From the moment that the news of the loss of Barcelona had reached
Madrid, Philip of Anjou had labored strenuously to collect a force
sufficient to overwhelm his enemies. He had, moreover, written urgently
to Louis XIV for assistance, and although France was at the moment
obliged to make strenuous efforts to show a front to Marlborough and his
allies, who had already at Blenheim inflicted a disastrous defeat
upon her, Louis responded to the appeal. Formidable French armies were
assembled at Saragossa and Roussillon, while a fleet of twelve ships of
the line, under the command of the Count of Toulouse, sailed to blockade
Barcelona, and the Duke of Berwick, one of the ablest generals of the
day, was sent to head the southern army.
In January the French army of Catalonia, under Marshal Tesse, reached
Saragossa, where the arrogance and brutality of the marshal soon excited
a storm of hatred among the Aragonese. The towns resisted desperately
the entry of the French troops; assassinations of officers and men were
matters of daily occurrence, and the savage reprisals adopted by the
marshal, instead of subduing, excited the Spaniards to still fiercer
resistance. But savage and cruel as was the marshal, he was in no haste
to meet the enemy in the field, and Philip, who was with him, had the
greatest difficulty in getting him to move forward.
It was in the last week of February that the news reached the Earl of
Peterborough that Marshal Tesse had left Saragossa, and was marching
toward Lerida. This was two days after the unsuccessful attempt to
surprise the enemy's camp near Alcira; and, menaced as Valencia was by a
force greatly superior to his own, he could not leave the city, which in
his absence would speedily have succumbed to the attack of Las Torres.
He walked quickly up and down his room for some minutes and then said:
“Captain Stilwell, I cannot leave here myself, but I will send you
to the Marquis of Cifuentes. You have shown the greatest activity and
energy with me, and I do not doubt that you will do equally well when
acting independently. I will give you a letter to the marquis, saying
that you are one of my most trusted and valued officers, and begging him
to avail himself to the fullest of your energy and skill. I shall
tell him that at present I am tied here, but that when the enemy reach
Barcelona, I shall at all hazards march hence and take post in their
rear and do what I can to prevent their carrying on the siege. In the
mean time I beg him to throw every obstacle in the way of their advance,
to hold every pass to the last, to hang on their rear, attack baggage
trains, and cut off stragglers. He cannot hope to defeat Tesse, but he
may wear out and dispirit his men by constant attacks. You speak Spanish
fluently enough now, and will be able to advise and suggest. Remember,
every day that Tesse is delayed gives so much time to the king to put
Barcelona in a state of defense. With my little force I cannot do much
even when I come. The sole hope of Barcelona is to hold out until a
fleet arrives from England. If the king would take my advice I will
guarantee that he shall be crowned in Madrid in two months; but those
pig headed Germans who surround him set him against every proposition I
make. You had better start tonight as soon as it gets dark, and take a
mounted guide with you who knows the country thoroughly.
“It will be a change for you, from the pleasures of Valencia to a
guerrilla warfare in the mountains in this inclement season, Stilwell,”
Graham said as they left the general. “I don't think I should care about
your mission. I own I have enjoyed myself in Valencia, and I have lost
my heart a dozen times since we arrived.”
“I have not lost mine at all,” Jack said laughing, “and I am sick of all
these balls and festivities. I was not brought up to it, you know, and
rough as the work may be I shall prefer it to a long stay here.”
“Yes,” Graham agreed, “I should not care for a long stay, but you may be
quite certain the earl will not remain inactive here many weeks. He is
waiting to see how things go, and the moment the game is fairly opened
you may be sure he will be on the move.”
“Yes, I don't suppose you will be very long after me,” Jack said;
“still, I am not sorry to go.”
At seven o'clock in the evening Jack set out, taking with him two
dragoons as orderlies, the earl having suggested that he should do so.
“Always do a thing yourself if it is possible, Captain Stilwell; but
there are times when you must be doing something else, and it is as well
to have some one that you can rely upon; besides, the orderlies will
give you additional importance in the eyes of the peasants. Most of the
men have picked up some Spanish, but you had better pick out two of my
orderlies who are best up in it.”
Jack had spent the afternoon in making a round of calls at the houses
where he had been entertained, and after the exchange of adieus,
ceremonial speeches, and compliments, he was heartily glad when the
gates closed behind him and he set out on his journey. As the road
did not pass anywhere near the Spanish camp there was little fear of
interruption in the way. The guide led them by little frequented tracks
across the hills, and by morning they were far on their road.
