Battle of Bayonne

Battle and Siege of Bayonne
Part of the Peninsular War
"The Sortie from Bayonne, at 3 in the Morning, on the 14th April 1814" by Thomas Sutherland
Date 14 April 1814 Location Bayonne, France 43°30′13″N 01°28′03″W / 43.50361°N 1.46750°W / 43.50361; -1.46750 Result Allied victory
Belligerents
France	United Kingdom Portugal Spain
Commanders and leaders
Pierre Thouvenot Louis Abbé	John Hope  Andrew Hay † Henry de Hinuber
Strength
14,000	25,000–31,000
Casualties and losses
Battle: 910 Siege: 2,000	Battle: 838 Siege: 2,000
class=notpageimage| Location within Europe

Peninsular War:
Campaign in south-west France

50km
30miles

Bayonne

7

Toulouse

6

5

4

3

2

1

  

  current battle

The Battle of Bayonne (14 April 1814), the last major battle of the Peninsular War, ensued when the French garrison of Bayonne led by General of Division Pierre Thouvenot launched a sortie against a besieging force of British, Portuguese, and Spanish troops commanded by Lieutenant General John Hope. It was fought after unofficial news of the abdication of French emperor Napoleon on 4 April had reached the opposing forces. Thouvenot's reasons for initiating the sortie are not clear; there was apparently nothing for the French to gain by fighting. After initial success for the French, Allied forces drove them back inside Bayonne with heavy losses on both sides.

The Allies had initiated the siege of Bayonne by mounting a complex land-sea operation that bridged the Adour estuary downstream from Bayonne. Allied positions already faced the south side of Bayonne, so crossing the Adour allowed Hope's troops to also close off the north side of Bayonne, completely investing the city. Once Bayonne was surrounded, the siege was pursued lethargically on both sides until the sortie. The fighting of 14 April involved heavy hand-to-hand combat but did not lift the siege, and on 17 April the French field army under Marshal Jean-de-Dieu Soult signed an armistice with Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington. Thouvenot continued to resist until Soult directly ordered him to observe the ceasefire.