corps was instructed to put down the insurrection in Catalonia, to send assistance to Marshal Bon-Adrien Jeannot de Moncey in his attempt to capture Valencia, and to hold Barcelona. Considering the intensity of the rebellion, these orders were unrealistic. Chabran and Schwarz were defeated at the Battles of the Bruch in mid-June and Duhesme was repulsed in the Battle of Gerona on 20–21 June. After securing the assistance of an improvised division commanded by General of Division Honoré Charles Reille, Duhesme initiated the Siege of Gerona. This unsuccessful operation lasted from 24 July to 16 August before Duhesme retreated to Barcelona and Reille withdrew to Figueres. News of the French disaster at the Battle of Bailen on 22 July 1808 buoyed Spanish morale and depressed the Imperial troops. Duhesme's troops had to fight their way back through the hills and abandon their field artillery in order to make it back to Barcelona, where they arrived on 20 August. Meanwhile, Marquis Del Palacio's division of regular Spanish troops arrived from the Balearic Islands. Supported by thousands of miquelets (Catalan militia) the Spaniards blockaded Barcelona at the beginning of August. On 31 July, they captured the castle of Mougat and its garrison of 150 Neapolitans with the help of Captain Thomas Cochrane and a British frigate. Though Duhesme's 10,000 surviving troops were in a tight spot, Del Palacio did not press them very hard. The French commander was able to send strong columns through the loose blockade in order to gather food and other supplies. On 12 October, an Italian column was roughly handled at Sant Cugat del Vallès with 300 casualties and the expeditions stopped. Because Del Palacio remained almost inert during his tenure of command, the Catalan Junta replaced him as Captain General with Juan Miguel de Vives y Feliu on 28 October. This veteran of the War of the Pyrenees had capably led the Spanish right wing at the Battle of the Black Mountain in 1794 and covered the retreat at the Battle of Boulou. Vives skirmished with the French outpost line on 8 November, but then went into hibernation until reinforcements arrived under General Theodor von Reding. On 26 November, Vives pushed the French within the walls of Barcelona, inflicting about 100 casualties. According to a 5 November report, the Army of Catalonia under Vives had 20,033 soldiers available in five divisions and a small reserve. Brigadier General