Chapter 23: Challenges to the Empire
The Continental blockade
Since Britain was a trading nation, it had resources to finance military coalitions against the French, so one
aspect of French warfare lay in undermining British commerce. From 1805, after abandoning plans to invade
Britain, N decided to take this economic warfare a stage further. In Nov 1806, he issued the Berlin Decree. This
forbade all states under French control (or allied to France) from buying British goods and declared that Britain
and its overseas possessions were in a state of blockade.
The British responded with the ‘Orders in Council’ of November 1807. These imposed reciprocal terms: Britain
would not buy goods from France and tis allies or neutral countries that obeyed the French blockade, and the
Royal Navy would blockade the ports of France and its allies (thus preventing them from selling to, or receiving
goods from elsewhere). The Orders demanded that all shipping coming from or heading towards a Fench-
controlled port had to stop at a British port to be checked for contraband and that any ships that failed to
comply would be seized.
The British naval blockade: from the time of the declaration of war on GB in February 1793, the British had
used their powerful navy to disrupt French shipping and trade and to prevent goods entering or leaving French
ports. The 1793 Prize Act allowed British sailors to keep goods seized from French shipping and the French
economy rapidly felt the damage. The British blockade of France and its allies was formalised and intensified
after the ‘Orders in Council’ in 1807
N took yet one more step. In the Milan Decree of December 1807, he authorised French warships to capture
neutral ships sailing from any British port or country occupied by British forces. The decree declared that any
ships that had allowed themselves to be searched by the British Royal Navy were liable to capture by the
French.
This ‘continental system’ lay behind many of the problems encountered by N after 1808 and proved one of N’s
most unpopular policies throughout the Empire. Tea, coffee, sugar and tobacco became almost unobtainable (or
prohibitively expensive) everywhere in continental Europe and this provoked complaints and uprisings the
strains of maintaining the system also added to N’s commitments and military engagements. Portugal refused
to obey, this provoking a damaging Napoleonic entry into Spain in 1808. Worse still, in 1810, Tsar Alexander I
chose to opt out of the system, which had caused severe damage to Russia’s trade. This would lead to N’s
disastrous attempt to invade and defeat Russia in 1812.
The Peninsular War
Spain had, for the most part, been in alliance with France since 1795, following its defeat at the hands of the
French revolutionary armies. It veered briefly into the British camp in 1805-07, following its naval defeat at
Trafalgar. However, it was over again in 1807, when a joint Franco-Spanish force was created to take control of
Portugal, which was being used by Britain as an entry point for British goods
This army took Lisbon in December 1807 and the Portuguese royal family fled. However, Franco-Spanish
relations soured. N’s view of the Spanish King, Charles IV, had already been devalued by the latter’s switching of
alliances, and Spain was plagued by political chaos and corruption. N used the opportunity of an attempted
coup in March 1808 by Charles’ pro-British son. Backed by 100,000 French soldiers who had entered Spain
under the prtext of reinforcing the Franco-Spanish army occupying Portugal, he forced the abdication of
Charles in March, followed by that of Ferdinand in May 1808.
