Battle of Grijó

TheBattle of Grijó(Portuguese pronunciation:[ɡɾiˈʒɔ]) (10–11 May 1809) ended in victory for theAnglo-Portuguese Armycommanded by Lieutenant-GeneralSir Arthur Wellesley(the future 1stDuke of Wellington) over the French army commanded by MarshalNicolas Soultduring theSecond French invasion of Portugalin thePeninsular War.The next day, Wellesley drove Soult from Porto in theSecond Battle of Porto.

Battle of Grijó
Part of thePeninsular War
Date 10–11 May 1809 Location Grijó,Portugal 41°01′42″N8°34′49″W Result Anglo-Portuguese victory
Belligerents
United Kingdom Portugal	French Empire
Commanders and leaders
Sir Arthur Wellesley	Jean Soult
Strength
18,000	7,000
Casualties and losses
104	200 hundreds of prisoners

Lisbon

Roliça

Vimeiro

Chaves

Braga

Grijó

Porto

Almeida

Bussaco

TorresVedras

Redinha

Sabugal

FuentesDeOñoro

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Peninsular war: Portugal
1807 1808180918101811

Background

TheSecond Portuguese campaignstarted with theBattle of Braga.

Battle

On 10 May British Cavalry under the command of General Sir Stapleton Cotton came into contact with outlying French Forces, after a short engagement they were scattered, both sides only suffering light casualties, but many French prisoners were taken.

The following day, on the 10th, a larger force commanded by GeneralJulien Augustin Joseph Mermetdefended the forested ridge, south of Grijo. the Anglo-allied forces under the command of Sir Arthur Wellesley (later Duke of Wellington) attacked them from the south, using a double flanking manoeuvre to threaten and drive them back.

In "The History of theRifle Brigade",Willoughby Verner describes how thead hoc1stBattalion of Detachments,made from soldiers and officers of multiple regiments who had become stranded with the evacuation ofCoruna,fought for the first time near the village ofGrijó (Vila Nova de Gaia):

The infantry of the advance guard consisted of the Rifle Company of the 1st Battalion of Detachments, the Companies of the 43rd and 52nd Light Infantry and the Light Company of the29th Regiment of Foot,the whole under the command of Major Way of the 29th.Cottonwith the British Cavalry came in touch with the French at dawn on the 10th, but [Major-General] Michel Francheschi^[2]had some infantry with him and Stewart's^[3]Brigade was delayed and did not come for some time; Francheschi thereupon fell back and joined [General]Mermetat Grijó. On the 11th Wellesley ordered [Major-General]Hillto endeavour to outflank Mermet's position on the east whilst he with [Major-General]Paget'sDivision advanced. In the afternoon the Light Companies of the 1st Battalion of Detachments attacked Mermet but met with a stiff resistance and lost not a few. Wellesley now ordered theKing's German Legionto turn the French left and the 16th Portuguese to turn their right and with the rest of Stewart's Brigade renewed the attack on the wooded heights in the centre above the village of Grijó. Mermet thereupon withdrew...

Aftermath

TheSecond Portuguese campaignproceeded with theSecond Battle of Porto.

References

• Burnham, Robert (2004)."The British Battalions of Detachment in 1809".Archived fromthe originalon 21 December 2004.Retrieved19 May2021.
• Cribb, Marcus (2020)."The Duke of Wellington & the world's war on Napoleon".Archived fromthe originalon 10 May 2021.Retrieved19 May2021.
• Glover, Michael (1974).The Peninsular War 1807–1814.Penguin.

Further reading

• Smith, Digby (1998).The Napoleonic Wars Data Book.Greenhill Books.
• McGuigan, Ron (2021)."Part II: The British Army in Portugal".Archived fromthe originalon 3 March 2021.Retrieved19 May2021.

External links

• Media related toBattle of Grijóat Wikimedia Commons

Preceded by Battle of Piave River (1809)

Napoleonic Wars Battle of Grijó

Succeeded by Second Battle of Porto