Battle of Seival

Battle of Seival
Part of the Ragamuffin War
Proclamation of the Piratini Republic, by Antônio Parreiras
Date 10 September 1836 Location Seival Hill, Bagé, Rio Grande do Sul, Empire of Brazil Result Rebel victory
Belligerents
Ragamuffin rebels	Empire of Brazil
Commanders and leaders
Antônio de Sousa Neto Joaquim Pedro Soares  [ pt ]	João da Silva Tavares  [ pt ] João Frederico Caldwell  (WIA) (POW)
Strength
430 men [1] [2] [3]	500 [3] –560 [2] [1] men
Casualties and losses
26 killed 8 wounded [4]	118–167 [4] or 180 killed 60 wounded 116 captured [1] [5]

The Battle of Seival took place on 10 September 1836 between Ragamuffin rebels and forces loyal to the Empire of Brazil during the Ragamuffin War's early stages; the rebel victory in this battle led directly to the proclamation of a republic by them.

Background and engagement

Initially aiming to topple the provincial president, the gaucho rebels faced a loyalist Imperial force. A detachment of the former, led by Colonel Antônio de Sousa Neto, moved to Bagé in early September 1836, where troops under João da Silva Tavares  [ pt ] were encamped, having arrived from the Uruguayan border. Neto's first brigade, 430 men strong, crossed the Seival stream on September 10th and met Silva Tavares' troops in a field. The Imperial troops advanced and a melee ensued. ^{[5] [6]}

Initially, the loyalist force had the upper hand, but Silva Tavares's horse had its bridle broken in the fight and ran off at speed, making it seem like he was fleeing from the battle. This caused confusion amongst his men, something which was exploited by the rebels, who started to push them back and soon defeated them with light losses. Amongst the Imperial prisoners was João Frederico Caldwell. ^[7]

Aftermath

Further information: Riograndense Republic § Independence

After the battle, Neto and his men proclaimed a republic, separate from Brazil, which would be the Riograndense Republic, also known as the Piratini Republic from its capital, Piratini, close to where the battle took place. This was done without rebel leader Bento Gonçalves's assent, as he been engaged at the siege of Porto Alegre and would later be arrested at the Battle of Fanfa. ^{[8] [9]}

References

Citations

1. "Revolução vira guerra". Jornal NH (in Portuguese). Archived from the original on 2016-03-03.
2. Donato 1996, p. 531.
3. Hartmann 2002, p. 65.
4. Hartmann 2002, p. 100.
5. Spalding 1939, p. 69.
6. Fragoso 1938, pp. 75–76.
7. Bento 1993, p. 81-84.
8. Spalding 1939, pp. 71–72.
9. Fragoso 1938, p. 76.

Bibliography

• Bento, Cláudio Moreira (1993). O Exército Farrapo e os Seus Chefes (PDF) (in Portuguese). Vol. II. Rio de Janeiro: Biblioteca do Exército Editora.
• Donato, Hernâni (1996). Dicionário das Batalhas Brasileiras (in Portuguese). São Paulo: Instituição Brasileira de Difusão Cultural Limitada.
• Fragoso, Augusto Tasso (1938). A Revolução Farroupilha (1835-1845) (in Portuguese). Rio de Janeiro: Oficinas Gráficas da Emp. Almanak Laemmert.
• Hartmann, Ivar (2002). Aspectos da Guerra dos Farrapos (PDF) (in Portuguese). Novo Hamburgo: Editora Feevale.
• Spalding, Walter (1939). A Revolução Farroupilha (PDF) (in Portuguese). Companhia Editora Nacional.