in Portugal, where it remained three weeks, forming part of the
four divisions of infantry left behind the Agueda to observe the
movements of the French army under Marshal Marmont during the time
the second siege of Badajoz was undertaken. When the enemy moved
southwards, the regiment directed its march by Castello Branco for
the Alentejo; and went into position on the Caya, being hutted
near the wood and town of Aronches until the 2d of July, when it
proceeded to Portalegre.
While at this station the FOURTH had the misfortune to lose their
commanding officer, Lieut.-Colonel Bevan, who died on the 8th of
July, and was buried with military honours in the castle-yard,
all the officers of the division attending. He was succeeded
by Lieut.-Colonel Brooke, and brevet Lieut.-Colonel Faunce was
appointed lieutenant-colonel in the regiment and placed at the head
of the second battalion.
The regiment left its quarters in Portalegre on the 21st of July,
and was hutted near that town seven days, when it proceeded into
cantonments at Castel de Vide. When Lord Wellington moved towards
the Agueda with the view of rescuing Ciudad Rodrigo from the power
of the enemy, the FOURTH crossed the Tagus by the bridge of boats,
and proceeding by Castello Branco, entered Spain on the 11th of
August at Navas Frias. After passing seven days in huts near St.
Payo, they proceeded into cantonments at Pena Parda; but returned
to their huts on the 26th of August, and back to quarters on the
2d of September, where they remained until the 26th of that month:
meanwhile Ciudad Rodrigo was blockaded, and Lord Wellington's
head-quarters were at Fuentes Guinaldo. When Marshal Marmont
advanced to relieve this fortress, the FOURTH remained with their
division at St. Payo, watching the passes from Estremadura. In
the subsequent manœuvres they were not brought into action with
the enemy; and after the retreat of the French army, they were
stationed at Guarda, in Portugal.
[Sidenote: 1812]
The enemy being deceived by the seemingly careless winter attitude
of the allied army, left _Ciudad Rodrigo_ to the protection of its
garrison; and the British commander, profiting by this omission,
commenced the siege of this important fortress in the early part
of January, 1812 with four divisions; the KING'S OWN remained
in quarters at Bobadela, where they had proceeded on the 7th of
December. On the receipt of intelligence that Marshal Marmont was
collecting his forces to succour the place, the whole army was
brought forward and posted in the villages on the Coa, ready to
cross the Agueda and give battle. Ciudad Rodrigo was captured by
storm during the night of the 19th of January; and the FOURTH were
cantoned in the suburbs of that fortress from the 20th of January
to the 23d of February.
In consequence of the great difficulty experienced in procuring
land carriage for the supplies of the army, many of the regiments
had to proceed a considerable distance for their clothing, and
the KING'S OWN marched for that purpose from Ciudad Rodrigo to
Penacova, where the clothing arrived by water from Coimbra; that in
use having been in wear during two years of hard service.
Meanwhile the fifth division was proceeding towards the Alentejo
to engage in the siege of _Badajoz_, and the regiment joined its
brigade at Campo Mayor on the 24th of March. On the 30th of that
month it proceeded to Elvas; on the 4th of April it bivouacked
near the city of Badajoz, and three breaches, which were deemed
practicable, having been made, the regiment was formed on the
evening of the 6th ready to take part in the storming of this
strong fortress. On this occasion the fifth division was directed
to make a false attack on the Pardaleras, and a real assault on the
bastion of San Vincente; the KING'S OWN, headed by Lieut.-Colonel
Brooke, led the assault of the bastion.
The division advanced in silence from its bivouac-ground towards
the remote side of the town; the sky was clouded and the air thick
with watery exhalations, and as the troops approached the lofty
fortress, a low murmur was heard in the trenches, lights were
seen passing to and fro along the ramparts, and the loud voices
of the French sentinels proclaimed that all was well in Badajoz.
