At War with Wellington - 08/08/2008

Peter and Dan Snow follow in the footsteps of Wellington's forces in the Peninsular War against the occupying forces of Napoleon. The campaign lasted five years but was ultimately successful, resulting in the expulsion of the French forces from Portugal and Spain. They visit the sites of two of Wellington's most impressive yet controversial victories. In 1812 he stormed the hitherto impregnable fortress of Badajoz on the Spanish border, but the looting that followed was one of the worst breakdowns of discipline in British military history. A further wave of looting occurred after Vitoria, an equally impressive triumph against the forces of Napoleon's brother Joseph.