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{{Short description|1813 battle during the Peninsular War}}{{About|Battle of Roncesvalles (1813)|the battle of 778|Battle of Roncevaux Pass}}{{Use shortened footnotes|date=May 2021}}{{more footnotes|date=July 2012}}

factoids

|map_type =|map_relief =|latitude =|longitude =|map_size =|map_marksize =|map_caption =|map_label =|territory =|result =French victory|status =FranceFirst French Empire>French EmpireUnited KingdomUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland>United Kingdom{{flagicon image23px}} PortugalFranceHonoré Charles Reille>General ReilleUnited KingdomGalbraith Lowry Cole>Major-General Cole|units1 =|units2 =|strength1 =40,000 men8 guns|strength2 =11,000 men|casualties1 =200 dead or wounded|casualties2 =450 dead or wounded|notes =}}{{Campaignbox Peninsular War (1813-1814)}}{{Campaignbox Portugal in the Napoleonic Wars}}{{OSM Location map43|-2.4}}| zoom = 7| float = right| nolabels = 1| width = 304| height = 160| title = Peninsular WarVitoria and the Pyrenees, 1813–1814| shapeD=n-circle| shape-colorD=dark blue| shape-outlineD=white| label-colorD = dark blue| label-sizeD = 12| label-posD = left| label-offset-xD =| label-offset-yD =| label1 = San Millan42.85|-3.14}}| mark-title1 = Battle of San Millan-Osmaat San Millan, on 18 June 1813| label2 = Vitoria42.85|-2.68}}| mark-title2 = Battle of Vitoria at Vitoria, on 21 June 1813| label-pos2 = right| label3 = Tolosa43.13|-2.08}}| mark-title3 = Battle of Tolosa (1813) at Tolosa, on 26 June 1813| label4 = Pamplona42.82|-1.65}}| mark-title4 = Siege of Pamplona (1813) at Pamplona, from 26 June to 31 October 1813| label-pos4 = right| label5 = San Sebastián43.32|-1.98}}| mark-title5 = Siege of San Sebastián at San Sebastián, from 7 July to 8 September 1813| label6 = Pyrenees43.05|-1.61}}| mark-title6 = Battle of the Pyrenees at Pyrenees, from 25 July to 2 August 1813| label-pos6 = right| label7 = Maya43.20|-1.48}}| mark-title7 = Battle of Maya at Maya, on 25 July 1813| label-pos7 = right| label8 = San Marcial43.33|-1.76}}| mark-title8 = Battle of San Marcial at San Marcial, on 31 August 1813| label-pos8 = right}}The Battle of Roncesvalles () (25 July 1813) took place between French and Anglo-Portuguese forces during the Peninsular War (1808–1814).WEB, Battle of the Pyrenees,weblink 2021-10-03, www.britishbattles.com,

Background

After the decisive victory of Allied forces under Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington over French forces under King Joseph Bonaparte at the Battle of Vitoria, Wellington advanced to capture San Sebastián and Pamplona, the last French outposts on Spanish soil.While Wellington concentrated his efforts on capturing the strategically important port of San Sebastián, he sent 11,000 men under the Irish-Spanish General O'Donnell to blockade Pamplona. To prevent a French counter-attack over the Pyrenees Wellington positioned General Hill's Corps over a {{convert|50|mi|km|adj=on}} front, to cover the coastal road and the main passes over the mountains.

Battle

Having rapidly rebuilt and reorganised his forces after their defeat, the French under Marshal Nicolas Jean de Dieu Soult launched an attack towards Pamplona through the passes of Maya and Roncesvalles.The French force at Roncesvalles consisted of 40,000 men and 8 mountain guns under Generals Reille and Clausel. The pass was defended by the British 4th Division commanded by Major-General Galbraith Lowry Cole and was helped by the Portuguese 4/10 brigade.The French attacked from Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port advancing in two columns either side of the pass. Clausel on the Altobiscar and Reille on the Linduz. At around 06:00 the two armies met. The British were badly outnumbered, John Byng's brigade on the eastern side held Bertrand Clausel's division at bay for three hours before being forced back.By 14:00 Cole brought up three more brigades as reinforcements. However, around 17:00 a dense fog descended over the battlefield, just as the Portuguese 4/10 brigade repelled French attacks in the Val de Baigorry. Cole, despite orders to the contrary, ordered his troops to retreat towards Pamplona.

Aftermath

The Allied forces regrouped and made a stand near the village of Sorauren at the Battle of Sorauren two days later. Later, Wellington admitted that splitting his forces to besiege both San Sebastián and Pamplona simultaneously had been "one of the greatest faults he ever committed in war".Colonel Walter O'Hara, who had fought in the battle, would name Roncesvalles Avenue in Toronto after the battle. The Roncesvalles, Toronto, neighbourhood in turn gained its name from the street.

References

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Further reading

• BOOK, David G. Chandler, Chandler, David, 1979, Dictionary of the Napoleonic Wars, London : Arms and Armour Press, 9780853683537,weblink registration, 1 June 2021,
• BOOK, Elizabeth Pakenham, Countess of Longford, Longford, Elizabeth, 1970, Wellington, New York, Harper & Row,weblink registration, 1 June 2021,

External links

• {{commons-inline}}

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