The Peninsular War
We are delighted to announce an important new tour which focuses on
three momentous years in the History of Europe: November 1809-July 1812.
For 33 months the British Army under Wellington liberated most of the
Iberian Peninsula from the yoke of Napoleonic domination.
We visit battlefields, museums, monuments and many other sites throughout
Portugal and Spain whilst following a fascinating itinerary starting
in Lisbon proceeding east to Elvas and Badajoz and then north to Ciudad
Rodrigo and Salamanca. Our route will also include places not directly
associated with the Peninsular War. We shall be accompanied on the tour
by Col Peter Knox OBE who is a distinguished and entertaining expert
on the Peninsular War. Peter Knox has prepared a detailed description
of the battlefield sites available on request.
DAYS 1, 2 & 3: The tour starts in Lisbon, a magnificent city where
we spend three nights. Day two begins with an introductory talk by Peter
Knox after which we travel up to the important fortifications at Torres
Vedras, visiting the museum and Fort Sao Vicente, continuing up to Pero
Negro and the memorial to Wellington’s Chief Engineer Col Sir
Richard Fletcher. Day 3 will focus on the great city of Lisbon, its
sights and museums including the atmospheric Arab Quarter, the blissful
Monastery of Os Jerónimos and the extraordinary collections of
the Gulbenkian Museum.
DAYS 4 & 5: From Lisbon we set out for Elvas where we shall spend
two nights in the Pousada de Santa Luzia, Portugal’s first state-run
Pousada. En route we pause in the important historical town of Évora
whose cathedral and Roman remains are among the most important in Portugal.
In Elvas we visit the military Museum and English Cemetery whilst on
Day 5 Peter Knox will take us to two of the bloodiest battlefields of
the War at Albuera and Badajoz.
DAYS 6, 7 & 8: It is a very picturesque journey up through Portugal
to our final destination: the spectacular walled city of Ciudad Rodrigo
or Roderigo as Wellington’s soldiers christened it. This is a
marvellous place to stay particularly as we shall be sleeping for the
three nights in the Parador set in the medieval walls. From here we
can explore the battlefields at Fuentes de Oñoro and Almeida
and visit the bridge over the River Coa, the scene of an extraordinary
rear-guard action by the British Light Division. On Day 8 we travel
to Salamanca to visit the site of the momentous Battle of Los Arapiles
and then continue into the centre of this most beautiful of Castilian
cities, and visit many of its important sights.
DAY 9: We drive to Madrid to take our return flight.
TRAVELLING COMPANIONS: COLONEL PETER
KNOX OBE was commissioned into the Royal Welch Fusiliers in 1968 and
travelled widely during his thirty-year career in the Army. A keen student
of military history, he has researched and conducted battlefield tours
in Germany, France the Peninsula and the Crimea. He aims to bring the
battlefields alive, using personal accounts of those who fought there.
He is a trustee of the RWF Museum and Chairman of The Crimean War Research
Society.
THIS TOUR WILL DEPART: 26th April
and 27th September 2010
OUR HOTELS: the very central Presidente in Lisbon, the Pousada in Elvas
and the Parador in Ciudad Rodrigo.
NUMBER IN PARTY: 12-18
THE PRICE OF THIS NINE-DAY TOUR: £1595
(single supplement £175)