The Spaniards were divided among:
Groups of educated middle classes who welcomed French rule and French enlightened reforms
Landowners who feared the loss of power and influence
Powerful clerics who regarded the Fench as ‘godless’ and opposed the Napoleonic Concordat and
secular state
Large numbers of conservative and Catholic peasantry, hostile to ‘outsiders’ (particularly Frenchmen)
who challenged the authority of the Papacy
The Madrid Riots, May 1808: on May 2nd, the citizens of Madrid rebelled against the French occupation, killing
150 French soldiers. The uprising was crushed by Joachim Murat, who commended the elite Imperial Guard
, and a cavalry of Mamluk warriors that N had brought from Egypt to serve in that Guard. The French troops
trampled the rioters. The following day they shot hundreds of Madrid’s citizens in retaliation
‘Rebel’ Spaniards formed local resistance committees (juntas) and in July 1808, the Spanish Army of Andalusia
defeated N’s forces at the Battle of Balién, forcing the French to retreat and abandon much of Spain to the
insurgents. The surrender of 22,000 men was a shattering blow, which had major consequences:
August 1808: N imposed his brother, Joseph, as King of Spain
August 1808: The British sent Arthur Wellesley (later Duke of Wellington) to aid the Spaniards, A
British/Spanish army defeated the French at the Battle of Vimiero in Portugal. This gave the British a
series of ports and bases from which to maintain pressure of the French
December 1808: N placed himself in command in Spain. On 4th December he entered Madrid with
80,000 troops
The Peninsular War turned into a long drawn-out war of attrition. N’s strategy was to use overwhelming
numbers of French troops to attack the Spanish rebels, but the French found living of the land in Spain
problematic, given the fanatic hostility of the Spanish peasants and the ceaseless guerrilla warfare mounted
against the French troops. Fighting in mountains and barren areas where communications were poor, amid a
hostile population, was a new experience for the French armies. Getting a message from one village to another
was fraught with difficulties and it was impossible for commanders in different parts of Spain to keep contact.
Furthermore, supply lines back to France were difficult to maintain, given the size and geography of the
peninsula
Guerrilla warfare: the French faced two types of conflict in the Peninsula: the military campaigns of the
Spanish, Portuguese and British and the guerrilla (or ‘little war’) combat of ruthless peasant bands. Avoiding
open conflict, the guerrillas used surprise ambushes, night raids and vicious attacks on stragglers and outposts.
They provoked the French into equally horrific reprisals on civilians. The name ‘guerrilla warfare’ is still used
to denote warfare of the same type. (The Chouans had in fact already used similar techniques in the 1790s)
The British replaced Wellesley with Sir John Moore, who took command of the British ground forces. These
played an important party in harassing the French, although they failed to cut French communication lines in
northern Spain. By the beginning of 1809, the British Army was forced to withdraw to Corunna, on the northern
coast of Galicia. Both armies suffered extremely from the harsh winter conditions, but the French forced a
battle to try to prevent the French were repulsed and the British forces saved by their navy. This left northern
Spain to the French but the British action had frustrated the French ambition to retake Portugal and southern
Spain.
N was forced to leave Spain in January 1809 to deal with the Austrians who, encouraged by the French
setbacks, were planning renewed attacks on the French. Wellesley returned to Lisbon in April 1809 with
30,000 men. They protected themselves by building a series of forts and earthworks (the Lines of Torres
Vedras) from 1809 to 1810, both to defend Lisbon and to use as a base from which to mount further attacks.
Although a quarter of a million French troops and huge amounts of money were poured into Spain, the French
never achieved the breakthrough they sought. Every victory from N’s deputies (Jean-de-Dieu Soult and André
Masséna) was countered. The war became known as the ‘Spanish Ulcer’ and attacks and Spanish guerrilla
warfare gradually wore the French down. By 1813, Wellesley was able to advance, defeat the French at Vitoria
and enter Madrid. At this, Joseph fled and Wellesley led an invasion of France, defeating the French at Toulouse
in 1814.
The Austrian campaign
Encouraged by French setbacks in the Peninsula, the Austrians debated re-entering the war. The decision to do
so was taken in February 1809. The Austrian Army had undergone reforms sicne the defeat at Austerlitz,
improving tactics and corps structure and developing conscription. Despite this, it was still hampered by old-
fashioned commanders who disliked change and military leaders who were wary of taking the initiative
without written orders.
However, the Austrians had the advantage, in that N was uncertain about Austrian planning and his intelligence
gave the wrong information about where an attack might be launched. The Austrian Army invaded (French)
Bavaria in April (rather sooner than expected) and although slowed by poor roads and freezing rain, the
opposing Bavarian forced gradually retreated. N had to make a speedy trip from Paris to rescue a dangerous
situation, but his forces were able to defeat the principal Austrian army at the Battle of Eckmühl (21/22 April)
inflicting 12,000 casualties to the French 6000 and forcing an Austrian retreat. By May he entered Vienna.
