Battle of Cotagaita

Overview

The Battle of Cotagaita was fought on 27 October 1810 during the Campaign of Upper Peru in the Argentine War of Independence when the troops of the Army of the North were sent by the Primera Junta government in Buenos Aires to Upper Peru to fight the Royalists. It was the first skirmish of the Army of the North in this theatre. The battle was fought near the town of Santiago de Cotagaita, nowadays in the Potosí Department in Bolivia.

Overview adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Significance

The Battle of Cotagaita, fought on 27 October 1810, was the first engagement of the Army of the North in the Upper Peru theatre during the Campaign of Upper Peru. The army had been dispatched by the Primera Junta government in Buenos Aires to contest Royalist control of the region, making this skirmish the opening action of what would become a prolonged struggle for Upper Peru in the broader Argentine War of Independence. As the initial contact between the Río de la Plata forces under Antonio González Balcarce and the Royalist forces aligned with the Viceroyalty of Peru, the battle marked the extension of the independence conflict from the Río de la Plata into the territory that would eventually become Bolivia.

Forces & casualties

Commanders (2)