Wellington, The Iron Duke Trivia Quiz

Answer: 1st May, 1769

The commonly accepted location of Arthur Wellesley's birth was the Wesley family home in Dublin: 6 Merrion Street (Now 24 Upper Merrion Street). Other places that have been suggested as a possible birthplace are Dangan Castle, the Wesley family seat, Trim, Laracor, Mornington, Athboy and Athy. Although he was born in Ireland, Arthur did not see himself as Irish, reportedly retorting to suggestions otherwise that: "Being born in a stable doesn't make one a horse."

Wellesley's siblings included Richard(1760-1842), William(1763-1845), Anne(1768-1844), Gerard Valerian(1770-1848) and Henry(1779-1847). Interestingly, although his father's name was Wesley, the sons later changed it to "Wellesley" in about 1797, which was the older form used up to the 17th century before it was changed to the shorter "Wesley".

Answer: "Food for powder"

Arthur had inherited his father's musical talents; Garret Wesley was an amateur musician and Professor of Music at Trinity College, Dublin. But Arthur's gift for music did not please his mother, who believed that their family fortune had been whittled away by her husband's unprofitable passion for music.

When Garret died in 1781 (when Arthur was only 12 years old), he left behind a mountain of debts.

Answer: Leader of the local milita

Despite obtaining his officer's commission, Arthur was not yet set on his military career. He still spent much time playing the violin and reading books. As aide-de-camp, he spent many evenings at balls and feasts dancing, drinking and escorting ladies.

He engaged in the many typical activities of youth and developed a passion for gambling. He once won 150 guineas by walking from Cornelscourt to Leeson Street in under a hour. It is not surprising that he was often in debt, and had to borrow continuously.

In later life, he said, in regards to his youth: "Debt makes a slave of a man. I have often known what it was to be in want of money, but I never got helplessley into debt."

Answer: Burnt his violin

Despite the rejection, Arthur believed, or hoped, that he might one day be able to marry Kitty. Writing a letter to her, he said that if his prospects improved, or if her brother changed his mind, "my mind will remain the same." Those were to be the last words they exchanged until Arthur returned from India.

Answer: Boxtel

Thanks to Arthur's rearguard action, the British were able to continue their retreat northwards to be evacuated back to Britain. During the campaign, Arthur saw military organization at its worst, as the army starved and froze due to poor supply and tactics.

The lessons of the Flanders campaign would remain with him throughout the rest of his life. When he was older, he reflected that Flanders taught him "what one ought not to do; and that is always something!"

Answer: Tipu Sultan

Although the siege and capture of Seringapatam was an eventual success, Wellesley experienced one of his most humiliating failures. During a night assault early on in the siege, he lost control of his soldiers in the confusion of the dark and enemy fire, the terrain which they had to traverse not having been properly examined and surveyed. It is widely believe that if Richard had not been Governor General, Wellesley would have been court-martialled for his actions that day.

However, he was to take a part in the final assault on the city, during which Tipu Sultan was killed. Wellesley himself was responsible for identifying the body. It has been said that Tipu was killed by a British soldier who liked the look of the ruby in his turban!

Answer: Malabar Itch

The Malabar Itch is a skin infection caused by the fungus Trichophyton, resulting in outbreaks of patches of concentric rings. Wellesley's health had never been good, and in such a climate as India, he was to suffer often from various maladies. Wellesley was bitterly upset over Richard's actions and it took some time before his resentment over his supersession cooled. For posterity, this incident with Baird showed how confident Wellesley was in his own ability to command, as well as his desire and eagerness to prove himself.

Answer: Maintenance of a supply and communication line with base

Wellesley knew that an invading army eating its own food instead of foraging would not arouse the unnecessary wrath of the local populace. He knew the importance of maintaining a communication line to his base, along which he could retreat if things went wrong. This was to be particularly important reason for his success in the Peninsular War, and would explain his actions during Waterloo.

In this campaign against the Marathas, in order to establish a secure post and point from which to launch his attack against their army, Wellesley easily captured the city of Ahmednuggur - so easily, in fact, that an opposing officer commented: "The English are a strange people, and their general a wonderful man. They came here in the morning, looked at the wall, walked over it, killed the garrison, and returned to breakfast! Who can withstand them!"

