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Thread: [History] The Battle of September 11: Siege of Barcelona

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    Default [History] The Battle of September 11: Siege of Barcelona



    Author: Yuiis
    Original Thread: The Battle of September 11: Siege of Barcelona

    The Battle of September 11: Siege of Barcelona
    The Battle of September 11
    -The Siege of Barcelona-



    This is a brief and summarized explanation of the events that took place in Catalonia and Barcelona during the War of the Spanish Succession. This thread is historical. It is an attempt to let the international TWC community know that there is not just one sad 9/11, and that it is also a day when we Catalans “celebrate” a defeat that finished with our national rights almost 300 years ago. I would like and encourage to keep political discussions out of it, as it is not the purpose of this post.

    The War of the Spanish Succession
    During the first years of the 18th century, Europe sees itself immersed in a conflict between two royal families for the control of the Spanish Crown. The Bourbon and the Habsburg dynasties. It is not only a conflict between families, but a conflict between absolutist and decentralised rulerships and also a conflict between the two nations that formed the Spanish Crown, for fear of one falling into the rulership of the other.
    European nations take part in each of the sides:

    Allies: Habsburg loyalists, Holy Roman Empire, Crown of Aragon, Great Britain, Portugal, Dutch Republic, and Duchy of Savoy.

    Bourbons: Bourbon loyalists, Kingdom of France, Crown of Castile, Bavaria.

    During the first stages of the war, the Habsburg alliance wins in almost all stages of it that take place in the Iberian Peninsula. After the Battle of Almansa though, the Bourbons take Valencia and Aragon, and in April of 1713 Britain and Austria sign the Treaty of Utrecht, leaving Catalonia and Majorca in the hands of a powerful Bourbon army.

    The Decision

    After the British and Austrian withdrawal from the conflict, Catalonia, the only unconquered part of the peninsula among with Majorca, had to adopt a decision: To keep resisting on its own or to surrender to the Bourbon forces. The “Junta de Braços” a council formed by three arms: Military Arm, Religious Arm and Popular Arm, met in Barcelona and after many debates and discussions decided that resistance should be the way of ending this conflict. The idea was to die with glory rather than to live in oppression. A member of the military arm, Manel Ferrer, defined in a single frase what they had decided clearly: “Let the nation end with Glory”. In July 25, 1713, Bourbon forces of about 20.000 men reached Barcelona and began the siege of the city.

    The Assault
    The city of Barcelona had been victim of several failed assaults under the command of the Duke of Populi. Constant bombings and some attempts of attacks upon the city had been easily rejected by the defenders. On July 6, 1714, after almost one year since the beginning of a horrible siege, the Duke of Populi was substituted by the Duke of Berwick. Along with him some other 40.000 men and equipment, mostly French, set foot in Catalonia to join the siege. With this reinforcement the total Bourbon forces in Catalonia numbered 86.000, in a nation whose population barely reached 500.000. 40.000 men stayed seizing Barcelona and the rest were scattered throughout Catalonia to suppress the constant uprisings of Habsburg loyalists. The defending force numbered 6000 men. 2000 regular professional troops, 500 voluntary gunners from around Catalonia and 3500 armed civilians (Students, artisans, bourgeois…).

    Berwick organized the siege using the Vauban Method. This was a clear sign that he took these 6000 men very seriously. In several occasions, the defenders were offered amnesty and forgiveness if they surrendered. Response was always the same: “The three arms of the council have met and considering the proposition decide that: They don’t want to hear or accept any proposition of the enemy.”

    The attack is described by Spanish historians as one of the cruelest that ever had to suffer a city. Hate and cruelty in all its forms were the main protagonists of the assault. The French Bourbon army was the first to assault the walls of the city. 30.000 men, with a constant flow of refresh troops pushed their way inside the walls. After suffering great losses the Bourbon force achieved to take the walls and pushed the defenders slightly inside the city. The attacking force then started to scatter itself, as many soldiers started to sack the first houses they came through, rather than continue fighting. This made the defenders organize a counterattack and push Bourbon lines to the walls once again. The mutual anger and hate was now at its peak. Hundreds of bodies lay dead of wounded near the walls. The attackers had suffered great loses and defenders were also living through a horrible drama. After one entire day of fighting the defenders finally surrendered. Berwick had suffered losses up to 14.000 men, while Catalan forces suffered 7.000 + civilian deaths.

    Aftermath
    The consequence of this tremendous resistance was a paper named “Decree of Nueva Planta”. By this paper, all the historical sovereignty and rights of Catalonia were abolished, its local administration dissolved, and its language banned. Up to now, Catalonia still has not recovered all of the rights that it lost during that war.

    http://www.elguaitador.com/1714/
    http://www.11setembre1714.org/index2.html
    Last edited by Sir Adrian; December 08, 2013 at 12:21 PM. Reason: fixed original thread and author links
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    عیسی پسر مریم گفت :' جهان است پل ، عبور بیش از آن است ، اما هیچ ساخت خانه بر آن او امیدوار است که برای یک روز ، ممکن است برای ابدیت امیدواریم ، اما ماندگار جهان اما ساعت آن را صرف در دعا و نماز برای استراحت است نهان

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    Otto von Bismarck


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