They were frequently obliged to make detours to avoid towns and villages
favorable to King Philip. Why one town or village should take one side,
and the next the other, was inexplicable to Jack, but it was so, and
throughout the country this singular anomaly existed. It could be
accounted for by a variety of causes. A popular mayor or a powerful
landed proprietor, whose sympathies were strong with one side or the
other, would probably be followed by the townspeople or peasants. The
influence of the priests, too, was great, and this also was divided.
However it was, the fact remained that, as with Villa Real and Nules,
neighboring towns were frequently enthusiastically in favor of opposite
parties. As Jack had seen all the dispatches and letters which poured
in to the earl, he knew what were the circumstances which prevailed in
every town and village. He knew to what residences of large proprietors
he could ride up with an assurance of welcome, and those which must be
carefully avoided.
In some parts of the journey, where the general feeling was hostile,
Jack adopted the tactics of his general, riding boldly into the village
with his two dragoons clattering behind him, summoning the head men
before him, and peremptorily ordering that provisions and forage should
be got together for the five hundred horsemen who might be expected to
come in half an hour. The terror caused by Peterborough's raids was
so great that the mere sight of the English uniform was sufficient to
insure obedience, and without any adventure of importance Jack and his
companions rode on, until, on the third day after leaving Valencia,
they approached Lerida. Groups of armed peasants hurrying in the same
direction were now overtaken. These saluted Jack with shouts of welcome,
and he learned that, on the previous day, Marshal Tesse with his army
had crossed from Arragon into Catalonia, and that the alarm bells had
been rung throughout the district.
From the peasants Jack learned where the Count of Cifuentes would be
found. It was in a village among the hills, to the left of the line
by which the enemy were advancing. It was toward this place that the
peasants were hastening. Jack had frequently met the count at the siege
of Barcelona, and had taken a strong liking for the gallant and dashing
Spanish nobleman. The village was crowded with peasants armed with all
sorts of weapons--rough, hardy, resolute men, determined to defend their
country to the last against the invaders. A shout of satisfaction arose
as Jack and his two troopers rode in, and at the sound the count himself
appeared at the door of the principal house in the village.
“Ah, Senor Stilwell,” he said, “this in an unexpected pleasure. I
thought that you were with the earl in Valencia.”
“So I have been, count, but he has sent me hither with a dispatch for
you, and, as you will see by its contents, places me for awhile at your
disposal.”
“I am pleased indeed to hear it,” the count said; “but pray, senor--”
“Captain, count,” Jack said with a smile, “for to such rank the earl has
been pleased to promote me as a recognition for such services as I was
able to perform in his campaign against Valencia.”
“Ah,” the count said, “you earned it well. Every man in that wonderful
force deserved promotion. It was an almost miraculous adventure, and
recalled the feats of the Cid. Truly the days of chivalry are not
passed; your great earl has proved the contrary.”
They had now entered the house, and, after pouring out a cup of wine
for Jack after the fatigue of his ride, the count opened the dispatch of
which Jack was the bearer.
“It is well.” he said when he had read it. “As you see for yourself I am
already preparing to carry out the first part, for the alarm bells have
been ringing out from every church tower in this part of Catalonia, and
in another twenty-four hours I expect six thousand peasants will be
out. But, as the earl says, I have no hope with such levies as these of
offering any effectual opposition to the advance of the enemy.
“The Miquelets cannot stand against disciplined troops. They have
no confidence in themselves, and a thousand Frenchmen could rout six
thousand of them; but as irregulars they can be trusted to fight. You
shall give me the advantage of your experience and wide knowledge, and
we will dispute every pass, cut off their convoys, and harass them. I
warrant that they will have to move as a body, for it will go hard with
any party who may be detached from the rest.”
“I fear, count, you must not rely in any way upon my knowledge,” Jack
said. “I am a very young officer, though I have had the good fortune to
be promoted to the rank of captain.”
“Age goes for nothing in this warfare,” the count said. “The man of
seventy and the boy of fifteen who can aim straight from behind a rock
are equally welcome. It is not a deep knowledge of military science that
will be of any use to us here. What is wanted is a quick eye, a keen
spirit, and courage. These I know that you have, or you would never have
won the approbation of the Earl of Peterborough, who is, of all men,
the best judge on such matters. Now I will order supper to be got ready
soon, as it must, I am sure, be long since you had food. While it is
being prepared I will, with your permission, go out and inspect the
new arrivals. Fortunately, ten days ago, foreseeing that Tesse would
probably advance by this line, I sent several wagon loads of provisions
to this village, and a store of ammunition.”
