3-070-009 - LTL/Heritage Images

French occupation of Montjuich Citadel, Barcelona, Spain, February 29, 1808, (1851). On 13th February 1808 troops of the French army, under the command of General Duhesme, passed through Barcelona on their way to Valencia. The citadel of Montjuich in Catalonia was guarded by a garrison of Captain General Ezpeleta to whom Duhesme requested to alternate with his troops in the protection of the fortress. Ezpeleta agreed and the French took advantage of it to occupy the citadel during a change of guard. On 29 February General Lechi, commanding the French troops, ordered a review. As his soldiers were passing before the gate to the citadel, Lecchi [sic] ordered the leading companies to wheel to the left. The Spanish sentries were completely shocked, and French troops were soon inside the enclosure. From "Historia del Levantamiento, guerra y revolución de España" (History of the Spanish Uprising, War and Revolution) by the Conde de Toreno, Madrid, 1851.