Battle of Carabobo

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Battle of Carabobo
Part of the Venezuelan War of Independence (Bolivar's War)
Image:BatallaCarabobo02.JPG Detail of La Batalla de Carabobo by Martín Tovar y Tovar. Oil on canvas.
Date June 24, 1821 Location Carabobo, Venezuela Result Decisive Patriot victory
Combatants
Independentists	Royalists
Commanders
Image:Flag of Venezuela (state).svg Simón Bolívar	Image:Flag of Spain (1785-1873 and 1875-1931).svg Miguel de La Torre
Strength
4,000 infantry 2,500 cavalry	2,466 infantry none cavalry [1]
Casualties
200 dead [2]	2,908 dead or wounded

The Battle of Carabobo, 24 June 1821, was fought between independence fighters, led by Simón Bolívar, and royalist forces lead by Miguel La Torre. Bolívar's decisive victory at Estado Carabobo led the independence of Venezuela.

The royalists occupied the road leading from Valencia to Puerto Cabello, under the command of Miguel de La Torre. As Bolivar's force of 6,500 approached the royalist position, Bolívar divided his force and sent half on a flanking maneuver through rough terrain and dense foliage. De la Torre likewise split his force and sent half to deal with this flank attack. Hitting the patriots with artillery fire, the royalists held back the attack for a while. The Venezuelan infantry fail and retreat but the Irish, Welsh and English of the "British Legion" fought hard take the hills and sustained about 50% of Bolivar's casualties. The patriots eventually broke through the royalist lines on the flank and marched towards the rear of de la Torre's force. All royalist cavalry llaneros gave way and flee. The Spanish infantry form squares and fighting to the end under the attack of independentist cavalry. The rout was so bad that for example near 400 of one infantry regiment reached safety at Puerto Cabello. With the main royalist force in Venezuela crushed, independence was ensured.But the final battle for Venezuela's independence was the Battle of Lake Maracaibo a year later.

June 24 is celebrated as Battle of Carabobo Day in Venezuela.

This day is also called "Army Day" in Venezuela. One side say that the battle is remarkable even in modern days for its one-sidedness (for every Patriot/Rebel dead, there were about 14-15 Spanish/Royalists dead), and even more so when one takes into account that it was fought in the mid-late age of muskets, where frequently the victors would sustain casualties almost as many, or even more than the defeated.

Contents 1 Note 2 External links 2.1 Animated Demo 2.2 General

[edit] Note

1. ^ from 1.551 of theoric cavalry , only two squadrons of hussars fight as infantry. The rest of royalist cavalry 1.372 Venezuelan llaneros, flee from the battle
2. ^ Implausible, but is the number give by Bolivar

[edit] External links

[edit] Animated Demo

• http://www.prodi.com.ve/home/presentacion1.htm (in Spanish language)

[edit] General

• http://www.btinternet.com/~alan.catherine/wargames/caraboob.htm
• http://www.shagtown.com/days/venezuela.html
• http://www.prodi.com.ve/home/presentacion1.htm#
• http://home.wanadoo.nl/jcwb/bolivar/bolivar_s_brithsh_legion.htm
• http://www.historicaltextarchive.com/books.php?op=viewbook&bookid=29&cid=10

v • d • e Topics in Venezuela — see also: Portal:Venezuela
Geography	Environmental issues • Fauna & Flora • National parks • Subdivisions (Administrative regions, Cities, States) • World Heritage Sites
History	New Granada • Captaincy General of Venezuela • Venezuelan Declaration of Independence • Venezuelan War of Independence • Bolívar's War • Battle of Carabobo • Gran Colombia • Federal War
Government	Constitution • Foreign relations • Military • Missions • National Assembly • President • Supreme Tribunal of Justice
Politics	Current events • Elections • Political parties (Fifth Republic Movement, Democratic Action, COPEI, For Social Democracy, Communist Party of Venezuela, United Socialist Party of Venezuela, A New Era)
Economy	Communications • Companies • Cooperatives • Education • Healthcare • Stock exchange • Transport • Venezuelan bolívar
Culture	Cuisine • Demographics • Heritage • Holidays • Literature • Media • Miss Venezuela • Music • National symbols • Notable Venezuelans • Languages