#8116 Spanish Guerillas

Dated: Nov 3, 2004, updated April 9, 2006, June 16, 2006

The French intervention in Spain began in 1808 with the occupation of the country, the removal of the Spanish royal family and the installation of Napoleon's brother Joseph as king. Resistance quickly spread through towns, villages and the countryside. Alongside the regular Spanish armies, thousands of civilians took up arms in what became known as the Spanish War of Independence and, more broadly, the Peninsular War of 1808-1814.

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The Spanish word guerrilla means "little war." It originally described the method of fighting rather than the individual combatants, who were known as guerrilleros. Small bands operated throughout the country, attacking couriers, patrols, supply convoys, isolated posts and French troops moving along vulnerable roads. They usually avoided prolonged battles against stronger regular forces, striking suddenly and then dispersing into mountains, forests, villages and other familiar terrain.

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The guerrillas could not defeat Napoleon's armies by themselves, but they made the French occupation extraordinarily costly. Roads and communications had to be guarded, convoys required large escorts and thousands of soldiers were tied down protecting garrisons and supply routes. Guerrilla bands also captured messages, gathered intelligence and provided guides and information to Spanish, Portuguese and British commanders. Their activities formed an important part of the wider Allied struggle that eventually forced the French out of the Iberian Peninsula.

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The guerrilleros came from many different backgrounds. Farmers, craftsmen, smugglers, hunters, former soldiers, priests and members of the local elite could all be found within their ranks. Some bands remained small and loosely organized, while others developed into substantial formations with uniforms, cavalry, supply systems and recognizable chains of command. Clothing varied greatly according to region and circumstance, and captured French weapons and military equipment were often used whenever they became available.

Several guerrilla leaders became nationally famous. Juan Martin Diez, known as El Empecinado, operated across central Spain and repeatedly escaped French attempts to destroy his forces. Francisco Espoz y Mina built a disciplined and highly effective organization in Navarre, while the priest Jeronimo Merino led mounted guerrillas in Old Castile. Other bands operated in Catalonia, Aragon, Galicia, Andalusia and throughout the occupied regions, ensuring that French forces faced danger far beyond the major battlefields.

The war became increasingly bitter. French reprisals against suspected guerrillas and their supporters were often severe, while guerrilla bands executed collaborators, captured soldiers and informers. Villages could suffer punishment from both sides, and the distinction between military resistance, local vengeance and ordinary banditry was not always clear. The guerrilla war therefore became one of the harshest and most personal parts of the wider conflict.

This set contains 96 figures in 19 poses, representing several different styles of Spanish guerrilla. The figures include men marching, advancing, firing and fighting with muskets, swords and other weapons. Civilian and semi-military clothing appears throughout the set, together with regional dress and captured or improvised equipment. A monk is also included, reflecting the active part played by some members of the clergy in organizing and leading resistance.

Some of the figures portray relatively organized guerrilla units rather than completely irregular bands. This allows the modeller to create anything from a small roadside ambush to a larger force that has acquired uniforms, military discipline and regular weapons. The wide selection of poses is also useful for village scenes, raids, escorts, skirmishes and encounters between French troops and the civilian population.

The figures can be combined with our Spanish Line Infantry, Light Infantry, Grenadiers and Command sets to represent guerrillas cooperating with regular Spanish forces. They can also be used alongside British and Portuguese troops during the later campaigns of the Peninsular War, or placed against French infantry, cavalry and supply columns in ambushes and rear-area actions. Together, the figures help portray a conflict fought not only in major battles, but along roads, in villages and across the difficult countryside of Spain.

Figures include, Partisans, Regimento Victoria, Volunteer of Catalonia, Volunteer of Valencia and Monk.