This story has to do with the battle of Bailén on July 19, 1808, the first defeat suffered in the open field by the Napoleonic army, and with a woman or, rather, with a group of women that legend personalized with the name by Maria Bellido and that was reflected in the coat of arms of the town of Bailén (Jaén). According to the minutes of the Royal Academy of History dated October 26, 1927 and relating to the coat of arms of this town…
[…] drawn the shield in a quadrilong rounded shape at its base, whose midpoint ends in a point, since the proposed oval shape is inadequate, since it is the exclusive one of the ecclesiastics, because it denotes in Spanish Heraldry order priestly, can adopt the city of Bailén as the coat of arms of the split coat of arms, drawing in the field on the right the attributes that adorn the commemorative Aledalla of the Battle of Bailén, two crossed sabers joined by a ribbon that forms a bow, from which hangs an eagle bound by talons. In the upper part, and between the leaves of the sabers, a laurel wreath under a wavy ribbon with the inscription:Bailén, July 19, 1808. In the left field, the broken pitcher, which tradition attributes to María Bellido, which, carrying it to offer water to General Reding during the battle, was broken by an enemy bullet; but noticing that part of it still contained water, with good tempered spirits she brought it pleased to the general to drink.
In that month of July 1808, very high temperatures were recorded in Bailén and many other towns in Jaén, close to 50º. So, just as many today predict that the next world war will be over water, in that battle between the French and Spanish, the control of wells and fountains was especially relevant. And here we Spaniards had it easier, since both Bailén and the neighboring towns worked hard to ensure that their people did not lack water. This is how Benito Pérez Galdós describes it in Bailén , fourth novel of the first series of the National Episodes …
It was six o'clock in the morning, and the heat was beginning to make itself felt with great force, we already felt that fire behind our backs that would later make us have the effect of having a molten metal bar as a spinal cord. […] But this discomfort was insignificant with another that began to torment us from the morning, thirst, which destroys everything, soul and body, instilling a useless rage for war, because it is not quenched by killing. […] It is true that multitudes of women came out of Bailén with pitchers of water to refresh us […] More than once, those brave women exposed themselves to fire, penetrating into places of greater danger, and taking their alcazaras to the artillerymen from the center.
There were many women who participated as water carriers during that day, but legend wanted it to be the name of María Bellido , and the episode with General Teodoro Reding , the one that transcended. Leaving aside the more than possible mythologizing of this particular character, the little song on the shield of this town in Jaén serves as recognition of the courage shown by the anonymous women who were also there.
Source:Neither stupid nor crazy