15. The French offensive of 1810 ( November, 1809-April 1810)
15. The French offensive of 1810 ( November, 1809-April 1810)
The failure of the offensive placed Alburquerque in a precarious situation. Even if he attempted to deflect the criticisms pointing out that he was facing overwhelming odds, his own reports contradicted him. After being defeated at Ocaña, the Spanish General plagued the Junta with his repeated call for reinforcements and by writing a lengthy letter in which he proposed strategic and political guidance for the war, where he came to suggest that he should be named general-in-chief of the Spanish armies. The Supreme Junta, however, responded by naming Prince Gabriel to the post. Then, they offered Alburquerque's command to General Pedro de Alcántara, prince of Anglón, who refused the appointment. Meanwhile, Catalonia was lost to the French.
On December 5, Saint-Cyr conquered Roses after a month of siege. Then, General Juan Miguel de Vives, who had put, with the help of the Royal Navy, Barcelona under siege in early November, ordered his forces to withdraw to avoid being caught between Saint-Cyr and the French garrison of the city. The Spanish army took position along the Llobregat line, which was easily flanked by the French General, who brushed aside Vives' forces and captured 1,200 prisoners. However, After this victory, Saint-Cyr advanced no further and began to repair the French logistics in Catalonia. General Reding, who had replaced Vives, formed a new army and, by February 1810, he was in command of 30,000 men. However, his strategy was terribly flawed and he would be defeated and killed at Valls (February 25). This left Blake in command of all the Spanish forces in the former Crown of Aragon. Again, Saint-Cyr did not move. With Gerona still as a thorn in his side and no military threat in Catalonia after Reding was crushed, the French general would return with reinforcements to finish the resistance of the city for once and all. However, Saint-Cyr would be replaced by Augereau and de Reille by Verdier, a move that created a chaotic situation in the French chain of command as Augereau fell ill and Saint-Cyr and Verdier began to quarrel, as the former did not consider the latter as the commander-in-chief of the army, but as a general who had not been replaced due to the illness of the new commander. Thus, soon the siege of Girona came under the command of two generals with different ideas about how to do next₁. Thus, while Verdier attempted to take Gerona by himself, Saint-Cyr deployed his forces to avoid any intervention by Blake's army.
Meanwhile, Prince Gabriel had saved the Spanish army. When his army returned to its original defensive lines after the war of movement with Heudelet, the Spanish General had devoted a great lot of time first to exchange letters with Wellington and finally to meet him to discuss a way to reinforce the Spanish army and to create a stronger collaboration with the two armies. Gabriel was reluctant to have Wellington as commander-in-chief of the Allied forces in the Peninsula, but he put a price to it. Due to the sorry state of affairs of Spain, the money to keep the army in war footing was almost exhausted; thus, the cabinet of Spencer Perceval had reduced the British help to Spain to one million pounds. Gabriel pointed out that, with the help, the Spanish armed forces would shrink from 50,000 men to 20,000. Thus, he pressed Wellington to persuade Perceval to double the help. Otherwise, the Spanish army would be reduced to impotence. Eventually, Perceval would be persuaded and Gabriel's advice was finally taken; thus, the Spanish could field a 45,000 strong army in 1810.
In Paris, Napoleon was wondering what to do next. He had deployed 325,000 men in Spain and his generals were still asking for more reinforcements. However, the Emperor was not willing to hear them, as the behaviour of Alexander I of Russia kept him quite worried. Indeed, after the failed attempt to recover Madrid, the Spanish armies were wrecked and the plans of the Supreme Junta were in tatters. Even more, the south of Spain was wide open to French attacks. But the warlike sounds that could be heard in Saint Petersburg made Napoleon to fear the worse. Alexander, in his turn, did not trust the French emperor either, as Napoleon was not keeping to his side of the terms of the Treaty of Tilsit. Thus, with Kutuzov making short work of the Turkish armies along the Danube, the Tsar started to prepare the ground diplomatically₂ while Napoleon finally agreed to send 100,000 men to Spain after Joseph persuaded him that he could conquer Andalucia in three months.
