Battle of Vitoria
Part of the Peninsular War
Monument to Independence, Vitoria
Date June 21, 1813 Location Vitoria, Spain Result Decisive Allied victory
Combatants
French Empire	United Kingdom Spain Portugal
Commanders
Jean-Baptiste Jourdan, Joseph Bonaparte	Marquess of Wellington
Strength
58,000	80,000
Casualties
~5,000 dead or wounded, 3,000 captured[1]	~5,000 dead or wounded[1]

In the Battle of Vitoria (June 21, 1813) Wellington and his Portuguese and Spanish allies finally broke the French army, leading to eventual victory in the Peninsular War. The Marquess of Wellington's 78,000 British, Portuguese and Spanish troops, with 96 guns, defeated 58,000 French with 153 guns under King Joseph Bonaparte and Marshal Jourdan near Vitoria in Spain. Combatants Kingdom of Spain, United Kingdom, Kingdom of Portugal French Empire The Peninsular War or Spanish War of Independence (Guerra de la Independencia Española) was a war in the Iberian Peninsula. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 450 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (1704 × 2272 pixel, file size: 664 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Vitoria, Spanien, Plaza de la Virgen Blanca Vitoria, Spain, Plaza de la Virgen Blanca Vitoria, España, Plaza de la Virgen Blanca Taken by myself. ... June 21 is the 172nd day of the year (173rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1813 (MDCCCXIII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar). ... Haec est Victoria quae vincit (This is Victoria which triumphed) Location Location of Vitoria-Gasteiz in Spain Coordinates : 42°51′ N 2°41′ O Time Zone : CET (GMT +1) - summer: CEST (GMT +2) General information Native name Vitoria-Gasteiz (Spanish) Spanish name Vitoria-Gasteiz Founded 1181 Postal code 01001-01080... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Map of the First French Empire in 1811, with the Empire in dark blue and sattelite states in light blue Capital Paris Language(s) French Government Monarchy Emperor  - 1804-1814/1815 Napoleon I Napoleon II Legislature Parliament  - Upper house Senate  - Lower house Corps législatif History  - French Consulate  - Established 18... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links Flag of Portugal 1707 - 1816; 1826 - 1830/34 File links The following pages link to this file: Flag of Portugal ... Jean-Baptiste Jourdan Jean-Baptiste, comte Jourdan (April 29, 1762 – November 23, 1833), was a marshal of France. ... Joseph Bonaparte Joseph Napoleon Bonaparte, King of Naples, King of Spain (January 7, 1768 – July 28, 1844) was the older brother of French Emperor Napoleon I, who made him King of Naples and Sicily (1806–1808) and later King of Spain. ... Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, KG, GCB, GCH, PC, FRS (c. ... Combatants Kingdom of Spain, United Kingdom, Kingdom of Portugal French Empire The Peninsular War or Spanish War of Independence (Guerra de la Independencia Española) was a war in the Iberian Peninsula. ... Combatants Britain Portugal France Commanders Duke of Wellington André Masséna Michel Ney Strength 25,000 British 25,000 Portuguese 65,000 Casualties 1,250 dead or wounded 4,500 dead or wounded The Battle of Buçaco (pron. ... Battle of Fuengirola was one of the battles of the Peninsular War. ... The Battle of Barrosa took place on March 5, 1811 between Anglo-Spanish and French forces as part of the Peninsular war. ... // In the Battle of Fuentes de Onoro (May 3 - 5, 1811) the British army under Sir Arthur Wellesley checked an attempt by French troops under Marshall André Masséna to relieve the besieged city of Almeida. ... Combatants Spain Portugal Britain France Duchy of Warsaw Commanders William Beresford Joaquin Blake Nicolas Jean de Dieu Soult Strength 10,000 British 10,000 Portuguese 13,000 Spanish 38 guns 23,000 infantry 4,000 cavalry 40 guns Casualties 5,916 dead or wounded[2] 5,936 dead or wounded... Combatants United Kingdom, Portugal First French Empire Commanders Earl of Wellington General Philippon Strength 25,000 regulars 5,000 regulars Casualties 5,000 dead or wounded 1,500 dead or wounded In the Battle of Badajoz (March 16-April 6, 1812) an Anglo-Portuguese army under Earl of Wellington, besieged... Combatants United Kingdom, Portugal, Spain French Empire Commanders Earl of Wellington Auguste Marmont Strength 51,949[1] 49,647[2] Casualties 5,914 dead or wounded 13,000 dead, wounded, or captured The Battle of Salamanca (July 22, 1812) was an important victory for an Anglo-Portuguese army under Earl... Combatants France Britain Portugal Commanders Nicolas Jean de Dieu Soult Arthur Wellesley Strength 80,000 60,000 Casualties 1,300 dead and 8,600 wounded 2,700 captured 4,500 dead or wounded A large-scale offensive launched[1] on 25 July 1813 by Marshal Soult from the Pyrenees region... The Battle of Sorauren was fought in late July of 1813 between French forces and the combined forces of Great Britain and Portugal. ... Combatants French Empire Spain Commanders Nicolas Jean Dieu Soult Manuel Freire Strength 18,000–55,000[1] 16,000[2] Casualties 4,000 dead or wounded[3] 2,500 dead or wounded[3] At the Battle of San Marcial, August 31, 1813, the Spanish Army of Galicia under General Freire... Combatants France Britain, Spain, Portugal Commanders Marshal Soult Arthur Wellesley, 1st Marquess of Wellington Strength 60,000 80,000 Casualties 4,351 2,450 The Battle of Nivelle (November 10, 1813) took place in front of the River Nivelle near the end of the Peninsular War (1808-1814). ... Combatants French Empire United Kingdom Spain Portugal Commanders Nicolas Jean de Dieu Soult Arthur Wellesley, 1st Marquess of Wellington Strength 62,000 64,000 Casualties 1,600 1,600 The Battle of the Nive (9-12 December 1813) was a battle towards the end of the Peninsular War (1808-1814). ... The Battle of Orthez was fought on February 27, 1814, between the First French Empire and the forces of the Allies. ... The battle of Toulouse, fought on April 10, 1814, was one of the final battles of the Napoleonic Wars, although its official classification is disputed as the battle occurred four days after Napoleons surrender of the French Empire to the nations of the Sixth Coalition. ... June 21 is the 172nd day of the year (173rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1813 (MDCCCXIII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar). ... Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington (1 May 1769–14 September 1852) was an Anglo-Irish soldier and statesman, widely considered one of the leading military and political figures of the 19th century. ... Combatants Kingdom of Spain, United Kingdom, Kingdom of Portugal French Empire The Peninsular War or Spanish War of Independence (Guerra de la Independencia Española) was a war in the Iberian Peninsula. ... Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, KG, GCB, GCH, PC, FRS (c. ... Joseph Bonaparte Joseph Napoleon Bonaparte, King of Naples, King of Spain (January 7, 1768 – July 28, 1844) was the older brother of French Emperor Napoleon I, who made him King of Naples and Sicily (1806–1808) and later King of Spain. ... Jean-Baptiste Jourdan Jean-Baptiste, comte Jourdan (April 29, 1762 – November 23, 1833), was a marshal of France. ... Haec est Victoria quae vincit (This is Victoria which triumphed) Location Location of Vitoria-Gasteiz in Spain Coordinates : 42°51′ N 2°41′ O Time Zone : CET (GMT +1) - summer: CEST (GMT +2) General information Native name Vitoria-Gasteiz (Spanish) Spanish name Vitoria-Gasteiz Founded 1181 Postal code 01001-01080...

