Battle of Bailén

The Battle of Bailén was fought in 1808 by the Spanish Army of Andalusia, led by Generals Francisco Castaños and Theodor von Reding, and the Imperial French Army's II corps d'observation de la Gironde under General Pierre Dupont de l'Étang. The heaviest fighting took place near Bailén (sometimes anglicized Baylen), a village by the Guadalquivir river in the Jaén province of southern Spain.

In June 1808, following the widespread uprisings against the French occupation of Spain, Napoleon organized French units into flying columns to pacify Spain's major centres of resistance. One of these, under General Dupont, was dispatched across the Sierra Morena and south through Andalusia to the port of Cádiz where a French naval squadron lay at the mercy of the Spanish. The Emperor was confident that with 20,000 men, Dupont would crush any opposition encountered on the way. Events proved otherwise, and after storming and plundering Córdoba in July, Dupont retraced his steps to the north of the province to await reinforcements. Meanwhile, General Castaños, commanding the Spanish field army at San Roque, and General von Reding, Governor of Málaga, travelled to Seville to negotiate with the Seville Junta—a patriotic assembly committed to resisting the French incursions—and to turn the province's combined forces against the French.

Bailén

Bailén (formerly Baylen in English) is a town in the province of Jaén, Spain.

History

Bailén is probably the ancient Baecula, where the Romans, under Scipio the elder, signally defeated the Carthaginians in 209 and 206 B.C. In its neighbourhood, also, in 1212, was fought the great Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa, in which, according to the ancient chroniclers, the Castilians under Alphonso VIII, slew 200,000 Almohads, and themselves only lost 25 men. Although this estimate is absurd, the victory of the Christians was complete.

There is a convent that dates from 729.

In 1808, during the Peninsular War, it was the site of a series of clashes (the Battle of Bailén) at which General Castaños defeated General Pierre Dupont. The capitulation, signed at Andújar by Dupont on the 23rd of July 1808, involved the surrender of 17,000 men to the Spaniards, and was the first severe blow suffered by the French in the Peninsular War.

Economy

The town has many quarries, resulting in a reputation for craft products.

Bailén (Vino de la Tierra)

Bailén is a Spanish geographical indication for Vino de la Tierra wines located in the autonomous region of Andalusia. Vino de la Tierra is one step below the mainstream Denominación de Origen indication on the Spanish wine quality ladder.

The area covered by this geographical indication comprises the following municipalities: Bailén, Baños de la Encina, Guarromán, Mengíbar, Torredelcampo and Villanueva de la Reina, in the province of Jaén (Andalusia, Spain).

It acquired its Vino de la Tierra status in 2004.

Grape varieties

References

Bailén (Metrovalencia)

Bailén is a metro station of the Metrovalencia network in Valencia, Spain. It is situated on Carrer de Bailén, in the southern part of the city centre. The station is an underground structure.