Among the Spanish ranks, Alburquerque complained that he only could muster 20,000 men in his Army of the Center, most of them demoralized after the failure campaign to take Madrid. Prince Gabriel, with the Army of Extremadura (10,000 men), was given the impossible task of covering the Tagus' crossing at Almaraz, to protect Badajoz and to keep in touch with Alburquerque's force. The disproportion between the frontline to cover and the available troops left little hope of keeping it in front of the powerful French army. However, many hoped that Gabriel could do again what he had already done in Madrid in 1808. King Joseph, who had been reinforced by his brother, had problems of his own, too. He had to keep two corps (80,000 men) in Aragon and Catalonia, and another two more, with several flying columns (125,000 men) in Old Castille and Leon. All in all, he had four corps (100,000 men) to launch his offensive. Soult had offered two possible offensives: two flanking attacks, to secure Valencia and Badajoz, or a direct offensive towards Seville. In the end, Joseph decided for the second. Victor's corps would move from Almadén towards Cordoba while Mortier, Desalles, Milhaud and Sebastini, plus the reserve force, would march direct towards La Carolina. Alburquerque, who had been reinforced with 3,000 deserters that had returned to the ranks, had divided his forces into three groups to cover all the possible approaches of the enemy. The main one - 11,000 men strong- happened to be in what was to be the line of advance of the enemy.
In the North, Wellington had withdrawn to the Torres Vedras Line, with General Del Parque had returned with the remnants of his army to Galicia. Without any pressure from them, Joseph and Soult were able to concentrate in the south of Spain. Thus, Alburquerque's fate was sealed. The French offensive began on March 21₃with Victor's corp moving forward, followed by the rest of the army six days later. The Imperial forces attack all along the front and the Spanish defenders are smashed. The passes to Andalucia were easily taken and the defeated dfenders, depleted by the losses (many soldiers were taken prisoners by the French and many more deserted), simply melted away. Alburquerque, by April 1, was defending Jaén with only 8,000 men. Defeated, his force broke into small units that ran into the mountains or escaped by moving away from the advancing French. That day the two French columns met in Andújar and spent three days there, resting their forces and preparing their next moves. Sebastiani would take 10,000 men to conquer Granada while the main force, with 50,000 soldiers, would march towards Seville. Then, on April 2, the Junta Central ordered Gabriel to defend the city.
The Spanish General had been attempting to hinder Victor's moves at Almadén but when he heard about the French advance, he began to withdraw to the south. By the time the Junta had ordered him to go to Seville, he was already on the way. On April 5, Victor entered Écija and, the following day, he took Carmona. Finally, Seville surrendered to the French three days later (April 10). To their disappointment, the French found the ammunition and food dumps half empty₄. Prince Gabriel had sent part of his forces to take with them whatever they could. Unwilling to damage the city, the Spanish General forbade to torch whatever they could not take with them. Two days later, with 12,000 men and with plenty of supplies and ammunition, Prince Gabriel entered Cádiz.
The geographical position of the city made Cádiz practically unconquerable to an enemy who did not dominate the sea. The Santi Petri river, after the Spaniards blew up the Zuazo bridge, constituted an impressive defensive moat that the French Army would have many problems to cross. Furthermore, Venegas, the military governor of the city, had made sure to bring all the surrounding resources to the city or destroy them. Finally, the Anglo-Spanish naval superiority not only ensured the defense of the city but also protected its lines of communication.
₁ - I've created a slightly bigger chaos in OTL Saint-Cyr-Verdier affair.
₂ - I've advanced one year Kutuzov's assignment and campaign against the Turks.
₃ -OTL the French offensive was launched on January12.
₄ -OTL the defenders and the local authorities, in their hurry to leave Seville before the French were there, forgot to destroy or to move the depots of ammo, food, tobacco, etc of the city and gave the French a nice present.
