedly , he organised a combined - arms attack , using Bachelu ' s division and Tissot ' s regiment of Foy ' s division from Reille ' s II Corps plus those French cavalry that remained in a fit state to fight . This assault was directed along much the same route as the previous heavy cavalry attacks . Meanwhile at approximately the same time as Ney ' s combined - arms assault on the centre - right of Wellington ' s line , Napoleon ordered Ney to capture La Haye Sainte at whatever the cost . Ney accomplished this with what was left of D ' Erlon ' s corps soon after 18 : 00 . Ney then moved horse artillery up towards Wellington ' s centre and began to destroy the infantry squares at short - range with canister . This all but destroyed the 27th ( Inniskilling ) Regiment , and the 30th and 73rd Regiments suffered such heavy losses that they had to combine to form a viable square . Wellington ' s centre was now on the verge of collapse and wide open to an attack from the French . Luckily for Wellington , Pirch I ' s and Zieten ' s corps of the Prussian Army were now at hand . Zieten ' s corps permitted the two fresh cavalry brigades of Vivian and Vandeleur on Wellington ' s extreme left to be moved and posted behind the depleted centre . Pirch I Corps then proceeded to support Billow and together they regained possession of Plancenoit , and once more the Charleroi road was swept by Prussian round shot . The value of this reinforcement at this particular moment can hardly be overestimated . The French army now fiercely attacked the Coalition all along the line with the culminating point being reached when Napoleon sent forward the Imperial Guard at 19 : 30 . The attack of the Imperial Guards was mounted by five battalions of the Middle Guard , and not by the Grenadiers or Chasseurs of the Old Guard . Marching through a hail of canister and skirmisher fire and severely outnumbered , the 3 , 000 or so Middle Guardsmen advanced to the west of La Haye Sainte and proceeded to separate into three distinct attack forces . One , consisting of two battalions of Grenadiers , defeated the Coalition ' s first line and marched on . Chassé ' s relatively fresh Dutch division was sent against them and Allied artillery fired into the victorious Grenadiers ' flank . This still could not stop the Guard ' s advance , so Chassé ordered his first brigade to charge the outnumbered French , who faltered and broke . Further to the west , 1 , 500 British Foot Guards under Maitland were lying down to protect themselves from the French artillery . As two battalions of Chasseurs approached , the second prong of the Imperial Guard ' s attack , Maitland ' s guardsmen rose and devastated them with point - blank volleys . The Chasseurs deployed to counter - attack , but began to waver . A bayonet charge by the Foot Guards then broke them . The third prong , a fresh Chasseur battalion , now came up in support . The British guardsmen retreated with these Chasseurs in pursuit , but the latter were halted as the 52nd Light Infantry wheeled in line onto their flank and poured a devastating fire into them and then charged . Under this onslaught they too broke . The last of the Guard retreated headlong . A ripple of panic passed through the French lines as the astounding news spread : " " La Garde recule . Sauve qui peut " ! " ( " The Guard retreats . Save yourself if you can ! " ) . Wellington then stood up in Copenhagen ' s stirrups , and waved his hat in the air to signal an advance of the Allied line just as the Prussians were overrunning the French positions to the east . What remained of the French army then abandoned the field in disorder . Wellington and Blücher met at the inn of La Belle Alliance , on the north - south road which bisected the battlefield , and it was agreed that the Prussians should pursue the retreating French army back to France . The Treaty of Paris was signed on 20 November 1815 . Controversy . Much historical discussion has been made about Napoleon ' s decision to send 33 , 000 troops under Marshal Grouchy to intercept the Prussians , but — having defeated Blücher at Ligny on 16 June and forced the Allies to retreat in divergent directions — Napoleon may have been strategically astute in a judgement that he would have been unable to beat the combined Allied forces on one battlefield . Wellington ' s comparable strategic gamble was to leave 17 , 000 troops and artillery , mostly Dutch and Belgian , away at Halle , north - west of Mont - Saint - Jean , in case of a French advance up the Mons - Hal - Brussels road . Political career . Wellington entered politics again , when he was appointed Master - General of the Ordnance in the Tory government of Lord Liverpool on 26 December 1818 . He also became Governor of Plymouth on 9 October 1819 . He was appointed Commander - in - Chief of the British Army on 22 January 1827 and Constable of the Tower of London on 5 February 1827 . Prime Minister . Along with Robert Peel , Wellington became an increasingly influential member of the Tory party , and in 1828 he resigned as Commander - in - Chief and became Prime Minister of the United Kingdom . During his first seven months as prime minister he chose not to live in the official residence at 10 Downing Street , finding it too small . He moved in only because his own home , Apsley House , required extensive renovations . During this time he was largely instrumental in the foundation of King ' s College London . On 20 January 1829 Wellington was appointed Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports . As prime minister , Wellington was conservative , fearing the anarchy of the French Revolution would spread to England . Catholic Emancipation . The highlight of his term was Catholic Emancipation ; the granting of almost full civil rights to Catholics in the United Kingdom . The change was prompted by the landslide by - election win of Daniel O ' Connell , an Irish Catholic proponent of emancipation , who was elected despite not being legally allowed to sit in Parliament . In the House of Lords , facing stiff opposition , Wellington spoke for Catholic Emancipation , giving one of the best speeches of his career . He was Irish , and later governed the country , so had some understanding of the grievances of the Catholic communities there ; as Chief Secretary , he had given an undertaking that the remaining Penal Laws would only be enforced as " mildly " as possible . The Catholic Relief Act 1829 was passed with a majority of 105 . Many Tories voted against the Act , and it passed only with the help of the Whigs . Wellington had threatened to resign as Prime Minister if the King ( George IV ) did not give his Royal Assent . The Earl of Winchilsea accused the Duke of , " an insidious design for the infringement of our liberties and the introduction of Popery into every department of the State " . Wellington responded by immediately challenging Winchilsea to a duel . On 21 March 1829 , Wellington and Winchilsea met on Battersea fields . When it came time to fire , the Duke took aim and Winchilsea kept his arm down . The Duke fired wide to the right . Accounts differ as to whether he missed on purpose ; Wellington , noted for his poor aim , claimed he did , other reports more sympathetic to Winchilsea claimed he had aimed to kill . Winchilsea did not fire , a plan he and his second almost certainly decided upon before the duel . Honour was saved and Winchilsea wrote Wellington an apology . The nickname " Iron Duke " originates from this period , when he experienced a high degree of personal and political unpopularity . Its repeated use in " Freeman ' s Journal " throughout June 1830 appears to bear reference to his resolute political will , with taints of disapproval from its Irish editors . His residence at Apsley House was targeted by a mob of demonstrators on 27 April 1831 and again on 12 October , leaving his windows smashed . Iron shutters were installed in June 1832 to prevent further damage by crowds angry over rejection of the Reform Bill , which he strongly opposed . Wellington ' s government fell in 1830 . In the summer and autumn of that year , a wave of riots swept the country . The Whigs had been out of power for most years since the 1770s , and saw political reform in response to the unrest as the key to their return . Wellington stuck to the Tory policy of no reform and no expansion of suffrage , and as a result lost a vote of no confidence on 15 November 1830 . The Reform Act . The Whigs introduced the first Reform Bill whilst Wellington and the Tories worked to prevent its passage . The bill passed in the British House of Commons , but was defeated in the House of Lords . An election followed in direct response , and the Whigs were returned with an even larger majority . A second Reform Act was introduced , and defeated in the same way , and another wave of near insurrection swept the country . During this time , Wellington was greeted by a hostile reaction from the crowds at the opening of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway . The Whig Government fell in 1832 and Wellington was unable to form a Tory Government partly because of a run on the Bank of England . This left King William IV no choice but to restore Earl Grey to the premiership . Eventually the bill passed the House of Lords after the King threatened to fill that House with newly created Whig peers if it were not . Wellington was never reconciled to the change ; when Parliament first met after the first election under the widened franchise , Wellington is reported to have said " I never saw so many shocking bad hats in my life " . Jewish Emancipation . During debate on the Jewish Civil Disabilities Repeal Bill , Wellington , who opposed the Bill , stated in Parliament on 1 August 1833 : " . . . this is a Christian country and a Christian legislature , and that the effect of this measure would be to remove that peculiar character . " And " I see no ground whatever for passing the Bill ; and shall , therefore , vote against it . " The Bill was defeated , 104 votes against , and 54 for . Conservative Government . Wellington was gradually superseded as leader of the Tories by Robert Peel , whilst the party evolved into the Conservatives . When the Tories were returned to power in 1834 , Wellington declined to become Prime Minister and Peel was selected instead . However , Peel was in Italy at that time and for three weeks in November and December 1834 , Wellington acted as interim leader , taking the responsibilities of Prime Minister and most of the other ministries . In Peel ' s first cabinet ( 1834 – 1835 ) , Wellington became Foreign Secretary , while in the second ( 1841 – 1846 ) he was a Minister without Portfolio and Leader of the House of Lords . Wellington was also re - appointed Commander - in - Chief of the British Army on 15 August 1842 following the resignation of Lord Hill . Retirement . Wellington retired from political life in 1846 , although he remained Commander - in - Chief , and returned briefly to the spotlight in 1848 when he helped organise a military force to protect London