The garrison watching from its lofty station the approach of
its adversaries, stood prepared with every means of destruction
which art could devise, and each soldier had three loaded muskets
beside him, that the first fire might be quick and fatal. As the
British soldiers approached the fortress with ladders and weapons,
the sight of the formidable works and towering walls awakened
in their resolute hearts an eagerness for the assault, and they
advanced with audacity to meet that fiery destruction which their
adversaries were prepared to pour down upon them. Major-General
Walker's brigade, led by the KING'S OWN, having gained the bank
of the Guadiana, advanced along the margin of the river, and
the sound of their footsteps being rendered inaudible by the
rippling of the waters, they reached the French guard-house at
the barrier-gate of the Olivença road undiscovered; but at that
moment an explosion took place at the breach, and the moon emerging
from behind the clouds, the French discovered the column and gave
the alarm. The glacis was mined, the ditch deep, the scarp thirty
feet high, and the parapet lined with bold troops; yet the British
soldiers springing forward under a sharp fire commenced hewing
down the wooden barrier at the covered way. The Portuguese, being
panic-stricken, threw down the scaling-ladders, but others snatched
them up again, and having forced the barrier, jumped into the
ditch. The guiding engineer was killed, and the ladders were found
too short, for the walls were generally above thirty feet high; at
the same time a mine was sprung beneath the soldiers' feet, beams
of wood and live shells were rolled over on their heads, showers
of grape swept the ditch, and man after man dropped dead from the
ladders. At length three ladders were reared against a corner of
the bastion, where the scarp was only twenty feet high, and one
man climbing an embrasure which had no gun, and was only stopped
by a gabion, was pushed to the top by his comrades; he drew others
after him until many had gained the summit; and although the French
opened a sharp fire against them from both flanks, and from a house
in front, yet their numbers increased and they could not be driven
back. Half the KING'S OWN regiment entered the town to dislodge the
enemy from the houses, while the others pushed along the ramparts,
and, by hard fighting, won three bastions. Major-General Walker,
leading the attack of the last bastion, fell covered with wounds;
and several of the soldiers observing a lighted match on the
ground, cried out, "A mine." The troops retiring hastily for fear
of an explosion, were at that moment attacked by a French reserve,
and driven back with great loss as far as the San Vincente, where
the pursuing enemy was destroyed by the fire of a battalion of
the thirty-eighth, commanded by Lieut.-Colonel Nugent, posted in
reserve. The storming party rallied, and, returning to the attack,
once more charged along the breaches, and were engaged with the
enemy.
In the meantime, the men of the KING'S OWN who had entered the
town, finding the streets empty, the houses illuminated with lamps,
and no appearance of opposition, excepting a few shots fired by
the Spaniards from underneath the doors, they advanced with bugles
sounding towards the great square of the town, capturing in their
progress several mules laden with ammunition proceeding towards
the breaches. Arriving at the square, it was found empty as the
streets, the houses decorated with lamps; a low whispering was
heard, and the lattices were occasionally opened and shut, but no
troops appeared to be in the buildings. The castle had been won by
the British troops; but at the breaches the fight was still raging,
and dreadful sounds like the deep tones of distant thunder echoed
through the town; the KING'S OWN rushed to the scene of conflict
to attack the garrison in reverse, but were assailed by a heavy
fire of musketry and forced back by superior numbers. At length the
garrison was forced from the breaches, partial actions afterwards
took place in various quarters, and eventually the governor,
finding all lost, escaped with part of his garrison to the fort
of St. Christoval, on the opposite side of the river, where he
surrendered.
In the storming of Badajoz the FOURTH had Captain H. T. Bellingham
and Lieutenant Francis Staveley killed; Lieutenants William
Sheppard and Martin Dane died of their wounds; Major Alured W.
Faunce, Captains John Williamson, G. W. Wilson, Robert Anwyl, and
Thomas Burke, with Lieutenants W. S. L. Alley, J. Salvin, Patrick
Conroy, John Browne, John Craster, Hygat Boyd, and Ensigns Robert
Arnold and Edward Rawlings, wounded: the regiment also sustained a
loss of two hundred and thirteen serjeants, drummers, and rank and
file, killed and wounded.
The excellent conduct of the brigade was mentioned in Lord
Wellington's despatch; and Lieut.-Colonel Brooke, who commanded the
regiment, was also spoken of in terms of commendation.
