Peninsular War

Preserved but no longer current.

Meaning · English

The war carried on, under the Duke of Wellington, against the French in Portugal and Spain, between 1808 and 1814.

Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)

Sources & notes

Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.

Common questions

What does “Peninsular War” mean?

The war carried on, under the Duke of Wellington, against the French in Portugal and Spain, between 1808 and 1814.

Is “Peninsular War” formal or informal?

No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.