Part 16

The celebrated Lord Stair being asked by Voltaire, at the Hague, what he thought of the battle of Dettingen, in which he commanded the British under George the Second, he replied, that the French had committed one great fault, and the allies two. That of the French was, that they did not know how to wait; and the allies, after having placed the French on the brink of ruin, did not profit by the victory they had gained. At Salamanca, French impatience and eagerness to force us to retreat, when we most likely would have done so had they let us alone, hurried them to their ruin; and it being probably unavoidable, that we should have halted on the field of battle for the night, afforded the French, after being completely defeated, time to escape.

I do not even attempt to describe the whole of the battle of Salamanca; and I know but little of the achievements of the other divisions of the army. No officer, actively occupied as I was, could possibly do so; and I have mentioned only what came more particularly under my own eye; and my great object in doing so, is to show the style of fighting the 3rd division was accustomed to, and which, I trust, will be imitated by our troops in future wars. I at the same time hope, that I have said enough to enable any one to understand and appreciate the part so nobly performed in that action by Sir Edward Pakenham. It may be also observed, that I have avoided saying more of particular corps, where all distinguished themselves, than I found to be necessary to make myself understood by the reader, but as the country cannot possibly remember what regiments then composed the 3rd or Picton's division, I shall here beg leave to record them.

{ 45th Regiment British } Under Major-General Sir Right { 74th do. do. } Thomas Brisbane, during Brigade { 88th do. do. } a considerable part of the { 5th Bat. 60th do. Germans } war.

{ 5th Regiment British } Under Major-General the Left { 83rd do. do. } Hon. Sir Charles Colville, Brigade { 87th do. do. } during a considerable part { 94th do. do. } of the war.

Centre { 9th Regiment Portuguese } Under Maj-Gen. Sir Manley Brigade { 21st do. do. } Power, during the greater { A batt. of Caçadores, do. } part of the war.

Artillery Brigade of 9 pounders, British Major Douglas, do. do.

Sir Edward Pakenham, upon the retreat from Madrid, and subsequent to the battle of Salamanca, and whilst still in the command of the 3rd division, issued the following orders, which those who had the honour and pleasure of his acquaintance, will at once know as characteristic of him. These orders also confirm, if farther confirmation is wanted, the opinions I have expressed of the conduct of the men who composed our armies.

"D.O. _Guinaldo, 26th November, 1812._

"No. 2. This approval and divisional order of punishment is to give publicity to the example, and to convince the soldiers that no delay from the circumstances of service, shall prevent punishment falling on the individual, who shall basely absent himself from his post or company, when in movement before the enemy.

"No. 3. The 3rd division of infantry has often been led against the enemy's troops, and as often has defeated them. The manly spirit which the officers and soldiers have shown on these occasions has been worthy of record. And it is the more unaccountable, how men of those corps could, by want of perseverance, allow themselves to fall into the power of that enemy, on a limited retreat, who was unable to take them in the field.

"No. 4. The[1] absentee list is large, and in proportion is discreditable to every corps to which it relates, and which future discipline and efforts on this point of service, is the only means now left to remove."

"D.O. _Moimenta de Beira, Jan. 20, 1813._

"No. 1. Major-General the Honourable Charles Colville proposes to assume the command of the 3rd division on the 23rd instant. All reports from that date are to be addressed accordingly.

"No. 2. When superseded, Major-General Pakenham is to join the 6th division.

"Although he cannot allow himself the liberty to regret leaving the 3rd division from a due obedience to orders; the Major-General wishes to be understood, that he will know how to value the corps that compose it, and to remember the personal notice he has acquired from the splendid conduct of those corps in the field, a notice to which, under other circumstances, he could have had no pretensions.

"No. 3. As good conduct commonly commands good fortune, General Pakenham expects to hear of the 3rd division's fair fame, each opportunity bringing new acknowledgments in additional thanks from England; and the increased dread of her inveterate enemy."

I believe that I should have, earlier in this work, protested against its being supposed, when I stated, that I considered our army to be deficient in good system in many points, that I have presumed to say, that there were not employed upon the staff of Lord Wellington's army, scientific and able officers; for it was well known, that many of them, as well as our generals, had become excellent; but it was in the school of experience, that most of them had received those lessons which made them so; and what they chiefly wanted was greater assistance, especially from a police force, in performing their duties, and a sufficiently comprehensive and well considered system for their guidance. I will also venture to say, that we were quite equal, and, in some points, even superior to the French in this branch of military service; and the extraordinary mistakes which they often committed, fully justify me in saying so.

