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It is important, in trying to understand the everyday lives of country people such as Mary Mears, to know exactly what was happening in the world in which they lived. Local, national and world events had a great influence upon their lives. Throughout the 18th century the population of Britain had doubled in size and many of the people whose families had once lived and worked in the country had moved into the towns and cities where there was more employment to be found. These people needed to be fed and this put a greater burden upon those still living in the country; for they had to produce more food to sustain the growing population. Conditions were made much worse for them when, in 1793, England and a coalition of other European powers went to war against the French. By 1797 England stood alone against the all-conquering French Republic, but that year also became the turning point of the war as naval victories at Camperdown and Cape St Vincent gave England naval supremacy. These victories were consolidated in 1798 at the Battle of the Nile, and at Copenhagen in 1801. Napoleon Bonaparte seized supreme power in 1801 and reorganised French fighting forces prior to launching an attack against England. War was resumed in 1803 and for two years Napoleon tried to invade England, but his schemes were ruined by Nelson’s victory over the combined French and Spanish fleets at Cape Trafalgar in 1805. Napoleon then resorted to economic warfare in an attempt to bankrupt the “nation of shopkeepers” but England’s navy frustrated his plans. The Spanish, Portuguese and Russians revolted and Napoleon was forced into the Peninsular War, which lasted from 1808 until 1814. The commander of the British army during that war was the Duke of Wellington (the Iron Duke) who defeated the Napoleonic forces in Spain in 1813, and invaded France in 1814. He then defeated Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815, which finally ended the Napoleonic War. The English blockade of Europe during this time caused a great deal of trouble with neutral countries and this led to an Anglo-American war which broke out in 1812 and lasted until 1814. This was the last time that England and America have been at war against each other. |