Jack accompanied the count into the street of the village. The latter
went about among the peasants with a kindly word of welcome to each,
giving them the cheering news that though the great English general was
occupied in Valencia, he had promised that, when the time came, he would
come with all haste to the defense of Barcelona, and in the mean time
he had sent an officer of his own staff to assist him to lead the noble
Catalans in the defense of their country. On the steps of the church the
priest, with half a dozen willing assistants, was distributing food from
the wagons to the peasants.
“Don't open the ammunition wagon tonight,” the count said. “The men must
not take as much as they like, but the ammunition must be served out
regularly, for a Catalan will never believe that he has too much powder,
and if left alone the first comers would load themselves with it, and
the supply would run short before all are provided.”
The count then entered the church, where a party of men were occupied
in putting down a thick layer of straw. Here as many as could find room
were to sleep, the others sheltering in the houses and barns, for the
nights were still very cold among the hills. Having seen that all was
going on well, the count returned to his quarters, where a room had been
assigned to Jack's two dragoons, and the sound of loud laughter from
within showed that they were making themselves at home with the inmates.
A well cooked repast was soon on the table, and to this Jack and his
host did full justice.
“This wine is excellent; surely it does not grow on these hills!”
“No,” the count said, laughing. “I am ready to run the risk of being
killed, but I do not want to be poisoned, so I sent up a score or two
of flasks from my own cellars. The vineyards of Cifuentes are reckoned
among the first in this part of Spain. And now,” he said, when they had
finished and the table had been cleared, “we will take a look at the map
and talk over our plans. The enemy leave Lerida tomorrow. I have already
ordered that the whole country along their line of march shall be
wasted, that all stores of corn, wine, and forage which cannot be
carried off shall be destroyed, and that every horse and every head
of cattle shall be driven away. I have also ordered the wells to be
poisoned.”
Jack looked grave. “I own that I don't like that,” he said.
“I do not like it myself,” the count replied; “but if an enemy invades
your country you must oppose him by all means. Water is one of the
necessaries of life, and as one can't carry off the wells one must
render them useless; but I don't wish to kill in this way, and have
given strict orders that in every case where poison is used, a placard,
with a notice that it has been done, shall be affixed to the wells.”
“In that case,” Jack said, “I quite approve of what you have done,
count; the wells then simply cease to exist as sources of supply.”
“I wish I could poison all the running streams too,” the count said;
“but unfortunately they are beyond us, and there are so many little
streams caused by the melting snow on the hills that I fear we shall not
be able greatly to straiten the enemy. At daybreak tomorrow I will mount
with you, and we will ride some twenty miles along the road and select
the spots where a sturdy resistance can best be made. By the time we get
back here most of the peasants who are coming will have assembled. These
we will form into bands, some to hold the passes and to dispute the
advance, others to hang upon the skirts and annoy them incessantly, some
to close in behind, cut off wagons that break down or lag by the way,
and to prevent, if possible, any convoys from the rear from joining
them.”
This programme was carried out. Several spots were settled on where an
irregular force could oppose a stout resistance to trained troops, and
points were fixed upon where breastworks should be thrown up, walls
utilized, and houses loopholed and placed in a state of defense.
It was late in the afternoon before they rode again into the village.
The gathering of peasants was now very largely increased, and extended
over the fields for some distance round the place. The count at once
gave orders that all should form up in regular order according to the
villages from which they came. When this was done he divided them into
four groups.
The first, two thousand strong, was intended to hold the passes; two
others, each one thousand strong, were to operate upon the flanks of the
enemy; and a fourth, of the same strength, to act in its rear.
“Now, Captain Stilwell,” he said, “will you take the command of
whichever of these bodies you choose?”
“I thank you, count, for the offer,” Jack said, “but I will take no
command whatever. In the first place, your Catalans would very strongly
object to being led by a foreigner, especially by one so young and
unknown as myself. In the second place, I would rather, with your
permission, remain by your side. You will naturally command the force
that opposes the direct attack, and, as the bulk of the fighting
will fall on them, I should prefer being there. I will act as your
lieutenant.”
“Well, since you choose it, perhaps it is best so,” the count said.
“These peasants fight best their own way. They are given to sudden
retreats, but they rally quickly and return again to the fight, and they
will probably fight better under their own local leaders than under a
stranger. You will see they have no idea of fighting in a body; the men
of each village will fight together and act independently of the rest.
