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Wellington–Winchilsea duel

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(Redirected from Wellington–Winchelsea duel) 1829 duel in the United Kingdom Portrait of the Duke of WellingtonThe Earl of Winchilsea

The Wellington-Winchilsea Duel took place on 21 March 1829 at Battersea, then in Surrey on the outskirts of London. It was a bloodless duel fought between the British Prime Minister Arthur Wellesley, Duke of Wellington and the Earl of Winchilsea.

It was the second and last duel fought by a sitting Prime Minister following the 1798 Pitt–Tierney duel on Putney Heath.

Background

The duel was sparked by the Wellington Government's introduction of Catholic Emancipation the same year. This marked a shift in Wellington's position. Although not unsympathetic to Catholics (having served alongside many during his military career), Wellington had previously opposed the proposed measures. However his pragmatic move to accept them angered many of his former supporters, who formed the Ultra-Tory movement.

Winchilsea, an aristocrat more than 20 years Wellington's junior, was opposed to Catholic relief. He attacked the Duke verbally and accused him in a letter to The Standard on 14 March 1829 of "an insidious design for the infringement of our liberties and the introduction of Popery into every department of the State". Wellington wrote to him demanding a formal apology but Winchilsea, while privately admitting he had gone too far, felt he could not back down without losing his honour. Wellington then challenged him to a duel. He was likely irritated to find himself in such a situation, having avoided and opposed duels throughout his military career.

Duel

A print caricaturing the duel by William Heath

The Duke appointed his old comrade Sir Henry Hardinge as his second while Lord Falmouth acted for Winchilsea. John Robert Hume, the military surgeon who had served with Wellington in the Peninsular War and at the Battle of Waterloo, was in attendance. He produced a detailed account of the exchange.

The two participants met early in the day at Battersea Fields, with Wellington's party having crossed Battersea Bridge on horseback while Winchilsea's took a more roundabout route via Putney Bridge, their coachman having mistakenly driven them to Putney instead of Battersea. By common practice of the era, the combatants were to use duelling pistols rather than swords. The seconds exchanged conversation and it was clear that Falmouth was alarmed in case Wellington was killed or wounded and he should be blamed.

Once the pistols were loaded, the two men took up position twelve paces from each other. Wellington remained silent and aloof during the build-up. Once the command was given to fire Wellington raised his pistol and fired, missing Winchilsea. His opponent, having remained motionlessness, now raised his pistol and fired at the sky (an act known as deloping).

Having faced Wellington's shot there was no longer any allegation of cowardice that could be thrown at Winchilsea. His second, Falmouth, eagerly accepted that Winchilsea had been on the wrong and was now able to apologise unconditionally.

Aftermath

Newspapers, political commentators and popular opinion was scandalised by news of the duel. The Morning Post, for example, talked of the potential loss of the "first warrior of England", saying it was "too monstrous" that Wellington should risk his life "in compliance with this social superstition." However, Wellington's reputation was enhanced, and he was seen to have outflanked his political opponents by impressing public opinion and stopping slanders undermining his government. He said: "The atmosphere of calumny in which I had been for some time living cleared away."

The Old King's Club, an alumni association of King's College School, holds an annual dinner marking 'Duel Day'.

The duel was the second and last fought by a sitting Prime Minister following the 1798 Pitt–Tierney duel on Putney Heath.

See also

References

  1. ^ Allingham, Philip V; Banerjee, Jacqueline. "Duelling in the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries". The Victorian Web. Retrieved 16 January 2025.
  2. "Background". Kings College London - Archives Exhibitions - The Duke of Wellington - The Duel. Retrieved 16 January 2025.
  3. James J. Sack, "Ultra tories (act. 1827–1834)", Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, accessed 19 September 2011.
  4. J. J. Sack, From Jacobite to Conservative. Reaction and orthodoxy in Britain, c. 1760–1832 (Cambridge University Press, 2004), p. 69.
  5. "Winchilsea insults Wellington". Kings College London - Archives Exhibitions - The Duke of Wellington - The Duel. Retrieved 16 January 2025.
  6. ^ "The man who didn't shoot Wellington". Woolley & Wallis. Retrieved 16 January 2025.
  7. Muir p 575–76
  8. Muir p.576
  9. Hume, John Robert. "Report by Dr. J.R.Hume to the Duchess of Wellington, of the duel between the Duke of Wellington and Lord Winchilsea, 21 March 1829". University of Southampton - Wellington Papers. Retrieved 16 January 2025.
  10. ^ Muir p.577
  11. "The Duel: 21 March 1829". Kings College London - Archives Exhibitions - The Duke of Wellington - The Duel. Retrieved 16 January 2025.
  12. ^ "Open Fire!". Kings College London - Archives Exhibitions - The Duke of Wellington - The Duel. Retrieved 16 January 2025.
  13. "Iron Duke fights duel over Catholics". Guardian. 28 March 1829. Retrieved 16 January 2025.
  14. Masterson, Margery (13 May 2015). "The political art of duelling". History & Policy. Retrieved 16 January 2025.
  15. ^ "Aftermath". Kings College London - Archives Exhibitions - The Duke of Wellington - The Duel. Retrieved 16 January 2025.
  16. "Duel Day". Old King's Club. Retrieved 16 January 2025.

Bibliography

  • Banks, Stephen. A Polite Exchange of Bullets: The Duel and the English Gentleman, 1750-1850. Boydell & Brewer, 2010.
  • Muir, Rory. Wellington: Waterloo and the Fortunes of Peace 1814–1852. Yale University Press, 2015.
  • Steinmetz, Andrew (1868). The Romance of Duelling. London: Chapman and Hall. pp. 336–343.
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