Tactical situation Yagüe marched against Badajoz with 2,250 soldiers of the Spanish Foreign Legion, 750 Moroccan regulares, and five field batteries (total 30 guns), leaving Major Heli Tella behind to hold Mérida. Inside the ancient fortress-city, large sections of whose walls had been demolished some years before the war,. The border with Portugal was on the west side of the city. Rebels were coming from the East. The city had been flooded with refugees and the atmosphere in the city was one of doom-laden anticipation. The Nationalists had been successful since the beginning of their advance. Moreover, on August 6, when the Nationalist army approached, a body of Guardia Civil had attempted to defect to the rebels. Colonel Ildefonso Puigdendolas, the leader in charge of the Republican force of about 2,000 - 4,000 or 6,000 militia (depending on the sources), had crushed the revolt, but it had taken its toll of men and morale. The battle Before the attack, Badajoz was continuously bombarded by Nationalist artillery and bombers for three days. The rebels, coming from the East, launched their attack on the morning of August 14, after shelling the town again. Colonel Puigdendolas, along with the Mayor and other members of the defence committee, slipped out of the city at about 9:00 am and fled to Portugal. On the south side of the city, Nationalist units stormed the walls easily. The Moroccan Tetuán regulares pushed through the Puerta de Los Carros (Car Gate), and the Legionnaires and Moroccans swept the Republicans from the barracks. Meanwhile, many soldiers inside the city defected to the rebels, easily allowing the entrance of the attackers into the city. The only place where the attack encountered difficulties was around Puerta de la Trinidad (Trinity Gate). The defenders' most reliable force, the Carabineros, had been placed there in anticipation of the action. Determined resistance by Republican machine gunners and riflemen checked the assault, shredding several waves of IV Bandera of the Spanish Foreign Legion. Ignoring their losses, the Legionnaires pressed on. A charge led by armoured cars won the gate, and the Nationalists overtook the defenders, pouring through the breach and killing them in hand-to-hand combat. But, the cost was appalling: the attacking 16th Company had lost 76 out of 90 officers and men (other sources cite 20 dead, 22 wounded and 2 missing). All of the unit's officers fell in the attack excepting the captain