Battle of Altafulla 1812
Recorded location from Wikidata; battle sites are often approximate.
Key facts
| Date | 24 January 1812 | Wikidata |
|---|---|---|
| Year | 1812 | Wikidata P585 (point in time) |
| Era | 19th century (1800–1913) | derived from year |
| Location | Spain | Natural Earth (modern borders) |
| Continent | Europe | Natural Earth |
| War / conflict | Peninsular War | Wikidata P361 |
| Participants | First French Empire, Kingdom of Spain | Wikidata P710 |
| Coordinates | 41.1500, 1.3833 | Wikidata P625 |
About the battle
At the Battle of Altafulla (24 January 1812), a Spanish division led by Joaquín Ibáñez Cuevas y de Valonga, Baron de Eroles clashed with an Imperial French division under the command of David-Maurice-Joseph Mathieu de La Redorte. Believing he faced only a single battalion, Eroles attacked in a heavy fog and was beaten by 8,000 French soldiers. The action occurred during the Peninsular War, part of the Napoleonic Wars. The battle was fought near Altafulla, 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) northeast of Tarragona, Catalonia, Spain.
Only a few days earlier, on 18 January 1812, Eroles' 4,250-man force had wiped out an 850-strong French battalion of the 121st Line Infantry Regiment at the Col de Balaguer, 11 kilometres (6.8 mi) southwest of Tarragona. Only the French commander, Jacques Mathurin Lafosse, and 22 dragoons escaped the debacle. Emboldened by his victory, Eroles decided to engage a French force six days later at Altafulla and suffered the loss of between 600 and 2,000 men. Uncowed by his defeat, Eroles repulsed Jean Raymond Charles Bourke's French force when it attacked him at Roda de Isábena on 5 March.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Battle of Altafulla (revision 1370431778), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; formatting and citations removed. No text added.
Nearby battles
- Naval battle of Tarragona 1641 · 12 km
- Battle of Cissa 218 BC · 12 km
- Siege of Tarragona (1811) 1811 · 12 km
- Siege of Tarragona (1813) 1813 · 12 km
- Battle of Tarragona (August 1641) 1641 · 14 km
- Battle of Valls 1809 · 19 km
Other battles of the Peninsular War
- Siege of Figueras (1811) 1811
- Siege of Olivença 1811
- Siege of Tarifa (1812) 1811
- Siege of Tarragona (1811) 1811
- Siege of Valencia (1812) 1811
- Battle of Bornos (1812) 1812
- Battle of Castalla (1812) 1812
- Battle of García Hernández 1812
- Battle of Maguilla 1812
- Battle of Majadahonda 1812
All 124 battles of the Peninsular War →
Browse more: battles in Spain · Europe · 19th century battles