A history of the Peninsular War, Vol. 1, 1807-1809

by Charles Oman

V

THE SPANISH ARMY IN 1808

[Mainly from the table in Arteche, vol. i, Appendix 9.]

N.B.—The numbers are taken from returns made on various days between March and June, 1808. They include only rank and file. The officers should have been ninety-eight to a regiment of guards, seventy to a line regiment, forty-one to a light battalion, thirty-four to a militia battalion, forty-two to a cavalry regiment. But most corps were under strength in officers, no less than in men, in June, 1808, and Arteche, giving every regiment of infantry a complete staff of officers, is clearly over-estimating them. He gives e.g. 2,450 officers of line infantry, the possible maximum, while the Estado Militar for 1808 gives only 1,521 present; so with the militia he gives 1,887 officers, while apparently there were only 1,230 actually existing. It would seem that his gross total of 7,222 officers ought to be cut down to 5,911. For the rank and file we get:—

ROYAL GUARD.

Cavalry.
Numbers.			Quartered in
Life Guards	615	}	Old Castile and Madrid.
Royal Carabineers	540
Total	1,155
Infantry.
Numbers.			Quartered in
Halberdiers (one compy.)	152	}	Madrid.
Spanish Guards (three batts.)	3,294	}	1, 2 Barcelona. 3 New Castile.
Walloon Guards (three batts.)	2,583	}	1 Madrid. 2 Barcelona. 3 Portugal.
Total	6,029

INFANTRY OF THE LINE.

N.B.—Each regiment had three battalions of four companies, and should have numbered 2,186 bayonets.

Numbers.			Quartered in
Africa	898	{	1, 3 Andalusia. 2 S. Sebastian.
America	808	{	1 New Castile. 2, 3 Valencia.
Aragon	1,294		Galicia.
Asturias	2,103		Denmark.
Borbon	1,544		Balearic Isles.
Burgos	1,264		Andalusia.
Cantabria	1,024		Ceuta (Africa).
Ceuta	1,235		Ceuta (Africa).
Cordova	793		Andalusia.
Corona	902		Andalusia.
España	1,039		Ceuta (Africa).
Estremadura	770		Catalonia.
Granada	1,113		Balearic Isles.
Guadalajara	2,069		Denmark.
Jaen	1,755	{	1, 2 Andalusia. 3 Ceuta (Africa).
Leon	1,195		Galicia.
Majorca	1,749	{	1, 2 Portugal. 3 Estremadura.
Malaga	854		Andalusia.
Murcia	1,762	{	1, 2 Portugal. 3 Andalusia.
Navarre	822		Galicia.
Ordenes Militares	708	{	1 Estremadura. 2, 3 Andalusia.
Princesa	1,969		Denmark.
Principe	1,267		Galicia.
Reina	1,530		Andalusia.
Rey	1,353	{	1 S. Sebastian. 2 Portugal. 3 Galicia.
Saragossa	1,561	{	1, 2 Portugal. 3 Andalusia.
Savoia	936		Valencia.
Seville	1,168		Galicia.
Soria	1,311		Balearic Isles.
Toledo	1,058	{	1, 2 Galicia. 3 Portugal.
Valencia	923		Murcia.
Volunteers of Castile	1,487		Murcia.
Voluntarios de la Corona	1,296	{	1 Portugal. 2, 3 Galicia.
Voluntarios del Estado	742		Madrid.
Zamora	2,096		Denmark.
Total	44,398

LIGHT INFANTRY.

N.B.—The regiment had only a single battalion of six companies. It should have numbered 1,200 bayonets.

Numbers.			Quartered in
1st of Aragon	1,305	{	Madrid and Saragossa.
2nd of Aragon	1,225		Balearic Isles.
Barbastro	1,061	{	½ Andalusia. ½ Portugal.
1st of Barcelona	1,266		Denmark.
2nd of Barcelona	1,300		Balearic Isles.
Campo Mayor	1,153	{	½ Portugal. ½ Andalusia.
1st of Catalonia	1,164		Denmark.
2nd of Catalonia	685		Galicia.
Gerona	1,149	{	½ Portugal. ½ Andalusia.
Tarragona	1,142	{	½ Pampeluna. ½ Estremadura.
Volunteers of Navarre	963	{	½ Portugal. ½ Galicia.
Volunteers of Valencia	1,242	{	½ Portugal. ½ Andalusia.
Total	13,655

FOREIGN INFANTRY.

N.B.—The Swiss Regiments had two battalions, the others three.

Numbers.			Quartered in
Irish.
Irlanda	513	{	1 Estremadura. 2, 3 Andalusia.
Hibernia	852	{	1 Asturias. 2, 3 Galicia.
Italian.
Naples	288		Galicia.
Swiss.
1. Wimpfen	2,079		Catalonia.
2. Reding Senior	1,573		New Castile.
3. Reding Junior	1,809		Andalusia.
4. Beschard	2,051		Balearic Isles.
5. Traxler	1,757		Murcia.
6. Preux	1,708		Madrid.
Total	12,981

MILITIA.

