Battle of Corunna

For the battle near Madrid in the Spanish Civil War, see Battle of the La Corunna Road.

Battle of Corunna
Part of the Peninsular War
Tiled map of the battle
Date January 16, 1809 Location Corunna, Galicia, Spain Result British tactical victory[1][2][3] French Strategic Victory[4][5]
Belligerents
United Kingdom	France
Commanders and leaders
John Moore  †	Nicolas Jean-de-Dieu Soult
Strength
16,000 infantry 9 guns	12,000 infantry 4,000 cavalry 20 guns
Casualties and losses
900 dead or wounded[6]	1,500 dead or wounded[6]

The Battle of Corunna (or La Corunna, A Coruña, La Coruña, or Elviña) refers to a battle of the Peninsular War. On January 16, 1809, a French army under Marshal Soult attacked the British under Sir John Moore. The British had retreated across northern Spain following the defeat of the Spanish and their allies in the campaign and were attempting to embark on ships and return to England.^[7]

Background

Sir John Moore, the British commander

In November 1808 the British army led by Sir John Moore advanced into Spain with orders to assist the Spanish armies in their struggle against the invading forces of Napoleon. The army had advanced to Salamanca when Moore eventually judged that the Spanish forces were beaten, and considered that to avoid disaster he must give up and retreat to the coast.^[8] Before doing so he seized at an opportunity to threaten Napoleon’s communications with France hoping that he might divert Napoleon’s forces and give other parts of Spain and Portugal a few months respite in which they might reorganize.^[9] A junction with General David Baird, advancing from Corunna, raised Moore's strength to 23,500 infantry, 2,000 cavalry and 60 guns.^[10] Napoleon responded with customary swiftness and decisiveness, directing his Marshals to try and trap the British, himself leading an army in forced marches in spite of winter conditions. Moore had anticipated that he would have to be ready to make a run for the coast and he managed to keep ahead of the pursuing French and avoid entrapment. The British cavalry successfully covered the movements of Moore's army, defeating the French in two clashes at Sahagún and Benavente, before it entered the mountainous terrain of Galicia.

When it was clear that he would not trap Moore, Napoleon left the pursuit of the British to the corps of Marshal Soult. Napoleon decided to leave Spain to attend to other pressing matters; the Austrians were about to declare war on France, and would soon invade Italy and Bavaria.^[11] The retreat of the British, closely followed by their French pursuers, took them through mountainous terrain, in dreadful conditions of cold and snow and was marked by exhausting marches, privation, and suffering. On the march between Astorga and Betanzos the British army lost 3,000 men with 500 more left in hospitals at Astorga and Villafranca.^[12] At times the discipline of the British broke down but eventually they reached the port of Corunna in northwest Spain, where they expected to find a fleet to take them back them to England.^[13]

Arrival of the armies before Corunna

The British army arrived in Corunna on 11 January and would have immediately evacuated by sea but found that the transport vessels that had been ordered had not yet arrived.

The French army began to arrive the next day, building up strength as they arrived from the march; Soult’s artillery arriving on the 14th January. The long-awaited transport ships also arrived on the 14th and that evening the British evacuated their sick, some horses and some of the guns, cavalrymen and gunners. The terrain was unsuitable for cavalry, and since they would be of no use in the event of a battle many horses were slaughtered rather than leave them behind for the French.

Moore had deployed his army, now 14,500 strong,^[14] to cover the evacuation by placing the main part of it on a ridge astride the road to Corunna, a mile and a half south of the harbour. A stronger position lay to the south but the British commander considered that he lacked the numbers to defend it properly and had to be content with placing outposts there to slow the approach of the French. The left flank was covered by the river Mero and the left and centre of the ridge was quite defensible. The western and lower end of this ridge was more vulnerable and could be swept by guns on the rocky heights of the loftier range opposite, and the ground further west consisted of more open terrain extending as far as Corunna which might provide the means of turning the whole position. Moore held two divisions back in reserve a little north and westwards in order to guard the right flank and to prevent a turning movement.

