Vitoria - June 21st 1813

Vitoria
June 21st 1813

by Ian Barstow

All in all, it’s safe to say that 1813 wasn’t a very good year to be in the French army. In Germany you were either recovering from frostbite or just reaching puberty, whilst in Spain you were turning up to battles and finding out that the British had brought more blokes than you had. Such happened at Vitoria.

Wellington had spent the winter of 1812/13 organising such novelties for the troops as tents and light cooking-pots. He also improved the medical services and the provost. He even improved long term conditions and pay for NCOs. Meanwhile the lads drilled. Then they drilled again. It doesn’t take a military genius to see that the Iron Duke was planning something big.

Meanwhile on the French side things were in their usual state of organised chaos. Suchet commanded close to 70,000 men spread between Valencia and the Pyrenees; Clausel’s Armée du Nord had 30,000 more; Reille’s Army of Portugal had been fragmented partisan hunting, its nucleus centred on Valencia. Along with the forces of Gazan and D’Erlon this made about 80,000 men left in the central region of Spain. They were a dysfunctional bunch all intent on outdoing the other. Probably only one thing was agreed by all. The British were coming.

Wellington showed every sign of an advance through Suchet, despatching Sir John Murray’s 18,000 men as a decoy to Tarragona. Meanwhile the guerrillas continued to demand Clausel’s full attention. On 20th May of 1813, Wellington moved out towards Salamanca with 30,000 men, drawing French attention. Meanwhile Graham and 60,000 troops secretly crossed the Duoro in Portugal before cutting across north into Spain. It was a huge ruse. Handing command to Hill, Wellington rode hard for Graham, reaching him on the 29th at the flooded Esla river. Throwing across pontoons which the French didn’t even know he had, Wellington forced the army across, following the course of the Duoro to the east. The French abandoned Zamora and at Toro he rendezvoused with Hill who had marched north from Salamanca. By the start of June the French found themselves outflanked.

Bedlam

Meanwhile the French command was bedlam. Joseph was nominal commander-in-chief, supposedly advised by Marshal Jourdan. Instead, it was command by committee with Jourdan hardly getting a look in. The British were for once ably screened by cavalry, and information was scant. Jourdan advised an attack into Portugal to sever wellington’s communications. The Army Commanders preferred withdrawal and the weak Joseph was swayed. First Madrid, then Valladolid, and finally Burgos were abandoned as Jourdan was not given time to properly prepare defences, the British advancing on a twenty mile front in three columns. Wellington had been pushing the men hard and the sound of the enemy blowing up the great fortress of Burgos was music to their ears.

Everybody but Wellington expected him to halt and rest, but he pressed on ruthlessly. On June 16th the French headquarters at Miranda de Ebro received news that Wellington was at Medina de Pomar, only 50 miles west of Vitoria. They had again been caught short and effortlessly outflanked. They had little option but to retire on Vitoria. French morale was now so low it was practically mutinous. The men wanted to fight, not run, and they transmitted as much to their commanders. These worthies now promptly changed their minds about withdrawal and recommended battle. Jourdan was appalled at such incompetence, and encouraged Joseph to carry out a proper withdrawal to give them time to select and prepare a defensive position. Joseph procrastinated, believing that he had more time than in reality he possessed. He had issued a weak summons for reinforcements from the other commands, but these had been worded so badly that they were practically ignored. By June 21st, Wellington was upon him and the decision was out of Joseph’s hands. Battle there would be.

Vitoria was a natural road junction, towards the eastern end of a rolling plain, and the French were camped across the middle of it, apparently not expecting attack. It is likely that they thoroughly expected once more to be turned towards Bilbao. Jourdan had been ill for several days, and in his absence Joseph had dawdled, not selecting positions properly. Joseph was awaiting Clausel, not realising that he was two days behind schedule. The French had been drawn up roughly to prevent an attack from the north across the narrow Zadorra river. Gazan faced Wellington south and west of Arinez with D’Erlon east of Arinez and Reille west of Vitoria.

Joseph received reports of Spanish troops advancing from Bilbao and Reille was instructed to move one division north of the river to counter it.

Sunrise

At sunrise on the morning of the 21st, Jourdan felt well enough to review the dispositions with Joseph, and both were feeling more relaxed following reports that Wellington was moving on Bilbao. Jourdan advised pulling the lines back towards Vitoria, with the intention of tidying up what was a very disorganised position. Unfortunately, Gazan was unable to conform to this instruction. He was under attack.

