That the connection of the narrative might not be interrupted, I have
detailed, in the preceding chapter, the events attendant upon the
assault and capture of St Sebastian, instead of drawing the reader's
attention to the movements of the particular corps to which I chanced
to be attached. These, however, are soon related. On the evening of
the 26th an order arrived, by which we were directed to march on the
following day, and to join that division of the army which occupied the
pass of Irun. It was promptly obeyed; and after an agreeable journey
of four hours, we took up our abode in a barren valley, surrounded on
every side by steep and rugged mountains, where we found huts already
erected for our accommodation.
We remained here in a state of quiet till the morning of the 30th,
when, at three o'clock, an aide-de-camp arrived in the camp with
directions for us instantly to retrace our steps, and to join the army
before St Sebastian. We were perfectly aware that the town was to be
stormed on the following day, and, of course, were not reluctant to
obey a command which led us to the assistance of our comrades. The
ranks were accordingly formed with goodwill, and by seven o'clock we
had reached our ground.
It was the design of Sir Thomas Graham to embark a detachment of troops
in the boats of the fleet, who should assault the castle at the moment
when the main body moved from the trenches. The corps to which I
belonged was selected for this purpose. But on reconnoitring the face
of the cliff, it was at once perceived that, to make any attempt of the
kind, would only devote to certain destruction the luckless detachment
which should be so employed. This part of the plan was accordingly
abandoned; and a few boats only being manned, for the purpose of making
a feint, and for causing, if possible, a diversion, the remainder, with
the exception of such as were chosen to accompany the storming party,
returned, by the morrow's dawn, to the front.
I have already stated that the morning of the 31st rose darkly and
gloomily, and that, just as the besiegers had begun to fill the
trenches, a storm burst forth. It continued to increase in violence and
sublimity every moment; so that, when our leading files emerged from
their cover, one of the most fearful thunderstorms to which I ever
listened had attained its height. Nor was this the only circumstance
which added to the terrors of that eventful day. Marshal Soult, aware
of the importance of St Sebastian, and full of that confidence which
a late appointment to command generally bestows, made on the 31st a
desperate effort to raise the siege. At the head of a column of fifteen
thousand infantry he crossed the Bidassoa near Irun, and attacked with
great spirit the heights of St Marcial. These were defended only by
Spanish troops, which gave way almost immediately, and were driven to
the tops of the hills; but here, seeing a brigade or two of British
troops in reserve, they rallied, and maintained their ground with
considerable resolution. By this means it so happened that, whilst one
division of the army was hotly engaged in the assault of St Sebastian,
the divisions in front were in desperate strife with the troops of
Marshal Soult; while the heavens thundered in an awful manner, and the
rain fell in torrents. In one word, it was a day never to be forgotten
by those who witnessed its occurrence--it was a day which I, at least,
shall never forget.
It is impossible to describe, with any degree of fidelity, the
appearance which St Sebastian presented when the dawn of the 1st of
September rendered objects visible. The streets, which had lately been
covered with the living as well as the dead, were now left to the
occupation of the latter; and these were so numerous, that it puzzled
the beholder to guess where so many sleeping men could have found room
to lie. The troops, however, returned not, with the return of light, to
their accustomed state of discipline. Their strength being recruited by
sleep, and their senses restored, they applied themselves with greater
diligence than ever to the business of plunder. Of the houses few now
remained, except in a state of ruin; but even the ruins were explored
with the most rapacious eagerness, not so much for jewels and other
valuables as for wine and spirits. Unfortunately, many cellars were
this day discovered, which, in the hurry and confusion of last night,
had escaped detection; and the consequence was, that in the space of a
very few hours intoxication once more prevailed throughout the army.
Of St Sebastian, and the proceedings within it, I can say no more from
personal observation, my post being now with the advance of the army;
but I may as well add, that the castle still held out, and continued
so to do, till the 8th of September. It was, however, as we afterwards
discovered, wholly unprovided with shelter against the shells which
were unintermittingly thrown into it; and hence, after suffering every
possible misery during a whole week, the governor was at last obliged
to surrender. About nine hundred men, the remains of a garrison of four
thousand, became by this measure prisoners of war, and such British
prisoners as had escaped the horrors of the siege were recaptured; but
the place itself was utterly valueless, being in a state of the most
complete dilapidation.