during that year of European revolution . The Conservative Party had split over the Repeal of the Corn Laws in 1846 , with Wellington and most of the former Cabinet still supporting Robert Peel , but most of the MPs led by Lord Derby supporting a protectionist stance . Early in 1852 Wellington , by then very deaf , gave Derby ' s first government its nickname by shouting " Who ? Who ? " as the list of inexperienced Cabinet Ministers was read out in the House of Lords . He became Chief Ranger and Keeper of Hyde Park and St . James ' s Park on 31 August 1850 . He was also colonel of the 33rd Regiment of Foot from 1 February 1806 and colonel of the Grenadier Guards from 22 January 1827 . Kitty died of cancer in 1831 ; despite their generally unhappy relations Wellington was said to have been saddened by her death . He had found consolation for his unhappy marriage in his warm friendship with the diarist Harriet Arbuthnot , wife of his colleague Charles Arbuthnot . Harriet ' s death in the cholera epidemic of 1834 was almost as great a blow to Wellington as it was to her husband . The two widowers spent their last years together at Aspley House . Death and funeral . Wellington died on 14 September 1852 , aged 83 , of the after effects of a stroke culminating in a series of epileptic seizure s . Although in life he hated travelling by rail ( after witnessing the death of William Huskisson , one of the first railway accident casualties ) , his body was then taken by train to London , where he was given a state funeral — one of only a handful of British subjects to be honoured in that way ( other examples are Lord Nelson and Winston Churchill ) — and the last heraldic state funeral to be held in Britain . The funeral took place on 18 November 1852 . At his funeral there was hardly any space to stand because of the number of people attending , and the effusive praise given him in Tennyson ' s " Ode on the Death of the Duke of Wellington " attests to his stature at the time of his death . He was buried in a sarcophagus of luxulyanite in St Paul ' s Cathedral next to Lord Nelson . Wellington ' s casket was decorated with banners which were made for his funeral procession . Originally , there was one for Prussia , which was removed during World War I and never reinstated . Most of the book " A Biographical Sketch of the Military and Political Career of the Late Duke of Wellington " by Weymouth newspaper proprietor Joseph Drew is a detailed contemporary account of his death , lying in state and funeral . After his death Irish and English newspapers disputed whether Wellington had been born an Irishman or Englishman . During his life he had openly disliked being referred to as an " Irishman " . Owing to its links with Wellington , as the former commanding officer and colonel of the regiment , the title " 33rd ( The Duke of Wellington ' s ) Regiment " was granted to the 33rd Regiment of Foot , on 18 June 1853 ( the 38th Anniversary of the Battle of Waterloo ) by Queen Victoria . Personality . Wellington always rose early , he " couldn ' t bear to lie awake in bed , " even if the army was not on the march . Even when he returned to civilian life after 1815 , he slept in a camp bed , reflecting his lack of regard for creature comforts — it remains on display in Walmer Castle . General Miguel de Álava complained that Wellington said so often that the army would march " at daybreak " and dine on " cold meat " , that he began to dread those two phrases . While on campaign , he seldom ate anything between breakfast and dinner . During the retreat to Portugal in 1811 , he subsisted , to the despair of his staff who dined with him , on " cold meat and bread " . He was , however , renowned for the quality of the wine he drank and served , often drinking a bottle with his dinner — not a great quantity by the standards of his day . He rarely showed emotion in public , and often appeared condescending to those less competent or less well - born than himself ( which was nearly everyone ) . However , Álava was a witness to an incident just before the Battle of Salamanca . Wellington was eating a chicken leg while observing the manoeuvres of the French army though a spyglass . He spotted an overextension in the French left flank , and realised he could launch a successful attack there . He threw the drumstick in the air and shouted " " Les français sont perdus ! " " ( " The French are lost ! " ) . Another time , after the Battle of Toulouse , when an aide brought him the news of Napoleon ' s abdication , he broke into an impromptu flamenco dance , spinning around on his heels and clicking his fingers . Despite his famous stern countenance and iron - handed discipline ( he was said to disapprove of soldiers cheering as " too nearly an expression of opinion " ) , Wellesley cared for his men ; he refused to pursue the French after the battles of Porto and Salamanca , foreseeing an inevitable cost to his army in chasing a diminished enemy through rough terrain . The only time he ever showed grief in public was after the storming of Badajoz ; he cried at the sight of the British dead in the breaches . In this context , his famous dispatch after the Battle of Vitoria calling them the " scum of the earth " can be seen to be fuelled as much by disappointment at their breaking ranks as by anger . He expressed his grief openly the night after Waterloo before his personal physician , and later with his family ; unwilling to be congratulated for his victory he broke down in tears , his fighting spirit diminished by the high