Background

In July 1812, after the Battle of Salamanca, the French had evacuated Madrid, which Wellington's army entered on August 12, 1812. Deploying three divisions to guard the capital's southern approaches, Wellington then marched north with the rest of his army to lay siege to the fortress of Burgos, 140 miles away, but he had under-estimated the enemy's strength and on October 21 he had to abandon the siege and retreat. By October 31 he had abandoned Madrid too, and retreated first to Salamanca then finally to Ciudad Rodrigo, near the Portuguese frontier, to avoid encirclement by French armies from the north-east and south-east. For the overture by Tchaikovsky, see 1812 Overture; For the wars, see War of 1812 (USA - United Kingdom) or Patriotic War of 1812 (France - Russia) For the Siberia Airlines plane crashed over the Black Sea on October 4, 2001, see Siberia Airlines Flight 1812 1812 was a leap year starting... Combatants United Kingdom, Portugal, Spain French Empire Commanders Earl of Wellington Auguste Marmont Strength 51,949[1] 49,647[2] Casualties 5,914 dead or wounded 13,000 dead, wounded, or captured The Battle of Salamanca (July 22, 1812) was an important victory for an Anglo-Portuguese army under Earl... Motto: De Madrid al Cielo (From Madrid to Heaven) Location Coordinates: Country Spain Autonomous Community Comunidad Autónoma de Madrid Province Madrid Administrative Divisions 21 Neighborhoods 127 Founded 9th century Government  - Mayor Alberto Ruiz-Gallardón (PP) Area  - Land 607 km² (234. ... The cathedral Our Lady of Burgos. ... Salamanca (population 160,000) is a city in western Spain, the capital of the province of Salamanca, which belongs to the autonomous community (region) of Castile-Leon (Castilla y León). ... Ciudad Rodrigo (Rodrigo City) is a small cathedral city in Salamanca Province in western Spain (approximately a population of 14000 inhabitants, and head of the judicial district). ...

