Battle of Altafulla

Battle of Altafulla
Part of Peninsular War

Castle of Altafulla
Date24 January 1812[1][2][3]
Location
Altafulla, Spain
41°9′N 1°23′E / 41.150°N 1.383°E / 41.150; 1.383
Result French victory[1]
Belligerents
France First French Empire Spain Kingdom of Spain
Commanders and leaders
France Maurice Mathieu Spain Baron de Eroles
Units involved
France VII Corps Spain Army of Catalonia
Strength
8,000[1] 10,000[1]
Casualties and losses
200[1] 1,200[1]
Peninsular war: Aragón Catalonia
Map
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200km
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21
Battle of Ordal at Ordal, on 13 September 1813
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Battle of Castalla (1812) at Castalla, on 21 July 1812 and on 13 April 1813
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  current battle

At the Battle of Altafulla (24 January 1812), a Spanish division led by Joaquín Ibáñez Cuevas y de Valonga, Baron de Eroles clashed with an Imperial French division under the command of David-Maurice-Joseph Mathieu de La Redorte. Believing he faced only a single battalion, Eroles attacked in a heavy fog and was beaten by 8,000 French soldiers. The action occurred during the Peninsular War, part of the Napoleonic Wars. The battle was fought near Altafulla, 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) northeast of Tarragona, Catalonia, Spain.

Only a few days earlier, on 18 January 1812, Eroles' 4,250-man force had wiped out an 850-strong French battalion of the 121st Line Infantry Regiment at the Col de Balaguer, 11 kilometres (6.8 mi) southwest of Tarragona. Only the French commander, Jacques Mathurin Lafosse, and 22 dragoons escaped the debacle. Emboldened by his victory, Eroles decided to engage a French force six days later at Altafulla and suffered the loss of between 600 and 2,000 men. Uncowed by his defeat, Eroles repulsed Jean Raymond Charles Bourke's French force when it attacked him at Roda de Isábena on 5 March.

  1. ^ a b c d e f Bodart 1908, p. 430.
  2. ^ Smith 1998, p. 375.
  3. ^ Oman 1914, p. 95.