gave information of the situation and strength of the British outpost;
and on the 1st of April, a strong French force was detached to cut
off the piquets at La Granja. A patrol, commanded by Cornet Ratcliffe
of the THIRD, having met with the enemy's advance guard, was driven
in, and the two British squadrons were attacked by seven squadrons of
French cavalry, supported by infantry. After a severe struggle, the
enemy, perceiving their surprise had failed, retired, and the piquets
resumed their station.[33] In this affair the KING'S OWN lost thirteen
men and twelve horses.
On the 2nd of April, Marshal Soult's army having advanced from
Seville, with a view to raise the siege of Badajoz, the covering army
began to retire before the superior numbers of the French. This retreat
was continued through Usagre, Villa Franca, and Almandralejo, upon
Albuhera, where, being supported by the besieging force, the army went
into position on the 9th, and preparations were made for a general
action. Soult, however, having heard of the fall of Badajoz, commenced
a retrograde movement towards the frontiers of Andalusia on the 10th;
on which day Major General Le Marchant's brigade, (the fifth dragoon
guards, THIRD and fourth dragoons) forming the advance of the British,
proceeded to Los Santos, and again in the night to Bienvenida, with the
view of gaining the flank of the cavalry of a French corps (General
Drouet's) encamped between Usagre and Villa Garcia; but the enemy
retreated. The BRIGADE, however, defiled under cover of some heights,
and by a flank movement came up with the French on the 11th in front of
_Llerena_, charging and driving them into that town with the loss of
one hundred and fifty prisoners, including several officers.
Intelligence was received of the advance of Marshal Marmont, on the
north of Portugal. This general, leaving Ciudad Rodrigo and Almeida,
on his rear, had pushed on as far as Castello Branco, thus threatening
to destroy the communications of the British, by cutting the bridge
of boats at Villa Velha. It therefore became necessary to reinforce
the few troops left on that frontier, and Major General Le Marchant's
brigade was one of those ordered for this service. It marched through
Elvas, Estremos, Crato, Niza, and Villa Velha to Castello Branco, and
finally took up its quarters at Val-de-rosa; but Marmont having retired
into Spain on the approach of the British, the brigade returned to the
Alemtejo, and was, on the 12th of April, stationed at Cabeca de Vide,
Crato, and Fronteira, the KING'S OWN being at the former place. On the
29th they received a sudden order to join a brigade of light cavalry,
for the purpose of covering Lieut.-General Hill in his attack upon the
tête-de-pont and bridge of boats at Almaraz, which brilliant exploit
having been effected, the regiment returned to Cabeca de Vide on the
27th of May.
On the 1st of June the whole army, with the exception of Lieut.-General
Hill's corps, moved to the north. On the 11th, Major-General Le
Marchant's brigade arrived at _Ciudad Rodrigo_, and on the 12th was
reviewed by Lord Wellington. On the 13th, the brigade moved forward and
continued to advance till the 16th, when it found the enemy posted near
_Salamanca_, and a skirmish took place which lasted till night-fall. On
the 17th, the brigade crossed the Tormes, and was quartered near the
village of Cabrerizos, and on the advance of the French, on the 20th,
the whole army went into position on the heights of St. Christoval,
with its right on the Tormes, and its left near Villares de la Reyna.
On this day the brigade, being in front, sustained a cannonade of
about an hour, and the KING'S OWN lost twenty horses: the regiment
afterwards took post on the summit of the mountain.
On the night of the 23rd the French army retired, and was followed at
daybreak by the first and seventh divisions, and Le Marchant's brigade
of cavalry, which crossed the river by the fords of Santa Marta; when
Marshal Marmont, after a short delay, returned to his former position,
and manœuvred for some days on the Tormes, but after the reduction
of the forts at Salamanca, which took place on the 27th, he crossed
the Douro at Tordesillas, closely followed by Lord Wellington, who,
however, did not cross the river, but took up a position between Pollos
and La Seca; Major-General Le Marchant's brigade being stationed at
Pollos and Naval del Rey to watch the ford.
