Acer Griseum

The Battle of Oriamendi (Basque: Oriamendiko Gudua) was fought on 16 March 1837 during the First Carlist War.^[2] The battle was an overwhelming victory for the Carlists.^[3][4]

Prelude

The battle was part of a campaign in spring 1837 when the liberal Army tried to chase the Carlists from the Basque Country.^{[citation needed]}

General Pedro Sarsfield, marching from Pamplona, was supposed to threaten the Lecumferri pass, while General Espartero was to advance from Bilbao with the purpose of distracting the Carlists.^[5] It was planned that the British-Spanish force, starting at San Sebastián, led by George de Lacy Evans would attack the Carlist-held Hernani.^[5] This concentric attack was planned by General Sarsfiel with the goal of annihilating Carlist forces.^[1]

On 15 March the British Auxiliary Legion conquered a fortification known as Oriamendi on a strategic hill near San Sebastián.^[6] The hill was defended by Carlist Guipuzcoans.^[3]

Battle

The next day the Carlists under Sebastian de Borbón counterattacked and routed the liberal forces supported by the British Legion, both of which suffered heavy losses.^[7] Due to the battle, the British-liberal army retreated to their trenches outside San Sebastian.^{[citation needed]} This force had suffered between 1,000 and 1,500 casualties and covering fire from the Royal Navy prevented the withdrawal from becoming a disaster.^{[citation needed]} The success of the Carlist troops laid in a defence-in-depth and their infantry's high mobility.^[8]

Aftermath

After the battle, the Carlists tightened their grip around San Sebastián, but never succeeded in taking the city.^{[citation needed]}

The defeat caused an outrage at the British parliament.^{[citation needed]} The battle was a great boost in morale for the Carlists, and lives on in the Marcha de Oriamendi, which became the anthem of the Carlist movement.^{[citation needed]}

See also

• Battle of Andoain
• Oliver de Lancey
• Maurice O'Connell

References

Sources

• Alison, Archibald (1871). "XXXV – Spain, from the Death of Zumalacarregui in 1835, to the termination of the Carlist War in 1840.". History of Europe 1815-1852. Vol. 5. William Blackwood and Sons.
• de la Cuesta, Julio Albi (7 May 2017). "Carlistas contra británicos. La batalla de Oriamendi" [Carlists against the British. The battle of Oriamendi] (in Spanish).
• Esposito, Gabriele (2017). Armies of the First Carlist War 1833–39. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 9781472825247.
• Jaques, Tony (2007). Dictionary of Battles and Sieges: F-O. Greenwood Press. ISBN 9780313335389.
• Thomas, Neil (2012). "8 – The Battle of Oriamendi (16 March 1837)". Wargaming: Nineteenth Century Europe, 1815–1878. Casemate Publishers. ISBN 9781781594063.
• Thieblin, Nicolas Leon (1874). Spain and the Spaniards. Hurst and Blackett.

External links

• Balagan
• Historia militar del siglo XIX en el País Vasco^{[permanent dead link]}

43°16′00″N 1°58′00″W / 43.2667°N 1.9667°W / 43.2667; -1.9667