The Duke of Wellington, - Manchester,UK
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dtrebilc
N 53° 28.850 W 002° 14.149
30U E 550712 N 5926033
The Duke of Wellington was one of the UK’s most successful military men, and awarded a number of titles not only in the UK, but in other European countries as well.
Waymark Code: WMDX0M
Location: North West England, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 03/04/2012
Views: 3
Summary
Unless specifically stated these details have come from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthur_Wellesley,_1st_Duke_of_Wellington
"He was born on 1st May 1769 in Ireland, as 'The Honourable Arthur Wesley', the fourth son of Garret Wesley, 1st Earl of Mornington, and Anne, the eldest daughter of Arthur Hill-Trevor, 1st Viscount Dungannon.
In his early life he hated school and showed no aptitude at anything. Then Arthur enrolled in the French Royal Academy of Equitation in Angers, where he progressed significantly, becoming a good horseman and learning French.
After this experience he settled on a military career. With some minor breaks to enter politics his career spanned 28 years and saw him rise from an aide-de-camp to the rank of Field Marshall and for a time was Commander-in-Chief of the forces.
In total he fought 60 battles, in Denmark, India, Portugal, Spain and Belgium. The last 8 years of his military career was spent in Europe fighting with Portuguese, Spanish and Prussian forces against the French and Napoleon Bonaparte.
He is most famously remembered for his part in the Battle of Waterloo that finally defeated Napoleon. This battle was included in The Fifteen Decisive Battles of the World (1851) by Sir Edward Shepherd Creasy.
He won a number of awards in his career, both in the UK and in the other countries he fought with. A number of these were hereditary and are still held by his family. At his funeral his titles were read out in full and consisted of a grand total of 41 titles from a variety of countries." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arms,_titles,_honours_and_styles_of_Arthur_Wellesley,_1st_Duke_of_Wellington#Peerages
The highest ranking of his titles are listed below.
Duke of Wellington A Duke is the highest rank and title in the British Peerage. http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Duke_of_Wellington
Prince of Waterloo awarded by King William I of the Netherlands as a victory title after the Battle of Waterloo. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prins_van_Waterloo
Duke of Ciudad Rodrigo in Spain in recognition of his victory over French Forces at Ciudad Rodrigo. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duque_de_Ciudad_Rodrigo
Duke of Vitoria The title was created by Prince Regent John of Portugal. In recognition of his contribution to the defeat of Napoleon. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duque_da_Vit%C3%B3ria
"After he returned to the U.K. he re-entered politics. He served as Prime Minister of the U.K. between 22 January 1828 – 16 November 1830 and 14 November 1834 – 10 December 1834. He later entered the House of Lords, the upper house of parliament in the U.K."
The Statue
"The statue was unveiled on 30th August 1856 to commemorate the life of the Duke of Wellington.
The city of Manchester had decided within 4 days of Wellington’s death that they wished to erect a statue in his honour and announced a competition.
The chosen design by Matthew Noble shows Wellington as a Politician giving a speech with 4 allegorical figures, representing four aspects of his life."
Mars, the God of War, wearing a helmet and with sword in hand, exemplifying valour.
Minerva, representing wisdom.
Victory, holding a wreath of oak leaves in her right hand.
Peace, holding an olive branch, a cornucopia at her feet.
"The main statue and the four allegorical figures are all larger than life size and made from bronze. He is dressed in military frock coat with military decoration and is depicted speaking in the House of Lords. He his holding a speech in his right hand.
Between the allegorical figures are 4 bronze panels showing scenes from Wellington’s life.
The panel between Peace and Victory depicts the Battle of Assaye, an engagement during Wellington's military service in India.
The Battle of Waterloo is the subject of the panel between Minerva and Mars.
The outcome of the Duke's military success are represented on the panels between Peace and Minerva where Wellington is shown receiving the thanks of the House of Commons in 1814.
The panel between Mars and Victory depicts him at the Congress of Vienna in 1815.
Initially the statue was controversial as the majority of people were in favour of a more militaristic pose, especially one showing him riding a horse (which would have added to my tally of Equestrian Statue way marks).
One of the members of the committee that held the competition was the bishop of Manchester and it was believed he had held too much influence and it was his decision to show Wellington as a statesman.