N.B.—The four grenadier regiments had two battalions each, and should have been 1,600 strong; the rest one battalion, 600 strong.

Numbers.			Quartered in
Prov. Gren. of
Old Castile	1,605		Portugal.
New Castile	1,430		Portugal.
Andalusia	1,413		Andalusia.
Galicia	1,377	{	1 Galicia. 2 Portugal.
Alcazar	595		Andalusia.
Avila	574		Valencia.
Badajoz	589		Andalusia.
Betanzos	599		Galicia.
Burgos	577		Andalusia.
Bujalance	594		Andalusia.
Chinchilla	577		Andalusia.
Ciudad Real	575		Andalusia.
Ciudad Rodrigo	585		Andalusia.
Compostella	599		Galicia.
Cordova	584		Andalusia.
Cuenca	596		Andalusia.
Ecija	589		Andalusia.
Granada	553		Andalusia.
Guadix	588		Andalusia.
Jaen	584		Andalusia.
Jerez	574		Andalusia.
Laredo	571		Santander.
Leon	591		Galicia.
Logroño	558		Andalusia.
Lorca	562		Andalusia.
Lugo	589		Galicia.
Majorca	570		Balearic Isles.
Malaga	401		Andalusia.
Mondoñedo	591		Galicia.
Monterrey	591		Galicia.
Murcia	564		Murcia.
Orense	584		Galicia.
Oviedo	543		Asturias.
Plasencia	593		Andalusia.
Pontevedra	568		Galicia.
Ronda	574		Andalusia.
Salamanca	600		Galicia.
Santiago	596		Galicia.
Segovia	591		Galicia.
Seville	547		Andalusia.
Siguenza	579		Andalusia.
Soria	582		Valencia.
Toledo	579		Andalusia.
Toro	553		Andalusia.
Truxillo	567		Andalusia.
Tuy	583		Galicia.
Valladolid	562		Galicia.
Total	30,527

CAVALRY.

N.B.—Each regiment had five squadrons, and should have numbered about 700 sabres.

1. Heavy Cavalry.
Regiment.	Numbers.	Quartered in
1st Rey	634	Denmark.
2nd Reina	668	Old Castile.
3rd Principe	573	New Castile.
4th Infante	615	Denmark.
5th Borbon	616	Catalonia.
6th Farnesio	517	Andalusia.
7th Alcantara	589	Portugal.
8th España	553	Andalusia.
9th Algarve	572	Denmark.
10th Calatrava	670	Andalusia.
11th Santiago	549	Portugal.
12th Montesa	667	Andalusia.
Total	7,232
2. Light Cavalry.
Cazadores.	Numbers.	Quartered in
1st Rey	577	Madrid.
2nd Reina	581	Portugal.
3rd Almanza	598	Denmark.
4th Pavia	663	Andalusia.
5th Villaviciosa	628	Denmark.
6th Sagunto	499	Andalusia.
Hussars.	Numbers.	Quartered in
1st Numancia	630	Valencia.
2nd Lusitania	554	Madrid.
3rd Olivenza	558	Portugal.
4th Voluntarios de España	548	New Castile.
5th Maria Luisa	680	Estremadura.
6th Españoles	692	Balearic Isles.
Total	7,208

A scheme was on foot for converting eight of the light regiments into dragoons. Several of them are designated sometimes as dragoons, sometimes as cazadores or hussars.

N.B.—The 14,440 troopers had only 9,526 horses!

ARTILLERY.

1. Field.
	Numbers.	Quartered in
1st Regiment	1,143	Catalonia.
2nd Regiment	1,146	Valencia and Murcia.
3rd Regiment	1,078	Andalusia.
4th Regiment	1,043	Galicia.
Total	4,410

Each regiment consisted of ten batteries; of the whole forty, six were horse-artillery. 477 men (four batteries) were in Denmark.

2. Garrison.

Two ‘Brigades’ and fifteen ‘Compañias Fijas’ at various places, in all 1,934.

Adding general staff, &c., the total of the artillery, field and garrison, was 292 officers and 6,679 men.

ENGINEERS.

169 officers and a battalion of sappers. The latter was quartered at Alcala de Henares, and had a strength of 922 men, besides 127 detached in Denmark.

GENERAL TOTAL (Rank and File only).

	Infantry.	Cavalry.	Artillery.	Engineers.
Royal Guard	6,029	1,155
Infantry of the Line	44,398
Light Infantry	13,655
Foreign Infantry	12,981
Militia	30,527
Cavalry		14,440
Artillery			6,679
Engineers				1,049
	107,590	15,595	6,679	1,049	= 130,913

Add 5,911 officers, and we get a gross total of 136,824.

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