The whole of the 1st of September was spent under arms, and in a
state of deep anxiety, by the troops which occupied the pass of Irun,
inasmuch as various movements in the French lines appeared to indicate
a renewal of hostilities. Many bullock-cars, laden with wounded
Spaniards, passed in the meanwhile through our encampment; and the
groans and shrieks of these poor fellows, as the jolting of their
uneasy vehicles shook their wounds open afresh, by no means tended to
elevate the spirits, or add to the courage of those who heard them.
Not that there was any reluctance on our part to engage: I believe a
reluctance to fight was never felt by Britons when the enemy were in
sight; but a few of the real effects of war, contemplated in a moment
of coolness and inaction, seldom has the effect of adding fuel to the
valorous fire which is supposed at all moments to burn in the breast of
a soldier; and, in truth, this was a piteous sight.
Of all the classes of men with whom I ever had intercourse, the
Spanish surgeons are, I think, the most ignorant and the most
prejudiced. Among the many amputations which during the war they were
called upon to perform, about one-half, or more than half, proved
fatal. Their mode of dressing other wounds was, moreover, at once
clumsy and inefficient; and hence the mangled wretches who passed us
this morning were not only suffering acutely from the natural effect of
their hurts, but were put to more than ordinary torture on account of
the clumsy and rude manner in which their hurts had been looked to.
Though I have no intention of writing a history of the campaigns
of 1813 and 1814, it is necessary, for the purpose of rendering my
journal intelligible, to give, in this stage of it, some account of the
relative situations of the British and French armies.
The two kingdoms of France and Spain are divided, towards the shores
of the Bay of Biscay, by the river Bidassoa--an inconsiderable stream,
which, rising about the centre of the Peninsula, follows the winding
course of one of those many valleys with which the Pyrenees abound, and
falls into the sea near the ancient town of Fontarabia. The Bidassoa
is perfectly fordable in almost all places, at the distance of ten
miles from its mouth; whilst immediately opposite to Fontarabia itself
there is one part where, at low tide, a passage may be effected, the
water reaching only to the chest of him who crosses. About two or three
miles from Irun, which is distant something less than a league from
Fontarabia, is another ford, across which a bridge had been built, but
which, at the period of my narrative, was in ruins; consequently, there
were two separate fords leading to the pass of Irun, by both or either
of which an army might advance with safety.
On either side of this little stream, the mountains, except at the
passes of Irun, Roncesvalles, &c., rise so abruptly as to form an
almost impassable barrier between the one kingdom and the other. The
scenery of the Bidassoa is, in consequence, romantic and striking in
the extreme; for not only are the faces of the hills steep and rugged,
but they are clothed, here and there, with the most luxuriant herbage;
whilst frequent streams pouring down from the summits, form, especially
after rain, cascades that are exceedingly picturesque, and in some
instances almost sublime. The river itself is clear, and rapid in its
course--winding, as mountain streams generally do, where hills come in
to impede their progress; and that it is not deficient in excellent
trout, I am still a living witness, having, with my friend Captain
Grey, more than once fished it.
At the period of which I am now speaking, the armies of Lord Wellington
and Marshal Soult occupied the opposite banks of this little stream.
Our pickets were stationed on the rise of the Spanish hills; those of
the French on the faces of their own mountains; whilst the advanced
sentinels were divided only by the river, which measured, in many
places, not more than thirty yards across. But the French, whatever
their faults may be, are a noble enemy. The most perfect understanding
prevailed between them and us, by which not only the sentries
continued free from danger, but the pickets themselves were safe from
wanton surprisal; no attack upon an outpost being under any other
circumstances thought of, unless it was meant to be followed up by a
general engagement.
For myself, my situation was, as I have already stated, in a bleak
valley, distant nearly three miles from the river, and surrounded on
every side by bold and barren precipices. In such a place there was
little either to interest or amuse; for of the French army we could see
nothing; and of game, in quest of which I regularly proceeded, there
was a woeful scarcity. There, however, we remained till the morning
of the 5th, without any event occurring worthy of notice, unless a
fortunate purchase of two excellent milch-goats, which I effected from
a Spanish peasant, be deemed such. But on that day our position was
changed; and the glorious scenery to which the march introduced us far
more than compensated for the fatigues occasioned by it.
