Editing Battle of Gamonal (section)

==Background==
Napoleon, staying for four days at Vitoria on his way down to Madrid, had been waiting, among other things, for the news that [[Jean-Baptiste Bessières|Bessières]] had occupied Burgos. Bessières himself, already aware that he was to be superseded by Soult, had not yet advanced on that city. Although his forces numbered some 70,000 men, of which nearly 20,000 were veteran cavalry from Germany, only the 18,000 bayonets and 6,500 sabres of his 2nd Corps and the cavalry of [[Édouard Jean Baptiste Milhaud|Milhaud]] and [[Jean Baptiste, baron Franceschi|Franceschi]] were on the front line.<ref name=oman1/>

Facing them at Burgos were its garrison of 1,600 men, and four guns. However, on 7 November, Conde de Belvedere arrived from Madrid with his 1st Division (4,000 foot and 400 horse with twelve guns) of the army of Estremadura, and the following day they were joined by the 2nd Division of the same army, with about 3,000 infantry and two regiments of [[hussars]]. On the 10th, therefore, when Soult attacked, Belvedere—who took the command as the senior general present<ref group=note>"... the conduct of the army fell into the hands of the Conde de Belvedere, the chief of the 1st Division, a rash and headstrong young aristocrat with no military experience whatever. His family influence had made him a general at an age when he might reasonably have expected to lead a company, and he found himself by chance the interim commander of an army: hence came the astonishing series of blunders that led to the combat of Gamonal ([[Charles Oman|Oman]], 1902).</ref>—had about 8,600 bayonets, 1,100 sabres, and sixteen guns under his orders.<ref name=oman1>[[Charles Oman|Oman, Charles]] (1902). [https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/53264/pg53264-images.html#FNanchor_262 ''A History of the Peninsular War'', Vol. I, pp. 420, 424–429.] ''Project Gutenberg''. Retrieved 27 February 2023.{{PD-notice}}</ref>