Battle of Ponte Ferreira The Battle of Ponte Ferreira , fought on 22 – 23 July 1832 , was the first major battle of the Portuguese Civil War between the forces of Dom Pedro , ex - Emperor of Brazil and Regent for his daughter Maria da Glória , and the army of his brother Dom Miguel , who had usurped the throne of Portugal . Though technically a victory for Pedro ' s forces , it gave him no lasting advantage because the enemy were not pursued and were able to return in full strength , as a result of which he was besieged in Porto for an entire year . Background . Dom Pedro ' s expeditionary force from the Azores landed in Portugal on 7 July 1832 and on the 9th he occupied Porto as the city had been abandoned by the Miguelite army , which withdrew across the river Douro . Though this was a bold stroke , Pedro and his advisers had been under the impression that the peasantry and Miguel ' s army would at once declare allegiance to their rightful queen , and nothing of the sort happened . Though the Count of Vila Flor urged him to take the offensive , their forces delayed for several days in Porto resting and reorganizing . Meanwhile the Miguelite army , commanded by General Cardoso and Count Montalegre , was reinforced and re - crossed the Douro some distance east of Porto . When this was known Dom Pedro sent Colonel Hodges with his British battalion on the 17th to reconnoitre the enemy ' s movements . Learning that they had occupied Penafiel with a strong force , he was reinforced by a volunteer regiment with orders to drive the Miguelites from Penafiel . Between the 19th and 21st this was accomplished , and the force then returned to Porto , but the Miguelites , who had been concentrating their full strength at Amarante , followed them . Before daybreak on the 22nd the bulk of Dom Pedro ' s army marched out from Porto along the Valongo road to give battle . The army was something of a multinational force , consisting of exiled opponents of Miguel ' s regime who had rallied to Pedro in the Azores ( one battalion consisted entirely of officers ) , Portuguese volunteers loyal to the Queen , two British contingents commanded by Colonels Shaw and Hodges , and a French contingent commanded by Major Checar . Overall command was exercised by the Count of Vila Flor , with Colonels Brito and Schwalbach leading the Portuguese infantry and some artillery in the charge of Colonel Fonseca . Battle . 22 July . Daybreak on the 22nd July found the Dom Pedro army on the heights of Valongo confronting the Miguelite army which was in a strong position before the village of Ponte Ferreira . Although greatly outnumbered the Dom Pedro light troops attacked with artillery support , but were repulsed and fell back , some guns being lost . They retreated towards Rio Tinto , where Vila Flor had decided to concentrate his forces in order to make an all - out attack the following day . The Miguelite army advanced , following the retreating Dom Pedro forces , and then prepared a defensive position behind the River Sousa , their left protected by the high ground on the right bank of the Douro and their right by a sugar - loaf hill where they placed artillery and a considerable force . Overall they outnumbered Pedro ' s army , which bivouacked for the night , by at least two to one . 23 July . At 3 a . m . the Dom Pedro forces moved out of camp , with the light division under Schwalbach in the centre , Brito ' s division on the right , and the officers ' division , the artillery , the 3rd battalion of the Portuguese 18th Regiment and the French and the British contingents on the left , under Hodges . Dom Pedro himself remained some distance in the rear with a reserve . Hodges ' forces were ordered to turn the Miguelite right , and succeeded - the sugar - loaf hill was abandoned and the Portuguese battalion was able to ascend it unopposed . However the French contingent was caught in the plain by the Miguelite cavalry and suffered heavy casualties , Major Checar being killed . The cavalry then attempted to charge the British , who had taken position behind a wall , but were driven back . Meanwhile Brito ' s division had been ordered to take the Miguelite left , but despite repeated orders did not advance . The Miguelites , supported by guerrillas , re - took the hill , and Hodges requested reinforcements from Vila Flor , but these were held back by Dom Pedro for a considerable time . Nevertheless when they came up they regained the hill from the Miguelites in a bayonet charge while Hodges attacked the enemy line from the left . Having suffered heavy casualties the Miguelites withdrew , leaving the field to Pedro ' s army . Vila Flor wished to follow up the victory and pursue the enemy , but Pedro countermanded this and the army returned to Porto on the afternoon of the 24th . Aftermath . While the battle was in progress a second Miguelite army under General Póvoas had approached the Douro from the south and taken possession of Vila Nova de Gaia directly across the river from Porto . This caused panic among the population , which the governor Mascarenhas could do nothing to prevent , and was increased by a false report that Dom Pedro ' s treasure and baggage was being loaded on a ship , showing he was abandoning the city . Also the night after the army ' s return the sleeping quarters of one of the regiments was destroyed by fire , blamed on arson by Capuchin monks . Dom Pedro ' s hope that a military victory would suffice to rally Portugal to his cause was now proved illusory , and it was decided to fortify Porto , which was soon under siege from both sides of the river . Several of Dom Pedro ' s officers and ministers now began to intrigue for the removal of Vila Flor , and he therefore tendered his resignation ; but Dom Pedro refused to accept it , confirmed him as general in chief , and at his request dismissed instead his chief of staff and his quartermaster - general , who were replaced in both roles by Brigadier Valdez as Adjutant - General . Mascarenhas was replaced as Governor of Porto by Bernardo de Sá Nogueira . Notes . Principal source for this entry is Admiral Charles Napier ' s narrative of the battle , its antecedents and aftermath in his " An Account of the War in Portugal between Don Pedro and Don Miguel " ( London : T & W Boone , 1836 ) , pp . 36 – 52 . Much of this passage is marked as reproducing " Hodges ' Narrative " .