On 15 January French troops pushed back the British outposts on the higher range and gradually took up position there. Soult sited his 11 heavy guns upon the rocky outcrop from where they would be able to fire upon the British right. The task was very difficult and it was night before the guns had been dragged into position.

Battle

Marshal Nicolas Jean de Dieu Soult, the French commander

As day broke on 16 January the French were in position on the heights, and all through the morning both armies observed each across the valley between them. Moore planned to continue with the embarkation later that day if Soult did not attack. By afternoon Moore considered an attack unlikely and ordered the first divisions to make their way to the port; the rest of the army would follow at dusk, but shortly after, at 2pm, he learned that the French were attacking.

Soult's plan was to move against the strongly-placed British infantry of the left and centre in order to contain it while the infantry division of Mermet attacked the more vulnerable British right above the village of Elvina. The cavalry was deployed further west near the more open country leading to Corunna. If the attacks succeeded they could seize the western end of the British lines and push on to cut off the bulk of the army from Corunna.

Mermet’s infantry advanced quickly and soon pushed the British picquets from Elvina and attacked the heights beyond. At the same time a French brigade pushed up the valley on the British right in an attempt to turn their flank.

The fiercest fighting took place in and around Elvina as the possession of this village changed hands several times, and the British suffered particularly from the fire of the heavy artillery on the heights opposite. Moore remained in this area to direct the battle ordering one regiment to fire down upon the flank of the French column that was attempting the turning movement and calling up the reserve to meet it. The British commander had just rallied the 42nd Regiment of Foot^[15] that had fallen back from Elvina when he was struck by a cannonball and fell mortally wounded, being "struck in his left breast and shoulder by a cannon shot, which broke his ribs, his arm, lacerated his shoulder and the whole of his left side and lungs". He remained conscious, and composed, throughout the several hours of his dying.

For a time the British were without a commander, which hampered attempts at a counterattack in this crucial sector, but the fighting continued unabated.^[16]

Further west the French cavalry attempted to push forward as part of the flank attack but they were hampered by the rough terrain and eventually driven back by the advance of the British reserves.

Night brought an end to the fighting by which time the French had been repulsed and had returned to their original positions; both sides holding much the same ground as before the fight.

After the battle

Moore's tomb in San Carlos Garden at A Coruña

Command of the British army had passed to General Hope who decided to proceed with the embarkation as had been the original plan. At around 9pm the British began to silently withdraw from their lines, leaving behind strong picquets who maintained watch-fires throughout the night.^[17]

At daybreak on the 17th January the picquets were withdrawn behind the rearguard and went aboard ship; by morning most of the army had embarked.^[17] When Soult perceived that the British had left the ridge he posted six guns on the heights above the southern end of the bay and by midday they were able fire upon the outlying ships. This caused panic amongst some of the transports until the battery was silenced by fire from the warships.^[17]

Finally, on the 18th January, the British rearguard embarked, the small Spanish garrison under General Alcedo faithfully holding the citadel until the fleet was well out to sea.^[18]

Casualties

Moore's monolith in the old battlefield, now a campus of the University of Corunna

As a result of the battle the British suffered around 900 men dead or wounded and the French around 1,500.^[19] The most notable casualty was the British commander Sir John Moore, who survived long enough to learn of his success.^[20]

On the morning of the battle 4,035 British were listed sick, a few hundred of these were too sick to embark and were left behind. By the time the army returned to England four days later some 6,000 were ill, with the sick returns listed at Portsmouth and Plymouth alone as 5,000.^[21]

