Battle of Braga (1809)
| Battle of Braga (1809) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Peninsular War | |||||||
North is to the right in this Battle of Braga map. | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
| France | Portugal | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
|
Jean de Soult Maximilien Foy Henri Delaborde Étienne Bierre Jean Baptiste Armand Houssaye Jean Lorge |
Baron Eben Bernardim Freire | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
|
16,000–16,650 12 guns |
23,000–25,000 18 guns | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 200–600 |
4,400 17 guns | ||||||
The Battle of Braga or Battle of Póvoa de Lanhoso or Battle of Carvalho d'Este (20 March 1809) saw an Imperial French corps led by Marshal Jean de Soult attack a Portuguese army commanded by Baron Eben. When Soult's professional soldiers attacked, the Portuguese at first fought back but soon ran away. The French slaughtered large numbers of their opponents, who were mostly badly disciplined and poorly armed militia. The action was part of the second invasion of Portugal, during the Peninsular War.
After the Battle of Corunna and the British evacuation of northwest Spain, Soult turned his attention to the invasion of Portugal. Fighting their way through swarms of Spanish guerillas, Soult's troops crossed the border into Portugal in early March 1809. After capturing Chaves, Soult's II Corps encountered a horde of unruly militiamen who had just assassinated their commander. The subsequent easy French victory did not discourage the Portuguese resistance. Meanwhile, another Portuguese army was gathering to defend Porto.
Braga is situated about 45 kilometres (28 mi) north-northeast of Porto (Oporto).