Munibe Antropologia-Arkeologia (Nov 2023)
Cultura material y contextualización histórica de un vivac napoleónico asociado a la batalla de Fuentes de Oñoro (3 - 5 de mayo de 1811)
Abstract
En 1811 el ejército francés se retiró Portugal dejando aislada la fortaleza de Almeida. Al intentar aprovisionarla con un convoy de víveres se produjo la batalla de Fuentes de Oñoro, en la que tanto ingleses como franceses sufrieron abundantes bajas. Este artículo da a conocer un conjunto singular de materiales metálicos, de origen francés, documentados a unos 10 km del escenario de la lucha. Las fuentes bibliográficas han permitido asociar estos restos con una de las divisiones del IX Cuerpo de Ejército francés, el cual tuvo una intensa participación en dicho episodio bélico. ABSTRACT: The third invasion of Portugal by Marshal Massena’s army was stopped at the Torres-Vedras line, raised by Wellington to protect Lisbon and the mouth of the Tagus. In March 1811, Massena began the retreat of his forces towards Spanish territory, closely pursued by the allies. On April 4 the Napoleonic army crossed the Spanish border leaving behind the fortress of Almeida whose garrison of 1300 men was isolated with numerous cannons and ammunition but without food. Wellington blocked Almeida to surrender it by starvation. On May 3, when trying to supply it with a big convoy, the battle of Fuentes de Oñoro took place, in which both English and French suffered numerous casualties. The convoy did not reach its destination and Almeida had to be abandoned. In order to document the war activity that occurred in Gallegos de Argañán, in 2017 we initiated a research project based on intensive metal detector prospecting of large areas of that municipality. In this article we report an interesting set of metal finds documented in the summer of 2022, just 10 km from Fuentes de Oñoro. In addition to abundant unfired projectiles of French caliber, several singular objects such as buckles or uniform buttons have been found. All this has allowed associating these findings with an area where one of the French divisions of the IX Army Corps bivouacked. The bibliographic sources indicate that these troops had an intense participation in the battle of Fuentes de Oñoro. Once again, the battlefield archaeology, contributes new lights for the knowledge of decisive historical events.
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