Battle of Alegría de Álava
The battle
The battle
----------

On October 27, Osma arrived at an early hour at Alegría de Álava, explaining to O'Doyle his reasoning behind his order for the dispersal of the Liberal troops: Osma had received news that the pretender to the throne, Carlos, was at [Oñate](/wiki/O%C3%B1ati "Oñati"). O'Doyle's divisions, now arranged as four columns, would depart from the town that same afternoon towards the north, marching at night, to reach Oñate by various routes and apprehend the pretender.

The Carlist army meanwhile, fired by a ration of [aguardiente](/wiki/Aguardiente "Aguardiente") given to them by Zumalacárregui (as was his custom before going into battle), was divided into two columns. One of the columns was under the command of [Manuel Iturralde](/wiki/Manuel_Iturralde "Manuel Iturralde"), and consisted of the Third, Fourth, and Sixth Battalions of Navarre and the Second Battalion of Guipúzcoa, and had orders to climb the mountains from [Saseta](/wiki/Condado_de_Trevi%C3%B1o "Condado de Treviño"). The other column, commanded by Zumalacárregui, consisted of the [Guías de Navarra](/wiki/Gu%C3%ADas_de_Navarra "Guías de Navarra"), the First Battalion of Navarre, the Third Battalion of Álava, and the [lancers](/wiki/Lancers "Lancers") of Navarre, and would advance from [Ullíbarri\-Gamboa](/wiki/Ull%C3%ADbarri-Gamboa "Ullíbarri-Gamboa") (Uribarri\-Ganboa).

As they traveled, the Carlists apprehended anybody they came across, such as people working in the fields, and placed them in an enclosure guarded by two soldiers; this they did to avoid anyone from alerting the Liberals of the presence of the Carlist troops. The Carlists soon came across no one around or in the fields, which they intuited signified the nearness of the Liberal army.

Zumalacárregui received news that Lorenzo was still not aware of the Carlist advance; Lorenzo remained at Los Arcos. Zumalacárregui would send a small number of troops to attack [Salvatierra](/wiki/Salvatierra/Agurain "Salvatierra/Agurain") (Agurain), 10 km east of Alegría de Álava. Zumalacárregui would remain hidden with his troops, meanwhile, in the forest of Chinchetru (Txintxetru), where they would wait for O'Doyle, who presumably would leave his HQ to defend Salvatierra. Iturralde meanwhile would descend from Saseta, hide in the woody mountain slopes south of Alegría de Álava, and, once O'Doyle departed towards [Salvatierra](/wiki/Salvatierra/Agurain "Salvatierra/Agurain"), Iturralde would march in parallel. Once Zumalacárregui began the attack at Chinchetru, Iturralde would attack from the right against the Isabelines.

As it happened, circumstances favored Zumalacárregui. When the Carlist general marched towards Chinchetru, he came across the governor of Salvatierra who was headed towards Vitoria with some prisoners. At 4:00 PM, O'Doyle's troops began to leave Alegría de Álava, heading towards the north, when the sound of gunfire erupted at Chinchetru. Zumalacárregui increased the overall sounds of gunfire by having his soldiers also fire into the air. Then, he hid in the forest north of the town of Alegría de Álava.

O'Doyle stopped heading north and headed towards the east instead, through the hills, a shorter route towards Chinchetru. The terrain was difficult; these foothills towards the range of Andía were woody and not suited for the passage of regular troops. Furthermore, the setting sun caused the weapons of the Liberals to glint brightly; this allowed Zumalacárregui to spot the Liberals easily from Chinchetru.

Zumalacárregui ordered the Guías de Navarra to leave the forest and ordered them to the plain between Chinchetru and these hills. The Isabeline vanguard, led by O'Doyle on horseback, was composed of [mountain troops](/wiki/Mountain_troops "Mountain troops") (*cazadores*) and thus marched much faster than the main body of Liberal troops. The Liberal troops soon came across the Guías de Navarra, who were wearing their signature red [berets](/wiki/Berets "Berets"), and were surprised to see the Carlists there. O'Doyle ordered an attack but the Liberal *cazadores* were quickly pushed back by the Guías de Navarra.

When the rest of the Liberal troops arrived, Zumalacárregui ordered the rest of his troops into battle and fierce combat ensued.

One source writes that:

Meanwhile, the Carlist Iturralde also appeared, attacking the Liberal rearguard and its right flank. The Liberal troops, suffering from confusion, were unable to organize themselves in such a small space, and after having fired an initial volley, were unable to defend themselves from a fierce Carlist [bayonet](/wiki/Bayonet "Bayonet") attack. The Liberal troops began to surrender.

Meanwhile, the din of battle reached the local villages Guevara, Arroyabe, and Ullíbarri\-Gamboa, where the remaining Liberal troops had been stationed. These Liberal troops began to march towards Chinchetru. But soon they encountered Liberal troops who had fled from what was amounting to a massacre, who informed them of what was happening. Thus, the retreating Liberal troops and the troops that had been stationed at these three villages fled to Vitoria, which they reached by nighttime.


What orders did Manuel Iturralde's column have?