A week after the very bloody Battle of Albuera, Marshal Nicolas Soult sent Latour-Maubourg's cavalry to discover the position of Marshal William Carr Beresford's Allied army. On 25 May, the French cavalry came upon a line of Portuguese cavalry vedettes on a ridge behind the village of Usagre. Lumley posted the bulk of his forces behind the ridge, out of sight.
Latour-Maubourg led two dragoon brigades under Brigadier-General Bron (4th, 20th and 26th Dragoons) and Brigadier-General Bouvier des Éclaz (14th, 17th and 27th Dragoons). He sent four regiments of light cavalry under Brigadier-General Briche on a wide flanking manoeuvre. The French had about 3,500 horsemen. Confident in his numerical superiority, Latour-Maubourg pressed ahead.
Battleedit
Lumley ignored the French flanking force because he knew that they would not arrive in time. He let the 4th and 20th Dragoons of Bron's brigade pass through Usagre, cross the bridge and form up on the other side. As the 26th Dragoons began crossing the span, Lumley attacked. He brought up his cavalry and sent six British squadrons, supported by six Portuguese squadrons on their right, against the two deployed French regiments.
The French horsemen were defeated and thrown back on the 26th Dragoons, who were still jammed on the bridge. With the British cavalry all around them and their retreat blocked, the French dragoons were cut to pieces. Latour-Maubourg's only recourse was to dismount the first regiment of Bouvier des Eclat's brigade and use the dragoons to hold the houses near the bridge. At last, the remnants of Bron's regiments fought their way back, covered by carbine fire from the village.
Resultsedit
The French lost 250 killed or wounded, plus 78 captured, mostly from the 4th and 20th Dragoons. The British only lost 20 troopers killed or wounded.[4]
Bromley, Janet; Bromley, David (2015). Wellington's Men Remembered Volume 2: A Register of Memorials to Soldiers who Fought in the Peninsular War and at Waterloo- Volume II: M to Z. Pen and Sword. ISBN978-1-4738-5768-1.
battle, usagre, this, article, includes, list, general, references, lacks, sufficient, corresponding, inline, citations, please, help, improve, this, article, introducing, more, precise, citations, july, 2011, learn, when, remove, this, template, message, 1811. This article includes a list of general references but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations July 2011 Learn how and when to remove this template message In the Battle of Usagre on 25 May 1811 Anglo Allied cavalry commanded by Major General William Lumley routed a French cavalry force led by Major General Marie Victor Latour Maubourg at the village of Usagre Spain in the Peninsular War Battle of UsagrePart of the Peninsular WarBattle of UsagreDate25 May 1811LocationUsagre Spain38 20 42 N 6 10 18 W 38 3449 N 6 1716 W 38 3449 6 1716ResultCoalition victoryBelligerentsFrench EmpireBritish Empire Portuguese Empire Spanish EmpireCommanders and leadersVictor de FayWilliam LumleyStrength3 5002 0006 gunsCasualties and losses250 killed wounded or captured 1 20 killed wounded or captured Peninsular WarCastile 1811 13200km125miles2019Burgos181716Salamanca15Astorga14131211Ciudad Rodrigo10987Arlaban6Usagre54Campo Maior3 2 Badajoz1 current battle Contents 1 Background 2 Forces 3 Battle 4 Results 5 Notes 6 References 7 Further reading 8 External linksBackground editA week after the very bloody Battle of Albuera Marshal Nicolas Soult sent Latour Maubourg s cavalry to discover the position of Marshal William Carr Beresford s Allied army On 25 May the French cavalry came upon a line of Portuguese cavalry vedettes on a ridge behind the village of Usagre Lumley posted the bulk of his forces behind the ridge out of sight Forces editLumley force included Colonel George de Grey s brigade 3rd Prince of Wales Dragoon Guards 4th Queen s Own Dragoons the 13th Light Dragoons under Lieutenant Colonel Joseph Muter 2 Portuguese cavalry under Colonel Loftus William Otway 1st and 7th Dragoons plus elements of the 5th and 8th and some Spanish cavalry led by Penne Villemur There were 980 British 1 000 Portuguese and 300 Spanish troopers present plus Lefebvre s Troop Royal Horse Artillery 3 Latour Maubourg led two dragoon brigades under Brigadier General Bron 4th 20th and 26th Dragoons and Brigadier General Bouvier des Eclaz 14th 17th and 27th Dragoons He sent four regiments of light cavalry under Brigadier General Briche on a wide flanking manoeuvre The French had about 3 500 horsemen Confident in his numerical superiority Latour Maubourg pressed ahead Battle editLumley ignored the French flanking force because he knew that they would not arrive in time He let the 4th and 20th Dragoons of Bron s brigade pass through Usagre cross the bridge and form up on the other side As the 26th Dragoons began crossing the span Lumley attacked He brought up his cavalry and sent six British squadrons supported by six Portuguese squadrons on their right against the two deployed French regiments The French horsemen were defeated and thrown back on the 26th Dragoons who were still jammed on the bridge With the British cavalry all around them and their retreat blocked the French dragoons were cut to pieces Latour Maubourg s only recourse was to dismount the first regiment of Bouvier des Eclat s brigade and use the dragoons to hold the houses near the bridge At last the remnants of Bron s regiments fought their way back covered by carbine fire from the village Results editThe French lost 250 killed or wounded plus 78 captured mostly from the 4th and 20th Dragoons The British only lost 20 troopers killed or wounded 4 Notes edit Fortescue 1917 p 220 Bromley amp Bromley 2015 p 111 Oman 1913 p 107 Smith 1998 p 364 References editBromley Janet Bromley David 2015 Wellington s Men Remembered Volume 2 A Register of Memorials to Soldiers who Fought in the Peninsular War and at Waterloo Volume II M to Z Pen and Sword ISBN 978 1 4738 5768 1 Fortescue Sir John 1917 A History of the British Army vol VIII Macmillan retrieved 13 September 2007 Oman Charles 1913 Wellington s Army 1809 1814 London Greenhill ISBN 0 947898 41 7 Smith Digby 1998 The Napoleonic Wars Data Book Greenhill ISBN 1853672769 Further reading editGlover Michael 1974 The Peninsular War 1807 1814 Penguin ISBN 0 14 139041 7 External links edit nbsp Media related to Battle of Usagre at Wikimedia CommonsPreceded byBattle of Albuera Napoleonic WarsBattle of Usagre Succeeded byBattle of Saguntum Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Battle of Usagre amp oldid 1214306508, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
