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In the Siege of Lérida from 29 April to 13 May 1810, an Imperial French army under Louis Gabriel Suchet besieged a Spanish garrison led by Jaime García Conde. On 13 May, García Conde surrendered with his 7,000 surviving soldiers. Lleida (Lérida) is a city in the western part of Catalonia. Margalef is located on Route N-240 about southeast of Lérida. The siege occurred during the Peninsular War, part of the Napoleonic Wars. After a fruitless attempt to seize Valencia in March, Suchet determined to move against Lérida. By mid-April, the French were before the city. Suchet heard that a Spanish army commanded by Henry O'Donnell was trying to interfere with the planned operation. O'Donnell's column was intercepted and in the Battle of Margalef on 23 April, it was routed with heavy losses. This action was followed by a siege in which Suchet used brutal methods to bring a speedy surrender. On 13 May, García Conde capitulated with his 7,000 surviving soldiers. This event was the start of an astonishing series of successful sieges from 1810 to 1812 in which Suchet's troops seemed to be unstoppable. ==Background== In January 1810, General of Division Louis Gabriel Suchet commanded the French III Corps, with three infantry divisions commanded by Generals of Division Anne-Gilbert Laval and Louis François Félix Musnier, and General of Brigade Pierre-Joseph Habert. Laval's 1st Division consisted of 4,290 effectives in six battalions, Musnier's 2nd Division counted 7,173 men in 11 battalions, and Habert's 3rd Division numbered 4,329 soldiers in seven battalions. General of Brigade André Joseph Boussart led the 1,899 troopers of the corps cavalry brigade. These were divided into two unusually strong regiments, one heavy and one light. The III Corps also had 1,287 gunners, sappers, and other attached troops. Suchet's total of 23,140 effectives included 4,162 soldiers in garrisons.〔Gates (2002), 495〕〔Broughton, ''La Val'', ''Musnier'', ''Habert'', and ''Boussart''. This source provided the full names and ranks of the generals.〕 That month, Suchet planned to move against the Spanish-held cities of Lérida and Mequinenza. However, he received positive orders to move directly against Valencia instead. King Joseph Bonaparte was in the process of overrunning Andalusia and believed that the Spanish armies were on the verge of collapse. Suchet reluctantly obeyed the king's command and his army reached the outskirts of Valencia on 6 March. Lacking siege artillery and facing a determined set of defenders, the French general retreated after blockading the city for only four days. Back in his base in Aragon, Suchet spent a few weeks suppressing Spanish guerillas before he was ready to march on Lérida.〔Gates (2002), 290〕 Suchet's army arrived in front of Lérida on 15 April.〔 The 13,000 French soldiers were organized into 18 battalions and eight squadrons and supplied with 30 artillery pieces. Musnier's 2nd Division included three battalions each of the 114th, 115th, and 121st Line Infantry Regiments, two battalions of the 1st Legion of the Vistula, and two foot artillery batteries. Habert's 3rd Division comprised two battalions each of the 5th Light and 116th Line, three battalions of the 117th Line, and two foot artillery batteries. Boussart's cavalry was made up of the 4th Hussar and 13th Cuirassier Regiments, and a horse artillery battery. The fortress of Lérida was armed with 105 cannons. Major General Jaime García Conde led the 8,000 Spanish defenders, including 350 gunners.〔Smith (1998), 342〕 In September 1809, García Conde successfully led a 4,000-man re-supply convoy during the Siege of Gerona. During the operation he broke through the Italian defenders and delivered supplies and reinforcements before escaping.〔Gates (2002), 169〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Siege of Lleida (1810)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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