The Battle of Majaceite was a battle of the First Carlist War

First Carlist War

The First Carlist War was a civil war in Spain from 1833-1839.-Historical background:At the beginning of the 18th century, Philip V, the first Bourbon king of Spain, promulgated the Salic Law, which declared illegal the inheritance of the Spanish crown by women...

. Ramón María Narváez y Campos was ordered to intercept the expedition of the Carlist general Miguel Gómez Damas

Miguel Gómez Damas

Miguel Gómez Damas was a Spanish Carlist general of the First Carlist War.Born at Torredonjimeno, in the province of Jaén, he served under the Carlist general Zumalacárregui and in 1836 undertook an unsuccessful military expedition against Liberal forces in various locations, including Asturias,...

. Narváez left Madrid

Madrid

Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...

 in October 1836 with three divisions, while Gómez Damas left Ronda

Ronda

Ronda is a city in Spanish province of Málaga. It is located about West from the city of Málaga, within the autonomous community of Andalusia. Its population is approximately 35,000 inhabitants.-History:...

 on November 18, 1836, entering Algeciras

Algeciras

Algeciras is a port city in the south of Spain, and is the largest city on the Bay of Gibraltar . Port of Algeciras is one of the largest ports in Europe and in the world in three categories: container,...

 on November 22.

On November 23, when he departed Algeciras, Gómez Damas found himself surrounded at Alcalá de los Gazules

Alcalá de los Gazules

Alcalá de los Gazules is a city located in the province of Cádiz, Spain. According to the 2006 census, the town has a population of 5,633 inhabitants...

. Gómez Damas attempted to reach Arcos de la Frontera

Arcos de la Frontera

Arcos de la Frontera is a town in the province of Cádiz in southern Spain. It is located on the eastern bank of the Guadalete river, which flows to the Bay of Cadiz. The town commands a fine vista atop a sandstone ridge, from which the peak of San Cristobal and the Guadalete Valley can be seen...

, but met Narváez’s army at the Majaceite River. The battle resulted with Gómez Damas’ withdrawal to Villamartín

Villamartín

Villamartín is a city located in the province of Cádiz, Spain. According to the 2005 census, the city has a population of 12,145 inhabitants.-Demographics:- External links :* - Sistema de Información Multiterritorial de Andalucía...

. An English

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 commentator wrote that “it was at Majaciete that [Narváez] rescued Andalucía from the Carlist invasion by a brilliant coup de main

Coup de main

A coup de main is a swift attack that relies on speed and surprise to accomplish its objectives in a single blow. The United States Department of Defense defines it as:The literal translation from French means a stroke or blow of the hand...

, in a rapid but destruction action, which will not readily be effaced from the memory of the southern provinces.”