Analysis

The British army had been sent into Spain to aid that nation in expelling the French, but they had been forced into a humiliating retreat in terrible winter conditions that wrought havoc with health and morale and resulted in the army degenerating into a rabble. In his authoritative account of the battle, the English historian Christopher Hibbert states: "It was all very well to talk of the courage and endurance of the troops but of what use were these virtues alone when pitted against the genius of Napoleon? 35,000 men had crossed the Spanish frontier against him; 8000 had not returned. We were unworthy of our great past."^[22] The British of the day similarly viewed Corunna as a defeat: according to The Times, "The fact must not be disguised ... that we have suffered a shameful disaster." ^[23] The historian Charles Oman contends that Marshal Soult's attack at Corunna provided Moore and his men with the opportunity to redeem their honour and reputation through their defensive victory,^[24] by which means the army was saved though at the cost of the British general's life. Moore was buried wrapped in a military cloak in the ramparts of the town; the funeral is celebrated in a well-known poem by Charles Wolfe (1791–1823), The Burial of Sir John Moore after Corunna.^[25]

Nevertheless back in England the reaction to news of the battle of Corunna and the safe evacuation of the army was a storm of criticism over Moore’s handling of the campaign, while back in Corunna his adversary Marshal Soult took care of Moore's grave and ordered a monument to be raised^[26] in his memory.^[27]

Notes

1. ^ Haythornthwaite, Philip J., Corunna 1809: Sir John Moore's fighting retreat, (Osprey Publishing, 2001), 87;"...the battle could legitimately be regarded as a British victory."
2. ^ Sandler, Stanley, Ground warfare: An International Encyclopedia, Vol.1, (ABC-CLIO, 2002), 214; "Costly British victory in the Peninsular War.".
3. ^ Chandler (London) p.657
   Sarrazin (a former French commander) writes "Whatever Buonaparte may assert, Soult was most certainly repulsed at Corunna; and the English gained a defensive victory, though dearly purchased with the loss of their brave general Moore, who was alike distinguished for his private virtues, and his military talents".
   France militaire states "Ayant neanmoins reunit les troupes a la Corogne, il repousse glorieusement les Francais, et meurt sur le champ de bataille." which translates as "Having nevertheless reunited the troops at Corunna, he [Moore] gloriously repulsed the French and died on the field of battle."
4. ^ Charles Esdaile, The Peninsular War: A New History (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2003), p. 155: "At first sight, then, British intervention had ended in humiliation and disaster. At La Coruna, true, a reverse had been inflicted on the French. However, Sir John Moore was dead, over one fifth of his army were missing, and several thousand more sick or wounded, whilst the retreat had had all the appearances of a rout."
5. ^ According to The Times of London, "The fact must not be disguised ... that we have suffered a shameful disaster": Christopher Hibbert, Corunna (London: Batsford, 1961), p. 188. Carl Cavanaugh Hodge, Encyclopedia of the Age of Imperialism, 1800-1914 (Greenwood, 2007), p. lxxiii: "French Victory at the Battle of Corunna. Britain Forced to Evacuate Spain." See also http://napoleonistyka.atspace.com/battle_of_corunna.htm#_French_Victory. See also http://militaryhistory.about.com/od/battleswars1800s/p/corunna.htm, which states "the French had succeeded in driving their opponents from Spain." See also http://www.britishbattles.com/peninsula/peninsula-coruna.htm: "Winner: The French[,] although the British Army was evacuated after a fighting withdrawal from Central Spain."
6. ^ ^{a b} Chandler, p. 656
7. ^ Letters from Portugal and Spain, Adam Neale, London, 1809, pp.100-104, Letters from Dec.10, 1808 from both Moore and Berthier indicate that both sides are aware the allies are defeated and the British are in full retreat. Moore, "I had no time to lose to secure my retreat.", Berthier, "...everything inclines us to think that they (the British) are in full retreat...".