It is by no means the least pleasing circumstance in the life of a
soldier upon active service that he never knows, when he awakes in
the morning, where he is to sleep at night. Once set in motion, and,
like any other machine, he moves till the power which regulates his
movements shall call a halt; and wherever that halt may occur, there,
for the present, is his home. Such a man has not upon his mind the
shadow of a care; for the worst bed which he can meet with is the turf;
and he seldom enjoys a better than his cloak or blanket. Give him but
a tent--and with tents the commander of the forces had lately supplied
us--and he is in luxury; at least as long as the summer lasts, or the
weather continues moderate; nor had we as yet experienced any blasts
against which our tents furnished not a sufficient shelter.
The sun was just rising on the morning of the 5th of September when
our tents were struck, the line of march formed, and ourselves _en
route_ towards the base of one of the highest hills which hemmed us
in on every side. Along the face of this mountain was cut a narrow
winding path, for the accommodation, in all probability, of goatherds
or muleteers, who contrive to transport articles of luxury and clothing
into the wildest districts where human inhabitants are to be found. It
was, however, so rough and so precipitous, as effectually to hinder
our men from preserving anything like order in their ranks; and thus
caused a battalion of little more than six hundred bayonets to cover
an extent of ground measuring, from front to rear, not less than three
quarters of a mile. Of course the fatigue of climbing, loaded as we
were with arms, ammunition, and necessaries, was great; and as the
heat of the day increased it became almost intolerable. But we toiled
on in good spirits, hoping that each vale or level at which we arrived
would prove the place of our rest, and not a little delighted with the
romantic scenery to which every turning in the road introduced us.
We had continued this arduous journey during five hours, when, on
reaching the summit of an isolated green hill, at the back of the ridge
already described, four mounted officers crossed us, one of them riding
a little ahead of the rest, who, on the contrary, kept together. He
who rode in front was a thin, well-made man, apparently of the middle
stature, and not yet past the prime of life. His dress was a plain grey
frock, buttoned close to the chin; a cocked-hat, covered with oilskin;
grey pantaloons, with boots, buckled at the side; and a steel-mounted
light sabre. Though I knew not who he was, there was a brightness in
his eye which bespoke him something more than an aide-de-camp or a
general of brigade; nor was I long left in doubt. There were in the
ranks many veterans who had served in the Peninsula during some of the
earlier campaigns; these instantly recognised their old leader, and the
cry of "Duro, Duro!" the familiar title given by the soldiers to the
Duke of Wellington, was raised. This was followed by reiterated shouts,
to which he replied by taking off his hat and bowing; when, after
commending the appearance of the corps, and chatting for a moment with
the commanding officer, he advised that a halt should take place where
we were, and rode on.
As I had never seen the great Captain of the day before, it will be
readily imagined that I looked at him on the present occasion with a
degree of admiration and respect such as a soldier of seventeen years
of age, devoted to his profession, is likely to feel for the man whom
he regards as its brightest ornament. There was in his general aspect
nothing indicative of a life spent in hardships and fatigues; nor any
expression of care or anxiety in his countenance. On the contrary, his
cheek, though bronzed with frequent exposure to the sun, had on it
the ruddy hue of health, while a smile of satisfaction played about
his mouth, and told, more plainly than words could have spoken, how
perfectly he felt himself at his ease. Of course I felt, as I gazed
upon him, that an army under his command could not be beaten; and I
had frequent opportunities afterwards of perceiving how far such a
feeling goes towards preventing a defeat. Let troops only place perfect
confidence in him who leads them, and the sight of him, at the most
trying moment, is worth a fresh brigade.
In compliance with the recommendation of Lord Wellington, the corps
halted on the beautiful green hill to which it had attained; but two
full hours elapsed ere the baggage came up. In the mean time, by far
the greater number among us, myself included, threw ourselves down upon
the grass, and fell fast asleep; from which we were not roused till the
arrival of the tents summoned us to the not less agreeable occupation
of boiling our kettles and preparing breakfast. This was quickly
commenced; and having satisfied the cravings of hunger, we dispelled
every source of annoyance to which we were subject.