During the assault, Private George Hatton, of the light company
of the KING'S OWN, bayonetted the officer who carried the colours
of the regiment of Hesse d'Armstadt, in the French service, and
captured the colours, which he had the honour of presenting on the
following day to Lord Wellington, who rewarded him with a present
of money, and desired that he might be promoted.
The KING'S OWN acquired by its gallantry on this occasion the
honour of the royal permission to bear the word BADAJOZ on its
colours.
Shortly after the capture of Badajoz the FOURTH marched with
the army towards the Agueda; on the 14th of May, the second
battalion joined from Ceuta; and the brigade, consisting of
the two battalions of the KING'S OWN, and second battalions
of the thirtieth and forty-fourth regiments, was commanded by
Major-General Pringle; Major-General Walker having returned to
England in consequence of his wounds received at the storming of
Badajoz.
The FOURTH advanced with the army to Salamanca, and this city
being rescued from the power of the enemy, exhibited a scene of
tumultuous joy and rejoicing; the houses were illuminated, and the
people, shouting and singing, welcomed their deliverers; while the
army took up a position on the mountain of St. Christoval a few
miles in advance; but the FOURTH remained behind the Tormes, and
the forts which the enemy occupied at Salamanca were besieged.
Marshal Marmont advancing on the 20th of June, to succour the
forts, the regiment crossed the Tormes and was formed with the army
in order of battle on the top of the mountain. After the capture of
the forts, the enemy retired towards the Douro, and the regiment
descended the heights and followed the French army, which took up a
new position near Tordesillas.
The KING'S OWN bivouacked in front of Tordesillas from the 2d to
the 9th of July, and at Nava del Rey until the 16th; the weather
being fine, the country rich, rations regularly supplied, and
wine abundant, the soldiers fared luxuriously; but the enemy
having passed the Douro and the Trabancos, turned the left of
the allies, and marched on the 18th of July towards the Guarena,
when the British retired. The two armies directing their march
towards the Guarena as to one common goal, and important results
depending on which should first pass the stream, a strife of speed
arose. Several of the hostile columns, proceeding in parallel
lines a distance of ten miles, within musket-shot of each other,
marched impetuously towards the stream in perfect order, while
clouds of dust arose, and a most interesting spectacle presented
itself; for the officers on each side, being strangers alike to
malice and to fear, were seen pointing with their swords, touching
their caps, or waving their hands in courtesy as they urged their
course towards the river. The British gained the stream first;
the soldiers being tormented with thirst, many of them drank as
they marched, and others halting in the river a few moments, were
saluted with a shower of bullets; but they passed on, and the
French marshal's designs were frustrated. He, however, passed the
river on the 20th of July higher up, turned the right flank of the
allied army, and gained a new range of hills; when Lord Wellington
made a corresponding movement, and an evolution similar to that on
the 18th was repeated, and it ended in the British resuming their
position on the heights of St. Christoval. The KING'S OWN forded
the Tormes on the following day, and were posted in position with
the army near _Salamanca_.
These bold manœuvres of the enemy were watched by the British
commander, who waited patiently for an opportunity to strike a
decisive blow, and this occurring on the 22d of July, a sanguinary
battle was fought. In the early part of the day the KING'S OWN were
posted on the slope of one of the heights, called the Arapiles,
where they remained until the afternoon, when they moved to the
rear of the village of Arapiles; Lord Wellington having detected
a fault in his adversaries' movements, ordered his divisions
forward, and the battle commenced. In this action the fifth
division, commanded by Major-General Sir James Leith, attacking
the enemy in front, distinguished itself; and the KING'S OWN,--the
first battalion being commanded by Lieut.-Colonel Brooke, and the
second by Major David Williamson--had their share in the glories
of the day. During the action the first battalion made a brilliant
charge on a considerable body of the enemy, and nobly sustained
its reputation. The skill of the British commander was bravely
seconded by the resolute valour and discipline of the troops; the
action lasted until dark, a decisive victory was gained over the
enemy, and eleven pieces of cannon, two eagles, and six colours
were captured. The gallantry evinced by the KING'S OWN was
afterwards rewarded by the privilege of bearing the word SALAMANCA
on their colours; the commanding officers of both battalions were
rewarded with medals; Major David Williamson was also promoted to
the rank of lieutenant-colonel on the occasion. Major Piper, who
succeeded to the command of the first battalion during the action
in consequence of Lieut.-Colonel Brooke[33] being called upon to
take the command of the brigade, was likewise rewarded with a
medal and the rank of lieutenant-colonel; and Major Alured Faunce,
who commanded the light infantry companies of the brigade, also
received a medal. The regiment had Major O'Halloran wounded, and
forty-eight serjeants and rank and file killed and wounded.
