In the Words of Wellington's Fighting Cocks: The After-action Reports of the Portuguese Army during the Peninsular War 1812-1814

by Moisés Gaudêncio

Overview

The literature of the Peninsular War is rich with vivid source material – letters, diaries, memoirs, and dispatches – but most of it was written by British soldiers or by the French and their allies. As a result the history and experience of the Portuguese forces – which by 1812 composed close to half of Wellington’s Army – have been seriously under-represented. That is why this pioneering book, which publishes for the first time in English the after-action reports written by the commanders of Portuguese battalions, regiments and brigades, is so important. For these detailed, graphic firsthand accounts give us a fascinating insight into the vital contribution the Portuguese made to the allied army and shed new light on the struggle against the French in the Iberian Peninsula.

The authors provide an introduction tracing the history of the Portuguese Army prior to the Salamanca campaign of 1812, while tracking its organizational changes and assignment of commanders from 1808 to 1814. They include detailed notes on the after-action reports which set them in the context of each stage of the conflict.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781526761699
Publisher:	Pen & Sword Books Limited
Publication date:	01/04/2023
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	352
File size:	59 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Moisés Gaudêncio was born in Lorvão, Portugal and was raised very near the Bussaco mountain. He became fascinated by the stories told by his grandparents about the French, who were lost in the mountains and were chased by the peasants, after the battle. This led to his lifelong interest in the subject of the Portuguese role in the Peninsular War. He is a contributor to the Napoleon Series website and published some posts on the cooperative blog Do Douro a Toulouse (http://18131814.blogspot.com/)
Having had numerous articles published on the Peninsular War and the British Army, the renowned historian and author Robert Burnham hosts the pre-eminent Napoleonic website, the Napoleon Series. This fascinating and all-embracing website, the largest of its kind, is a ‘must’ for anyone interested in the Napoleonic era.

Table of Contents

Foreword vi

Acknowledgements vii

Introduction viii

List of Abbreviations xii

Chapter 1 The Portuguese Army from 1793 to 1812 1

Chapter 2 British Officers in the Portuguese Army, 1808-1826 27

Chapter 3 An Overview of the Campaign of 1812 35

Chapter 4 The Battle of Salamanca 43

Chapter 5 The Siege of Burgos Castle 62

Chapter 6 The Retreat to Portugal, October-November 71

Chapter 7 An Overview of the Campaigns of 1813 82

Chapter 8 The Battle of Vitoria, 21 June 1813 89

Chapter 9 Tolosa, 25 June 1813 112

Chapter 10 Combat in the Bastan Valley, 5-8 July 1813 117

Chapter 11 The Siege of San Sebastian 122

Chapter 12 Battles in the Pyrenees, 23-31 July 1813 135

Chapter 13 The Combats of 31 August 1813 164

Chapter 14 The October Battles: Banca and the Crossing of the Bidassoa River 170

Chapter 15 The Battle of Nivelle, 10 November 1813 178

Chapter 16 The Battle of the Nive, 9-13 December 1813 199

Chapter 17 An Overview of the Campaign of 1814 230

Chapter 18 The Actions of 3-6 January 1814 235

Chapter 19 The Battles of February 1814 240

Chapter 20 The Combats of March 1814 254

Chapter 21 The Battle of Toulouse, 10 April 1814 263

Chapter 22 The Siege of Bayonne, February-April 1814 274

Appendix A Portuguese Officers' Biographies 280

Appendix B British and Foreign Officers' Biographies 288

Notes 300

Bibliography 326

Index 330

Editorial Reviews

"If you love getting your hands on original period material — translated into English — here's a fantastic resource for Napoleonic warfare. Exceptionally well done."

Historical Miniatures Gaming Society