Cardedeu order of battle

The Cardedeu order of battle lists the troops that fought in the Battle of Cardedeu (16 December 1808) and several other battles fought between June and December in the Spanish province of Catalonia during the Peninsular War.[1] In February 1808, Imperial French forces treacherously seized Barcelona on 29 February and Sant Ferran Castle on 15 March as well as other fortresses in Spain.[2] The Dos de Mayo Uprising broke out when the Spanish people found that Emperor Napoleon deposed the Spanish royal family and set up his brother Joseph Bonaparte as their new king.[3] The 12,000 Imperial French soldiers under Guillaume Philibert Duhesme occupying Catalonia were beaten at the Battles of El Bruch and Gerona in June. Though Duhesme was reinforced by another French division, the Spanish defeated him at the Second Siege of Gerona in July and August. With Duhesme blockaded in Barcelona, Napoleon appointed Laurent Gouvion Saint-Cyr as commander of the VII Corps, added two good divisions and other troops to his force, and ordered him to relieve Barcelona. Saint-Cyr succeeded in this task, winning the battles of Roses, Cardedeu and Molins de Rei in December.[4]

Cardedeu order of battle

Victory in the Battle of Cardedeu allowed the French to break through to Barcelona in December 1808.
DateBattle: 16 December 1808
Campaign: June–December 1808
Location
Result French victory
Belligerents
First French Empire
Kingdom of Italy
Kingdom of Naples
Swiss Confederation
Kingdom of Spain
Commanders and leaders
Guillaume Duhesme
Laurent Saint-Cyr
Juan Miguel de Vives
Theodor von Reding
Strength
over 42,382 unknown

Imperial French order of battle

On 10 October 1808, the VII Corps numbered 42,382 soldiers, of whom 4,948 men were in the hospital and 1,302 were detached. However, not all its assigned troops had joined by that date. Note that the Observation Corps became part of VII Corps when Saint-Cyr assumed command. It is probable that the corps counted over 50,000 men.[5] Joseph Chabran's division was made up of veteran French units.[6] The Provisional Cavalry regiments were created by assembling the depot squadrons, all conscripts, from as many as four different regiments.[7] Honoré Charles Reille's division was a mass of second-class units cobbled together from National Guards, provisional battalions, Swiss, and a "French" regiment from recently annexed Tuscany.[8] The Neapolitans were universally considered the worst troops in Europe.[9] On the other hand, the divisions of Joseph Souham and Domenico Pino were composed of crack troops.[10]

