Manuel Godoy, Duke of Alcudia, better known as the Prince of the Peace, was a Spanish soldier and politician. He was born in 1767 at Badajoz and died in 1851. He entered the royal body-guards in 1787. His personal qualities soon made him a favourite at the Spanish court, and his promotion was rapid. In 1791 he became adjutant-general of the guards, in 1792 lieutenant-general, Marquis of Alcudia, grandee of Spain of the first class, and prime-minister; and in 1795, as a reward for the part he had taken in concluding peace with France, he was presented with a large and valuable landed estate, and made a knight of the Golden Fleece. It was on this occasion also that he was named by the king Prince of Peace. As he used his vast power in the promotion of French more than Spanish interests, he became extremely unpopular, and the hatred of the people became so great in 1808 that he had to take refuge in France. Having lost everything, he lived for a long time only on the bounty of his royal friends. In 1847 he was permitted to return to Spain and resume his titles. The larger portion of his domains, however, was irrecoverably lost, and he ended his days in obscurity and poverty. Research Manuel Godoy
The Battle of Albuera occurred on the 16th of May 1811, during the Peninsular War. It was an Allied victory over the French at Albuera. A French army of about 23,000 troops under MarshalNicolas Soult, marching to relieve the siege of Badajoz, was met by the siege force of 30,000 Allied (British, Spanish, and Portuguese) troops under General William Beresford outside Albuera. The French were able to retire in good order, taking about 500 prisoners with them, but the siege of Badajoz was not raised. Of the 6,000 British troops, only 1,500 were not wounded.
On the morning of the 16th, Soult launched a feint attack against the Allied left flank while directing his main force against the Allied right. Beresford had expected a frontalattack and was unable to wheel his troops before the French struck. The Spanish troops on the left were shattered by French musketry and a cavalry charge, and the British 2nd Division was brought from the other side of the field to stop the attack. The British 57th Foot lost 423 of their 575-strong contingent and earned themselves the nickname the 'Die-Hards'. There was little room to manoeuvre on the ridge, so the battle became a fierce hand- to-hand affair. Beresford narrowly escaped capture and was preparing to retreat when the British and Portuguese reserves were brought up and, charging up the hill into the face of the French, routed them. Research Battle of Albuera
The Siege of Badajoz was a costly British victory over Napoleonic forces in the Peninsular War during March and April 1812. Badajoz was an important fortress in Spain on the border with Portugal, which the Spanish surrendered to the French in February 1811. It was recaptured by the Duke of Wellington at a cost of some 5,000 casualties. Research Siege of Badajoz
The Guadiana is a river of Spain, which rises in New Castile, flows first north-west, then south-west into Estremadura, and on reaching Badajoz begins to form part of the boundary between Spain and Portugal. Entering Portugal, it finally falls into the Atlantic after a course of 400 miles (640 km). Research Guadiana
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Abbreviations
Research Manuel Godoy
