Battle of Collioure

Map of Collioure in the 18th century

Date	20–23 December 1793
Location	Collioure, Pyrénées Orientales, France
Result	Spanish victory

Belligerents

Spain

Republican France

Commanders and leaders

Louis Delattre

Units involved

Army of Catalonia

Army of the Eastern Pyrenees

Strength

8,000

5,000

Casualties and losses

300

4,000, 100 guns

The Battle of Collioure (20 – 23 December 1793) saw troops from the Kingdom of Spain attack a Republican French division during the War of the Pyrenees. The Spanish troops led by Gregorio García de la Cuesta were completely successful in ousting the French under Louis Pierre François Delattre from Collioure, Fort Saint-Elme and Port-Vendres. The contending sides were the Spanish Army of Catalonia commanded by Antonio Ricardos and the French Army of the Eastern Pyrenees led by François Amédée Doppet and Eustache Charles d'Aoust. In September 1793, the French successfully defended Perpignan from Spanish attack but December saw a series of French defeats. One of the French representatives on mission, Claude Dominique Côme Fabre was killed during the fighting at Collioure. Aoust and Delattre were arrested, condemned and executed by guillotine for the disaster.

In the year 1793 the Army of the Eastern Pyrenees suffered from the attentions of overbearing representatives on mission. While these political agents exercised enormous powers over the military leaders, they probably abused their authority in this army more than in any other. Claude Dominique Côme Fabre called commanders-in-chief useless and wanted the rank done away with. His colleague Raymond Gaston declared, "I know neither generals nor special powers ... I alone should command here and I shall be obeyed."Louis-Charles de Flers was appointed commander on 14 May 1793 and was dismissed on 6 August. Flers was arrested and executed by guillotine on 22 July 1794.Hilarion Paul Puget de Barbantane was commander from 7 August to 11 September. Terrified by the maneuvers of Spanish commander Antonio Ricardos, he abandoned his army and fled to Narbonne where he resigned his command. Though thrown in prison, Barbantane managed to escape the Reign of Terror. In the Battle of Peyrestortes on 17 September, the leaderless army scored a victory thanks to Generals Eustache Charles d'Aoust and Jacques Gilles Henri Goguet and Representative Joseph Cassanyes.

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