Many of them, you see, are headed by priests, not a few of whom have
brought rifles with them. These will generally lead their own villagers,
and their authority is far greater than that which any layman could
obtain over them. I must appoint a leader to each body to direct their
general movements; the village chiefs will do the rest.”
While the count had been absent several other gentlemen of good family
had arrived in the village, some marching in with the peasants on their
estates. Three of these were appointed to lead the three bands destined
for the flank and rear attacks. The next three hours were devoted to the
distribution of provisions and ammunition, each man taking four days'
supply of the former, and receiving sufficient powder and bullets for
forty rounds of the latter. All were ordered to be in readiness to march
two hours before daybreak.
The count then retired to his quarters, and there pointed out on the map
to the three divisional leaders the spots where he intended to make a
stand, and gave them instructions as to their respective shares of the
operations. Their orders were very general. They were to post their men
on the side hills, and as much behind cover as possible, to keep up a
galling fire at the column, occasionally to show in threatening masses
as if about to charge down, so as to cause as much alarm and confusion
as possible, and, should at any point the nature of the ground favor
it, they were to dash down upon the baggage train and to hamstring the
horses, smash the wheels, and create as much damage as they could, and
to fall back upon the approach of a strong body of the enemy. Those in
the rear were to press closely up so as to necessitate a strong force
being kept there to oppose them. But their principal duties were to hold
the passes, and to prevent any convoys, unless very strongly guarded,
from reaching the enemy from his base at Saragossa.
After these instructions had been given supper was spread, and some
fifteen or twenty of the principal persons who had joined were invited
by the count, and a pleasant evening was spent.
It was interesting to Jack to observe the difference between this
gathering and that which had taken place in the Earl of Peterborough's
quarters on the evening before the attack on San Matteo. There, although
many considered that the prospects of success on the following day were
slight indeed, all was merriment and mirth. The whole party were in the
highest spirits, and the brilliant wit of the earl, and his reckless
spirit of fun, had kept the party in continual laughter.
The tone on the contrary at the present gathering was quiet and almost
stiff. These grave Catalan nobles, fresh from their country estates,
contrasted strongly with the more lively and joyous inhabitants of
Valencia. Each addressed the other with ceremony, and listened with
grave attention to the remarks of each speaker in turn.
During the whole evening nothing approaching to a joke was made, there
was scarcely a smile upon the countenance of any present; and yet the
tone of courtliness and deference to the opinions of each other, the
grave politeness, the pride with which each spoke of his country, their
enthusiasm in the cause, and the hatred with which they spoke of the
enemy, impressed Jack very favorably; and though, as he said to himself
when thinking it over, the evening had certainly not been a lively one,
it had by no means been unpleasant.
Two hours before daybreak the bell of the church gave the signal. As
the men had only to rise to their feet, shake themselves, take up their
arms, and sling their bags of provisions round their necks, it was but a
few minutes before they were formed up in order. The count saw the three
divisions file off silently in the darkness, and then, placing himself
at the head of the main body, led the way toward the spot which he and
Jack had selected for opposing the march of Tesse's invading column.
Daylight was just breaking when they reached it, and the count ordered
the men to pile their arms and at once to set to work. The road, which
had been winding along in a valley, here mounted a sharp rise, on the
very brow of which stood a hamlet of some twenty houses. It had already
been deserted by the inhabitants, and the houses were taken possession
of by the workers. Those facing the brow of the hill were loopholed,
as were the walls along the same line. Men were set to work to build a
great barricade across the road, and to run breastworks of stones right
and left from the points where the walls ended along the brow. Other
parties loopholed the houses and walls of the village, and formed
another barricade across the road at the other end. With two thousand
men at work these tasks were soon carried out; and the count then led
the men down the hill, whose face was covered with loose stones, and set
them to work piling these in lines one above another.
At ten o'clock in the morning the work was complete. The count told
the men off by parties, each of which were to hold one of the lines of
stones; each party was, as the French charged, to retire up the hill and
join that at the line above, so that their resistance would become more
and more obstinate till the village itself was reached. Here a stand was
to be made as long as possible. If the column advanced only by the road,
every house was to be held; if they spread out in line so as to overlap
the village on both sides, a rapid retreat was to be made when the
bugler by the count's side gave the signal.
The men sat down to breakfast in their allotted places, quiet, grave,
and stern; and again the contrast with the laughter and high spirits
which prevail among English soldiers, when fighting is expected, struck
Jack very forcibly.
