page_title: Siege of the Salamanca Forts
section_title: Initial bombardment
hierarchical_section_title: Siege of the Salamanca Forts / Siege / Initial bombardment
caption_attribution_description: English: Roman Bridge - Salamanca Author - Bandwagonman 05:07, 12 April 2007 (UTC)
context_page_description: The Siege of the Salamanca Forts saw an 800-man Imperial French garrison directed by Lieutenant Colonel Duchemin defend three fortified convents in the city of Salamanca against the 48,000-strong Anglo-Allied army led by Arthur Wellesley, Lord Wellington. During this time, the French commander Marshal Auguste de Marmont led a 40,000-man French army in an unsuccessful attempt to relieve the garrison. An Allied failure to bring sufficient artillery ammunition caused the siege to be prolonged. The garrison repulsed a premature British attempt to storm the fortified convents on 23 June, but finally surrendered four days later after an artillery bombardment breached one fort and set another one on fire. During his maneuvering, Marmont formed the idea that Wellington was only willing to act on the defensive. This mistaken notion would contribute to Marmont's defeat at the Battle of Salamanca a month later.
context_section_description: On 17 June, Wellington's army enveloped Salamanca, with the left wing going north of the city and the center and right wing circling to the south. The three columns joined on the north side of Salamanca and then advanced 3 miles (4.8 km) to the San Christobal heights. Wellington hoped that besieging the Salamanca forts would goad Marmont into attacking him on the heights. Only the 14th Light Dragoons and the British 6th Division entered the city to lay siege to the forts. The Spanish citizens were delighted that the French were gone and gave the Allies a joyous welcome in the Plaza Mayor. Wellington set up his headquarters in the city while Major General Henry Clinton's 6th Division invested the forts. In order to prepare the forts for defense, Marmont's sappers had demolished a large part of the old University quarter in the southwest part of the city.
  Wellington had been led to believe that the forts were hastily prepared medieval convents and that their reduction would be relatively easy. Because of this belief, the Allied army brought only four 18-pounder long guns, each with only 100 shot. In fact, the three convents were massively reinforced using masonry from the dismantled University buildings, oak beams, and earth. The convents had their walls doubled in thickness, their windows blocked up, their surroundings guarded by scarps, counter-scarps, and palisades. Mounting 30 cannons, the largest fort, San Vincente was located at the southwest angle of the old city wall. San Cayetano with four cannons was southeast of San Vincente. South of San Cayetano was La Merced with two guns that prevented the Allies using the Roman bridge over the Rio Tormes. San Vincente and La Merced overlooked the Tormes and were virtually impregnable against an attack from the south and west. Only the north sides of San Vincente and San Cayetano appeared promising to attack. San Vincente was separated from San Cayetano and La Merced by a ravine that ran southwest into the Tormes. The three forts were designed to be mutually supporting; any column attacking one fort could expect to come under a crossfire from the other forts.
  The French garrison consisted of six flank companies from the 17th Light, and the 15th, 65th, 82nd, and 86th Line Infantry Regiments plus an artillery company. Duchemin of the 65th Line commanded 800 soldiers and 36 mostly light guns. The British 6th Division included the 1st Brigade under Major General Richard Hulse, the 2nd Brigade led by Major General Barnard Foord Bowes, and the Portuguese brigade under Brigadier General Conde de Rezende. The 1st Brigade was made up of the 1/11th Foot, 2/53rd Foot, 1/61st Foot battalions, and one company of the 5/60th Foot. The 2nd Brigade comprised the 2nd Foot, 1/32nd Foot, 1/36th Foot battalions. The Portuguese brigade included the 9th Caçadores Battalion, and two battalions each of the 8th and 12th Line Regiments. Lieutenant Colonel John Fox Burgoyne was the ranking engineer officer and Lieutenant Colonel May of the Royal Artillery commanded the 18-pounders. 
  Burgoyne chose a position for the 18-pounders 250 yards (229 m) north of San Vincente. On the night of 17 June, 400 soldiers from the 6th Division began to dig the battery position. The working parties had no experience in siege work and the French had the area under cannon fire and musketry all night. In the morning the trench was only knee-deep and the workers had to be pulled back under cover. That night an exploring party was discovered and several men wounded by the defenders. The besiegers added 300 sharpshooters from the King's German Legion to their force in order to suppress the fire of the defenders.  May borrowed three howitzers and two 6-pound cannons from the field artillery and put both cannons in the San Bernardo convent. These guns were too small to smash the walls, but their fire would annoy the defenders.
  By the morning of 19 June, the first battery was completed and the four 18-pounders and three howitzers opened fire, causing some damage to San Vincente. Meanwhile, two more battery locations were started
caption: Salamanca's Roman bridge was commanded by the La Merced fort.
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