Simón Susarte
Simón Susarte | |
---|---|
Born | |
Nationality | Spanish |
Occupation | Goatherd |
Known for | leading 500 Bourbon Spanish grenadiers up a concealed path to the top of The Rock of Gibraltar in 1704 in order to surprise the Grand Alliance garrison. |
Simón Rodríguez Susarte, commonly known as Simón Susarte, was a Spanish
The Gibraltar siege
Following the capture of Gibraltar by an Anglo-Dutch fleet on 4 August 1704 on behalf of the Grand Alliance, the Franco-Spanish Bourbon forces counterattacked by laying siege to the town in September, mainly attacking from the northern slopes of The Rock.
The path
On 8 October, Simón Susarte visited the Bourbon Spanish army camp on the north end of the isthmus to advise the troops of a path which led from the east side of Gibraltar's sheer rockface to its summit. This path was known to Susarte and other goatherds from Gibraltar, as they had used it regularly in search of pasture for their goats. The Marquis of Villadarias was in command at the camp; after confirming the veracity of Susarte's account, he decided to send a Colonel Figueroa together with 500 lightly armed grenadiers under Susarte to take the Alliance forces by surprise from the sheer rock face, in conjunction with a general attack to be launched by the remaining Spanish forces. On the night of 9 October, Figueroa's soldiers left the Bourbon lines and began climbing up the jagged eastern slopes of Gibraltar to the "Paso del Algarrobo" (Spanish: Carob Path). The troops spent the night on the east side of the Rock in Fig Tree Cave and Martin's Cave before ascending Middle Hill the next day.[2]
The Grand Alliance counter-attack
The Spanish Habsburg force led by Captain Burguy, made up of miquelets and regulars, marched ahead and dislodged the Spanish Bourbon grenadiers from the top of the hill.[3] At the same time, Sandoval, with his remaining regulars and miquelets, charged upon the bulk of the assaulting force from one flank, while Heinrich von Hesse attacked from the other side.[3] Around a hundred of the Bourbon force, including their colonel, were captured. Hundreds more were killed, either by defending fire or by falling off the Rock while attempting to flee. Only a few, including Simón Susarte, made it back to the Bourbon lines. The English subsequently ensured that there would be no repeat of this episode by blasting away the path used by the Spanish.[4][5]
Existence of Simón Susarte
There is doubt about the existence of Simón Susarte, since contemporary sources did not mention him at all and the first recorded mention dates to seventy eight years after the event. Susarte's story is first mentioned by
A park in
See also
References
- ^ a b San Roque Tourism – Simón Susarte Park Archived 20 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine
- ISBN 0948466146.
- ^ a b c De la Penya i Parell, Narcís Feliu: Anales de Cataluña. Vol. III. Barcelona: Juan Pablo Martí, 1709, pp. 526–527
- ^ Jackson, William G. F. (1986). The Rock of the Gibraltarians. Cranbury, NJ: Associated University Presses p. 107
- ^ Hills, George (1974). Rock of Contention: A history of Gibraltar. London: Robert Hale & Company p. 193
- ^ López de Ayala, Ignacio (1782). Historia de Gibraltar (in Spanish).
- ^ Montero, Francisco María (1860). Historia de Gibraltar y su Campo (in Spanish). Cádiz: Imprenta de la Revista Médica.
- ^ Álvarez Vázquez, Manuel (2003). "Gibraltar en la 'Gaceta de Madrid' (1704- 1705)" (PDF). Almoraima (in Spanish) (29): 333–350.
- ISBN 978-84-96799-10-3.
Bibliography
- Montero, Francisco María (1860). Barbard College Library (ed.). Historia de Gibraltar y su campo (in Spanish). Cádiz: Imprenta de la Revista Médica. Retrieved 27 July 2009.
- Ferrer Del Río, Antonio (1856). Historia del reinado de Carlos III en España (in Spanish). Madrid: Imprenta de Matute y Compagni. Retrieved 27 July 2009.
- Tubino, Francisco María (1863). Gibraltar: Ante la historia, la diplomacia y la política (in Spanish). Seville: La Andalucia. Retrieved 27 July 2009.
- ISBN 0-8386-3237-8.