Charging Against Wellington

This comprehensive military history details the generals, organization and movements of Napoleon’s cavalry through the Peninsular War.

In Charging Against Wellington, historian Robert Burnham draws on primary sources, manuals, memoirs, and regimental histories to reveal the experiences and activities of the French officers and soldiers who fought the British Army in Spain and Portugal.

Burnham presents biographies of eighty French generals, focusing on their service in the Peninsula and its impact on their careers. Two become Marshals of France and many were promoted, while others saw their careers damaged in the conflict—including nine who were relieved from their commands.

The author then examines the ever-changing organization of the cavalry, including the location and command of the various regiments and brigades. By April 1814, the Peninsula cavalry was down to 4,000 men, a shadow of the force that invaded six years before. Charging Against Wellington chronicles these changes, showing which units left and how their departure impacted the army.

Finally, Burnham looks at the service record of the 70+ French cavalry regiments. There is a table for each that tracks the regiment’s colonels, composition, organization, strength, and casualties while in the Peninsula.