Nicolás Mahy Martín (1757–1822) was a Spanish military commander.

Early career

Mahy enlisted in the Compañía Flamenca de Reales Guardias de Corps in 1770, unit he would stay with for over thirty years, reaching the rank of brigadier. In 1794 he saw action in the

War of the Pyrenees The War of the Pyrenees, also known as War of Roussillon or War of the Convention, was the Pyrenean front of the First Coalition's war against the First French Republic. It pitted Revolutionary France against the kingdoms of Spain and Portuga ...

. He was promoted to Cavalry brigadier in 1798 and in 1803 he was appointed military and political commanding officer for the province of Tuy, in Galicia.. Isabel Sánchez, José Luis
"Nicolás Mahy Martín". ''Diccionario Biográfico electrónico'' (''DB~e'').

Real Academia de la Historia The Real Academia de la Historia (RAH, 'Royal Academy of History') is a Spanish institution in Madrid that studies history "ancient and modern, political, civil, ecclesiastical, military, scientific, of letters and arts, that is to say, the diff ...

. Retrieved 2 April 2023.

Peninsular War

He was promoted to field marshal a month after the outbreak of the war and in September 1808 was given command of the Reserve Division of General

Blake Blake is a surname which originated from Old English. Its derivation is uncertain; it could come from "blac", a nickname for someone who had dark hair or skin, or from "blaac", a nickname for someone with pale hair or skin. Another theory, presuma ...

Army of Galicia The Army of Galicia (in Spanish, Ejército de Galicia) was a Spanish military unit that took part in the Peninsular War against Napoleon’s French Grande Armée. Created by the Supreme Junta towards the end of June 1808 to hold the Spanish left wi ...

, or Army of the Left. His division saw action at Zornoza (31 October) and the following month at

Espinosa de los Monteros Espinosa de los Monteros is a municipality located in the province of Burgos, Castile and León, Spain, with a population of c. 2,100 inhabitants. The village is spread over a large rural area at the southern outskirts of a mountainous area of ...

(Burgos) and in the retreat from Leon to Galicia, where the command of the Army of Galicia was handed over to General La Romana. At Monterey (March 1809), with Soult's three infantry divisions and a dragoon division approaching, La Romana spiked the guns of the fortress and abandoned it, retreating towards

Puebla de Sanabria Puebla de Sanabria (; ) is a small town located in the north-western part of the province of Zamora in Spain, between the rivers Tera and Castro. It is the economic and political centre of the ''comarca'' of Sanabria. History Well known as ...

Franceschi Franceschi is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Paolo Franceschi (c.1540-1596), also known as Paolo Fiammingo, Flemish painter, lived in Venice * Piero della Francesca (c. 1420 – 1492), also called Piero de' Franceschi, Italia ...

's horsemen, following close behind, caught up with and attacked La Romana's rearguard, some 1,200 bayonets, under Mahy, at Osoño, just outside Monterrei, killing 300 men and taking 400 prisoners, as well as capturing three standards.

Oman, Charles Sir Charles William Chadwick Oman, (12 January 1860 – 23 June 1946) was a British military historian. His reconstructions of medieval battles from the fragmentary and distorted accounts left by chroniclers were pioneering. Occasionally his ...

(1903)
''A History of the Peninsular War'', Vol. II, pp. 194–196, 375.
''Project Gutenberg''. Retrieved 2 April 2023. In April 1809, La Romana gave him temporary command of the Army of Galicia while he himself hastened to Oviedo with one of his old corps from the

Division of the North The Division of the North ( es, División del Norte) was a Spanish infantry division that existed in 1808. Spain was, at that time, an ally of France and the division, composed of 15,000 men under the command of the Marquis de la Romana, Pedro ...

, the La Princesa Regiment, and where he staged a minor coup d’état against the Junta. While La Romana was away, Mahy expelled the French forces from Galicia with actions at Lugo, Santiago, and at Puente Sanpayo, for which he was promoted to lieutenant general. The following month, he was appointed interim commanding officer of the Army of Asturias and was able to not only push the French forces out of the mountains of Cantabria, but also to stop them re-entering Asturias. At the beginning of 1810 Mahy had to hand over his command due to ill health and retire to La Coruña. The following May he was appointed commanding officer of the Army of Asturias and the coasts of Cantabria. In July he was also appointed governor and captain general of the Army of Galica and the Kingdom of Galicia. In January 1811 Mahy was appointed commanding officer of the 3rd Army, stationed in Murcia. On reaching Alicante, he had to withdraw his troops from the city due to an outbreak of

bubonic plague Bubonic plague is one of three types of plague caused by the plague bacterium (''Yersinia pestis''). One to seven days after exposure to the bacteria, flu-like symptoms develop. These symptoms include fever, headaches, and vomiting, as well a ...

Post-war career

With the Trienio Liberal and the restoration of the Constitution in 1820, Mahy was appointed captain general of Old Castile and of Cuba in 1821, post he held at the time of his death.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mahy, Nicolas Spanish commanders of the Napoleonic Wars 1757 births 1822 deaths Military personnel from Madrid