Battle of Pombal
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Pombal (March 11, 1811) was a sharp skirmish during Marshal Masséna's
André Masséna
André Masséna 1st Duc de Rivoli, 1st Prince d'Essling was a French military commander during the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars....

 retreat from the Lines of Torres Vedras
Lines of Torres Vedras
The Lines of Torres Vedras were lines of forts built in secrecy to defend Lisbon during the Peninsular War. Named after the nearby town of Torres Vedras, they were ordered by Arthur Wellesley, Viscount Wellington, constructed by Sir Richard Fletcher, 1st Baronet and his Portuguese workers between...

, the first in a series of lauded rearguard
Rearguard
Rearguard may refer to:* A military detachment protecting the rear of a larger military formation, especially when retreating from a pursuing enemy force. * Rear Guard , a computer game released in 1982...

 actions fought by Michel Ney
Michel Ney
Michel Ney , 1st Duc d'Elchingen, 1st Prince de la Moskowa was a French soldier and military commander during the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars. He was one of the original 18 Marshals of France created by Napoleon I...

. The French were pursued by Wellington
Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, KG, GCB, GCH, PC, FRS , was an Irish-born British soldier and statesman, and one of the leading military and political figures of the 19th century...

 and his British-Portuguese
Anglo-Portuguese Army
The Anglo-Portuguese Army was the combined British and Portuguese army that won the Peninsular War, under the command of Arthur Wellesley. The Army is also referred to as the British-Portuguese Army and, in Portuguese, as the Exército Anglo-Luso or the Exército Anglo-Português.The Anglo-Portuguese...

 but the Allied advance was energetically contested by Ney's efforts, preventing Wellington from crushing Masséna's army when it was critically vulnerable.

At the Battle of Pombal, Ney turned to face the Anglo-Portuguese forces and inflicted on them a sharp defeat.

Background

Unable to break the Lines of Torres Vedras, Ney was given charge of the rear-guard while the main body of the French army withdrew from Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...

. The rear-guard consisted of Mermet's and Marchand's divisions.

From the very beginning, Marshal Ney deceived the 'Iron Duke' (Wellington), manoeuvring his troops so that Wellington believed that the French were about to return to Torres Vedras, and thus he suspended an offensive operation for several hours, giving Masséna a huge running start.

When it became clear to Wellington that he had been deceived, the British-Portuguese left Torres Vedras
Torres Vedras
Torres Vedras is a city and a municipality in the district of Lisbon, Portugal, about 50 km north of Lisbon. It belongs to the Oeste subregion and the Centro region.The municipality covers an area of 405.89 km² distributed over 20 freguesias...

 and began a pursuit. The British caught up with Ney at the village of Pombal
Pombal, Portugal
Pombal is a town in Pombal Municipality, Portugal. The population of the city is about 16.000 inhabitants....

.

Battle

A British advanced-guard much larger than that of the French, the latter consisting of only two battalions of the 16th Light Infantry, attacked the village of Pombal. The two French battalions were overwhelmed by numbers and, after a bitter struggle, the French were forced out of Pombal.

It was then that Ney rushed in and spoke to the sixteenth Light Infantry. “Chasseurs,” he said, “you are losing your beautiful reputation, and you will dishonour yourselves forever if you do not drive the enemy out of Pombal. Come on! Those who are brave, with me!” With these words he galloped towards Pombal and the sixteenth Chasseurs charged with great enthusiasm. The Anglo-Portuguese driven out, all the way to the river Arunca. Several allied soldiers drowned.

Aftermath

Despite success, Ney promptly set fire to the village of Pombal and continued his retreat on the right bank of the river Arunca. The next action would be the Battle of Redinha
Battle of Redinha
The Battle of Redinha was a rearguard action which took place on March 12, 1811, during Masséna's retreat from Portugal, by a French division under Marshal Ney against a considerably larger Anglo-Portuguese force under Wellington. Challenging the Allies with only one or two divisions, Ney's 7,000...

.

General Picton was very impressed by Ney’s actions, as the former was able to observe the latter’s deceiving movements, claiming that it was a ‘perfect lesson in the art of war’.
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