Wellington’s planning was completely at odds to what the French commanders expected, and as such caught them completely off balance. The Allied army was diverged into four groups: Hill, commanding the 2nd Division, with Morillo’s Spanish and Silveira’s Portuguese, 20,000 men, would attack Gazan’s left flank through the pass of Puebla, whilst Picton and Dalhousie with 15,000 men hit Gazan’s right from the Northwest. Wellington would lead the 4th and Light Divisions in a frontal assault whilst Graham and 25,000 troops would arc north and pin Reille across the Bayonne road.

The battle started some time after 8.00 a.m., with Hill engaging Gazan’s left on the Puebla hills. Meanwhile the inept Dalhousie was lost in the hill country and Graham’s sweeping flank move was behind schedule. Filtering into action at midday, Graham began proceeding with his objective. Seeing this and furious with Dalhousie, Picton decided to attack alone hitting Gazan and D’Erlon, supported by Wellington’s frontal attack. Picton’s brutal assault wrecked Gazan’s position, driving him out of Arinez. The fighting was heavy all along the line, but slowly D’Erlon was forced out of Margarita and the artillery reserve found itself hampered by the rolling terrain, blotting out their view of the advancing British. It was now clear to the French that Graham’s force had successfully turned the position, and units began to break up, heading east. Reille managed to hold his troops together to cover the rout.

However, rout it most certainly was. Every wagon in the transport park was taken as were all but two guns. Losses were 8,000 French and 5,100 Allies. Seemingly not much for a rout, and undoubtedly it would have been more if the roles had been reversed, but the standard British incompetence at pursuit now reared its ugly head. The wagon park was full of every conceivable article of wealth, and it was too much for the troops to resist, as they turned it over to an orgy of plunder. Order had completely collapsed and Wellington could do no more than let his men have their head. It was, after all, the biggest prize in loot ever taken by a British army, and that’s saying something. The Duke himself received Jourdan’s baton and Joseph’s silver chamber pot.

Wellington’s Allied Army at Vitoria.

INFANTRY: Approx. 27,370 British, 27,569 Portuguese, 6,800 Spanish

1st DIVISION (Howard)

Halkett’s Brigade

2nd DIV. (Stewart)

Byng’s Brigade

O’Callaghan’s Brigade

Ashworth’s Portuguese Brigade

3rd DIVISION (Picton)

Colville’s Brigade

Power’s Portuguese Brigade

4th DIVISION (Cole)

Skerrett’s Brigade

Stubbs’ Portuguese Brigade

5th DIVISION (Oswald)

Robinson’s Brigade

Spry’s Portuguese Brigade

7th DIVISION (Dalhousie)

Grant’s Brigade

Le Cor’s Portuguese Brigade

LIGHT DIVISION (C. Alten)

Vandeleur’s Brigade

Pack’s Independent Portuguese Brigade

Bradford’s Independent Portuguese Brigade

PORTUGUESE DIV. (Silveira)

2nd & 14th Line

A. Campbell’s Brigade

SPANISH DIV. (Morillo)

Longa’s Brigade

R. Hill’s Brigade

Ponsonby’s Brigade

G. Anson’s Brigade

Long’s Brigade

13th Light Dragoons

V. Alten’s Brigade

Bock’s Brigade

Fane’s Brigade

Grant’s Brigade

D’Urban’s Portuguese Brigade

1st, 11th & 12th Port. Line Cavalry

Campbell’s Portuguese Brigade

The French Armies of Joseph Bonparte and Jourdan at Vitoria

Army of the South (Gazan)

1st DIVISION (Leval) - 4,844 men

Morgan’s Brigade

3rd DIVISION (VILLATTE) - 5,874 men

Lefol’s Brigade

4th DIVISION (CONROUX) - 6,589 men

Schwitter’s Brigade

5th DIVISION

6th DIVISION (Darricau) - 5,935 men

Redmond’s Brigade

SOULT’S CAVALRY DIVISION - 1,671 men

TILLY’S CAVALRY DIVISION - 1,929 men

DIGEON’S CAVALRY DIVISION - 1,869 men

Army of the Centre (D’Erlon)

1st DIVISION (Darmagnac) - 4,400 men

Nevenstein’s Brigade

2nd DIVISION (Cassagne) - 9,681 men

Blondeau’s Brigade

TREILLARD’S CAVALRY DIVISION - 1,030 men
19eme & 22eme Dragoons

Army of Portugal (Reille)

4th DIVISION (SARRUT) - 4,800 men

Menne’s Brigade

6th DIVISION (Lamartinierre) - 6,711 men

Menne’s Brigade

MERMET’S CAVALRY DIVISION - 1,800 men

13eme & 22eme Chasseurs

2nd Brigade (?)

BOYER’S CAVALRY DIVISION - 1,471 men

6eme, 11eme, 15eme & 25eme Dragoons

King Joseph’s Royal Troops

ARTILLERY:

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Vitoria June 21st 1813

Vitoria
June 21st 1813