 | This article includes a list ofgeneral references, butit lacks sufficient correspondinginline citations. Please help toimprove this article byintroducing more precise citations.(July 2011) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
| Royalist attack on Chaves | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 The city of Chaves | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 Portuguese Republic |
Supported by:  Spain | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Augusto Ribeiro de Carvalho | Henrique Paiva Couceiro | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 100 regular soldiers[1] 160 civilian volunteers[2] Several artillery pieces | 450 rebels 2 artillery pieces | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| light casualties | 30 dead | ||||||
The attack on Chaves, which occurred on 8 July, 1912, was a military action performed by supporters of themonarchy of Portugal in opposition to thePortuguese First Republic, which had beenproclaimed two years prior.
The attack was led byHenrique Paiva Couceiro, who had campaigned inAfrica and who became the leader of theroyalists. The royalists were discreetly armed by the Spanish king,Alfonso XIII, and concentrated their forces inGalicia, Spain.
The attack ended with a defeat for the royalist forces.
Couceiro undertook the first incursion in 1911 with about 1,000 men, who formed groups of 60-70 men. They left the town ofVerín, 12 kilometers from the northern border with Spain, and marched towards the border. Most of the men were from the region ofTrás-os-Montes and were from a diverse array of social classes and skills. There were more than 100priests in the group. In terms ofmilitary equipment, there were only 400 ancientrifles, a fewWinchester rifles, andMauser Pocket Pistols adapted to rifles, to which were added a score ofsemi-automatic pistols,daggers, andswords. The 1,000 men crossed the border after a long march in the mountainous region betweenBragança andVinhais, near the present-dayMontesinhos National Park.
The republican garrison in Bragança waited for an attack that never came. This is because the royalists changed their plans and now marched on Vinhais, which had a smaller garrison of men— only eightyinfantry,cavalry, andborder guards.
These forces from Vinhais left the small town and concentrated on a hill nearby. Negotiations were begun but the military commander of Vinhais refused to join or tosurrender. He gave Paiva Couceiro two hours to abandon Portuguese territory.
.svg)
Meanwhile, the Vinhais commander sent messengers to Chaves and Bragança asking for reinforcements. When daylight came and he saw the large group of royalists camped nearby, he knew that he would have to retreat and he did so. The royalists then occupied Vinhais. They hoisted the white-and-blue flag of the monarchy and proclaimed the end of the Republic. Priests of neighboring villages and a band of villagers cheered them on and used the Republican flag for target practice.
However, the royalists, who were expecting a general uprising, did not receive the support they were expecting. On the nearby mountain, Republican troops remained and at any moment Republican reinforcements were expected to arrive from Chaves. Thus, the royalists abandoned Vinhais, and headed for the border. The republican garrison from Vinhais meanwhile retreated towards Chaves, where they met the troops coming in their support. When they arrived in Vinhais the royalists had already left. Crossing the rugged mountains north of Vinhais, and reduced to about 600 men afterdesertions, the rebels made their way back into Spain. The companies that still remained formed nine groups, some staying nearXinzo de Limia andOurense, but the bulk of the column concentrated nearer the border in Verín.
After a hard winter in exile, the refugees were eager to fight again. In February Paiva Couceiro joined them in Galicia. It was hoped that the towns in the north, now more than ever, would come over to their side. They now had more men and materials. The original plan was to cross the mountains of theBarroso, west of Chaves, and link up with followers of a pro-monarchist priest inCabeceiras de Basto.
The army was divided into three groups. One tried to capture the fortress ofValença do Minho across from SpanishTui. This endeavor ended in a resounding defeat and retreat back into Galicia. The second group, of 200 men, was to enter Portugal viaVila Verde da Raia and create a diversion for Couceiro’s larger plan.
The third group, composed of 450 men was the main column, commanded by Paiva Couceiro. This larger group crossed the border near a small village calledSendin, north ofMontalegre. 23 soldiers and some customs police defended the town. Alerting Chaves to the danger, these men from Sendin retreated to a nearby hill south of the town. Chaves was convinced that Couceiro would attack Montalegre and head south towards Cabeceiras de Basto.
The rebels raised camp at dawn and moved east towards Chaves. InPadornelos a few people came out to greet them and offer their allegiance to the king and to the Catholic Church. Vilar de Perdizes was the next village, where the priest knelt to kiss Paiva Couceiro’s feet.
Meanwhile, the military commander in Chaves,Augusto Ribeiro de Carvalho, not knowing of Paiva Couceiro’s move across the north, had decided to send the main part of his forces withmachine guns towards Montalegre to stop the royalists’ passage to the south. Another group of 100 men was sent to the border to resist a possible incursion from the small group of Royalists that were in Feces, across from Vila Verde.
On the morning of July 8, the rebels appeared just outside Chaves. No one had expected this attack, since the last news had the rebels just outside Montalegre. The people of Chaves had not even paid attention to the warnings brought by the customs guards who had fled the northern villages.
Chaves then came under attack. Augusto Ribeiro de Carvalho hurried to recall the troops that he had sent out a day earlier; however, he also had local support from the townspeople. 150 civilianvolunteers from Chaves, trained briefly months earlier, hurried to help the authorities against the royalists. The regular soldiers numbered around 100. The battle was one of scattered firing with small arms and casualties were light. The rebels could not penetrate the defenses, nor could the garrison venture out to attack them.
Meanwhile, the rebel group on the border, in Feces, had remained in its position, until they could hear the sounds of gunfire coming from Chaves. They crossed the border and managed to raise the royalist flag over the customs house. The small detachment of regular troops meanwhile moved south to take up a better position. This group of rebels, nevertheless, never made it past the border.
After a lull in the fighting, the royalists opened fire on the town with their two artillery pieces. The town’s guns had been taken away to defend the road to Montalegre. However, the Chaves forces were supplemented by reinforcing regular forces, who set up their artillery on a hill called Alto da Forca, south of the town, from which they could fire at will on the royalists.
The royalists were unable to return fire, and this defeat resulted in a general celebration in Chaves. The streets filled with people, who were crying and laughing in each other’s arms. Paiva Couceiro’s forces suffered 30 dead. It is said that, near the border, a rebel soldier, not hiding his tears and rage, responded to someone who offered him a glass of wine: “Why do I want wine? What I only wanted was the Monarchy in Portugal.”
After the final dispersion of his men to Spain, Paiva Couceiro published amanifesto explaining his reasons for the defeat and proclaiming that his struggle was over.
In honor of the republican victory, inLisbon a street was given the name “Defenders of Chaves”, and inPorto another street was given the name “Heroes of Chaves.”
_-_Lesser.png)