Battlefield Integration: Wellington's use of Portuguese and Spanish Forces during the 1812 Salamanca Campaign

Abstract

This thesis examines how the Duke of Wellington used Portuguese and Spanish forces during his 1812 Salamanca campaign. Wellington assessed the strengths and weaknesses of his allies, and then leveraged them throughout the campaign within the constraints of dissimilar command relationships. He was able to supplement his British formations largely with Portuguese forces as well as prevent the numerically superior French forces from massing on his army through influence and interaction with Spanish forces. Analysis of how Wellington engaged in military actions with allies who had divergent political interests and varying degrees of military capability offers lessons in coalition warfare that are still applicable today.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jun 12, 2009
Accession Number
ADA510949

Entities

People

  • John B. Yorko

Organizations

  • United States Army Command and General Staff College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Human Systems
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Battlefields
  • Bridges
  • Command And Control
  • Crossings
  • Employment
  • Governments
  • History
  • Military Art
  • Military Capabilities
  • Military History
  • National Security
  • New York
  • Portugal
  • Rear Areas
  • Terrorists
  • United States
  • Warfare

Fields of Study

  • History
  • Political science

Readers

  • Military History of the United States in the 20th Century.
  • Sensor Fusion and Tracking Systems.
  • Systems Analysis and Design