[Born 1768. Died 1854. Aged 86.]
A distinguished, brave, and gallant military commander. In 1793, served in Flanders. Later, won honour in Spain, especially by the skill with which he covered General Moore’s retreat. At Waterloo, where he commanded the whole British cavalry, he lost a leg. He was member of the government under Canning, and in 1828—a memorable epoch—Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland. Again held this appointment under Lord Grey, in 1831.
[By Christopher Moore. 1840. Executed for W. H. Curran, Esq.]
459. Arthur, Duke of Wellington. Soldier and Statesman.
[Born in Ireland, 1769. Died at Walmer Castle, 1852. Aged 83.]
The third son of the Earl of Mornington, and of Anna, daughter of Viscount Dungannon. Received his early education at Eton—then studied at the military school of Angers, in France; and in 1787, entered an infantry regiment as Ensign. Later became by purchase Lieutenant-Colonel of the 33rd, and in that regiment took part in Holland in the campaign of 1794. His first great military exploit was at the beginning of the century, in India, where his brother was Governor-General, and where, fighting in the war against the Mahrattas, he annihilated at Assaye an army of 60,000 men, with only 12,000 troops. From this period until his defeat of the French army, and the overthrow of Napoleon on the field of Waterloo (1815), his career was a series of triumphs. Many comparisons have been made between Napoleon and Wellington; all are unnecessary, and from the purpose. There is no resemblance whatever in the two characters. If it is contended that Napoleon was the greatest military hero of his time, it is sufficient for the admirers of Wellington to state, that after the English captain had beaten, one upon another, the great Marshals of Napoleon, he conquered Buonaparte himself, and put an end for ever to his splendid authority and terrible misrule. Madame de Staël has said, speaking of Wellington, that “Never was so great a man made out of such small materials.” Another writer has remarked, that in him “common sense amounted to genius.” A third tells us that he accomplished everything by that system of self-subjugation which made every wish, desire, aim, and object of life subordinate to a paramount and an ever-present sense of duty. We may gather a notion of the true character of Wellington from such criticism. There was nothing brilliant and overpowering in his genius; but he commanded respect, and won greatness by the wisdom of his combinations, the steadiness of his will, the simplicity of his aim, and the pertinacity of his course—his mind being once made up as to the direction to be taken. Wellington had boundless influence over his men, because he had irresistible power over himself. He knew better than any other great captain what not to do: and having resolved upon the propriety of inaction, no consideration, no amount of obloquy, blame, or reproach, could incite him into action. When he undertook command in Portugal, it was his conviction that the enemy were to be finally defeated by a passive policy on his part at starting. For months, against general opinion, he persisted in that policy; and after it had succeeded beyond all expectation, once a-foot, he advanced resolutely with his troops, scoured Portugal and Spain, drove the French before him, followed them into France, and never slackened until he had caught Napoleon, and chained him to the rock of St. Helena. Into the field of politics Wellington brought the same policy to play. He knew when to act on the defensive, how long he might defend with safety, when it was prudent to retreat or capitulate upon honourable conditions. The life of Wellington, from his boyhood until his death, is an instructive lesson for his countrymen. His daily habits, as we all know, were of the simplest; and his business-like activity was the most remarkable characteristic of his old age. In manners Wellington was soldierly and rough, but he was fond of children. He had few intimate male friends, but he has left behind him a correspondence that shows the delight he took in opening his mind freely, on the most delicate questions of State policy, to more than one of the gentler sex. A great contemporary poet, a friend and warm admirer of Wellington, has said that this illustrious, and in many respects perfect man, had one infirmity that brought him down to the level of us all—“he could be angry.”
[By Henry Weigall. This was the last bust for which the Duke sat. It was modelled in four sittings, the dates of which were August 6, 9, 11, and November 18, 1851.]
459A. Arthur, Duke of Wellington. Soldier and Statesman.
[Colossal Bust presented by the sculptor, H. Ross.]
460. John Quincy Adams. President of the United States.