The troops pursued the flying enemy on the following day, and
after numerous marches and evolutions, the first battalion of the
KING'S OWN proceeded with the army to Madrid, where the British
were received with acclamations of joy. Meanwhile the second
battalion was in cantonments at Cuellar, with the sixth division
under Lieut.-General Sir Henry Clinton; but in September the two
battalions were united in front of _Burgos_ during the siege of the
castle.
When the concentration of the enemy's forces and the failure of the
attack on Burgos rendered a retrograde movement necessary, the army
withdrew in the night, and the French following in full career,
several skirmishes occurred. On the 24th of October the army was in
position behind the _Carion_, and the KING'S OWN were bivouacked
near Villa Muriel. The position was attacked on the following day,
and a French column having passed the river, took some prisoners
at the village and lined the bed of a canal; the brigade under
Major-General Pringle's orders was directed to clear the canal, and
the FOURTH advanced against their adversaries. The French troops
were driven back, the village was re-occupied in force, and the
canal was lined by the allied troops; but the army withdrew before
day-break on the 26th and the retreat was resumed.
The army took up positions from time to time to retard the advance
of the enemy; and having crossed the Douro and the Tormes, it was
posted behind the latter river until the middle of November; when
a further retreat to Ciudad Rodrigo took place. The KING'S OWN
having entered Portugal went into winter quarters at the villages
of Valdigeen and Saude, in the vicinity of Lamego.
Both battalions having sustained considerable loss during this
campaign, the second transferred its private men fit for duty to
the first battalion on the 24th of December, and, proceeding to
England, was stationed in Colchester barracks, where it was shortly
afterwards recruited in numbers by volunteers from the militia.
The second battalions of the thirtieth and forty-fourth regiments
being also reduced in numbers were sent to England, and the first
battalion of the KING'S OWN remaining in cantonments on the
northern frontiers of Portugal, was united in brigade with the
second battalions of the forty-seventh and fifty-ninth regiments,
under the orders of Major-General F. P. Robinson.
[Sidenote: 1813]
The campaign of 1813 was opened in May, when the army, entering
Spain, advanced against the enemy; the FOURTH formed part of the
force which traversed the mountainous country of Tras-os-Montes,
turned the enemy's position on the Douro, and forced him to
retreat; the rear of the retiring army was closely followed in its
retrograde movement; and the enemy, having blown up the castle of
Burgos, took a position on the Ebro, from which he was forced by a
flank movement.
The KING'S OWN, commanded by Lieut.-Colonel Brooke, shared in
the privations and fatigues consequent upon a march of several
hundred miles, sometimes traversing romantic mountain scenery,
ascending rugged precipices, or crossing rivers; on the 20th of
June, they were bivouacked at Margina, from whence they advanced
on the following day to attack the French army commanded by Joseph
Bonaparte in its position in front of _Vittoria_.
The regiment formed part of the force under Lieut.-General Sir
Thomas Graham, which advanced against the right of the French
army by the Bilboa road, and having taken possession of Gamara
Minor, the FOURTH, forty-seventh, and fifty-ninth regiments
were sent forward in columns of battalions, with the heroic
Major-General Robinson at their head, to storm the village of
_Gamara Major_, which was occupied as a tête-de-pont to the bridge
across the Zadora. Supported by two guns of Major Lawson's brigade
of artillery, the three regiments advanced with a determined
countenance; the French artillery opened a destructive fire, and
volleys of musquetry assailed the brigade in front; yet, undismayed
by the storm of bullets which rent chasms in the ranks, the British
regiments bore down upon their adversaries with fixed bayonets,
drove the enemy from the village with great slaughter, and captured
three guns.
