Battle of Valmaseda

Part of the Peninsular War

Date	5 November 1808
Location	Valmaseda, near Bilbao, Spain
Result	Spanish victory

Belligerents

French Empire

Spain

Commanders and leaders

Eugene-Casimir Villatte

Joaquín Blake y Joyes

Strength

13,000

24,000

Casualties and losses

300 dead or wounded,
300 men & baggage captured

50 dead or wounded

The Battle of Valmaseda took place on 5 November 1808, during Lieutenant-General Blake's retreat from superior French armies in Cantabria. Reinforced by veteran regular infantry from General La Romana's Division of the North (Spanish: Division del Norte), Blake suddenly turned on his pursuers to rescue a trapped detachment and defeated a division of General Victor's army at Valmaseda (Biscay).

The French defeat had its roots in Marshal François Lefebvre's earlier failure to destroy the Spanish army at the Battle of Pancorbo, where Blake had shaken off the premature French assault and escaped with his army intact. Further mistakes were made in the French pursuit, namely when Victor carelessly allowed his Army Corps to spread out in its search for an enemy he regarded as beaten.

Major-General Eugene-Casimir Villatte commanded the 3rd Division of Lefebvre's IV Corps. This oversized unit included three battalions each of the 27th Light, 63rd, 94th and 95th Line Infantry Regiments, plus two foot artillery batteries.

Blake's Army of Galicia contained five infantry divisions, a vanguard and a reserve. General Figueroa commanded the 1st Division, Gen Martinengo the 2nd Division (5,100), Gen Riquelme the 3rd Division, Gen Carbajal the 4th Division, Gen La Romana the 5th Division (5,300), Gen Mendizabal the vanguard and Gen Mahy the reserve. There were 1,000 gunners manning 38 cannon and only 300 cavalry.

Victor tried to trap Gen Acevedo's Asturian Division, which had separated from Blake's army. Instead, Blake was able to draw the French into a trap of his own, and on 5 November Villatte's division, operating ahead of the other French formations, blundered into a brusque attack. This attack drove the French out of Valmaseda.

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Wikipedia