Battle of Alvito (1762)
The Battle of Alvito also known as Clash of Alvito was a military encounter fought on 3 October 1762 during the Fantastic War, between the Franco-Spanish troops of the Count of Aranda, who had invaded Portugal, and those of the Count of Santiago de Beduído , as the latter retreated from Alvito to Sobreira Formosa, supported by the English. The clash took place near the Alvito river in the Catraia Cimeira area, close to the Batarias I Fort.
Battle
In the context of the Seven Years' War, Portugal was invaded by Franco-Spanish forces in 1762, and numerous towns along the Beira border were occupied by forces commanded by the Count of Aranda, among them Castelo Branco. From Castelo Branco, the Count of Aranda decided to cross the Tagus River at Vila Velha de Ródão at the end of September. Upon learning of this, the Count of Lippe ordered the Count of Santiago de Beduído, Lourenço António de Sousa da Silva e Meneses, to withdraw with his detachment and establish themselves in Alvito to block the advance of the invading army on the road from Sarzedas to Sobreira Formosa. 
The position occupied by the Count of Santiago with 1000 men, 200 horses and 8 cannons was strong in the front and on the right flank (provided the Portuguese maintained control of the heights of Perdigão, Vila Velha and a small passage of the Ocreza River at its confluence with the Alvito) but weak on the left. Some earthen and stone redoubts were built, but they left large gaps between them along the mountains, which, despite being high and without paths, were accessible to the infantry. On October 2nd, the Count of Lippe was in Alvito in person.
On October 3, the military corps under the command of Field Marshal Count of Sampaio was attacked by a Spanish force under the command of Count de la Torre. A force of about 4,000 men, "positioned itself in the Sarzedas region opposite the Alvito positions, occupied by units of Count de Santiago. Another force of 2,000 to 3,000 men advanced further north, along the Pampilhosa road to the São Simão region, on the road to Oleiros, and which was also garrisoned with a battalion". Count de la Torre attempted to flank the left side of Count de Santiago's position with 600 men.
The clash between the forces occurred on October 3rd, when the Portuguese contingent of the Count of Santiago was retreating from Alvito to Sobreira Formos.
Simão Coelho Torrezão, who participated in the war as a cadet and may have taken part in the events that took place in Talhadas, left an account:
The withdrawal was carried out successfully, with all means of subsistence in the area that could be used by the enemy having been destroyed. The Franco-Spanish army thus found itself confronted with difficult terrain, a defensive system in excellent condition and the need to bring in essential logistics from Spain for its advance.
See also
- Battle of Vila Velha
- Battle of Valencia de Alcántara
- History of Portugal