VII Corps of General Laurent Gouvion Saint-Cyr on 10 October 1808[11][5]
Corps Division Strength Unit Strength
Observation Corps[11]
General of Division
Guillaume Philibert Duhesme
1st Division
General of Division
Joseph Chabran
Aug: 6,045 2nd Line Infantry Regiment, 3rd Battalion610
7th Line Infantry Regiment, 1st & 2nd Battalions1,785
16th Line Infantry Regiment, 3rd Battalion789
37th Line Infantry Regiment, 3rd Battalion656
56th Line Infantry Regiment, 4th Battalion833
93rd Line Infantry Regiment, 3rd Battalion792
2nd Swiss Infantry Regiment, 3rd Battalion580
2nd Division
General of Division
Giuseppe Lechi
Aug: 4,596 2nd Italian Line Infantry Regiment, 2nd Battalion740
4th Italian Line Infantry Regiment, 3rd Battalion587
5th Italian Line Infantry Regiment, 2nd Battalion806
Italian Velites Infantry Regiment, 1st Battalion519
1st Neapolitan Infantry Regiment, 1st & 2nd Battalions1,944
Cavalry Brigade
General of Brigade
Bertrand Bessières
Aug: 825 3rd Provisional Cuirassier Regiment409
3rd Provisional Chasseur Regiment416
Cavalry Brigade
General of Brigade
François Xavier de Schwarz
Aug: 892 Prince Royal Italian Chasseur Regiment504
Neapolitan Chasseur Regiment388
Corps Artillery Aug: 356 Artillery & train companies356
Observation Corps Total Aug: 12,714
Nov: 10,000[12]
-
VII Corps[5]
General of Division
Laurent Gouvion Saint-Cyr
3rd Division[8]
General of Division
Honoré Charles Reille
Aug: 8,370[8]
Nov: 5,612[13]
32nd Light Infantry Regiment, 1 battalion1,100?
16th Line Infantry Regiment, 1 battalion840?
56th Line Infantry Regiment, 1 battalion840?
113th Line Infantry Regiment, 2 battalions1,300
Perpignan Provisional Regiment, 4 battalions1,680
5th Legion of the Reserve, 1 battalion500
Chasseurs des Montagnes, 1 battalion560?
Valais Infantry Regiment, 1 battalion800
4 squadrons cavalry replacements550
2 artillery companies200
4th Division
General of Division
Joseph Souham
Nov: 7,712[13] 1st Light Infantry Regiment, 3 battalions?
3rd Light Infantry Regiment, 1 battalion?
7th Line Infantry Regiment, 2 battalions?
42nd Line Infantry Regiment, 3 battalions?
67th Line Infantry Regiment, 1 battalion?
5th Division
General of Division
Domenico Pino
Nov: 8,368[13] 1st Italian Light Infantry Regiment, 3 battalions?
2nd Italian Light Infantry Regiment, 3 battalions?
4th Italian Line Infantry Regiment, 2 battalions?
5th Italian Line Infantry Regiment, 1 battalion?
6th Italian Line Infantry Regiment, 3 battalions?
7th Italian Line Infantry Regiment, 1 battalion?
6th Division
General of Division
Louis François Jean Chabot
Nov: 1,988[13] Chasseurs of the Eastern Pyrenees, 1 battalion?
2nd Neapolitan Infantry Regiment, 2 battalions?
Cavalry Brigade
General of Brigade
Jacques Fontane
Nov: 1,700[13] 7th Italian Dragoon Regiment?
Royal Italian Chasseur Regiment?
24th Dragoon Regiment (not brigaded)?
VII Corps Artillery Nov: 500[13] Artillery companies500
Grand Total Nov: 42,382 -

Spanish order of battle

The Royal Spanish army included three Irish regiments, including the Ultonia Infantry Regiment. There were also six Swiss regiments, among them the 1st Wimpfen and 2nd Reding senior Infantry Regiments. The Provincial Grenadiers were a militia formation.[14] Uniquely among the provinces of Spain, Catalonia raised its own type of militia, the miquelets. This was a mass levy of military aged men that was armed and paid by the church parishes. They were sometimes called somatenes after the alarm-bell (somaten) used to alert them.[15] The miquelets were organized into 1,000-man "tercios".[16] Newly-raised units are labeled "Volunteers" or "new". Miquelets and militia have the Catalan flag. All others are regulars.[17]

During the Siege of Roses, the garrison consisted of 150 men of the Ultonia Regiment, one-half of the 2nd of Barcelona Light Infantry Regiment, one company of the 1st Wimpfen Swiss Regiment, the Lerida and Igualada Tercios, and elements of the Berga and Figueras Tercios.[18] These were later reinforced by a small battalion of the Borbon Regiment.[19] Nearly all these troops went into captivity when the place surrendered on 5 December.[20]

One authority stated that Reding commanded two battalions each of the 1st Grenada, Baza, and Almeria Infantry Regiments at Cardedeu. Vives led newly organized Catalan units at Cardedeu, plus seven guns, but the source did not specify which units.[21] A second historian credited the Spanish at Cardedeu with 5,000 Granadan troops under Reding and 4,000 Catalans under Vives, but did not list the individual units. This force included 600 cavalrymen and seven field guns. During the battle, Francisco Milans del Bosch was to the east with 3,000 miquelets and Luis Rebolledo de Palafox y Melci, 1st marqués de Lazán was to the north with perhaps 6,000 more soldiers. However, Milans' men were still reeling from their defeat the day before and Lazán was too slow; neither intervened at Cardedeu.[22]

