Capture of Bougie
The Capture of Bougie occurred in 1555 when the Ottoman ruler of Algiers, Salah Rais, took the city of Béjaïa from the Spaniards. The Spanish presidio was the main fortification in Bougie, occupied by about 100 men under Luis Peralta, and then his son Alonso Peralta.[1] The city was captured by Salah Rais from his base of Algiers, at the head of several thousand men and a small fleet consisting in 2 galleys, a barque, and a French saëte ("flèche", or "arrow") requisitioned in Algiers.[1] Peralta had sent messages to Spain for help, and Andrea Doria prepared to leave with a fleet from Naples, but it was too late.[1]
| Capture of Bougie | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of The Ottoman–Habsburg wars | |||||||||
 Historic map of Algiers and Bougie by Piri Reis | |||||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||||
 |
 | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
| Salah Rais |
Andrea Doria (too late to help) | ||||||||
| Strength | |||||||||
| 6,000 | 500-1000 men | ||||||||
The Spanish force was defeated, but Alonso Peralta was allowed to leave unharmed with 40 men of his choice. He was severely criticized upon his return to Spain, and was beheaded in Valladolid on 4 May 1556.[1]
The capture of Bougie permitted the Ottomans to encircle the Spanish position at Goletta and that of their ally Ahmad Sultan in Tunis, as they now had strong bases in Béjaïa and Tripoli.[2]