The Battle of Clarines (Spanish: Batalla de Clarines) took place during the Venezuelan War of Independence. Royalist forces attacked a north-bound force from the Third Republic of Venezuela near the town of Clarines. The outnumbered and poorly armed Royalists secured a victory against the Patriot rebels.

Background

After arriving from Port-au-Prince, revolutionaries Simón Bolívar and Juan Bautista Arismendi gathered a force of 700 soldiers at Margarita Island for a new campaign to take the city of Caracas.

Battle

On 9 January 1817, 10 days after Bolívar's and Arismendi's arrival in mainland Venezuela, the force, which had been bolstered with 900 more soldiers, was on the way to Puerto Píritu. It was there that they were attacked by a Royalist force from an entrenched position near the Unare River. The group had around 890 soldiers, including 330 native archers and 10 horsemen.

During the course of battle, a native force led by José María Charuán, Chief of Clarines tribe, marched through the forest to attack the Patriots from the rear. This outflanking maneuver caused the Patriot forces to panic, scatter and be massacred. Many survivors were driven into the forest, where they drowned or were later captured and executed. In all, around 900 Patriot forces were killed.

The battle was a major loss for the Patriot forces. Few survived the battle, including Bolívar, Arismendi, and five more officers.

Aftermath

Bolívar and Arismendi fled to Barcelona on mules, with Bolívar moving into Guyana to reorganize the Patriot army and prepare for the Second Battle of Angostura.