4) Badajoz
Wellesey's victory at Talavera had earned him the title Viscount Wellington, but three years later he still only really controlled Portugal.
If Wellington was to push the French back out of Spain, he had to storm a crucial frontier fortress which controlled the Southern route from Portugal into Spain: Badajoz.
On 16th April 1812 Wellington deployed 22,000 canonballs and 2,000 barrels of powder to the task of breaching Badajoz's five-metre thick walls. Eventually, after a successful attack by escalade (scaling the walls on ladders) Badajoz was taken. The town was then subjected to one of the most controversial pillages in British military history.
Peter and Dan visit the site of the fortress today.
Click on map to enlarge view