The Continental blockade
Since Britain was a trading nation, it had resources to finance military coalitions against the French, so one
aspect of French warfare lay in undermining British commerce. From 1805, after abandoning plans to invade
Britain, N decided to take this economic warfare a stage further. In Nov 1806, he issued the Berlin Decree. This
forbade all states under French control (or allied to France) from buying British goods and declared that Britain
and its overseas possessions were in a state of blockade.
The British responded with the ‘Orders in Council’ of November 1807. These imposed reciprocal terms: Britain
would not buy goods from France and tis allies or neutral countries that obeyed the French blockade, and the
Royal Navy would blockade the ports of France and its allies (thus preventing them from selling to, or receiving
goods from elsewhere). The Orders demanded that all shipping coming from or heading towards a Fench-
controlled port had to stop at a British port to be checked for contraband and that any ships that failed to
comply would be seized.
The British naval blockade: from the time of the declaration of war on GB in February 1793, the British had
used their powerful navy to disrupt French shipping and trade and to prevent goods entering or leaving French
ports. The 1793 Prize Act allowed British sailors to keep goods seized from French shipping and the French
economy rapidly felt the damage. The British blockade of France and its allies was formalised and intensified
after the ‘Orders in Council’ in 1807
N took yet one more step. In the Milan Decree of December 1807, he authorised French warships to capture
neutral ships sailing from any British port or country occupied by British forces. The decree declared that any
ships that had allowed themselves to be searched by the British Royal Navy were liable to capture by the
French.
This ‘continental system’ lay behind many of the problems encountered by N after 1808 and proved one of N’s
most unpopular policies throughout the Empire. Tea, coffee, sugar and tobacco became almost unobtainable (or
prohibitively expensive) everywhere in continental Europe and this provoked complaints and uprisings the
strains of maintaining the system also added to N’s commitments and military engagements. Portugal refused
to obey, this provoking a damaging Napoleonic entry into Spain in 1808. Worse still, in 1810, Tsar Alexander I
chose to opt out of the system, which had caused severe damage to Russia’s trade. This would lead to N’s
disastrous attempt to invade and defeat Russia in 1812.
The Peninsular War
Spain had, for the most part, been in alliance with France since 1795, following its defeat at the hands of the
French revolutionary armies. It veered briefly into the British camp in 1805-07, following its naval defeat at
Trafalgar. However, it was over again in 1807, when a joint Franco-Spanish force was created to take control of
Portugal, which was being used by Britain as an entry point for British goods
This army took Lisbon in December 1807 and the Portuguese royal family fled. However, Franco-Spanish
relations soured. N’s view of the Spanish King, Charles IV, had already been devalued by the latter’s switching of
alliances, and Spain was plagued by political chaos and corruption. N used the opportunity of an attempted
coup in March 1808 by Charles’ pro-British son. Backed by 100,000 French soldiers who had entered Spain
under the prtext of reinforcing the Franco-Spanish army occupying Portugal, he forced the abdication of
Charles in March, followed by that of Ferdinand in May 1808.