Marshal Marmont being strengthened by a division from the Asturias,
pushed a column across the river on the 16th of July, in consequence
of which the troops in Pollos fell back upon Fuente la Pena. On the
18th, it was understood that the enemy's army had passed the Douro
at Tordesillas, by which manœuvre the safety of two divisions, and
a brigade of cavalry, on the Trebancos, was much endangered, and
Major-General Le Marchant's, with two other brigades of cavalry, were
quickly moved up to cover their retreat, which was effected with
trifling loss. The brigade had entered its bivouac near Canizal, when
an order was received for a squadron of the KING'S OWN to proceed
to the support of two guns, intended to be placed on the hill above
Castrillos. This order was soon increased to the whole regiment, which,
on its march, discovered that the enemy was advancing in force, and
pressing Major-General Alten's brigade very closely. Major Clowes
immediately solicited, and received permission to go to their support,
and the regiment accordingly advanced, and though checked by the
fire of some French infantry, assisted in driving back the enemy's
cavalry; the French infantry continuing to advance were repulsed by
Lieut.-General Cole's division, and pursued with great loss. In this
affair the regiment sustained the following loss; one serjeant-major,
six privates, and four horses killed; lieutenant Branfell, and two
privates wounded.[34]
On the 19th, the BRIGADE retired to the table land above the villages
of Vallesa and El Olmo, and on the 20th, the hostile armies manœuvred
within cannon shot of each other, the French moving to their left, and
the British to their right. On the 21st the British went into their old
position on the heights of St. Christoval, and the French crossed the
Tormes at the fords of Alba and Huerta, marching to their left. To
oppose this manœuvre, the British crossed the river at _Salamanca_. In
the course of this day's manœuvres, Major-General Le Marchant's brigade
crossed the river at the ford of Santa Marta three times, and took
up its bivouac on the south bank opposite the town. In the course of
this night so dreadful a thunder-storm burst upon the British lines,
that the horses broke loose; many were lost by running into the French
lines, and the remainder could not be secured till daybreak. The KING'S
OWN had to send to the rear an officer and sixteen men, severely
injured by the horses, which were all linked together, running over
them.
The morning of the 22nd of July, found the hostile armies opposed to
each other. The British line was formed with its left on the Tormes,
and its right on the rocky hills called the Arapiles; Major-General Le
Marchant's brigade, quitting its bivouac ground, formed line in the
centre of the position, to check the advance of the enemy's cavalry.
The French marshal manœuvred to gain the road to Ciudad Rodrigo; his
dragoons, after some skirmishing, were compelled to retire, and the
KING'S OWN again took ground to their right, passing the village of
Arapiles, and forming in support of the fourth and fifth divisions.
Lord Wellington, taking advantage of an injudicious movement made by
his opponent, ordered his divisions forward, and the battle commenced.
The French, attacked while making a complicated evolution, were
instantly broken. A favourable opportunity for a charge of the British
heavy cavalry occurring, the fifth dragoon guards, KING'S OWN, and
fourth dragoons, advanced, and a most animated scene presented itself.
The din of conflict was heard on every side; clouds of dust and rising
columns of smoke darkened the air, and enveloped the British squadrons
as they rushed to battle. In front, the glittering bayonets and waving
plumes of the French infantry were dimly seen through the thickened
atmosphere; against these formidable ranks, the English horsemen dashed
with terrific violence, the weight and fury of their charge broke the
opposing lines, and in an instant the French musketeers were overthrown
and trampled down with a terrible clamour and disturbance. 'Bewildered
and blinded, they cast away their arms and ran through the openings
of the British squadrons, stooping and demanding quarter, while the
dragoons, big men, and on big horses, rode onward, smiting with their
long glittering swords in uncontrollable power, and the third division
followed at speed, shouting as the French masses fell in succession
before this dreadful charge.'
'Nor were these valiant swordsmen yet exhausted. Their own general, Le
Marchant, and many officers had fallen, but Cotton and all his staff
were at their head, and with ranks confused, and blended together in
one mass, still galloping forward they sustained from a fresh column
an irregular stream of fire which emptied a hundred saddles; yet
with fine courage, and downright force, the survivors broke through
this the third and strongest body of men that had encountered them,
and Lord Edward Somerset, continuing his course at the head of one
squadron, with a happy perseverance, captured five guns. The French
left was entirely broken, more than two thousand prisoners were
taken, the French light horsemen abandoned that part of the field,
and Thomiere's division no longer existed as a military body. Anson's
cavalry, which had passed quite over the hill, and had suffered little
in the charge, was now joined by D'Urban's troopers, and took the place
of Le Marchant's exhausted men; the heavy German dragoons followed in
reserve, and with the third and fifth divisions and the guns formed one
formidable line two miles in advance of where Pakenham first attacked,
and that impetuous officer, with unmitigated strength, still pressed
forward, spreading terror and disorder on the enemy's left[35].'