8. ^ Chandler (London) p.645 in which he quotes from Moore's diary "I have determined to give this thing up and retire" - Sir J.Moore, Diaries, Major General Sir J.F.Maurice, ed. (London:190), VolII,p.358.
9. ^ Letters from Portugal and Spain, Adam Neale, London, 1809, Letters from Dec.10, 1808 P.104, Moore, "I have made the movement against Soult; as a diversion it has answered completely, but as there is nothing to take advantage of it, I have risked the loss of my army for no purpose."
10. ^ The Origin and History of the First Or Grenadier Guards Vol.II, London 1874, Frederick William Hamilton, p.385
11. ^ A History of England and Greater Britain, Arthur Lyon Cross, Macmillan, 1914, p.854. Revolutionary Europe, 1789-1815, Henry Morse Stephens, London, 1900, p. 271. Memoirs of Napoleon Bonaparte by Louis Antoine Fauvelet de Bourrienne, Ramsay Weston Phipps p.xlix; Charles Oman in A history of England p.616.
12. ^ Howard, M.R..Medical aspects of Sir John Moore's Corunna Campaign, 1808-1809, Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, Volume 84, May 1991, p. 300.
13. ^ Neale, referred to on p198 as Sir John Moore’s Last Despatch: “If I succeed in embarking the army, I shall send it to England - it is quite unfit for further service, until it has been refitted, which can best be done there.”
14. ^ The Origin and History of the First Or Grenadier Guards Vol.II, London 1874, Frederick William Hamilton, p.392. Oman A History of the Peninsular War Vol. I, 1807-1809, p.582, gives 15,000.
15. ^ The Popular History of England, Charles Knight, London, 1861, p. 506.
16. ^ France militaire, p110: "The enemy was not even discouraged by two fatal events: General Baird was shot in the arm with a bullet, and the commander-in-chief Moore was mortally wounded. General John Hope replaced him as commander and the enemy continued to maintain their position throughout the line."
17. ^ ^{a b c} Thomas
18. ^ Fortescue, p393
19. ^ Chandler and Oman are in agreement. Other sources vary only slightly from these figures.
20. ^ Moore's second in command Sir David Baird was seriously wounded earlier in the battle and had to retire from the field. In addition two of Mermet's three brigadiers were also casualties: Gaulois was shot dead and Lefebvre badly hurt. These men were all involved in the fighting on the British right.
21. ^ Howard, M.R..Medical aspects of Sir John Moore's Corunna Campaign, 1808-1809, Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, Volume 84, May 1991, p300.
22. ^ Christopher Hibbert, Corunna (London: Batsford, 1961), p. 188.
23. ^ Christopher Hibbert, Corunna (London: Batsford, 1961), p. 188.
24. ^ Oman p587, "Moore welcomed the approach of battle with joy : he had every confidence in his men and his position, and saw that a victory won ere his departure would silence the greater part of the inevitable criticism for timidity and want of enterprise, to which he would be exposed on his return to England."
25. ^ *Burial of Sir John Moore at Corunna, by Rev. Charles Wolfe (1791-1823)[1]
26. ^ Mike Wade. Sir John Moore, general who beat a victorious retreat, The Times, London, January 16, 2009,.
27. ^ Chandler, p658

References

• Chandler, David G. The Campaigns of Napoleon. London: Weidenfeld & Nicholson Ltd, 1996. ISBN 0 297 748300
• Fortescue, J. W. A History of The British Army. Vol IV 1807-1809. MacMillan and Co., Limited. [2]
• France militaire : histoire des armées françaises de terre et de mer de 1792 à 1837. Tome 4 / ouvrage réd. par une Société de militaires et de gens de lettres,... ; rev. et publ. par A. Hugo [3]
• Napier, W. F. P. History of the war in the Peninsula and the south of France, from the year 1807 to the year 1814 (1873) New York : D. & J. Sadlier [4]
• Neale, Adam. The Spanish Campaign of 1808 (1831 edition) 1831 edition [5]
• Neale, Adam. Letters from Portugal and Spain, London, 1809
• Oman, Charles. A History of the Peninsular War Vol. I 1807-1809[6]
• Sarrazin, General. History of the War in Spain and Portugal from 1807 to 1814[7]
• Thomas. Journal of a Soldier of the 71st Regiment [8]

Coordinates: 43°21′46″N 8°24′17″W / 43.36278°N 8.40472°W / 43.36278; -8.40472