cost of the battle and great personal loss . Viva Montgomerie , niece to the third Duke of Wellington , relates an anecdote that Holman , valet to the duke , often recalled how his master never spoke to servants unless he was obliged to , preferring instead to write his orders on a note pad on his dressing - table . Holman , incidentally , was said to greatly resemble Napoleon . In 1822 he had had an operation to improve the hearing of the left ear . The result , however , was that he became permanently deaf on that side . It is claimed that he was " . . . never quite well afterwards " . In 1824 Wellington received a letter from a publisher offering to refrain from issuing an edition of the rather racy memoirs of one of his mistresses , Harriette Wilson , in exchange for financial consideration . It is said that the Duke promptly returned the missive , after scrawling across it , " Publish and be damned " . However , Hibbert notes in his biography that the letter can be found amongst the Duke ' s papers , with nothing written on it . That Wellington " did " reply is certain , and the tone of a further letter from the publisher , quoted by Longford , suggests that he had refused , in the strongest language , to submit to blackmail . He was also a remarkably practical man , who spoke concisely . In 1851 , when it was discovered that there were a great many sparrows flying about in the Crystal Palace just before the Great Exhibition was to open , his advice to Queen Victoria was " Sparrowhawks , ma ' am " . Wellington has often been portrayed as a defensive general , even though many , perhaps most , of his battles were offensive ( Argaum , Assaye , Oporto , Salamanca , Vitoria , Toulouse ) . But for most of the Peninsular War , where he earned his fame , his troops lacked the numbers for an attack . Meeting Lord Nelson . In September 1805 , the then Major - General Wellesley , newly returned from his campaigns in India and not yet particularly well - known to the public , reported to the office of the Secretary for War to request a new assignment . In the waiting room , he met Vice - Admiral Horatio Nelson , already a legendary figure after his victories at the Nile and Copenhagen , and who was briefly in England after months chasing the French Toulon fleet to the West Indies and back . Some 30 years later , Wellington recalled a conversation that Nelson began with him which Wellesley found " almost all on his side in a style so vain and silly as to surprise and almost disgust me " . Nelson left the room to inquire who the young general was and on his return switched to a very different tone , discussing the war , the state of the colonies and the geopolitical situation as between equals . On this second discussion Wellington recalled , " I don ' t know that I ever had a conversation that interested me more " . This was the only time that the two men met ; Nelson was killed at his great victory at Trafalgar just seven weeks later . Wellesley and Colley heritage . The earliest mention of the " Welles - lieghs " dates from 1180 , around a settlement still known as Wellesley Farm . The family had been granted lands to the south of Wells , Somerset for their ' Passive acceptance of the Norman conquest of England of 1066 . An early member of the family relocated to Ireland during 1171 , in the role of a Standard Bearer to Henry II . The surname " Wesley " was adopted from a childless wealthy cousin , Garret Wesley . In 1728 , Wellington ' s paternal grandfather Richard Colley , a landlord who lived at Rahin near Carbury , County Kildare , changed his surname to Wesley . The Colley or Cowley family had lived in that part of Kildare since the time of Wellington ' s ancestor , Sir Henry Colley or Cowley , who died before 2 October 1584 . Sir Henry in his lifetime possessed Carbury Castle , in north - west Kildare , starting with a 21 - year lease in 1554 . Colley is a surname of English origin . However , Colley or Cowley is also an Anglicised form of Mac Amhalghaidh , a family who were lords of Cálraighe in Chalaid in what is now County Westmeath . This family were claimed descent from the 5th - century Irish king , Niall of the Nine Hostages , and had the following genealogy ( " m " indicates " son of " ) : The weight of evidence is that Wellington ' s family originated in Rutland and came to Ireland about 1500 . Robert Cowley who became Master of the Rolls in Ireland died in 1546 leaving a son , Walter Cowley , Principal Solicitor for Ireland , who appears to have been father to Sir Henry . Henry Colley married Catherine Cusack , daughter of Sir Thomas Cusack , Lord Chancellor of Ireland which began the Colley - Wellesley connection , since Sir Thomas was the son of Alison de Wellesley . Titles and tributes . Wellington received numerous awards and honours during and after his lifetime , including statues and monuments raised in his honour . He held a wide range of titles , and had various buildings and places named after him around the world which still stand today . Nicknames . The Iron Duke . This commonly used nickname originally related to his consistent political resolve rather than to any particular incident . In various cases its editorial use appears to be disparaging . It is likely that its use became more widespread after an incident in 1832 in which he installed metal shutters to prevent rioters breaking windows at Apsley House . The term may have been made increasingly popular by " Punch " cartoons published in 1844 – 45 . Wellington had various other nicknames : In addition :