In this attack Major-General Le Marchant received a ball through
the body, which terminated the career of that brave and talented
officer. Lieutenant Selby, of the KING'S OWN, was likewise killed by a
musket-shot through the left breast.[36] The result of this day was the
entire overthrow of the French, 7,000 prisoners, eleven guns and two
eagles remaining in the hands of the victors. The KING'S OWN earned, on
this occasion, the royal permission to bear the word 'SALAMANCA,' on
their guidons. They sustained the following loss: Killed,--Lieutenant
Selby, one serjeant, nine privates, and two officers' horses, and 13
troop horses. Wounded,--one serjeant, eight privates, and fifteen
horses.
After the action the French retreated upon Alba, where they crossed
the Tormes, and thence through Arevalo, upon Valladolid, sustaining in
their march a severe loss from the German cavalry, which, having been
uninjured in the battle, was despatched in pursuit of, and overtook
their rear-guard three leagues beyond Alba, defeating it, and taking
nine hundred prisoners.
The British army advanced on the route of the French, and entered
Valladolid on the 30th of July; on the following day Cuellar was
occupied, and on the 6th of August, the army moved on Segovia, crossed
the Guadarama mountains on the 10th, and entered Madrid on the 12th;
the brigade, now commanded by Colonel Ponsonby, forming the personal
escort of Lord Wellington.
After halting seven days at Madrid, the brigade moved to St. Ildefonso,
where it was cantoned for a few days. Intelligence was received that
the army of General Clausel, who had succeeded Marmont, was advancing
on Valladolid, and the British in consequence assembled at Olivares and
its vicinity. An immediate attack was intended; but the artillery of
the fifth division not arriving in time, the enemy retired on the 7th
of September, having destroyed the bridge at Valladolid. They continued
retreating rapidly till the 17th, when the immediate vicinity of Burgos
induced Clausel to make a stand, and Colonel Ponsonby's brigade was
ordered to the front; but, before the army could be formed for attack,
the enemy again retired to Breviesca, leaving a strong garrison in the
castle of Burgos.
The castle was invested, and the covering army took up a position on
the heights of Quintana Palla, the KING'S OWN being at Villa Yerna.
On the 19th of October, the French General Souham, who now commanded
in the place of Clausel, being greatly reinforced, resolved to attempt
the relief of Burgos. About four P. M. the French attacked and carried
the village of Quintanapalla, but were repulsed in every attempt to
penetrate farther, and abandoned the village on the approach of a force
destined to retake it, consisting of the left wing of infantry, and
Ponsonby's brigade of cavalry.
It being ascertained that Marshal Soult and Joseph Bonaparte were
moving on the Tagus, and that Sir Rowland Hill, menaced by such
powerful forces, could not maintain his position on that river, at the
same time his retreat would leave the army before Burgos, already in a
critical situation, quite insulated, the Marquis of Wellington resolved
to retire so far as was necessary to form a junction with Sir Rowland
Hill; and at dusk on the 21st, the army withdrew with such celerity and
silence that the French were not aware of the retreat till the British
had reached Hormillas, and did not show in any force till the evening
of the 22nd of October. On the next morning the retrograde movement was
continued in two columns, Ponsonby's brigade covering the column from
Hormillas, and being threatened during the day by an immense body of
cavalry. Such was the steadiness of the troops, that the overwhelming,
force of the French could make no impression and the column went into
bivouac for the night on the hills above Cordovilla, with little or no
loss.
An hour before daylight on the 24th, the column, covered by Ponsonby's
brigade, filed over the bridge of Cordovilla, and in the course of the
day, the army crossed the Carrion, the head-quarters being established
at Duenas. Early on the morning of the 25th, two squadrons of the
fifth dragoon guards and THIRD dragoons were sent to the bridges of
Palencia, to cover the party employed in mining them for destruction,
but the French, advancing in force, gained possession of the bridges in
an unbroken state. At this place the KING'S OWN lost a man and horse
by a round shot, and the party returned in the evening to Duenas; the
army having in the meantime destroyed the bridges at that place, and at
Villa Muriel, and the enemy having been defeated in an attempt to cross
by the fords.