“They would make grand soldiers if properly trained, these grave,
earnest looking men,” he said to himself. “They look as if they could
endure any amount of fatigue and hardship; and although they don't take
things in the same cheerful light our men do, no one can doubt their
courage. I can quite understand now the fact that the Spanish infantry
was once considered the finest in Europe. If they only had leaders and
discipline Spain would not want any foreign aid; her own people would be
more than a match for any army the French could send across the northern
frontier.”
The meal was scarcely finished when, at the end of the valley, some
three miles away, a cloud of dust was seen to rise with the sparkle of
the sun on arms and accouterments.
“There are Tesse's cavalry!” the count exclaimed. “Another half hour
will cause a transformation in this quiet valley.”
The head of the column came on but slowly, the cavalry regiment forming
it accommodating their pace to that of the infantry and baggage wagons
in the rear. Slowly they moved on, until the bottom of the valley
appeared covered with a moving mass extending from the end, three
miles away, to within half a mile of the foot of the hill on which the
Spaniards were posted. Suddenly from the hillsides on the left puffs of
smoke darted out, and instantly a similar fire was opened on the right.
“They are at work at last,” Jack exclaimed as the rattle of musketry
sounded loud and continuous. “I wondered when they were going to begin.”
“I told them to let the column pass nearly to the head of the valley
before they opened fire,” the count said. “Had they begun soon after the
enemy entered the valley, they would have left all their baggage behind
under a guard, and the infantry would have been free to attack the hills
at once. Now they are all crowded up in the valley--horse, foot, and
baggage. The wounded horses will become unmanageable, and there is sure
to be confusion, though perhaps not panic. See, they are answering our
fire! They might as well save their powder, for they are only throwing
away ammunition by firing away at the hillside.”
This indeed was the case; for Jack, although in the course of the
morning he had frequently watched the hillside for signs of the other
parties, had not made out the slightest movement, so completely were the
men hidden behind rocks and bushes.
Strong bodies of infantry were thrown out by Tesse on both flanks,
and these began to climb the hills, keeping up a heavy fire at their
concealed foe, while the main column continued its way.
Not a shot was fired by the Spanish until the head of the column was
within a hundred yards of the foot of the rise, and then from the whole
face of the hill a heavy fire was opened. The enemy recoiled, and for a
time there was great confusion near the head of the column; an officer
of high rank dashed up, and the troops formed out into a line across the
whole width of the valley and then moved forward steadily; so heavy were
their losses, however, that they presently came to a standstill. But
reinforcements coming up, they again pressed forward, firing as they
went.
Not until they were within twenty yards did the Miquelets lining the
lower wall of rocks leave their post, and, covered by the smoke, gain
with little loss the line next above them. Slowly the enemy won their
way uphill, suffering heavily as they did so, and continually being
reinforced from the rear. At the last wall the peasants, gathered now
together, maintained a long resistance; and it was not until fully four
thousand of the enemy were brought up that the position was seriously
threatened. Then their leader, seeing that they would sustain very heavy
loss if the enemy carried the wall by assault, ordered his trumpeter to
sound the retreat. It was at once obeyed, and by the time the French had
crossed the wall the peasants had already passed out at the other end of
the village.
As the French cavalry had not been able to pass the lower walls there
was no pursuit. The peasants rallied after a rapid flight of a mile.
Their loss had been small, while that of the French had been very
considerable; and the marshal halted his troops round the village for
the day.
The result of the fighting added to the resolution of the peasants,
and as soon as the French continued their route the next morning the
fighting began again. It was a repetition of that of the preceding day.
The enemy had to contest every foot of the ground, and were exposed to
a galling fire along the whole line of their march. Many times they made
desperate efforts to drive the peasants from the hillsides; sometimes
they were beaten back with heavy loss, and when they succeeded it was
only to find the positions they attacked deserted and their active
defenders already beyond musket fire. At night they had no respite; the
enemy swarmed round their camp, shot down the sentries, and attacked
with such boldness that the marshal was obliged to keep a large number
of his men constantly under arms.
At last, worn out by fatigue and fighting, the weary army emerged from
the hills into the wide valleys, where their cavalry were able to act,
and the ground no longer offered favorable positions of defense to
the peasantry. Seeing the uselessness of further attacks, the Count of
Cifuentes drew off his peasants; and Tesse marched on to Barcelona and
effected a junction with the troops from Roussillon under the Duke de
Noailles, who had come down by the way of Gerona. The town was at once
invested on the land side; while the Count of Toulouse, with thirty
French ships, blockaded it from the sea.