Author of "With Roberts to Pretoria" "Held Fast for England"
"Under Drake's Flag" &c.
_WITH TEN FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS BY WAL. PAGET_
LONDON
BLACKIE & SON, LIMITED, 50 OLD BAILEY, E.C.
GLASGOW AND DUBLIN
1903
*PREFACE*
The story of the doings of the British Legion under Sir de Lacy Evans in
Spain is but little known. The expedition was a failure, and that from
no want of heroic courage on the part of the soldiers, but from the most
scandalous neglect and ill-treatment by the Government of Queen
Christina. So gross was this neglect that within six months of their
arrival in the Peninsula nearly five thousand, that is to say half the
Legion, had either died from want, privation, or fever in the hospitals
of Vittoria, or were invalided home. The remainder, although ill-fed,
ill-clothed, and with their pay nine months in arrear, showed themselves
worthy of the best traditions of the British army, and it was only at
the end of their two years' engagement that, finding all attempts to
obtain fair treatment from the Government unavailing, they took their
discharge and returned home.
The history of their doings as described in the following story is
largely founded on a pamphlet by Alex. Somerville, a man of genius who
enlisted in the Legion; and the events subsequent to its disbandment are
taken from the work of Major Duncan, one of the Commissioners appointed
by the British Government to endeavour to see that the conditions of a
convention entered into by our Government and the leaders of the
contending parties in Spain were duly observed--a convention, however,
that had very small influence in checking the atrocities committed by
both combatants.