This weekend Montejaque (Malaga) celebrates an important date in its history. Napoleon Bonaparte, emperor of France, had invaded Spain and Portugal in 1807. Britain joined forces with Portugal and Spain to fight against the French, in what the British call the Peninsular War.
[Diario Ronda]
Arthur Wellesley, later to become The Duke of Wellington, led the British army.
In 1810 a group of 700 French soldiers came upon Montejaque but were repelled by a ragbag of old men, boys and women.
The festival called La Batalla de la Puente commemorates this.
It starts tomorrow, Friday September 26 and runs until Sunday.
Plaque commemorating the women of Montejaque [PW]
Preparations
Montejaque (pop. 960) started preparing for the event on Tuesday. The village will be transformed into a 19th century village with straw bales, gardens, a graveyard and rustic stalls.
The mayordomos will erect and run a bar.
The locals will dress up either as French soldiers or as villagers and will re-enact the battle.
There will be activities and music.
El juego del cantaro [Diputacion Provincial de Malaga]
Background
The Peninsular War (1808–1814) was fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of Napoleon Bonaparte who had entered Spain and Portugal in 1807 and installed his brother Joseph on the Spanish throne, having forced the abdications of Fernando VII and his father Carlos IV.
In Spain, it is considered to overlap with the Spanish War of Independence.
Napoleon Bonaparte [Wikipedia]
In 1808, the Spanish army in Andalusia defeated the French at the Battle of Bailen, considered the first open-field defeat of the Napoleonic army on a European battlefield.
Besieged by 70,000 French troops, a reconstituted national government, the Cortes - in effect a government in exile - fortified itself in the secure port of Cadiz in 1810.
The British army, under Arthur Wellesley, the future Duke of Wellington, guarded Portugal and campaigned against the French alongside the reformed Portuguese Army and provided whatever supplies they could get to the Spanish, while the Spanish Armies and guerrillas tied down vast numbers of Napoleon's troops.
In 1812, when Napoleon set out with a massive army on what proved to be a disastrous French invasion of Russia, a combined allied army defeated the French at Salamanca and took the capital Madrid.
Duke of Wellington [Britannica]
In the following year the Coalition scored a victory over King Joseph Bonaparte's army at the Battle of Vitoria paving the way for victory in the war in the Iberian Peninsula.
Highly recommended
This feria is arguably the best of the many which take place in Montejaque in August and September.
I shall be there for the start tomorrow and probably again on Sunday for the closing moments.
I love it!
See you there?
[Poster by Portal Tematico de la Serrania]
Link:
Napoleon Defeated in Montejaque
© The Culture Vulture
Photos:
Britannica, Diario Ronda, Diario Sur, Paul Whitelock, Portal Tematico de la Serrania, Wikipedia
Tags:
Arthur Wellesley, Bailen, Batalla de la Puente, Britannica, Cadiz,Carlos IV, Cortes, Diario Ronda, Diario Sur, Duke of Wellington, Fernando VII, Joseph Bonaparte, Madrid, Montejaque, Napoleon Bonaparte, Paul Whitelock, Portal Tematico de la Serrania, Portugal, Russia, Salamanca, Spain, The Culture Vulture, United Kingdom, Wikipedia