[Sidenote: 1813]
The army retired four leagues on the 26th of October, and crossed the
Pisuerga at Cabezon, in which town, and its vicinity, it remained till
the 29th, when it retired early, and crossed the Douro at Tudela and
Puente del Douro, the bridges at which places were blown up, as were
those at Toro and Zamora; but the French having possessed themselves of
the bridge at Tordesillas, the British on the following morning took
up a position in front of it. In this position they remained till the
6th of November, when, the enemy having repaired the bridge of Toro,
it became necessary to retire to Torrecilla de la Orden, and thence,
on the 7th and 8th, to Salamanca. On the 14th, the French crossed the
Tormes, and the British recommenced their retreat on the following
morning, and entered Ciudad Rodrigo on the 18th; they afterwards went
into winter quarters on the frontiers of Portugal, the enemy not
advancing beyond the Yeltes. On the 20th, Ponsonby's brigade was at
Albergaria, where it halted eight days, after which the KING'S OWN
proceeded by the route of Guarda, Celerico, and Penhancos, to Saixho.
Here the regiment was quartered until the 28th of December, then at
Arganil till February 11th, 1813, and afterwards at Soure, near the
mouth of the Mondego, until the 19th of April.
On the above day the KING'S OWN moved towards the north of Portugal,
and rejoined the brigade at Braganza, on the 21st of May. On the 24th
the brigade was at Tabara, and on the 26th it crossed the Esla at
Pozuela. The enemy made no resistance at the passage of the river, and
was compelled to abandon the line of the Douro, by Lord Wellington's
advance along their rear. The column to which Ponsonby's brigade was
attached, was directed on Valencia, and passing through that town,
advanced on Burgos. On the 12th of June, the brigade overtook the
enemy's rear-guard on the heights of Estepar, when the KING'S OWN
were detached to cut off part of the enemy's force, in which the
regiment completely succeeded, making its way to the high road from
Madrid, throwing the enemy into confusion on Burgos; a squadron of the
fourteenth, with a detachment of the KING'S OWN, charging the enemy's
rear, captured a gun: the regiment had captain Sitwell and one private
wounded, and five horses killed and three wounded.
During the night of the 12th, the French blew up the castle of Burgos
and retired behind the Ebro, which river the brigade, after marching
through a wild and difficult region of deep narrow valleys and rugged
defiles, crossed at Puente de Arenas on the 15th. Both armies were
concentrated, the British on the river Bayas, and the French on the
undulating grounds in the valley of _Vittoria_, where, on the 21st of
June, they were attacked by the allied army. The result of this attack
was a most decisive victory, the French only carrying from the field
two guns; the whole of their immense equipment fell into the hands of
the British. Owing to the nature of the field of battle the cavalry
could scarcely act,[37] and that _arme_ was principally employed in
supporting the infantry, and in the pursuit, which was continued until
the enemy had passed Pampeluna. The gallant bearing of the KING'S
OWN was rewarded in 1821, with the royal permission to bear the word
"VITTORIA" on their guidons.
At this period, General Clausel with fifteen thousand men was at
Logroño, and of course, was not engaged in the battle; nor was he aware
that an engagement had taken place, till he arrived near Vittoria,
and found the town in the possession of the British: he then returned
to Logroño, and marched upon Tudela, hoping to reach Pampeluna before
the British. On the 27th his scheme was discovered, and the Marquis
of Wellington detached the cavalry with two divisions of infantry to
intercept him. This detached force arrived on the same night at Tafalla
and Olieta, and on the next morning advanced upon Tudela, when it was
discovered that Clausel, upon receiving intelligence of the force
sent against him, had retreated to Saragossa, whence he returned to
France by the pass of Jaca, his artillery falling into the hands of the
Spanish troops.
On the 30th of June the infantry returned to Pampeluna, and
Major-General Ponsonby's brigade remained at Tafalla for eleven days,
when forage becoming scarce, it moved to Laraga, and halted there a
fortnight.
The cavalry received an order to move to the north on the 27th of July,
in consequence of the troops having been forced from the passes of
Roncesvalles and Maya in the Pyrenees. The army took up a position at
Huarte and Villarba, and the town of Pampeluna was illuminated at the
prospect of relief. On the 28th, Soult attacked the British position,
but was repulsed with loss; Count D'Erlon's division was compelled to
fall back upon Maya, and the British recovered their lost ground. On
the 8th of August, the KING'S OWN fell back upon Allo and Dicastello,
and on the 27th of December, removed for the convenience of forage
to the neighbourhood of Vittoria, occupying the villages of Alegria,
Aranjuez, and Troconiz, and remained there until the 24th of February
following.