Probably the severe check which Massena's army had received at Busaco, had rendered him and his état-major more cautious than Napoleon's officers were reported to be; but could any thing have possibly been more surprising, than after they had found out the strength of the lines of Torres Vedras to be so great as to deter them from venturing an attack, that they should have remained a single day, much less a whole winter in front of them, exposing their fine army to the ruinous Fabian system adopted by Lord Wellington, who by the steady and composed front he displayed, whilst the siege of Ciudad Rodrigo was going forward, and by the lesson he gave them at Busaco, must have told them plainly enough what they were to expect. Surely Massena, his generals, and état-major should have come to the conclusion, either to attack, at all hazards, these lines, or that they ought instantly to have made arrangements for falling back into Spain upon their resources, which they very likely might have been able to do undisturbed by us, from the melancholy state in which Portugal then was.

Had the two armies changed positions, and I think I am fully borne out in what I am going to assert by the line of proceeding adopted by Lord Wellington at the Nivelle and at Toulouse, I have no doubt but he would have attacked Massena, and carried the lines of Torres Vedras, strong as they were represented to be. Some points in such intrenched, or fortified positions, may always be carried by concentrated attacks of brave and ably directed troops, like the British and French, when generally the whole of the defences, constructed probably at great expense and labour, must be abandoned, and at all events an attack, if even unsuccessful, could not have been so disastrous to the French as the effects of want of cover, a short allowance of unwholesome food, naturally producing diseases and causing many deaths amongst them, all of which they experienced during the winter, miserably and uselessly spent by them before the lines of Torres Vedras, and in their ultimate retreat from Portugal, when the whole of the country, north of the Tagus, was completely, imprudently, but unavoidably laid waste; thereby proclaiming to the world, that the idea of attacking the Duke of Wellington there, at any future period, had been abandoned.

In the next place, and in farther illustration of the inefficiency of the French état-major, I beg to ask, was not the extension of the French left till it became weakened, and of which Lord Wellington so ably availed himself, a great error on the part of Marmont, or rather of his staff, at the battle of Salamanca? Could Marshal Soult and his état-major not have been aware of our situation before the battle Toulouse, when our pontoon bridge was unavoidably removed, or it would have been carried away by the floods in the Garonne, and by the masses of timber, &c. sent down, I conclude, by the Marshal's orders; and when part of our troops, having previously crossed, were left apparently at his mercy--and that of his whole army: and why was not advantage taken of such a favourable opportunity to attack us? For I cannot imagine, that Soult's prudence in reserving his army for the defence of the field works about Toulouse, ought to be looked upon as an excuse for his not having done so, and for what I am more inclined to attribute to his, or his staff's want of intelligence. Picton, his generals, and his division had certainly made up their minds to fight lustily on that occasion; and, having only a short time before, single handed, disposed handsomely of two French divisions at Vic Bigore, even when fighting in their own favourite manner--skirmishing on a large scale--certainly did not diminish their confidence in themselves, and in their chiefs, who I firmly believe, would have liked nothing better, had the light division been only within a reasonable distance of them, than to have contended with Soult and his whole army. Every precaution was, however, taken, and preparation made for the expected attack; for we were well aware of the situation in which circumstances, that could not have been foreseen, had placed us, and that we could only look for assistance from our splendid artillery, supporting effectually our right by firing across the Garonne. Soult, his generals, and état-major, however, allowed the opportunity to escape, but in a few days after, this very confidence in himself, and in his division, was the cause of Sir Thomas Picton receiving at Toulouse a severe check--the only one instance, as well as I remember, in which the 3rd division was ever repulsed, or rather obliged to be brought back from an assault during the whole war.

I had every reason to suppose Sir Thomas Picton was aware that the passage of the canal could not be forced, and that the very point he was induced to attack, was covered by a tête du pont, and another field work which the enemy had recently constructed. I believe he was told that the passage could be easily forced; but this, as the result, and a careful examination afterwards proved was impossible. But it was most mortifying, indeed, to the 3rd division, that its last feat in arms, and after so long and brilliant a career, should have terminated in a failure, and in the loss of many gallant officers and men killed and wounded, and amongst the latter Sir Thomas Brisbane, who had so often before led on his brigade to victory.

But I must give another conspicuous instance, out of many which might be adduced, in support of what I assert respecting French generals and staff; but I beg in the first place, to ask what could be more extraordinary than their evident want of knowledge of the country, and even of preparation for the battle of Vittoria? For I cannot suppose that the French Commander-in-Chief and his état-major could have been ignorant of our vicinity, or of the positions we occupied the evening before the action; or, in the second place, could they have calculated upon Lord Wellington not venturing to attack their fine army, when concentrated under so many renowned chiefs.

