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The Battle of Gerona on 20 and 21 June 1808 saw an Imperial French division led by Guillaume Philibert Duhesme try to overrun a Spanish garrison commanded by Lieutenant Colonels O'Donovan and O'Daly. The French assault failed and the attackers withdrew. Girona (spelled "Gerona" in Castilian) is located about halfway between the Franco-Spanish border and Barcelona on the Autovía A-7. The action occurred during the Peninsular War, part of the Napoleonic Wars. As part of his plan to overthrow the Spanish ruling family, Emperor Napoleon I ordered his soldiers to seize Barcelona in February 1808. The city's fortress was successfully occupied, but a few weeks later the Spanish people rebelled against Imperial French rule. Duhesme and his soldiers soon found themselves in difficulties. Hemmed in by Catalan militia and regular Spanish troops, the French general attempted to capture Girona in order to open up a secure supply line from France to Barcelona. The Franco-Italian force attempted to storm the city but they were repulsed by the city militia and two small battalions of Irish regular infantry in Spanish service. Duhesme fell back to Barcelona, but he returned to mount the Second Siege of Gerona five weeks later. ==Background== As part of his plan to seize his ally the Kingdom of Spain in a military coup, Emperor Napoleon ordered several key points, including Barcelona, to be captured in February 1808.〔Gates (2002), 10–11〕 On 29 February, General of Division Giuseppe Lechi's troops were moving through Barcelona. Lechi ordered a military review, and, as his soldiers marched past the main gate of the citadel, they suddenly veered left and rushed into the fortress. Without bloodshed, the Imperial troops hustled the stunned Spanish garrison out of the fortifications and occupied the place. Among other strong places, the French also seized San Sebastian, Pamplona and Figueras.〔Rickard (2008), ''Barcelona''〕 On 2 May, the Spanish people rose in revolt against the French occupiers.〔Gates (2002), 12〕 By the summer of 1808, a 12,710-man French corps commanded by Guillaume Philibert Duhesme was based at Barcelona. General of Division Joseph Chabran led the 1st Division with 6,050 soldiers in eight battalions, while Lechi commanded the 2nd Division with 4,600 men in six battalions. The 1,700 cavalrymen in nine squadrons were under Generals of Brigade Bertrand Bessières and François Xavier de Schwarz. There were also 360 gunners.〔Gates (2002), 482〕 This modest-sized force was tasked with putting down the insurrection in Catalonia, sending help to Marshal Bon-Adrien Jeannot de Moncey in his bid to capture Valencia, and keeping control of Barcelona. In view of the seriousness of the revolt, these orders were completely unrealistic. Duhesme attempted to comply with his instructions by sending Chabran and 3,000 troops to join Moncey and directing Schwarz with another column to seize Lerida. Schwarz left Barcelona on 4 June and immediately ran into trouble. In the first of the Battles of the Bruch swarms of Catalan miquelets (militia) kept his soldiers from crossing the pass. He called for help and Duhesme diverted Chabran to assist him. But the two generals were unable to force their way through the pass on 15 June.〔Gates (2002), 59〕 After suffering 400 casualties in the second battle, the French, Italians, and Swiss retreated. The Catalan irregulars tried to oppose Chabran's withdrawing force in the plains but were easily driven off. The frustrated French and their allies then brutally plundered every village along their route back to Barcelona.〔Smith (1998), 260〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Battle of Gerona (1808)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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