This success was followed by an attack on the village of Abechuco,
by the first division. Meanwhile the French made great efforts
to repossess themselves of Gamara Major; but were repulsed, and
Abechuco was carried.
The possession of these villages enabled the troops to attack the
bridges across the Zadora; but these bridges were commanded by
a division of the enemy posted on the heights beyond the river.
Here the KING'S OWN, led by the gallant Lieut.-Colonel Brooke,
had another opportunity of displaying their native valour; they
charged three times across the bridge of Gamara Major; and when the
centre columns of the British army had penetrated to the vicinity
of Vittoria, the enemy vacated the heights, the river was passed,
and the retreat of the French army by the high road to France was
intercepted. Finally the French army was thrown into confusion,
and driven from the field with the loss of its artillery,
ammunition-waggons, and all its baggage and equipages.
The FOURTH had Lieutenant George Thorne, and Lieutenant and
Adjutant Thomas Barker killed; with Captains John Williamson, John
E. Kipping, James Ward, Charles James Edgell, and Ensign John
M'Crohon, wounded; also seventy-five non-commissioned officers and
soldiers killed and wounded. Their gallant conduct was afterwards
rewarded with the honour of bearing the word VITTORIA inscribed on
their colours.
After this victory the KING'S OWN were detached, with the remainder
of the left column, towards Bilboa, with the view of intercepting a
body of French under General Foy, who retreated on Bayonne. After
the enemy was driven beyond the frontiers of Spain, the regiment
was engaged in the siege of the strong and important fortress of
_St. Sebastian_, and supported the unsuccessful assault of the
works on the 25th of July: it also had the honour of taking a
conspicuous and important part in storming the breach on the 31st
of August.
When the assaulting party, led by the KING'S OWN, filed out of the
trenches, it was saluted with a tempest of shells and grape-shot
which blazed in the air, tore up the ground, and menaced the
brigade with instant destruction; yet, urged forward by their
native ardour and thirst for glory, the soldiers rushed through
this dreadful storm of bullets towards the breach, where they
encountered difficulties almost insuperable. Many of the KING'S
OWN, evincing their inborn valour and contempt of danger, rushed
up the breach and perished; others following, shared the same
fate. Every exertion and device which the most determined bravery
could inspire were repeatedly tried in vain, no man outliving the
attempt to gain the ridge. Lieutenant LE BLANC of the FOURTH, who
led the light infantry company of the regiment immediately after
the forlorn hope, particularly distinguished himself, and was the
only surviving officer of the advance. At length the British heavy
guns were turned against the curtain, and the bullets, which passed
a few feet only above the heads of the soldiers at the breach,
having produced some effect, another strenuous effort was made to
gain the high ridge. The officers and soldiers rushing forward with
enthusiastic gallantry, were favoured by the explosion of a mine,
and the breach was forced. The town was immediately captured, and
the citadel surrendered a few days afterwards.
The gallant behaviour of the KING'S OWN on this occasion is set
forth in the following copy of a letter from Major-General Robinson
to the colonel of the regiment.
"_St. Sebastian, 5th September, 1813._
"MY LORD,
"I feel it my duty to inform your lordship of the gallant conduct
of the first battalion of the KING'S OWN at the attack of the
breach of these works on the 31st August. The first attack was
the exclusive duty of the second brigade, consisting of the
FOURTH, forty-seventh, and fifty-ninth, with a company of
Brunswick Oels sharp-shooters; or rather of a thousand men of the
brigade; the remainder, to the amount of two hundred and fifty,
were in the trenches and waited further orders.
"The FOURTH led, and perhaps in the whole history of war there
cannot be found a stronger instance of courage and obedience to
orders, for the instructions were to make a lodgement on the
breach only; there to wait support. The lodgement was effected
under the most tremendous fire of grape and musquetry that can be
imagined, and our loss was dreadful, that of the FOURTH only is
twelve officers, nineteen serjeants, and two hundred and thirty
rank and file killed and wounded. The other regiments emulated
the FOURTH, and called forth the acclamations of the generals,
and thousands who were looking on. It was not until after three
hours hard fighting that the lodgement was certain, after which,
by the premature springing of one of the enemy's mines, the town
was soon carried.