The failure of the offensive placed Alburquerque in a precarious situation. Even if he attempted to deflect the criticisms pointing out that he was facing overwhelming odds, his own reports contradicted him. After being defeated at Ocaña, the Spanish General plagued the Junta with his repeated call for reinforcements and by writing a lengthy letter in which he proposed strategic and political guidance for the war, where he came to suggest that he should be named general-in-chief of the Spanish armies. The Supreme Junta, however, responded by naming Prince Gabriel to the post. Then, they offered Alburquerque's command to General Pedro de Alcántara, prince of Anglón, who refused the appointment. Meanwhile, Catalonia was lost to the French.
On December 5, Saint-Cyr conquered Roses after a month of siege. Then, General Juan Miguel de Vives, who had put, with the help of the Royal Navy, Barcelona under siege in early November, ordered his forces to withdraw to avoid being caught between Saint-Cyr and the French garrison of the city. The Spanish army took position along the Llobregat line, which was easily flanked by the French General, who brushed aside Vives' forces and captured 1,200 prisoners. However, After this victory, Saint-Cyr advanced no further and began to repair the French logistics in Catalonia. General Reding, who had replaced Vives, formed a new army and, by February 1810, he was in command of 30,000 men. However, his strategy was terribly flawed and he would be defeated and killed at Valls (February 25). This left Blake in command of all the Spanish forces in the former Crown of Aragon. Again, Saint-Cyr did not move. With Gerona still as a thorn in his side and no military threat in Catalonia after Reding was crushed, the French general would return with reinforcements to finish the resistance of the city for once and all. However, Saint-Cyr would be replaced by Augereau and de Reille by Verdier, a move that created a chaotic situation in the French chain of command as Augereau fell ill and Saint-Cyr and Verdier began to quarrel, as the former did not consider the latter as the commander-in-chief of the army, but as a general who had not been replaced due to the illness of the new commander. Thus, soon the siege of Girona came under the command of two generals with different ideas about how to do next₁. Thus, while Verdier attempted to take Gerona by himself, Saint-Cyr deployed his forces to avoid any intervention by Blake's army.
Meanwhile, Prince Gabriel had saved the Spanish army. When his army returned to its original defensive lines after the war of movement with Heudelet, the Spanish General had devoted a great lot of time first to exchange letters with Wellington and finally to meet him to discuss a way to reinforce the Spanish army and to create a stronger collaboration with the two armies. Gabriel was reluctant to have Wellington as commander-in-chief of the Allied forces in the Peninsula, but he put a price to it. Due to the sorry state of affairs of Spain, the money to keep the army in war footing was almost exhausted; thus, the cabinet of Spencer Perceval had reduced the British help to Spain to one million pounds. Gabriel pointed out that, with the help, the Spanish armed forces would shrink from 50,000 men to 20,000. Thus, he pressed Wellington to persuade Perceval to double the help. Otherwise, the Spanish army would be reduced to impotence. Eventually, Perceval would be persuaded and Gabriel's advice was finally taken; thus, the Spanish could field a 45,000 strong army in 1810.
In Paris, Napoleon was wondering what to do next. He had deployed 325,000 men in Spain and his generals were still asking for more reinforcements. However, the Emperor was not willing to hear them, as the behaviour of Alexander I of Russia kept him quite worried. Indeed, after the failed attempt to recover Madrid, the Spanish armies were wrecked and the plans of the Supreme Junta were in tatters. Even more, the south of Spain was wide open to French attacks. But the warlike sounds that could be heard in Saint Petersburg made Napoleon to fear the worse. Alexander, in his turn, did not trust the French emperor either, as Napoleon was not keeping to his side of the terms of the Treaty of Tilsit. Thus, with Kutuzov making short work of the Turkish armies along the Danube, the Tsar started to prepare the ground diplomatically₂ while Napoleon finally agreed to send 100,000 men to Spain after Joseph persuaded him that he could conquer Andalucia in three months.
