Battle of Garcia Hernandez
Encyclopedia
In the Battle of Garcia Hernandez on July 23, 1812, two brigades of Anglo-German cavalry
led by Major-General George Bock defeated 4,000 French infantry led by Major-General Maximilien Foy. In what would otherwise have been an unremarkable Peninsular War
skirmish, the German heavy dragoon
s achieved the unusual feat of breaking two French squares, routing the entire French force with heavy losses.
commanded by Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
had won a decisive victory over a French army led by Marshal Auguste Marmont
in the Battle of Salamanca
. Foy's division was the only French unit not engaged in the battle and it was acting as rearguard on July 23.
Bock's 770-strong heavy cavalry brigade
, consisting of the 1st and 2nd King's German Legion
(KGL) Dragoons, led the pursuit of the French. In support of Bock were the 1,000 troopers of George Anson
's British light cavalry brigade (11th, 12th and 16th Light Dragoons). As the Anglo-Germans approached, Maj-Gen Curto's French cavalry fled. Foy arranged his eight battalion
s on a hill in square. He had two battalions each of the 6th Light, and the 39th, 69th and 76th Line Infantry Regiments.
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 kamikaze. The horse fell, kicking wildly, knocking down at least a half-dozen 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.
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.
, it was usually because:
At Garcia Hernandez, the last event occurred, leading to the extraordinary accident of a dead horse and rider smashing into the square.
The battle was also shown in Suzanna Clarke's Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, while Jonathan Strange is serving under the Duke of Wellington.
Cavalry
Cavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms...
led by Major-General George Bock defeated 4,000 French infantry led by Major-General Maximilien Foy. In what would otherwise have been an unremarkable Peninsular War
Peninsular War
The Peninsular War was a war between France and the allied powers of Spain, the United Kingdom, and Portugal for control of the Iberian Peninsula during the Napoleonic Wars. The war began when French and Spanish armies crossed Spain and invaded Portugal in 1807. Then, in 1808, France turned on its...
skirmish, the German heavy dragoon
Dragoon
The word dragoon originally meant mounted infantry, who were trained in horse riding as well as infantry fighting skills. However, usage altered over time and during the 18th century, dragoons evolved into conventional light cavalry units and personnel...
s achieved the unusual feat of breaking two French squares, routing the entire French force with heavy losses.
Background
The previous day, the Allied armyAnglo-Portuguese Army
The Anglo-Portuguese Army was the combined British and Portuguese army that won the Peninsular War, under the command of Arthur Wellesley. The Army is also referred to as the British-Portuguese Army and, in Portuguese, as the Exército Anglo-Luso or the Exército Anglo-Português.The Anglo-Portuguese...
commanded by Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, KG, GCB, GCH, PC, FRS , was an Irish-born British soldier and statesman, and one of the leading military and political figures of the 19th century...
had won a decisive victory over a French army led by Marshal Auguste Marmont
Auguste Marmont
Auguste Frédéric Louis Viesse de Marmont, 1st Duke of Ragusa was a French General, nobleman and Marshal of France.-Biography:...
in the Battle of Salamanca
Battle of Salamanca
The Battle of Salamanca saw Anglo-Portuguese and Spanish armies under the Duke of Wellington defeat Marshal Auguste Marmont's French forces among the hills around Arapiles south of Salamanca, Spain on July 22, 1812 during the Peninsular War....
. Foy's division was the only French unit not engaged in the battle and it was acting as rearguard on July 23.
Battle
Brigade
A brigade is a major tactical military formation that is typically composed of two to five battalions, plus supporting elements depending on the era and nationality of a given army and could be perceived as an enlarged/reinforced regiment...
, consisting of the 1st and 2nd King's German Legion
King's German Legion
The King's German Legion was a British Army unit of expatriate German personnel, 1803–16. The Legion achieved the distinction of being the only German force to fight without interruption against the French during the Napoleonic Wars....
(KGL) Dragoons, led the pursuit of the French. In support of Bock were the 1,000 troopers of George Anson
George Anson (1769-1849)
General Sir George Anson, GCB, KTS , commanded a British cavalry brigade under the Duke of Wellington during the Peninsular War and sat for many years as a Member of Parliament.-Early life:...
's British light cavalry brigade (11th, 12th and 16th Light Dragoons). As the Anglo-Germans approached, Maj-Gen Curto's French cavalry fled. Foy arranged his eight battalion
Battalion
A battalion is a military unit of around 300–1,200 soldiers usually consisting of between two and seven companies and typically commanded by either a Lieutenant Colonel or a Colonel...
s on a hill in square. He had two battalions each of the 6th Light, and the 39th, 69th and 76th Line Infantry Regiments.
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 kamikaze. The horse fell, kicking wildly, knocking down at least a half-dozen 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.
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.
Results
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." Another authority gives 52 Germans killed, 69 wounded and 6 missing and 1,100 total French casualties.Commentary
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 the Napoleonic WarsNapoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
, it was usually because:
- the infantry were of poor quality
- the infantry were tired, disorganized or discouraged
- it was raining, making it difficult for the infantry to fire effectively
- the infantry fired a poorly aimed volley
- the infantry waited too long to fire
At Garcia Hernandez, the last event occurred, leading to the extraordinary accident of a dead horse and rider smashing into the square.
Literature
- Beamish, N. Ludlow. History of the King's German Legion Vol 2 (reprint) Naval and Military Press, 1997. ISBN 0-952201-10-0
- Glover, Michael. The Peninsular War 1807-1814. London: Penguin, 2001. ISBN 0-141-39041-7
- Keegan, John. The Face of Battle. London: Vintage, 1977.
- Oman, Charles. Wellington's Army, 1809-1814. London: Greenhill, (1913) 1993. ISBN 0-947898-41-7
- Smith, Digby. The Napoleonic Wars Data Book. London: Greenhill, 1998. ISBN 1-85367-276-9
Culture
This skirmish is depicted in Bernard Cornwell's Novel, Sharpe's Sword.The battle was also shown in Suzanna Clarke's Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, while Jonathan Strange is serving under the Duke of Wellington.