The Duke of Wellington had adopted an excellent plan, which ought to be followed by all commanders of armies, of never issuing his orders or instructions, for any movement or object of importance, until within a very few hours of the time at which they were to be executed, so that the enemy could not possibly know, either through spies, or by any other means, what he intended to do the following day; it was therefore towards the middle of the night of the 20th of June, 1813, that I received from an orderly dragoon, as senior staff officer in camp, for the 3rd division, the following concise and excellent instructions, or order of battle for the morrow.

"_Arrangements for the movements of the Army, the 21st of June._

"_Subejana de Murillos, June 20th, 1813._

"Extract.

"The 3rd division, followed by the 7th division, will move (marching by the left of divisions), at day break, and will proceed near the village of Anda, and thence (turning to the right) towards the village of Los Questos, on the road from Anda to Vittoria.

"On approaching Los Questos, this column will throw out detachments to the right towards Mancharez, to put itself in communication with detachments, which will be thrown out from the left of the column which moves upon the village.

"Lieut.-General the Earl of Dalhousie will have the immediate command of the column composed of the 3rd and 7th divisions.

"The baggage of these divisions will remain sufficiently in the rear of the troops, not to become an embarrassment to the column under any circumstances.

"The left column of the army (divisions moving by the left) must move from Murquia towards Vittoria. Lieut.-General Sir Thomas Graham will put himself in communication as soon as possible with the column of the 3rd and 7th divisions, at Los Questos, and these divisions will therefore throw out parties when near Los Questos, towards Murquia, to facilitate this communication.

"The movements of the two columns on the left, viz. the Earl of Dalhousie's and Sir Thomas Graham's, are to be regulated from the right; and although these columns are to make such movements in advance as may be evidently necessary to follow the progress of the two columns on their right (that moving on Mancharez and Sir Rowland Hill's), they are not however to descend into the low grounds towards Vittoria on the great road, nor give up the advantage of turning the enemy's position, and the town of Vittoria by a movement to their left. This part of the instructions more particularly applies to the column under the orders of Lieut.-General Sir Thomas Graham.

"All communications intended for the Commander of the Forces, are to be sent to the column composed of the light division and the troops which follow it, which is the column which moves on Mancharez.

(Signed) "G. Murray, Q.M. General."

About the dawn of day on the 21st of June, 1813, the 3rd division moved off under its chief, Sir Thomas Picton, to perform perhaps more than the part assigned it in the splendid scenes with which we were about to treat our spectacle-loving foes. I went on with the advance, consisting of our Light Infantry companies, and the 5th battalion 60th German riflemen, all experienced troops, and well acquainted with and accustomed to their work. To my surprise, and I believe that of Sir Thomas Brisbane, and many others, we met with no opposition in passing the Zadorra, on the banks of which, as is well known, the Black Prince, in olden times, astonished his foes, not only by his own valour and knightly bearing, but also by the deeds of such soldiers as I wish to bring into the ranks of our regiments, and of whom there are still abundance in Great Britain and Ireland. I must however here take the liberty to remark, that I have often since wondered, why Lord Wellington did not allude, just before the troops went into battle, to what history tells us was by that gallant prince achieved on the ground which then lay before us. Napoleon, and I think Nelson also, would have done so; but Lord Wellington, perhaps less enthusiastic, very likely considered that his army required no such incitement to perform what he looked upon as merely their duty. I believe I am not wrong, but I have always fancied this seeming want of enthusiasm, to be a kind of defect in the Duke of Wellington, for it certainly has had at all times, and in all situations, when judiciously worked upon, a most surprising influence upon the minds and hearts of mankind in general.

Whilst the troops were passing this, in a military point of view, formidable object, over some very narrow bridges, I again went on some distance, and even in front of our light troops, to ascertain, if possible, what might be before us, for by this time Lord Hill was sharply engaged considerably to our right, and we began strongly to suspect, that the French still intended to be for once patient, and to deceive us; so much so, that I every instant expected to see their masses and cannon crown the rising ground just before us, prepared to attack us, whilst still embarrassed in the passage of the deep, high banked, but narrow river.

I very soon observed on the more distant heights a few videttes, whose attention seemed entirely attracted to their left, in which direction the firing had greatly increased.

