Battle of Somosierra 1808
Recorded location from Wikidata; battle sites are often approximate.
Key facts
| Date | 30 November 1808 | Wikidata |
|---|---|---|
| Year | 1808 | 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 | Duchy of Warsaw, First French Empire, Kingdom of Spain, Spain under Joseph Bonaparte | Wikidata P710 |
| Coordinates | 41.1325, -3.5817 | Wikidata P625 |
About the battle
The Battle of Somosierra took place on 30 November 1808, during the Peninsular War, when a combined Franco-Napoleonic Spanish-Polish force under the direct command of Napoleon I forced a passage through a Spanish division stationed at the Sierra de Guadarrama, which shielded Madrid from direct French attack. At the Somosierra mountain pass, 60 miles (97 km) north of Madrid, a heavily outnumbered Spanish detachment of regulars, volunteers and artillery under Benito de San Juan attempted to block Napoleon's advance onto Madrid. Napoleon overwhelmed the Spanish positions in a combined arms attack, sending the Polish Chevau-légers of the Imperial Guard at the Spanish guns while French infantry advanced up the slopes. The victory removed the last obstacle barring the road to Madrid, which fell a few days later.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Battle of Somosierra (revision 1380642131), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; formatting and citations removed. No text added.
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Other battles of the Peninsular War
- Battle of Alcolea Bridge 1808
- Battle of Bailén 1808
- Battle of Benavente 1808
- Battle of Cabezón 1808
- Battle of Cardedeu 1808
- Battle of Espinosa de los Monteros 1808
- Battle of Gamonal 1808
- Battle of Medina de Rioseco 1808
- Battle of Molins de Rei 1808
- Battle of Roliça 1808
All 124 battles of the Peninsular War →
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