The Battle of Benavente (29 December 1808) was a cavalry clash in which the British cavalry of Lord Paget defeated the elite Chasseurs à cheval of the French Imperial Guard during the Corunna Campaign of the Peninsular War. The French chasseurs were broken and forced into the River Esla; their commanding officer, General Lefebvre-Desnouettes, was captured. The action was the first major incident in the British army's harrowing retreat to the coast and ultimate evacuation by sea. Background The Corunna campaign started with the Battle of Cardedeu. Sir John Moore led a British army into the heart of northwestern Spain with the aim of aiding the Spanish in their struggle against the French occupation. However, Napoleon had entered Spain at the head of a large army in order to retrieve French fortunes. This, together with the fall of Madrid to the French, made the position of the British army untenable. The British army had begun their retreat and were being pursued by the main French army led by Napoleon; the cavalry under Henry, Lord Paget were performing an effective screening role to cover them. On Christmas Day the 10th Hussars had taken 100 enemy cavalrymen prisoner, and on 27 December the 18th Hussars had been attacked no less than six times, on each occasion they countercharged successfully. On the 28th the British cavalry were acting as a rearguard posted on the River Esla, to cover the army's withdrawal to Astorga. Forces The French force consisted of four squadrons of the Chasseurs à cheval of the Imperial Guard, plus a number of Mamelukes of the Imperial Guard. The British forces were drawn from the brigades of John Slade: 10th Hussars and the 18th Hussars and of Charles Stewart (later took the surname Vane): pickets of the 7th Hussars and 3rd Hussars of the King's German Legion (KGL). Battle Outlying pickets of the British cavalry were stationed along the western bank of the River Esla, which was swollen with rain. The bridge at Castrogonzalo had been demolished by British engineers early on the 29th, and it was not until about 9:00 in the morning that Lefebvre-Desnouettes, a noted favourite of Napoleon, was able to ford the river with three strong squadrons of his chasseurs and a small detachment of Mamelukes. The French forced the outlying pickets of the British cavalry back onto the inlying picket commanded by Loftus Otway (18th Hussars). Otway