Answer: A 5:1 advantage to the Maratha Army

The Marathas had an approximate strength of 50,000 men and over 100 guns. Wellesley had no more than 10,000 men and only 17 guns. That he managed to beat such an overwhelmingly superior force, albeit at a 30% casualty rate, was a remarkable achievement on Wellesley's part and a sign of what was to come.

Instead of meeting the Maratha army head on, Wellesley maneuvered his troops so that they would cross a ford (which, according to a local guide, didn't exist) a few miles downstream and flank the enemy. Wellesley took an active part in the battle, going from one place to the next and even leading a cavalry charge against the Maratha gunners. During the battle, he had one horse shot from underneath and another fatally wounded by a pike. In his later years, after all his victories in Spain and at Waterloo, Wellesley stated that Assaye was his finest battle.

Answer: The Order of the Bath

The story goes that one of Wellesley's old friends, Sir John Cradock, quietly slipped into the General's tent while the General was sleep and deftly pinned the Bath order star on to his coat. He was now Sir Arthur Wellesley, Knight Grand Cross of the Bath. Confirmation of his promotion to Major General came later, when he returned to England. For now, he would leave India not only having established his military reputation, but also as a rich man, and he was able to repay all his debts.

Answer: He stayed for a while on St Helena

St Helena's was the island to which Napoleon was to be exiled after his defeat at Waterloo. Wellesley spent a month on the island during his return voyage, portentously staying at the same place, The Briaris, as Napoleon would stay while waiting for his residence Longwood to be prepared for him. Wellesley, who arrived at St Helena's during the summer, declared its climate to be "the most healthy I have ever lived in," although Napoleon notoriously complained about the terrible weather while he was living his exile.

Answer: Admiral Horatio Nelson

Wellesley's initial impression of Nelson wasn't very flattering, as he recounted: "[Nelson] entered at once into conversation with me, if I can call it conversation, for it was almost all on his side, and all about himself, and, really, in a style so vain and silly as to surprise and almost disgust me. I suppose something that I happened to say may have made him guess that I was some-boy..."

Nelson then left the room to inquire about the general, and returned, his attitude much changed. Wellesly commented: "All that I thought a charlatan style had vanished, and he talked ... with a good sense, and a knowledge of subjects both at home and aboard that surprised me equally and more agreeably than the first part of our interview had done."

This was the only time these two famous British commanders met. Nelson was killed at the Battle of Trafalgar a month later.

Answer: The first time Wellesley saw Kitty again was on their wedding day

There was absolutely no direct contact between Wellesley and Kitty while the former was in India; news of each other was obtained through newspaper (!) snippets, and through Kitty's friend, Olivia Sparrow, to whom Wellesley often wrote. In 1802, Kitty had briefly courted a young officer, Galbraith Lowry Cole, who was to be one of Wellesley's Peninsular officers, but broke off the engagement. Wellesley had considered his words "my mind will remain the same" a gentleman's oath, and thus binding. So despite Kitty's anxiety that they'd not seen each other for over a decade, he went ahead with the marriage. On the wedding day, when the couple saw each other for the first time, Wellesley whispered to his brother George: "She has grown ugly, by Jove!"

Kitty was to bear Wellesley two sons, Arthur and Charles, but their marriage was not to be a happy one.

Answer: Copenhagen

The Royal Navy was commanded by Admiral James Gambier, who was later to be tried at his own request by court martial to respond to allegations of incompetence during an attack on French ships at Basque Roads. Wellesley's role in the attack was to encircle the city and put pressure on it to capitulate.

Interestingly, Copenhagen, Wellesley's famous charger in the Peninsular and at Waterloo, was named after this battle.

Answer: Chief Secretary of Ireland

Wellesley was to prove an extremely competent Chief Secretary. His experience of Ireland that was to provide much of his Catholic sympathy in this job and in his later political life. It is of note that the Wellesley brothers, despite their continued loyalty to each other, differed greatly on the issues of the day. By this time, Richard's star had fallen with the various attacks on his actions in India and his highly publicized sex scandals.

His brother, the young boy whom his mother had thought was nothing but "food for powder", was soon to prove his worth on the European stage in the grand style.