The Peninsular War Trivia Game | War History

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Fleeing French General Junot, to where did Prince Regent Dom Jo�o of Portugal escape?

Answer: Brazil

Junot was ordered by Napoleon to occupy Lisbon, which he did on November 30, 1807. Prince John, anticipating his arrival, loaded 35 vessels with nobility and treasure and left in frantic haste for Brazil, a Portuguese colony, where the court remained until April 1821.

2. In 1808, Charles IV of Spain abdicated his throne, elevating his son, Ferdinand VII, to the throne of Spain. Napoleon soon afterwards forced both father and son to turn over their right to rule to him. Who did Napoleon elevate to be King of Spain?

Answer: His brother Joseph

Napoleon had a penchant for placing his siblings in positions of rule over states he had conquered. Louis was King of Holland, Caroline, Queen of Naples, J�r�me, King of Westphalia, not to mention various princes and duchesses.

3. Francisco Goya's Second of May 1808 and Third of May 1808 are companion paintings depicting what events of the Peninsular War?

Answer: A cavalry charge and a firing squad

Goya, the last of the "Old Masters", was a highly successful court painter for Charles IV and major chronicler of his times. These two paintings, depicting the horror of war, were representative of both his view of the times and his increasingly tenuous hold on his mental and physical health. His portrait of Arthur Wellesley is a masterpiece.

4. Arthur Wellesley arrived in Portugal in April 1809 and took command of the British forces there, reinforcing them and the Portuguese with fresh troops. Wellesley then drove the French out of Portugal and marched to link up with Spanish General Cuesta in Spain. What was the first battle in Spain of this campaign?

Answer: Talavera

Talavera was a hard won victory for Wellesley and his Spanish ally, costing 7,400 casualties and resulting in an 7,500 in losses to the French. After the battle, Wellesley was forced to return to Portugal to contract his supply lines, while the Spanish went on to fight and largely lose in hard fighting during the hard winter of 1809-10. Wellesley did not trust Cuesta to provide the food and other supplies that the Spanish general promised to supply if the British would return to Spain that winter.

5. After his first battle in Spain, in 1810/11, Wellesley next defended a position outside of Lisbon, called the lines of Torres Vedras, of which there were four. To which line did the subsequent French attack reach?

Answer: The first line

The lines of Torres Vedras were famous for their brilliant design and construction, done in secret. Of the four lines of defense the second line was intended to be the primary line. The French under Marshal Mass�na made attempts at assaulting the first line with no success and after his troops suffered near starvation and cold, retreated to Spain, losing 21,000 of the 61,000 men with which he arrived at the near impregnable lines.

6. Wellesley advanced into Spain in January 1812 and captured a fortress town during that month. What was the name of the town?

Answer: Ciudad Rodrigo

Wellesley captured Ciudad Rodrigo after a siege from 7-20 January 1812, which had been taken by the French in 1810. The British troops sacked the city and were restrained only after several hours of rape and pillage. A key part of the support of the British by the Spanish people was the Spanish hatred of the French, who acted harshly toward them during their occupation of Spain, and Wellesley did not want that view damaged by his troops's misbehavior.

7. The 60th and the 95th rifles formed part of Wellesley's army in the Peninsular War, and both carried the Baker rifle, a slow loading but far more accurate and longer range weapon than the infantry's Brown Bess smoothbore musket. Companies belonging to light infantry battalions of what elements of the British Army (officially) carried the Baker rifle?

Answer: The King's German Legion

The King's German Legion, or KGL, was an artifact of the Hanoverian origin of the four Georges. It was formed after the dissolution of the Electorate of Hanover 1803 and formed a distinct part of the British Army during the Napoleonic Wars. It consisted of hussars, dragoons, infantry, artillery and engineers, and was regarded as one of the finest units in the British Army of the period.

Some companies (the flanking, elite companies) of two of the light infantry battalions of the KGL were equipped with Baker rifles, and dressed in the green jackets similar to those of the British rifle regiments.

8. Wellesley again triumphed in a battle in July 1812 in the Battle of Salamanca, in which the French suffered 13,000 casualties and the British lost 5,000. Who was the leader of the French forces?

Answer: Marshal Marmont

Wellesley's defeat of Marmont at Salamanca (called by the French and Spanish the Battle of Arapiles) enabled him to occupy Madrid for two months after which he again retired to Portugal. The loss of Madrid, even though temporary, was a blow to King Joseph's kingship from which he never recovered.

9. At the Battle of Vitoria in June 1813, one of the largest and most important battles of the Peninsular War, King Joseph was soundly defeated, but the British did not follow up their pursuit of the French. What held them up?

Answer: Looting of Joseph's baggage train

Joseph not only lost all his stuff but the crown jewels of Spain, too. Some troopers got rich that day. His flight marked the end of Bonapartist Spain, although elements of French forces remained in the country.

10. In November 1813 Wellesley drove the French from their final positions in Spain (other than Catalonia), and defeated their forces under Marshal Soult at the Battle of Nivelle in France. A key event of the battle was the attack on a fort by the 52nd light infantry, supported by the 95th Rifles. Who led the 52nd light infantry?

Answer: John Colborne

Col. Colborne fought in many battles of the Peninsular War, where he distinguished himself, as well as other Napoleonic War battles. At Waterloo he took up a flanking position to the charge of Napoleon's Imperial Guard that was a crucial element in driving it back in confusion.

He was eventually elevated to Field Marshal and was commander-in-chief of all forces in British North America and later of Ireland.

Source: Author cyeomans

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor bloomsby before going online.
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The Peninsular War Trivia Quiz

Napoleon called the Peninsular War his "Spanish Ulcer" and it competes with the invasion of Russian as his worst major decision to pursue. For Arthur Wellesley, however, it was the main chance.

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