However as time went on the statue was recognised as a fine piece of work and Mathew Noble went on to become recognised as a fine sculptor. The statues were cast at Robinson and Cottam's foundry in Pimlico, London in May 1855.
It is estimated that around 100,000 people attended the unveiling ceremony which included a parade of veterans from the Battle of Waterloo."
The details of the statue were taken from http://pmsa.cch.kcl.ac.uk/MR/MR-MCR11.htm.
Detail of Wellington’s Career
"After he returned from French Royal Academy of Equitation in Angers he decided on a military career and using his family’s influence became an aide-de-camp to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland Lord Buckingham.
On Christmas day 1787 he was promoted to lieutenant, but 2 years later moved into politics and was elected as a member of parliament in the Irish House of Commons.
Over the next few years he rose to the rank of lieutenant-colonelcy by September 1793. In the same year he experienced his first military action. He fought under the Duke of York in the Netherlands against the French. Although the campaign was unsuccessful, Wesley gained much experience and learnt many lessons which he found useful in later years.
On 3rd May 1796 he was sent with his regiment to India and promoted to a full colonel. The army was in India to support the British East India Company. The Fourth Anglo-Mysore War broke out in 1798 against the Sultan of Mysore, Tipu Sultan.
He led a number of successful campaigns between 1799 and 1804. During this time he was promoted a number of times, becoming a Major-General. He was awarded £42,000 for his victories and also awarded the honour of Knight of the Bath.
In 1806 back in England he took a leave of absence from the army and returned to politics. After being elected as M.P. for Newport he was appointed Chief Secretary for Ireland.
In 1807 war broke out between Britain and Denmark. Britain feared a naval attack from Denmark to support the French forces of Napoleon Bonaparte. Wellesley immediately stepped down from his political appointment and commanded an infantry brigade in a successful campaign.
On his return to England he was promoted to lieutenant general. Very soon afterward he again went to war and set sail for Portugal to fight with Spain and Portugal against France which under Napoleon Bonaparte had invaded Portugal and attacked Spain.
Using Portugal as a defensive position Wellesley fought for the next 3 years having a number of victories and reversals. By 1811 the French had started to retreat but still held mountain passes at Ciudad Rodrigo and Badajoz. In July 1811 Wellesley was promoted to be a full General.
In 1812 Wellesley went on to capture both Ciudad Rodrigo and Badajoz, though with heavy losses. After being joined by Portugese reinforcements he then went on to liberate Madrid after the battle of Salamanca. As a reward he was created Earl and then Marquess of Wellington and was given control of all allied armies in Spain.
In 1813 Wellington led a new offensive and defeated, the then King of Spain, Joseph Bonaparte, the older brother of Napoleon. He was then promoted to field Marshall.
There then followed a series of victories and reversals until news came through of Napoleon’s defeat and victory, and Wellington accepted the French commander Soult’s surrender.
In recognition of his successes Wellington was promoted to Duke in England and given the title Duque de Ciudad Rodrigo in Spain. He became Ambassador to Spain and was first plenipotentiary to the Congress of Vienna, where discussions were held to discuss the future of the European countries that had been involved in war for so long.
In 1815 Napoleon escaped from exile in Elba and regained control of France. Wellington left Vienna and went to Belgium to take command of the British-German army and their allied Dutch-Belgians.
On 18th June the Battle of Waterloo commenced at 12 noon and went on until the early evening. There was much vicious fighting and the battle swung back and forth. The French forces were forced to retreat after the arrival of Prussian forces in support of Wellington’s troops. After the battle Wellington was criticised for his tactics but was adamant that he did not have a clear advantage and had to wait for the Prussian forces under the command of Blucher. Indeed the battle was included in The Fifteen Decisive Battles of the World (1851) by Sir Edward Shepherd Creasy.
On 22nd June Napoleon surrendered again and was exiled to the island of St. Helena.
The battle of Waterloo was the pinnacle of Wellington’s military career, one in which he fought in 60 different battles.
Because Wellington had been away for so long fighting the Peninsular War, there had been no official ceremonies for all the titles he had been awarded. On his return to England he was awarded all his patents of nobility in a unique ceremony lasting a full day.
After his return he decided to re-enter politics and twice became 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 in 1852."
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