Wellington spent the winter reorganising and strengthening his forces. By contrast, Napoleon withdrew many French soldiers to rebuild his main army after his disastrous invasion of Russia. The following year, Wellington marched 121,000 troops (53,749 British, 39,608 Spanish, and 27,569 Potuguese^[2]) from northern Portugal across the mountains of northern Spain and the Esla river, by May 20, 1813, to outflank Marshal Jourdan's army of 68,000 who were strung out between the Douro and the Tagus. The French retreated to Burgos, with Wellington's forces marching hard to cut them off from the road to France. Wellington himself commanded the small central force in a strategic feint, while Sir Thomas Graham conducted the bulk of the army around the French right flank over landscape considered impassable. The Douro or Duero (Latin: Durius, Spanish: Duero, Portuguese: Douro, pron. ... View over Tejo River from Almourol Castle in Portugal (May 2005). ... Thomas Graham, Lord Lynedoch, (1748 – December 18, 1843) was a Scottish aristocrat, politician and soldier. ...

Battle

Finally, Wellington launched his attack at Vitoria on June 21, in three columns. After hard fighting, Thomas Picton's 3rd Division broke the enemy's centre and soon the French defence crumbled. Their retreat became a rout, with the losses of 8,000 killed or wounded and 2,000 prisoners, compared to Wellington's 4,500 killed or wounded. 152 cannons were captured, but King Joseph Bonaparte narrowly escaped. The battle ended Napoleon's rule in Spain. Sir Thomas Picton (August, 1758 – June 18, 1815) was a Welsh military leader who fought in a number of campaigns for Great Britain, and rose to the rank of lieutenant general. ... Joseph Bonaparte Joseph Napoleon Bonaparte, King of Naples, King of Spain (January 7, 1768 – July 28, 1844) was the older brother of French Emperor Napoleon I, who made him King of Naples and Sicily (1806–1808) and later King of Spain. ... For other uses, see Napoleon (disambiguation). ...

Aftermath

Unfortunately, the British soldiers failed to pursue the fleeing French troops, preferring instead to plunder the abandoned French wagons, containing "the loot of a kingdom". It is estimated that over one million pounds of booty (perhaps $100 million in modern equivalence) was seized, but the gross abandonment of discipline caused an enraged Wellington to write in his official dispatch, "the British soldier is the scum of the earth, enlisted for drink".

Order was soon restored, and by December, after detachments had seized San Sebastian and Pamplona, Wellington's army was encamped in France. Geography > Europe > Spain > Basque Country > Guipúzcoa San Sebastián with sailboats Statue of Jesus on Urgull Mountain San Sebastián (Donostia in Basque) is the capital city of the province of Guipúzcoa, in the Spanish autonomous community of Basque Country. ... Pamplona (Basque: Iruñea or Iruña) is the capital city of Navarre, Spain. ...

The battle was the inspiration for Beethoven's Opus 91, often called the "Battle Symphony," or simply "Wellington's Victory", which portrays the battle in a form of a musical drama. A portrait by Joseph Karl Stieler, 1820 Ludwig van Beethoven (IPA: ), (baptized December 17, 1770[1] – March 26, 1827) was a German composer. ... Wellingtons Victory, Op. ...

Notes

1. ^ ^{a b} Gates, p.390
2. ^ Gates, p.521

References

• Gates, David. The Spanish Ulcer: A History of the Peninsular War. Da Capo Press 2001. ISBN 0-306-81083-2

External Links

• The Cruel War in Spain - Armies, Battles, Skirmishes