Battle of Mow Piedras

The Bataille of Mow Piedras was delivered the May 18th 1811 at the time of the Guerre of independence of the Uruguay to release from the influence from the Spanish colonial Empire.
It was the first important victory of the independence forces carried out by the Général Jose Gervasio Artigas against the Spanish . The battle took place with San Isidro de Las Piedras, in the periphery of Montevideo: Artigas with the head of an army of 1000 men demolished the 1230 soldiers of Posadas there. At the conclusion of the battle, 200 of the latter rejoined the Eastern troops .

Origins

The intention of the patriots were to go up on Montevideo and to put the seat at the ville.
The Viceroy Francisco Javier de Elío, informed of these plans entrusted to the commander Jose Posadas the mission of going to the meeting of the enemy and of collapsing his forces.

Course of the battle

To take the control of the country quickly, the Uruguyan army had been divided into three columns, one directed by Jose Artigas, the second by Venancio Benavídez and the third by Manuel Francisco Artigas, for this reason the independence troops did not arrive of same the endroit.
During this time, Jose Posadas and its men awaited Las Piedras the arrival of the revolutionists.

May 18th, the two armies were face to face in two camps located on some 75 meters high hills, and the enemy cavalries opened the hostilities on a ground close to the camps of Artigas. In same time, the royalists advanced and discussed another higher hill since measuring 82 m, in order to dominate the fields of bataille.
But when the men of Posadas transfer four columns ordered then by Antonio Pérez for the cavalry on the left side, by Juan de León on the right and Jose Artigas in the center and finally Manuel Francisco Artigas to start to encircle the hill, they understood that they could not resist and decided to be folded up towards a third hill (measuring 75 m) protected better since bordered for leaves by a river.
The vice was closed again however on this hill and the battle lasted until the day following to 11:00 of the morning when the royalist army rendit.
To announce this rendering, Posadas posed a small sand heap on the hill and Artigas sent the father Valentín Gómez outward journey to seek this sand. It was this day that he pronounced the sentence “Clemence for overcome” ( Clemencia para los vencidos ).

Consequences

This victory was the greatest victory of Artigas and its consequences are numerous:

the revolutionists knew that a final victory was possible
the revolutionists were increasingly numerous in the rows of the army of Artigas
Artigas was named colonel by the junta of Buenos Aires, then allied of Eastern (but that was not going to last) and who supervised the operations on strategic planning.

A few days later, Artigas began the seat of Montevideo, while Venancio Benavides made capitulate Colonia. However, Artigas was going soon to have to face a new differently frightening adversary that the Spaniards. Indeed at the northern border of Uruguay, the Portuguese colonial troops of the Brésil prepared with the offensive, officially to help the Spain but to actually seize the area. After a baited resistance, and two invasions by the luso-Brazilian troops Artigas was overcome with the Bataille of Tacuarembo in 1820 and Uruguay was annexed by the Portugal and became a Brazilian province. It recovered its independence only in 1828, at the conclusion of a three year old war against Brazil which came to the rights of Portugal.

See too

Internal bonds

External bonds

Course of the battle
Course of the battle
Course of the battle
Course of the battle
impressions of Artigas
Chart of the battle

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