# Guerra del Francès



## GeriReshef

The war between France and Spain (1808-1814) is called in the Catalan Wikipedia Guerra del Francès.
What is the exact meaning of it:
The French man war?
France war (=the war of France)?
Something else?


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## Angelo di fuoco

The literal meaning is the Frenchman('s) war.


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## merquiades

As Angelo said or my favorite:  The war of the French.  That's all literal though.  In English it's called the Peninsular War.


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## GeriReshef

Thanks to both of you!
The "French man" is an indirect way to refer personally to Bonaparte
or in general to Frence (as "The sick man on the Bosphorus" refered to Turkey)?


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## merquiades

GeriReshef said:


> Thanks to both of you!
> The "French man" is an indirect way to refer personally to Bonaparte
> or in general to Frence (as "The sick man on the Bosphorus" refered to Turkey)?



It didn't jump out to me that it could refer to Bonaparte, but I suppose it definitely could given the historical context, or extended to France in general.


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## Angelo di fuoco

If my memory is correct, Napoleon didn't participate in that war personally, but rather sent some of his generals & marshalls and installed his brother Joseph (Pepe Botella) as the new king, so I'm inclined to think it's rather referred to France in general.

There's "Borodin*o*" a famous (at least, in Russia) poem by Lermontov, which begins as follows:

"Скажи-ка, дядя, ведь не даром
Москва, спалённая пожаром,
Французу отдана?"

"Tell me, uncle, it's not for nothing that
Moscow, burnt by the fire,
has been surrendered to the Frenchman?"

The difference is that in this case Napoleon was there in person.


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## merquiades

Angelo di fuoco said:


> If my memory is correct, Napoleon didn't participate in that war personally, but rather sent some of his generals & marshalls and installed his brother Joseph (Pepe Botella) as the new king, so I'm inclined to think it's rather referred to France in general.
> 
> There's "Borodin*o*" a famous (at least, in Russia) poem by Lermontov, which begins as follows:
> 
> "Скажи-ка, дядя, ведь не даром
> Москва, спалённая пожаром,
> Французу отдана?"
> 
> "Tell me, uncle, it's not for nothing that
> Moscow, burnt by the fire,
> has been surrendered to the Frenchman?"
> 
> The difference is that in this case Napoleon was there in person.



You're right, I thought _El francès_ referred to France in general too.  Or, perhaps, it could refer to Joseph Bonaparte?


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## GeriReshef

Now everything is clear.
Thank you all!


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