Siege of Burgos

Siege of Burgos
Part of the Peninsular War
The Siege of Burgos, by François Joseph Heim
Date 19 September – 21 October 1812[1] Location Burgos, Spain 42°21′N 3°42′W / 42.350°N 3.700°W / 42.350; -3.700 Result French victory[1]
Belligerents
French Empire	United Kingdom Portugal Spain
Commanders and leaders
Jean-Louis Dubreton	Arthur Wellesley
Strength
2,000[1]	32,000[1]–35,013 8 guns[2]
Casualties and losses
200[1]–304 killed 323–450[1] wounded 60 captured 7 guns lost	550[1] killed 1,550[1] wounded 3 guns lost

Peninsular war: Spain

200km
125miles

Toulouse

12

Vitoria

11

Tordesillas

10

Burgos

9

Salamanca

8

Ciudad

7

Talavera

6

Corunna

5

Tudela

4

Bailén

3

Valencia

2

Madrid

1

  

  current battle

  Wellington in command

  Wellington not in command

At the siege of Burgos, from 19 September to 21 October 1812, the Anglo-Portuguese Army led by General Arthur Wellesley, Marquess of Wellington tried to capture the castle of Burgos from its French garrison under the command of General of Brigade Jean-Louis Dubreton. The French repulsed every attempt to seize the fortress, resulting in Wellington's withdrawal. The siege took place during the Peninsular War, part of the Napoleonic Wars. Burgos is located about 210 kilometres (130 mi) north of Madrid.

After having soundly defeated Marshal Auguste Marmont's French army at the Battle of Salamanca in July 1812, Wellington exploited his great victory by advancing on Madrid. King Joseph Bonaparte and Marshal Jean-Baptiste Jourdan retreated to Valencia where they sought refuge with Marshal Louis Gabriel Suchet. The magnitude of Wellington's triumph also compelled Marshal Nicolas Soult to evacuate Andalucia in the south and withdraw to Valencia. The combined armies of Soult and Joseph soon posed a serious menace to Wellington's grasp on Madrid. The recently defeated French army in the north also built up its strength. Wellington made plans to counter the southern French threat while hoping to quickly capture the strategically important Burgos position, which was an important French supply base.

Instead, Dubreton led a masterful defense, thwarting Wellington's assaults time after time. The British commander's hopes were blasted when his attempts to contain the twin French counteroffensives failed. With large French relief armies approaching Burgos from the northeast and Madrid from the southeast, the British commander withdrew to the west, abandoning large areas of Spain that had been recently liberated. That autumn, the French lost an opportunity to defeat Wellington's army. Nevertheless, during the withdrawal to Portugal the Anglo-Portuguese army lost many men to pursuing French cavalry and starvation.