Juan de Courten ( younger ) Juan de Courten ( younger ) was a Spanish general who led an infantry division during the Peninsular War against the First French Empire . In 1810 , he was promoted to " mariscal de campo " , a Spanish rank between brigadier general and lieutenant general , and therefore equivalent to major general . The following year he was captured at the conclusion of the Siege of Tarragona . In 1818 he received an important military decoration . Career . Courten was appointed " mariscal de campo " , which is roughly the same as a major general in 1810 . On 10 December 1810 , the " Army of Catalonia " consisted of Courten ' s 4 , 791 - man division , Pedro Sarsfield ' s 5 , 462 - strong division , Joaquín Ibáñez Cuevas y de Valonga , Baron de Eroles ' 2 , 538 - man division , and 13 , 040 soldiers in various garrisons . The army commander , Luis González Torres de Navarra , Marquess of Campoverde received word from a Spanish official in Barcelona that a French officer was ready to admit a force into one of the forts . Accordingly , Campoverde marched Courten ' s and Sarsfield ' s divisions close to the city on 19 March 1811 . A force of 800 grenadiers was assembled and sent silently forward to surprise the Monjuich fortress . As the Spanish soldiers entered the ditch , the area was suddenly lit by torches and the French garrison opened fire . Spanish losses numbered 100 killed and wounded , plus four officers and a number of enlisted men captured . The Frenchman had only pretended to betray his country , allowing the trap to be sprung on the hapless Spanish soldiers . The Spanish official was executed immediately afterward . On 28 April , Marshal Louis Gabriel Suchet advanced from Lérida with the divisions of Jean Isidore Harispe and Bernard - Georges - François Frère . The French reached Reus on 2 May and pushed back the Spanish outpost line around Tarragona the next day . With his 4 , 500 men and the garrison troops , Courten could muster only 7 , 000 men for the city ' s defense . In the face of Suchet ' s superior force he intelligently immured himself within the city . At this time , his division consisted of three battalions of the " Granada " Line Infantry Regiment , and two battalions each of the " Almanza " , " Almeria " , and " America " Line Infantry Regiments . Tarragona was a very strong position , but its walls were too long for soldiers immediately available to defend it . The walls enclosed both the upper and lower towns . The upper town stood on a steep hill while the lower town had access to a good harbor . The lower town was protected by six bastions and the upper town had an outer line of forts in front of the walls . On a dominating height to the north was the powerful Fort Olivo , defended by 1 , 000 troops . The division of Pierre - Joseph Habert soon arrived with the French heavy artillery and the Siege of Tarragona began . Harispe ' s division faced Fort Olivo and the east side of the city , Habert took position on the west side facing the lower town , while Frère covered the center . An Anglo - Spanish naval squadron under Edward Codrington consisting of two third - rate s , two frigate s , and gunboats stood offshore to provide logistic and gunfire support . On 10 May Campoverde arrived by ship with 4 , 000 troops to take over the defense . On 28 June , French troops led by Habert stormed into the upper city and beat down all opposition . Contreras was wounded and captured . As the disaster unfolded , Courten with 3 , 000 troops tried to implement the breakout plan and emerged from the eastern gate of the city . As his soldiers made their way along the shore , they were blocked by an Italian brigade and set upon by French cavalry . A number of soldiers jumped into the water and were rescued by ship ' s boats from the naval squadron . Others were cut down by the horsemen but most surrendered with Courten . Of his original division , only 1 , 793 men survived the siege to be captured by the French . Suchet recorded the prisoners as follows , 613 from " Almanza " , 464 from " Almeria " , 365 from " Granada " , and 351 from " America " . In 1818 , King Ferdinand VII of Spain awarded Courten the " Caballeros Grandes Cruces " ( Knight ' s Grand Cross ) of the Royal and Military Order of Saint Hermenegild .