The Spaniards were divided among:
Groups of educated middle classes who welcomed French rule and French enlightened reforms
Landowners who feared the loss of power and influence
Powerful clerics who regarded the Fench as ‘godless’ and opposed the Napoleonic Concordat and
secular state
Large numbers of conservative and Catholic peasantry, hostile to ‘outsiders’ (particularly Frenchmen)
who challenged the authority of the Papacy
The Madrid Riots, May 1808: on May 2nd, the citizens of Madrid rebelled against the French occupation, killing
150 French soldiers. The uprising was crushed by Joachim Murat, who commended the elite Imperial Guard
, and a cavalry of Mamluk warriors that N had brought from Egypt to serve in that Guard. The French troops
trampled the rioters. The following day they shot hundreds of Madrid’s citizens in retaliation
‘Rebel’ Spaniards formed local resistance committees (juntas) and in July 1808, the Spanish Army of Andalusia
defeated N’s forces at the Battle of Balién, forcing the French to retreat and abandon much of Spain to the
insurgents. The surrender of 22,000 men was a shattering blow, which had major consequences:
August 1808: N imposed his brother, Joseph, as King of Spain
August 1808: The British sent Arthur Wellesley (later Duke of Wellington) to aid the Spaniards, A
British/Spanish army defeated the French at the Battle of Vimiero in Portugal. This gave the British a
series of ports and bases from which to maintain pressure of the French
December 1808: N placed himself in command in Spain. On 4th December he entered Madrid with
80,000 troops
The Peninsular War turned into a long drawn-out war of attrition. N’s strategy was to use overwhelming
numbers of French troops to attack the Spanish rebels, but the French found living of the land in Spain
problematic, given the fanatic hostility of the Spanish peasants and the ceaseless guerrilla warfare mounted
against the French troops. Fighting in mountains and barren areas where communications were poor, amid a
hostile population, was a new experience for the French armies. Getting a message from one village to another
was fraught with difficulties and it was impossible for commanders in different parts of Spain to keep contact.
Furthermore, supply lines back to France were difficult to maintain, given the size and geography of the
peninsula
Guerrilla warfare: the French faced two types of conflict in the Peninsula: the military campaigns of the
Spanish, Portuguese and British and the guerrilla (or ‘little war’) combat of ruthless peasant bands. Avoiding
open conflict, the guerrillas used surprise ambushes, night raids and vicious attacks on stragglers and outposts.
They provoked the French into equally horrific reprisals on civilians. The name ‘guerrilla warfare’ is still used
to denote warfare of the same type. (The Chouans had in fact already used similar techniques in the 1790s)
The British replaced Wellesley with Sir John Moore, who took command of the British ground forces. These
played an important party in harassing the French, although they failed to cut French communication lines in
northern Spain. By the beginning of 1809, the British Army was forced to withdraw to Corunna, on the northern
coast of Galicia. Both armies suffered extremely from the harsh winter conditions, but the French forced a
battle to try to prevent the French were repulsed and the British forces saved by their navy. This left northern
Spain to the French but the British action had frustrated the French ambition to retake Portugal and southern
Spain.
N was forced to leave Spain in January 1809 to deal with the Austrians who, encouraged by the French
setbacks, were planning renewed attacks on the French. Wellesley returned to Lisbon in April 1809 with
30,000 men. They protected themselves by building a series of forts and earthworks (the Lines of Torres
Vedras) from 1809 to 1810, both to defend Lisbon and to use as a base from which to mount further attacks.
Although a quarter of a million French troops and huge amounts of money were poured into Spain, the French
never achieved the breakthrough they sought. Every victory from N’s deputies (Jean-de-Dieu Soult and André
Masséna) was countered. The war became known as the ‘Spanish Ulcer’ and attacks and Spanish guerrilla
warfare gradually wore the French down. By 1813, Wellesley was able to advance, defeat the French at Vitoria
and enter Madrid. At this, Joseph fled and Wellesley led an invasion of France, defeating the French at Toulouse
in 1814.
The Austrian campaign
Encouraged by French setbacks in the Peninsula, the Austrians debated re-entering the war. The decision to do
so was taken in February 1809. The Austrian Army had undergone reforms sicne the defeat at Austerlitz,
improving tactics and corps structure and developing conscription. Despite this, it was still hampered by old-
fashioned commanders who disliked change and military leaders who were wary of taking the initiative
without written orders.
However, the Austrians had the advantage, in that N was uncertain about Austrian planning and his intelligence
gave the wrong information about where an attack might be launched. The Austrian Army invaded (French)
Bavaria in April (rather sooner than expected) and although slowed by poor roads and freezing rain, the
opposing Bavarian forced gradually retreated. N had to make a speedy trip from Paris to rescue a dangerous
situation, but his forces were able to defeat the principal Austrian army at the Battle of Eckmühl (21/22 April)
inflicting 12,000 casualties to the French 6000 and forcing an Austrian retreat. By May he entered Vienna.
