Qualla: Battle of Vitoria https://qualla.com/battle-of-vitoria en-us © 2026 Bendyline Mon, 20 Jul 2026 10:21:18 GMT Qualla serial false Qualla support@bendyline.com yes https://qualla.com/_m/e/z/w/5/battle-of-vitoria-wp/hero-small.webp Qualla: Battle of Vitoria https://qualla.com/battle-of-vitoria Battle of Vitoria: Introduction https://qualla.com/battle-of-vitoria/ Photo credit Francisco Goya / Antoine-Jean Gros, Public domain. Wellington's soldiers were supposed to pursue the fleeing French army. Instead, they stopped to loot. The abandoned wagons contained, as one account put it, "the loot of a kingdom" -- over one million pounds in treasure, art, and plunder accumulated during years of French occupation. The breakdown in discipline so enraged Wellington that he fired off one of his most quoted lines: "We have in the service the scum of the earth as common soldiers." The Battle of Vitoria, fought on 21 June 1813, had just shattered French power in Spain. And the victors were too busy pillaging to finish the job.

Read more: Battle of Vitoria on Qualla

Image: Francisco Goya / Antoine-Jean Gros | Public domain

]]> Fri, 13 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/e/z/w/5/battle-of-vitoria-wp/ezw5-battle-of-vitoria-intro.mp3 0:06 1 full Battle of Vitoria: Napoleon's Crumbling Grip https://qualla.com/battle-of-vitoria/ Photo credit J. van Vliet. Original uploader was J. van Vliet at nl.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0. By the spring of 1813, Napoleon's position in Spain was deteriorating. His disastrous invasion of Russia had forced the recall of thousands of soldiers to rebuild the Grande Armee, leaving King Joseph Bonaparte and Marshal Jean-Baptiste Jourdan with a diminished force of 68,000 t...

Read more: Battle of Vitoria on Qualla

Image: J. van Vliet. Original uploader was J. van Vliet at nl.wikipedia | CC BY-SA 3.0

]]> Fri, 13 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/e/z/w/5/battle-of-vitoria-wp/ezw5-battle-of-vitoria-napoleons-crumbling-grip.mp3 0:06 2 full Battle of Vitoria: Four Columns Against the Zadorra https://qualla.com/battle-of-vitoria/ Photo credit Mikelele, CC0. The battlefield centered on the Zadorra River, which runs east to west before looping into a sharp hairpin bend. The French had deployed in three defensive lines south of the river, their positions anchored by the Heights of La Puebla to the south and Monte Arrato to the northwes...

Read more: Battle of Vitoria on Qualla

Image: Mikelele | CC0

]]> Fri, 13 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/e/z/w/5/battle-of-vitoria-wp/ezw5-battle-of-vitoria-four-columns-against-the-zadorra.mp3 0:06 3 full Battle of Vitoria: Collapse at Arinez https://qualla.com/battle-of-vitoria/ Photo credit George Jones, Public domain. The fighting was fierce and costly. On the Heights of La Puebla, Colonel Henry Cadogan was killed leading his brigade against French counterattacks. Picton's 3rd Division, crossing the river under withering artillery fire of 40 to 50 cannon, lost 1,800 men -- more than a third of...

Read more: Battle of Vitoria on Qualla

Image: George Jones | Public domain

]]> Fri, 13 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/e/z/w/5/battle-of-vitoria-wp/ezw5-battle-of-vitoria-collapse-at-arinez.mp3 0:06 4 full Battle of Vitoria: The Plunder of a Kingdom https://qualla.com/battle-of-vitoria/ Photo credit Zarateman, Public domain. The French left behind 151 cannon, 2,800 prisoners, and a fortune in looted treasure. Allied casualties totaled about 5,000: 3,675 British, 921 Portuguese, and 562 Spanish. French losses were at least 8,000 killed, wounded, and captured. Tens of thousands more escaped through a n...

Read more: Battle of Vitoria on Qualla

Image: Zarateman | Public domain

]]> Fri, 13 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/e/z/w/5/battle-of-vitoria-wp/ezw5-battle-of-vitoria-the-plunder-of-a-kingdom.mp3 0:06 5 full Battle of Vitoria: Beethoven's Battle https://qualla.com/battle-of-vitoria/ Photo credit Basotxerri, CC BY-SA 4.0. By December 1813, Wellington's army had seized San Sebastian and Pamplona and was encamped in France. The Peninsular War was effectively over. The battle's resonance traveled far beyond the battlefield. Ludwig van Beethoven composed his Opus 91, known as "Wellington's Victory" or...

Read more: Battle of Vitoria on Qualla

Image: Basotxerri | CC BY-SA 4.0

]]> Fri, 13 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/e/z/w/5/battle-of-vitoria-wp/ezw5-battle-of-vitoria-beethovens-battle.mp3 0:06 6 full