In the annals of history, the term "Anglo-Russian War" may confound even the most erudite scholar, for there is no formal conflict between Britain and Russia that bears this title. Indeed, throughout the Napoleonic Wars, Britain and Russia found themselves not as adversaries but as uneasy and occasional allies against the French under Napoleon. The relationship between these two great powers of the 19th century was a complex ballet of diplomacy and mutual suspicion, punctuated by moments of outright hostility and alliance in equal measure.

During the Napoleonic era, British concerns were primarily maritime and colonial, whereas the Russian Empire, under Tsars Alexander I and later Nicholas I, sought to expand and consolidate its influence on the European continent. Initially, at the dawn of the 19th century, Britain and Russia, along with Austria and others, formed coalitions against France. However, the tides of alliance shifted with the Treaty of Tilsit in 1807, where Tsar Alexander I made peace with Napoleon and even agreed to enforce Napoleon's Continental System, which was an embargo against British goods.

The Continental System was a bone of contention that gnawed at the vitals of the British economy. Britain responded with its own blockade, using the Royal Navy to restrict access to European ports under French control, aiming to cripple French trade. The mighty Royal Navy, under commanders such as Admiral Nelson, who met his immortal fate at Trafalgar in 1805, maintained British supremacy on the seas, even as the Russian bear prowled the lands of the continent.

The Russian enforcement of the Continental System was lackadaisical at best, leading to tensions with France, and by 1812, their alliance had crumbled. Napoleon's Grand Armée marched into Russia, only to face catastrophic failure. British and Russian interests realigned, and they joined forces in the Sixth Coalition against France, which eventually led to Napoleon's first abdication in 1814.

It was on the fields of Europe, from the Iberian Peninsula to the gates of Paris, where British forces, most notably under the Duke of Wellington, engaged the French in a series of battles that would define the era. The Peninsular War (1808–1814) saw British forces, Portuguese and Spanish allies push the French out of Iberia, with engagements such as the Battle of Vitoria in 1813 serving as examples of Wellington's military acumen.

However, direct military conflict between British and Russian forces during this period was minimal and largely confined to diplomatic chess games, save for the Crimean War some decades later, which would be the truest form of an Anglo-Russian conflict.

Thus, in the grand scheme, the Napoleonic period was not marked by an Anglo-Russian War but rather by a complex relationship that ebbed and flowed with the changing fortunes of their shared nemesis, Napoleon Bonaparte. In the aftermath of the French defeat, the Congress of Vienna in 1815 redrew the map of Europe, with both Britain and Russia emerging as key arbiters in the continental balance of power.

We might say that while Britain and Russia grappled with the storm of Napoleon's ambitions, their contest was more a shadow-boxing match of diplomatic manoeuvres than a clash of bayonet and cannon. The age was one of empires crossing swords, but the British lion and the Russian bear found their most decisive battles fought alongside each other against the French eagle rather than in opposition—at least until the winds of history shifted, and new conflicts arose on the Crimean shores.