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A history of the Peninsular War, Vol. 4, Dec. 1810-Dec. 1811 cover

A history of the Peninsular War, Vol. 4, Dec. 1810-Dec. 1811

Chapter 47: XIV
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About This Book

The volume chronicles the military campaigns of 1811 across the Iberian Peninsula, centering on the stalemate between Wellington and French commanders Masséna, Soult, and Marmont. It traces Masséna's retreat from Portugal, key battles and sieges such as Fuentes de Oñoro, Albuera, Almeida, Badajoz and Ciudad Rodrigo, and surveys Eastern operations under Suchet and Catalan actions. The narrative combines operational analysis, topographical study of battlefields, and extensive use of contemporary diaries, correspondence, and intercepted dispatches to assess shifting strategic initiative and the decline of French offensive capability in the west.

XIV

FRENCH LOSSES AT FUENTES DE OÑORO

N.B.—I have been unable to find any detailed table by regiments in the Archives de la Guerre, or the Archives Nationales at Paris, and can only give the subjoined table of losses by corps.

  Killed. Wounded. Missing.  
  Offs. Men. Offs. Men. Offs. Men. Total.
Combat of May 3rd.
6th Corps (Divisions Ferey and Marchand) 7 69 17 392 3 164 652
Battle of May 5th.
2nd Corps (all in 31st Léger) 3 3 46 52
6th Corps (Divisions Ferey, Marchand, Mermet) 12 95 47 757 33 944
8th Corps (Division Solignac) 2 2
9th Corps (Divisions Conroux and Claparéde) 15 103 48 669 835
Montbrun’s Cavalry 1 36 25 283 1 13 359
Total 35 308 140 2,147 4 210 2,844

So far as this return can be tested by Martinien’s Liste des Officiers tués et blessés pendant les Guerres de l’Empire, it appears to be very fairly accurate; Martinien accounts for 171 casualties, the return for 179. In detail the figures compare as follows:—

  Killed. Wounded.   Killed. Wounded. Missing.
2nd Corps, Martinien 0 4     In return 0 3
6th Corps, Martinien 22 63     In return 19 64 3
9th Corps, Martinien 14 41     In return 15 48
Cavalry, Martinien 1 26     In return 1 25 1
Totals 37 134   35 140 4