Among the Spanish ranks, Alburquerque complained that he only could muster 20,000 men in his Army of the Center, most of them demoralized after the failure campaign to take Madrid. Prince Gabriel, with the Army of Extremadura (10,000 men), was given the impossible task of covering the Tagus' crossing at Almaraz, to protect Badajoz and to keep in touch with Alburquerque's force. The disproportion between the frontline to cover and the available troops left little hope of keeping it in front of the powerful French army. However, many hoped that Gabriel could do again what he had already done in Madrid in 1808. King Joseph, who had been reinforced by his brother, had problems of his own, too. He had to keep two corps (80,000 men) in Aragon and Catalonia, and another two more, with several flying columns (125,000 men) in Old Castille and Leon. All in all, he had four corps (100,000 men) to launch his offensive. Soult had offered two possible offensives: two flanking attacks, to secure Valencia and Badajoz, or a direct offensive towards Seville. In the end, Joseph decided for the second. Victor's corps would move from Almadén towards Cordoba while Mortier, Desalles, Milhaud and Sebastini, plus the reserve force, would march direct towards La Carolina. Alburquerque, who had been reinforced with 3,000 deserters that had returned to the ranks, had divided his forces into three groups to cover all the possible approaches of the enemy. The main one - 11,000 men strong- happened to be in what was to be the line of advance of the enemy.
In the North, Wellington had withdrawn to the Torres Vedras Line, with General Del Parque had returned with the remnants of his army to Galicia. Without any pressure from them, Joseph and Soult were able to concentrate in the south of Spain. Thus, Alburquerque's fate was sealed. The French offensive began on March 21₃with Victor's corp moving forward, followed by the rest of the army six days later. The Imperial forces attack all along the front and the Spanish defenders are smashed. The passes to Andalucia were easily taken and the defeated dfenders, depleted by the losses (many soldiers were taken prisoners by the French and many more deserted), simply melted away. Alburquerque, by April 1, was defending Jaén with only 8,000 men. Defeated, his force broke into small units that ran into the mountains or escaped by moving away from the advancing French. That day the two French columns met in Andújar and spent three days there, resting their forces and preparing their next moves. Sebastiani would take 10,000 men to conquer Granada while the main force, with 50,000 soldiers, would march towards Seville. Then, on April 2, the Junta Central ordered Gabriel to defend the city.
The Spanish General had been attempting to hinder Victor's moves at Almadén but when he heard about the French advance, he began to withdraw to the south. By the time the Junta had ordered him to go to Seville, he was already on the way. On April 5, Victor entered Écija and, the following day, he took Carmona. Finally, Seville surrendered to the French three days later (April 10). To their disappointment, the French found the ammunition and food dumps half empty₄. Prince Gabriel had sent part of his forces to take with them whatever they could. Unwilling to damage the city, the Spanish General forbade to torch whatever they could not take with them. Two days later, with 12,000 men and with plenty of supplies and ammunition, Prince Gabriel entered Cádiz.
The geographical position of the city made Cádiz practically unconquerable to an enemy who did not dominate the sea. The Santi Petri river, after the Spaniards blew up the Zuazo bridge, constituted an impressive defensive moat that the French Army would have many problems to cross. Furthermore, Venegas, the military governor of the city, had made sure to bring all the surrounding resources to the city or destroy them. Finally, the Anglo-Spanish naval superiority not only ensured the defense of the city but also protected its lines of communication.
₁ - I've created a slightly bigger chaos in OTL Saint-Cyr-Verdier affair.
₂ - I've advanced one year Kutuzov's assignment and campaign against the Turks.
₃ -OTL the French offensive was launched on January12.
₄ -OTL the defenders and the local authorities, in their hurry to leave Seville before the French were there, forgot to destroy or to move the depots of ammo, food, tobacco, etc of the city and gave the French a nice present.