Spanish Army on 5 November 1808[23]
Army Division Strength Unit Strength
Army of Catalonia
Captain-General
Juan Miguel de Vives y Feliu
Vanguard
Brigadier-General
Mariano Álvarez de Castro
5,600 Ultonia Infantry Regiment300
Borbon Infantry Regiment500
2nd of Barcelona Light Infantry Regiment1,000
1st Wimpfen Swiss Infantry Regiment400
1st Gerona Tercio900
2nd Gerona Tercio400
Igualada Tercio400
Cervera Tercio400
1st Tarragona Tercio800
Figueras Tercio400
San Narciso Hussar Regiment (new)100
1st Division
General
Conde de Caldagues
4,998
6 guns
2nd Walloon Guards314
Soria Infantry Regiment780
Borbon Infantry Regiment (det.)151
2nd of Savoia Infantry Regiment1,734
2nd Reding senior Swiss Infantry Regiment (det.)270
Tortosa Tercio984
Igualada and Cervera Tercio (det.)245
Sappers50
Españoles Hussar Regiment, 2 squadrons220
Cataluña Cazadores Cavalry (new)180
Artillery battery70, 6 guns
2nd Division
General Laguna
2,360
7 guns
Old Castile Provincial Grenadiers972
New Castile Provincial Grenadiers924
Zaragosa Volunteers150
Sappers30
Españoles Hussar Regiment200
Artillery battery84, 7 guns
3rd Division
General La Serna
2,458 Grenada Infantry Regiment961
2nd Tarragona Tercio922
Arzu Division (new)325
Sueltas Companies (new)250
4th Division
General
Francisco Milans del Bosch
3,710 1st Lerida Tercio872
Vich Tercio976
Manresa Tercio937
Valls Tercio925
Reserve 907
4 guns
Spanish Guards60
Grenadiers Soria Regiment188
Grenadiers Wimpfen Swiss Regiment169
General's Bodyguard340
Sappers20
Españoles Hussar Regiment80
Artillery battery50, 4 guns
Army of Granada
General
Theodor von Reding
1st Division 8,200 2nd Reding senior Swiss Regiment1,000
1st Granada (Iliberia) Infantry Regiment (new)2,400
Baza Infantry Regiment (new)2,400
Almeria Infantry Regiment (new)2,400
2nd Division 6,000 Santa Fé Infantry Regiment (new)2,400
Antequera Infantry Regiment (new)1,200
Loxa Infantry Regiment (new)2,400
Cavalry 670 Granada Hussar Regiment (new)670
Artillery 130, 6 g. Artillery battery130, 6 guns
Army of Aragon
Captain-General
José de Palafox y Melci
Not present
3rd Division
General
Luis Palafox, marqués de Lazán
4,688 1st Aragon Volunteers638
3rd Aragon Volunteers593
Fernando VII of Aragon Regiment (new)648
Daroca Regiment (new)503
La Reunion Regiment (new)1,286
Reserva del General Regiment (new)934
Fernando VII Cazadores Cavalry, 1 troop22
Artillery battery64

Notes

  1. "History of Guerre d'Espagne - The PEninsular War 1808-1814".
  2. Oman 2010, p. 37.
  3. Gates 2002, p. 12.
  4. Gates 2002, pp. 59–67.
  5. Oman 2010, pp. 642–643.
  6. Oman 2010, p. 107.
  7. Oman 2010, pp. 104–105.
  8. Oman 2010, p. 320.
  9. Oman 2010, p. 311.
  10. Oman 2010, p. 333.
  11. Oman 2010, p. 614.
  12. Oman 1995, p. 38.
  13. Oman 1995, p. 44.
  14. Oman 2010, p. 609.
  15. Oman 2010, p. 306.
  16. Oman 2010, p. 322.
  17. Oman 2010, p. 631.
  18. Oman 1995, pp. 47–48.
  19. Oman 1995, p. 53.
  20. Oman 1995, p. 56.
  21. Smith 1998, p. 272.
  22. Oman 1995, p. 63.
  23. Oman 2010, pp. 633–636.

References

  • Gates, David (2002). The Spanish Ulcer: A History of the Peninsular War. London: Pimlico. ISBN 0-7126-9730-6.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Oman, Charles (2010). A History of the Peninsular War Volume I. 1. La Vergne, Tenn.: Kessinger Publishing. ISBN 1432636820.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Oman, Charles (1995). A History of the Peninsular War Volume II. 2. Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania: Stackpole. ISBN 1-85367-215-7.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Smith, Digby (1998). The Napoleonic Wars Data Book. London: Greenhill. ISBN 1-85367-276-9.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
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