An early Peninsular War engagement in which French forces under Lasalle defeated a largely inexperienced Spanish force and seized Valladolid.
Key Facts
- Date
- 12 June 1808
- Spanish force size
- 4,000–5,000 volunteers plus 300 cavalry
- Spanish artillery
- 4 cannon
- French column (Merle)
- 6 battalions and 2 squadrons
- French column (Lasalle)
- 4 battalions and 2 chasseur regiments
- Spanish volunteer experience
- Less than two weeks under arms
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Following the French occupation of Spain and the outbreak of the Peninsular War, Spain's Army of Castile assembled at Valladolid under General Cuesta with mostly untrained volunteers and minimal artillery, attempting to resist the advancing French forces of Marshal Bessières' corps.
On 12 June 1808, French detachments under Generals Lasalle and Merle engaged Cuesta's army near Cabezón. Cuesta's force of roughly 4,000–5,000 volunteers, armed with only four cannon and supported by 300 veteran cavalry, faced a stronger and more experienced French combined force of infantry and cavalry.
The Spanish force was defeated, and General Lasalle occupied Valladolid without any further opposition that same evening, consolidating French control over the region and underscoring the vulnerability of hastily raised Spanish volunteer units in the early stages of the Peninsular War.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Gregorio de la Cuesta.
Side B
1 belligerent
General Lasalle, General Merle.