Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, KG, KP, GCB, GCH, PC, FRS (c. 1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852), was an Anglo-Irish soldier and statesman, one of the leading military and political figures of the nineteenth century. Commissioned an ensign in the British Army, he rose to prominence in the Napoleonic Wars, eventually reaching the rank of field marshal, after the Battle of Vittoria in 1813. His military career culminated at Waterloo, where he, along with von Blücher, defeated the French Emperor, Napoleon in the Battle of Waterloo. -------------------- The Duke of Wellington was a member of the Ascendancy, the powerful Protestant landed gentry who ruled Ireland from during the reign of Mary I (1553) until the end of the Irish War of Independence (ca. 1923). Wellington however, was born an Irishman. ----------------- As a general, Wellington is often compared to the 1st Duke of Marlborough, with whom he shared many characteristics, chiefly a transition to politics after a highly successful military career. He was twice Tory Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and was one of the leading figures in the House of Lords until his retirement in 1846. He was largely instrumental in the foundation of King's College London.