Battle of Bayonne
Encyclopedia
In the Battle of Bayonne on April 14, 1814, General of Division
Thouvenot's French garrison attacked the Allied besieging force under Lieutenant General
John Hope
. The battle and the resulting losses served little purpose, as the French commander had found out unofficially on April 12 that Emperor Napoleon had abdicated.
, Arthur Wellesley, Duke of Wellington
mounted a surprise amphibious operation which crossed the Adour River estuary and isolated the French city of Bayonne
. Wellington pressed east after Marshal Nicolas Soult
's French army, leaving the fortress to be invested on February 27 by Hope's corps.
Hope's 19,550-man force included Kenneth Howard
's 1st (6,800) and Andrew Hay's 5th (2,750) British Divisions, Lord Aylmer
's Independent British Brigade (1,900), Thomas Bradford (1,600) and Archibald Campbell's (2,500) Portuguese Brigades, and Carlos de España's Spanish Division (4,000). Hope's corps was joined by 10,000 Spanish troops in the divisions of Marcilla, Espeleta and Pablo Morillo
, but these soldiers were sent away to join Wellington's army in time to fight at the Battle of Toulouse
on April 10.
Before retreating, Soult reinforced the garrison with the division of Abbé, raising its strength to 14,000 men. The regular infantry included the 5th and 27th Light, and the 64th, 66th, 82nd, 94th, 95th, 119th and 130th Line Regiments.
, Hope still had not begun regular siege approaches to the city. For his part, Thouvenot remained passive during the first six weeks his garrison remained besieged.
Thouvenot received unofficial news of Napoleon's abdication on April 12. Even though this meant that the war was virtually over, the French governor decided to attack "in a fit of spite and frustration." At 3:00 am on the morning of April 14 he attacked the British siege lines with 6,000 men. The fight that followed was vicious but the French sortie was defeated with heavy losses on both sides. "Sir John Hope was wounded and captured after galloping into a melee." The brunt of the battle was borne by the Anglo-German units, including the 1/1st, 3/1st, 1st Battalion Coldstream and 1/3rd Foot Guards; the 3/1st, 1/9th, 1/38th, 2/47th and 5/60th Foot; the 1st and 2nd King's German Legion
(KGL) Light battalions, and 1st, 2nd, and 5th KGL Line battalions.
Total losses in the siege, including the battle on April 14, were 1,600 French killed and wounded, plus 400 captured. The Allies lost a total of 1,700 killed and wounded, and 300 captured.
Major General
Major general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general...
Thouvenot's French garrison attacked the Allied besieging force under Lieutenant General
Lieutenant General
Lieutenant General is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages where the title of Lieutenant General was held by the second in command on the battlefield, who was normally subordinate to a Captain General....
John Hope
John Hope, 4th Earl of Hopetoun
Lieutenant General John Hope, 4th Earl of Hopetoun PC KB , known as the Honourable John Hope from 1781 to 1814 and as the Lord Niddry from 1809 to 1816, was a Scottish soldier and politician.-Military career:...
. The battle and the resulting losses served little purpose, as the French commander had found out unofficially on April 12 that Emperor Napoleon had abdicated.
Background
After the Battle of the NiveBattle of the Nive
The Battles of the Nive were fought towards the end of the Peninsular War. Arthur Wellesley, Marquess of Wellington's Anglo-Portuguese and Spanish army defeated Marshal Nicolas Soult's French army in a series of battles near the city of Bayonne.Unusually, for most of the battle, Wellington...
, Arthur Wellesley, 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...
mounted a surprise amphibious operation which crossed the Adour River estuary and isolated the French city of Bayonne
Bayonne
Bayonne is a city and commune in south-western France at the confluence of the Nive and Adour rivers, in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department, of which it is a sub-prefecture...
. Wellington pressed east after Marshal Nicolas Soult
Nicolas Jean de Dieu Soult
Nicolas Jean-de-Dieu Soult, 1st Duke of Dalmatia , the Hand of Iron, was a French general and statesman, named Marshal of the Empire in 1804. He was one of only six officers in French history to receive the distinction of Marshal General of France...
's French army, leaving the fortress to be invested on February 27 by Hope's corps.
Hope's 19,550-man force included Kenneth Howard
Kenneth Howard, 1st Earl of Effingham
Kenneth Alexander Howard, 1st Earl of Effingham was a British peer.His father, Henry Howard , was a male-line descendant of William Howard, 1st Baron Howard of Effingham. His mother, Maria Mackenzie Kenneth Alexander Howard, 1st Earl of Effingham (29 November 1767 – 13 February 1845) was a...
's 1st (6,800) and Andrew Hay's 5th (2,750) British Divisions, Lord Aylmer
Matthew Whitworth-Aylmer, 5th Baron Aylmer
Matthew Whitworth-Aylmer, 5th Baron Aylmer was a British military officer and colonial administrator.- Napoleonic Wars :...
's Independent British Brigade (1,900), Thomas Bradford (1,600) and Archibald Campbell's (2,500) Portuguese Brigades, and Carlos de España's Spanish Division (4,000). Hope's corps was joined by 10,000 Spanish troops in the divisions of Marcilla, Espeleta and Pablo Morillo
Pablo Morillo
Pablo Morillo y Morillo, Count of Cartagena and Marquess of La Puerta, aka El Pacificador was a Spanish general....
, but these soldiers were sent away to join Wellington's army in time to fight at the Battle of Toulouse
Battle of Toulouse (1814)
The Battle of Toulouse was one of the final battles of the Napoleonic Wars, four days after Napoleon's surrender of the French Empire to the nations of the Sixth Coalition...
on April 10.
Before retreating, Soult reinforced the garrison with the division of Abbé, raising its strength to 14,000 men. The regular infantry included the 5th and 27th Light, and the 64th, 66th, 82nd, 94th, 95th, 119th and 130th Line Regiments.
Battle
Hope conducted the siege in a way that was "leisurely to the point of apathy." On April 10, the same day that Wellington battled Soult at ToulouseBattle of Toulouse (1814)
The Battle of Toulouse was one of the final battles of the Napoleonic Wars, four days after Napoleon's surrender of the French Empire to the nations of the Sixth Coalition...
, Hope still had not begun regular siege approaches to the city. For his part, Thouvenot remained passive during the first six weeks his garrison remained besieged.
Thouvenot received unofficial news of Napoleon's abdication on April 12. Even though this meant that the war was virtually over, the French governor decided to attack "in a fit of spite and frustration." At 3:00 am on the morning of April 14 he attacked the British siege lines with 6,000 men. The fight that followed was vicious but the French sortie was defeated with heavy losses on both sides. "Sir John Hope was wounded and captured after galloping into a melee." The brunt of the battle was borne by the Anglo-German units, including the 1/1st, 3/1st, 1st Battalion Coldstream and 1/3rd Foot Guards; the 3/1st, 1/9th, 1/38th, 2/47th and 5/60th Foot; 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) Light battalions, and 1st, 2nd, and 5th KGL Line battalions.
Result
The Allies lost 838 men, including Major General Andrew Hay killed and Hope captured. French casualties totaled 905 men, including 111 killed, 778 wounded and 16 missing. Despite the news of Napoleon's abdication, the defence continued obstinately until April 27 when written orders from Marshal Soult finally compelled Thouvenot to hand the fortress of Bayonne over to the British.Total losses in the siege, including the battle on April 14, were 1,600 French killed and wounded, plus 400 captured. The Allies lost a total of 1,700 killed and wounded, and 300 captured.