Sir Thomas Picton and his generals were also soon aware of the mistake the French had evidently committed in neglecting or overlooking this essential position; Sir Thomas therefore (for I know not what had become of Lord Dalhousie and the 7th division) with his usual impetuosity, pushed his light troops, cannon and columns, rapidly for the unoccupied heights, of which he got possession without firing a shot, and before the enemy seemed to be aware of their importance; or else they had erroneously calculated, that the natural difficulties we should encounter at the Zadorra would either greatly delay, or perhaps deter us altogether from advancing in the direction we had taken. As soon, however, as they saw what we had achieved, and which threatened them with such ruinous consequences, they quickly brought forward a large body of troops of all arms, to recover what they ought never to have lost. A desperate struggle ensued, especially in a village just behind the heights, and which ought to have been guarded with the utmost care by the French, being an important point in their position; but Sir Thomas Brisbane, with his brigade, after a severe contest, and by turning their left with his right regiment, had got full possession of it, and the fate of the battle was thus, I may say, in a moment decided, for their centre being forced, the wings, especially the left, had also to give way, and to my delight, I beheld at this critical moment, our old and often tried friends, the light division, coming on in our own style, upon our right, carrying all before them.

When we had repulsed the enemy, who had fought very gallantly, from the village, and were again advancing upon them in the usual manner of the 3rd division, Lord Wellington rode up to us, followed by his staff; and he knew well how to profit from what had been, at least to us, so unexpectedly accomplished.

There was much hard fighting after this, and many brilliant feats were performed by the three brigades, in following up the French, who were so hard pressed, that even before they reached Vittoria, they were unable to offer any effectual resistance to our continued and impetuous attacks.

I apprehend, as will appear by referring to the instructions from Sir George Murray, that this was not the manner in which it had been intended that the action was to have been fought; and I even fear that I am not borne out in my statements by the Gazette account of it; but I feel convinced they can be corroborated by many, and I think I owe this detail of the part it performed to the 3rd division and its chiefs. I have, however, no intention of farther detailing what occurred between us and the French during the remainder of that eventful day; yet I must observe, that the loss of the 3rd division, in consequence of Sir Thomas Picton's perhaps too rapid advance, was great in officers and men; for undoubtedly he had thus drawn upon it the brunt of the battle; but my chief object, in at all alluding to it, was to shew that the French Marshal, who commanded under Joseph, and his état-major, committed great errors, especially in neglecting, or not understanding their position, and which in the end became irretrievable and ruinous to their brave army.

Towards the close of this battle, and when I thought the 3rd division had got well through its day's work, in the usual manner, and when the part of the French infantry before us were going off in hopeless and irretrievable confusion, intermixed with their baggage, their cavalry suddenly appeared before us, presenting a firm and most imposing front. Our cavalry--I think they were all light--had now got in front of us, in considerable force; it was therefore evident, that an important moment in the battle approached; and as Sir Thomas Brisbane was anxious to see how our cavalry would accomplish a charge, which we concluded must be made, I most willingly went on with him some distance before his brigade, still advancing in column. Our cavalry went on bravely to the attack, but the French did not wait to receive it: on the contrary, they advanced boldly, rapidly, and in fine order, to meet our people. The shock was severe. But I soon saw, and I believe so did my general, that it was high time for us to be off to the infantry, for I must confess that the battle of Marengo flashed across my mind at the instant. We soon rejoined the brigade, when commanding officers of corps were requested to keep them well in hand, and ready, if necessary, to form squares. But the French seemed to have accomplished what they had in view; that is to say, to cover the retreat of their discomfitted infantry.

Having, in the course of this work, occasionally touched upon military tactics and arrangements, I must, in corroboration of what I ventured to say with regard to the Duke of Wellington and Massena at the lines of Torres Vedras, and in farther proof that the French were not superior to us as tacticians, here allude briefly to what occurred upon the Nivelle. Let the reader cast his eyes over a good map of the country, or rather a plan of the action, which bears that name, and which may be seen in Colonel Jones's account of the Peninsular war; and let him consider and calculate upon the apparent consequences of an attack upon a position of such strength, taken up after due examination by Soult, and covered by his directions, with strong and well planned redoubts, mutually supporting each other; and I think he will admit that the French lines upon the Nivelle, and those held by our army at Torres Vedras were not very dissimilar. It could not also have been unknown to Massena, that a very great part of the troops under Lord Wellington were untried Portuguese, destitute of military reputation; and which had only been recently placed under British officers.

It is not to be supposed, that the commander of a French army was without information, or that he was not allowed to incur the expense of employing spies, or otherwise obtaining intelligence; I cannot, therefore, imagine he was entirely ignorant of the preparations making by his adversary for his reception at Torres Vedras; and he might also have learnt that the redoubts and lines of connection in that position could not be finished by the time he might arrive before it. If, therefore, he were to advance at all into Portugal, he undoubtedly should have made his arrangements for attacking the lines of Torres Vedras the moment he could reach them; but whether what I have stated was known or not to Massena, he had probably been spoiled by too much good fortune, until it was his fate to meet Lord Wellington in the field.