Editing Peninsular War (section)

===Spanish campaign, late 1809===

====Talavera campaign====
[[File:Heath - Battle of Talavera, July 28th 1809.jpg|thumb|The Battle of Talavera by [[William Heath (artist)|William Heath]]]]

With Portugal secured, Wellesley advanced into Spain to unite with Cuesta's forces. Victor's [[I Corps (Grande Armée)|I Corps]] retreated before them from Talavera.{{sfn|Gates|2002|p=177}} Cuesta's pursuing forces fell back after Victor's reinforced army, now commanded by Marshal [[Jean-Baptiste Jourdan]], drove upon them. Two British divisions advanced to help the Spanish.{{sfn|Guedalla|2005|p=186}} On 27 July at the [[Battle of Talavera]], the French advanced in three columns and were repulsed several times, but at a heavy cost to the Anglo-Allied force, which lost 7,500 men for French losses of 7,400. Wellesley withdrew from Talavera on 4 August to avoid being cut off by Soult's converging army, which defeated a Spanish blocking force in an assault crossing at the River Tagus near [[Battle of Arzobispo|Puente del Arzobispo]]. Lack of supplies and the threat of French reinforcement in the spring led Wellington to retreat into Portugal. A Spanish attempt to capture Madrid after Talavera failed at [[Battle of Almonacid|Almonacid]], where [[Horace François Bastien Sébastiani de La Porta|Sébastiani]]'s [[IV Corps (Grande Armée)|IV Corps]] inflicted 5,500 casualties on the Spanish, forcing them to retreat at the cost of 2,400 French losses.

====Second Madrid offensive====
The Spanish [[Supreme Central and Governing Junta of the Kingdom]] was forced by popular pressure to set up the [[Cortes of Cádiz]] in the summer of 1809. The Junta came up with what it hoped would be a war-winning strategy, a two-pronged offensive to recapture Madrid, involving over 100,000 troops in three armies under the [[Vicente Cañas y Portocarrero|Duke del Parque]], [[Juan Carlos de Aréizaga]] and the [[José María de la Cueva, 14th Duke of Alburquerque|Duke of Alburquerque]].{{sfn|Gates|2002|p=94}}{{sfn|Gates|2002|pp=194–196}}{{sfn|Gates|2002|p=494}} Del Parque defeated [[Jean Gabriel Marchand]]'s [[VI Corps (Grande Armée)|VI Corps]] at the [[Battle of Tamames]] on 18 October 1809{{sfn|Smith|1998|pp=333–334}} and occupied Salamanca on 25 October.{{sfn|Gates|2002|pp=197–199}} Marchand was replaced by [[François Étienne de Kellermann]], who brought up reinforcements in the form of his own men as well as General of Brigade [[Nicolas Godinot]]'s force. Kellermann marched on Del Parque's position at Salamanca, who promptly abandoned it and retreated south. In the meantime, the guerrillas in the [[Province of León]] increased their activity. Kellermann left the VI Corps holding Salamanca and returned to León to stamp out the uprising.{{sfn|Gates|2002|p=199}}

Aréizaga's army was destroyed by Soult at the [[Battle of Ocaña]] on 19 November. The Spanish lost 19,000 men compared to French losses of 2,000. Albuquerque soon abandoned his efforts near Talavera. Del Parque moved on Salamanca again, hustling one of the VI Corps brigades out of [[Alba de Tormes]] and occupying Salamanca on 20 November.{{sfn|Oman|1908|pp=97–98}}{{sfn|Smith|1998|p=336}} Hoping to get between Kellermann and Madrid, Del Parque advanced towards [[Medina del Campo]]. Kellermann counterattacked and was repulsed at the [[Battle of Carpio]] on 23 November.{{sfn|Oman|1908|p=98}} The next day, Del Parque received news of the Ocaña disaster and fled south, intending to shelter in the mountains of central Spain.{{sfn|Oman|1908|p=99}}{{sfn|Gates|2002|p=204}} On the afternoon of 28 November, Kellermann attacked Del Parque at [[Battle of Alba de Tormes|Alba de Tormes]] and routed him after inflicting losses of 3,000 men.{{sfn|Oman|1908|p=99}} Del Parque's army fled into the mountains, its strength greatly reduced through combat and non-combat causes by mid-January.{{sfn|Oman|1908|p=101}}