[Sidenote: 1814]
An advance took place, Ponsonby's brigade marched through the Pyrenean
mountains by Salinas Bergara, Villa Franca and Tolosa, to St. Jean de
Luz in France, halted there two days, and then advanced through Bidart
to the Adour, crossing the river on a bridge of boats, and continued
to follow the route of the French, who were retreating on Bayonne. The
advance was continued through Peyrehorade to Castlenau, and on the
19th of March, 1814, Marshal Soult was discovered in position, with
his left at _Tarbes_, and his right at Rabastens. This right flank was
ordered to be turned by a division of infantry, and Ponsonby's brigade
of cavalry, and being thus threatened, Soult retired through a strong
country by St. Gaudens, upon Toulouse. The British, being obliged to
wait for stores, did not advance rapidly, and on the 25th, the KING'S
OWN lay at Fontenelle. On the next day the regiment advanced to _La
Mosquiere_, and there came up with a regiment of French _Chasseurs
à cheval_, which it charged and drove beyond Cuneva, taking several
prisoners and horses, and seizing a large quantity of bread prepared by
the French for their own use. Lieut. Burns' horse was killed, Lieut.
Jebb's wounded, and two troop horses killed, but the regiment sustained
no further loss.
The army arrived before _Toulouse_ on the 27th of March, and on the
31st, a pontoon bridge being laid at St. Roques, the brigade crossed
the Garonne, and seized the bridge on the Arriege, at Cintagabelle. The
roads were found so bad in this direction that no further attempt was
made, and the troops being recalled, the pontoon bridge was removed to
Grenade, a town below Bayonne, and there laid down on the 4th of April.
On this day Ponsonby's, with two other brigades of cavalry, and three
divisions of infantry, crossed the river, the brigade being quartered
at Grissolles, and having a strong piquet on the road to Montauban. In
the course of the night the river rose so considerably, that the bridge
was obliged to be removed, and the communication was cut off; Soult,
however, made no attack, but employed himself in strengthening his
position, which covered Toulouse.
On the 8th of April the current subsided, and the pontoons were again
laid down. On the 9th the troops were passing the river, and on Easter
Sunday (the 10th), Soult was attacked in his position. In this attack
the brigade, then commanded by Colonel Lord Charles Manners, was at
different periods employed in supporting the Spanish forces, the
hussar brigade, and General Clinton's division. It was not a cavalry
action, and the only casualties were--Captain Burn, one trumpeter,
four privates, wounded: two horses killed. The enemy abandoned his
entrenchments before dusk, and took post behind the canal. The KING'S
OWN were rewarded for their conduct on this occasion with the royal
permission, dated 20th September, 1821, to bear the word "TOULOUSE" on
their guidons.
Marshal Soult retired down the canal on the 12th towards Carcasonne,
and on the 13th, hostilities were terminated by the arrival of the news
of the abdication of Napoleon, and of the accession of Louis XVIII.
to the throne of France; Marshals Soult and Suchet, after a short
delay, gave their assent to the new order of affairs, and a line of
demarcation between the armies was agreed upon. The KING'S OWN went
into quarters at Lanta and Caraman, and remained there until the end of
May.
On the 10th of June, the brigade, having embarked its dismounted men at
Bourdeaux, commenced its march to the north by the following route:--
June 1, Toulouse,
" 2, Grissoles,
" 3, Montauban,
" 4, Caussade,
" 5, Cahors,
" 7, Frechisse,
" 8, Souillac,
" 9, Brives,
" 11, Uzorches,
" 12, Pierre Buffiere,
" 13, Limoges,
" 15, Bessines,
" 16, St. Burnot,
" 17, Argenton,
" 18, Chateauroux,
" 20, Vatan,
" 21, Vierzon,
" 22, Salbris,
" 23, Lafecte,
" 24, Orleans,
" 26, Artenay,
" 27, Angerville,
" 28, Etampes,
" 30, St. Aumal,
July 1, Montfort,
" 2, Mantes,
" 4, Gisors,
" 5, Gournay,
" 6, Neufchatel,
" 7, Blangy,
" 8, Abbeville,
" 10, Rue,
" 11, Montreuil,
" 12, Boulogne.