Battle of La Ladera (1812)
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| Battle of La Ladera | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of Colombian War of Independence | |||||
| |||||
| Belligerents | |||||
 Confederated Cities of the Cauca Valley |
 Kingdom of Spain | ||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||
|
José María Cabal Alexander Macaulay |
Antonio Tenorio José Joaquín Paz | ||||
| Strength | |||||
|
300~400 regulars, militias, and volunteers [1][2] 6 light cannons | 1,000~1,500 [3][4] some regulars and mostly guerrilla | ||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||
| Unknown | 64 killed, 176 captured, and 26 wounded,[5] | ||||
The Battle of La Ladera was a three-day battle in the Colombian War of Independence fought between Neogranadine patriot forces and Spanish royalist forces between April 25 and April 27, 1812, in and around the city of Popayán.
Royalist guerrilla uprising
In 1810, various cities throughout the Viceroyalty of New Granada established juntas to govern themselves, removing the Spanish government officials who had previously ruled them. In July 1810, a junta was formed in the city of Cali, representing the six cities of the Valle del Cauca in the northern part of the Popayán Province. This junta formed an alliance with the Santafé Junta, which had been established on July 20, 1810, following a revolt that led to the removal of Viceroy Antonio Amar y Borbon and other royal officials. Both juntas declared independence from the Council of Regency, which was ruling Spain at the time.
The Spanish governor of the province, Miguel Tacón y Rosique, who ruled from the capital in Popayán, threatened to suppress the junta in Cali by force unless they remained loyal to the Council of Regency. The Cali Junta requested military assistance from Santafé, which deployed an expeditionary force to support them. The combined patriot army led by Colonel Antonio Baraya defeated Colonel Tacón and the royalist forces at the Battle of Bajo Palacé, marking the first battle of the Colombian War of Independence.
After their victory, Tacón and the remnants of his army fled south to Pasto, a royalist stronghold. The patriots entered Popayán on April 2, 1811. Thereafter, the Cali Junta was transferred to Popayán, where it formally established the Confederation of Cities of the Cauca Valley, with Joaquín Caycedo y Cuero elected as president. Concerned about a possible royalist counterattack, President Caycedo and the patriot government launched a southern campaign to capture Pasto and defeat Tacón's remaining forces. By early 1812, Pasto had been captured by the patriots, and Caycedo continued his campaign further south, hoping to reach Quito. Meanwhile, Tacón had fled to the Pacific coast but was defeated by the patriots at the Battle of Iscuandé. However, he managed to escape and sailed to Peru.
Despite the royalist army's defeat, strong royalist sentiment remained in southern New Granada, leading to the emergence of royalist guerrillas in remote areas of the south. Many of these guerrillas hailed from the Patia Valley, an area which lays in between Pasto and Popayán. Frustrated by the pressure from the patriot offensives, these guerrillas sought to strike back. They gathered approximately 1,000–1,500 troops at the Río Hondo hacienda and devised a plan to attack and capture Popayán.[3][6]
At this meeting, the Alférez real,[7] Antonio Tenorio, a nobleman from Popayán who had served under Governor Tacón at the Battle of Bajo Palacé, was self proclaimed Governor of the Popayán in the name of King Ferdinand VII, while guerrilla leader José Joaquín Paz was named Commander General of the royalist forces. Commander Paz divided the army into five companies, each led by:
- Juan José Caycedo, commanding the northern forces
- Casimiro Casanova, commanding the southern forces
- Vicente Parra, in charge of the Quilcasé forces
- Silvestre López, leading the Tambo forces
- Captain Manuel Serralde, commanding a unit of Volunteers of the King, which included soldiers from various backgrounds
This improvised royalist force then set out for Popayán. Before launching the attack, and while en route to the city, Tenorio sent a written ultimatum to the patriots to surrender the city.[8]
Patriot forces
This royalist uprising had caught the patriots by surprise, upon hearing word of the uprising President Caycedo having failed in his campaign marched north at once with him was most of the patriot army but they were sill hundreds of kilometers away from Popayán. Other patriots units were also stationed on the pacific coast, thus Popayán was only lightly defended by approximately 300–400 troops, consisting of regulars, militia, and volunteers.[9][2] This garrison was under the command of Colonel José María Cabal, a delegate to the confederation and one of its founders. Cabal had been placed in command of the city after President Caycedo departed with the army to the south. Apart from Cabal, the other patriot officers were Lieutenant Colonels José María Quijano, Mariano Matute, and Juan Gregorio Hoyos, as well as Captains Pedro José Murgueitio and Rafael Cuervo.[10] Despite having fewer troops, the patriots had the advantage of possessing more rifles—around 428—as well as artillery, which included two culverins and four light cannons. In contrast, the royalists had only approximately 128 firearms at their disposal, with most of their troops armed with lances and swords.