| Battle of García Hernández | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of thePeninsular War | |||||||
 Battle of Garcia Hernandez, 23 July 1812 Adolf Northen | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
| United Kingdom | France | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Eberhardt von Bock | Maximilien Sébastien Foy | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 1,770 | 4,000 | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 52 killed 69 wounded 6 missing | 1,100–1,600 killed, wounded or captured | ||||||
 | |||||||
TheBattle of García Hernández was fought on 23 July 1812 during thePeninsular War. In the battle, two cavalry brigades of theBritish Army'sKing's German Legion (KGL) under Major-GeneralEberhardt Otto George von Bock defeated 4,000 French troops led by GeneralMaximilien Sébastien Foy. In what would otherwise have been an unremarkable skirmish, the KGLdragoons achieved the unusual feat of breaking two Frenchsquares, those of the 6th, 69th and 76th Line,[1] routing the entire French force with heavy losses.
 | This sectiondoes notcite anysources. Please helpimprove this section byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged andremoved.(September 2014) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
The previous day, theAnglo-Portuguese Army commanded byArthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington had won a decisive victory over a French army led by MarshalAuguste Marmont in theBattle of Salamanca.Maximilien Sébastien Foy's division was the only French unit not engaged in the battle, and it was acting as rearguard on 23 July.
Bock's 770-strong heavy cavalrybrigade, consisting of the 1st and 2ndKing's German Legion (KGL) Dragoons, led the pursuit of the French. Supporting Bock were the 1,000 troopers ofGeorge Anson's British light cavalry brigade (11th and 16th Light Dragoons).[2] As the KGL troops approached, Maj-Gen Curto's French cavalry fled. Foy arranged his eightbattalions on a hill in a square nearGarcihernández inSalamanca province in Spain. He had two battalions each of the 6th Light, and the 39th, 69th and 76th Line Infantry Regiments.[3]
Bock's dragoons charged a square belonging to a battalion of the 6th Light. The French held their fire too long. Their volley killed a number of horsemen, but a mortally wounded horse carrying a dead dragoon crashed into the square like a battering ram.[4] The horse fell, kicking wildly, knocking down at least six men and creating a gap in the square. Captain Gleichen rode his horse into the gap, followed by his troopers. The square broke up and most of the men surrendered.[5][6]
A second square farther up the hillside was soon charged. Shaken by the first square's disaster, the men flinched when the dragoons rode into them. Soon the men in the second square were running for their lives, except those who surrendered. Foy quickly pulled back the rest of his troops. Anson's horsemen mopped up the battlefield.
Foy lost 200 killed and wounded, and 1,400 captured. Bock lost 54 killed and 62 wounded. The very high proportion of killed to wounded was due to the "deadly effect of musketry at the closest possible quarters."[7] Another authority gives 52 KGL soldiers killed, 69 wounded and 6 missing and 1,100 total French casualties.[3]
The breaking of a steady square was a rare event. A French infantry battalion in square formed up in a bayonet-studded hedgehog, either 3-ranks or 6-ranks deep. (A British square was 4-deep.) If a square stood its ground without flinching and fired with effect, it could withstand the best cavalry. When infantry squares were broken by cavalry in theNapoleonic Wars, it was usually because:
At García Hernández, the last event occurred with the first square, leading to the extraordinary accident of a mortally wounded horse and rider smashing into the square, making a gap which was then exploited by the following cavalry. The second square likely panicked at seeing the first square being torn apart.
This skirmish is depicted inBernard Cornwell's novel,Sharpe's Sword.
The battle was also shown inSusanna Clarke'sJonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, while Jonathan Strange is serving under the Duke of Wellington.
{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help){{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
Media related toBattle of García Hernández at Wikimedia Commons| Preceded by Battle of Salamanca | Napoleonic Wars Battle of García Hernández | Succeeded by Battle of Saltanovka |
