THE SPANISH ACCOUNT OF THE REPULSE OF NELSON FROM SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE.
[Footnote: From the _Relacion circumstanciada de la Defensa que hizo
la Plaza de Santa Cruz_, by M. Monteverde. Published in Madrid, 1798.]
The following pages afford a circumstantial and, I believe, a fairly
true account of an incident much glossed over by our naval
historians. The subject is peculiarly interesting. At Santa Cruz, as at
Fontenoy, the Irish, whom harsh measures at home drove for protection to
more friendly lands, took ample share in the fighting which defeated
England's greatest sailor. Again, the short-sighted policy which sent to
the Crimea 20,000 British soldiers to play second instrument in concert
with 40,000 Frenchmen, thus lowering us in the eyes of Europe, made
Nelson oppose his 960 hands to more than eight times their number. The
day may come when the attack shall be repeated. Now that steam has
rendered fleets independent of south-west winds, it is to be hoped the
assailant will prefer day to night, so that his divisions can
communicate; that he will not land in the 'raging surf' of the ebb-tide,
and that he will attack the almost defenceless south instead of the
well-fortified north of the city.
Already the heroic Island had inflicted partial or total defeat upon
three English admirals. [Footnote: Grand Canary also did her duty by
beating off, in October 1795, Drake's strong squadron.] In April 1657
the Roundhead 'general at sea,' Admiral Sir Robert Blake, of
Bridgewater, attempted to cut out the Spanish galleons freighted with
Mexican gold and with the silver of Peru. Of these the principal were
the _Santo-Cristo_, the _Jesus-Maria_, the _Santo Sacramento_,
_La Concepcion_, the _San Juan_, the _Virgen de la Solitud_,
and the _Nuestra Señora del Buen Socorro_. This 'silver fleet'
was moored under the guns of the 'chief castle,' San Cristobal,
the mean work at the root of the mole. The English were
preparing to board, when the Captain-General, D. Diego de Egues, whom
our histories call 'Diagues,' ordered the fleet to be fired, after all
the treasure had been housed in the fort. A steady fight lasted three
hours, during which the wife of the brave Governor, D. Estevan de la
Guerra, distinguished herself. 'I shall not be useless here,' she
exclaimed when invited to leave the batteries; and this 'maid of
Tenerife' continued to animate the garrison till the end. As was the
case with his great successor, Roundhead Blake's failure proved to him
far better than a success. For his _francesada_, or _coup de
tête_, Nelson expected to lose his commission, instead of which some
popular freak flung to him honour and honours. So Protector Cromwell
sent a valuable diamond ring to his 'general at sea,' in token of esteem
on his part and that of his Parliament. Our histories, relying on the
fact that a few weak batteries were silenced, claim for the Admiral a
positive victory, despite his losses--fifty killed and 500 wounded.
[Footnote: The late Mr. Hepworth Dixon (_Life of Blake_, p. 346)
describes the open roadstead of Santa Cruz as a 'harbour shaped like a
horse-shoe, and defended at the north side of the entrance by a regular
castle.' In p. 350 we also read of the bay and its entrance. Any
hydrographic chart would have set him right.]
In 1706, during the Spanish war of succession, Admiral Jennings sailed
into Santa Cruz bay--the old Bay of Anaga or Anago--and lay off San
Cristobal
[Footnote: This work still remains. It is a parallelogram with four
bastions in star-shape, fronting the sea, and an embrasured wall facing
the town. It began as a chapel, set up by De Lugo to N. S. de la
Consolacion, and a tower was added in 1493. It was destroyed by the
Guanches and rebuilt by Charles Quint: the present building assumed its
shape in 1579. The main square, inland of San Cristobal, shows by a
marble cross where the conqueror planted with one hand a large affair of
wood--hence Santa Cruz. The original is, or was till lately, in the
Civil Hospital.]
with twelve ships of the line. The Plaza was commanded, in the absence
of the Captain-General, by the Corregidor, D. Antonio de Ayala, who
assembled all the nobles in the castle's lower rooms and swore them to
loyalty. The English attempted to disembark, and were beaten back;
whereupon, as under Nelson, they sent a parliamentary and summoned the
island to surrender to the Archduke Charles of Austria. The envoy
informed the Governor, who is described by Dampier as sitting in a low,
dark, uncarpeted room, adorned only with muskets and pikes, that Philip
V. had lost Gibraltar, that Cadiz and Minorca had nearly fallen, and
that the American galleons in the port of Vigo had been burnt or
captured by the English, whose army, entering Castile, had overrun
Aragon, Catalonia, and Valencia. The brave reply was, 'If Philip, our
king, had lost his all in the Peninsula, these islands would still
remain faithful to him.' And the castle guns did such damage that the
Jennings squadron sailed away on the same evening.
The third expedition, detached by Admiral Sir John Jervis, afterwards
Earl St. Vincent, to 'cut out a richly freighted Manilla ship,' also
resulted in a tremendous failure. Captain Brenton, to gratify national
complacency, grossly exaggerates in his 'Naval History' the difficulty
of the enterprise. 'Of all places which ever came under our inspection
none, we conceive, is more invulnerable to attack or more easily
defended than Teneriffe.' He forgets to mention its principal guard, the
valour of the inhabitants. And now to my translation.
'At dawn on July 2, [Footnote: James (_Naval History_,
vol. ii. p. 56) more correctly says July 20. So the _Despatches, &c.,
of Lord Nelson_, Sir H. Nicholas, vol. ii. p. 429. The thanksgiving
for the victory took place on July 27, the fête of SS. Iago and
Cristobal.] 1797, the squadron [Footnote: The squadron was composed as
follows:--1. _Theseus_ (74), Captain Ralph Willett Miller, carried
the Rear-Admiral's flag; 2. _Culloden_ (74), Commodore and Captain
Thos. Troubridge; 3. _Zealous_ (74), Captain Sam. Hood;
4. _Leander_ (50), Captain Thos. Boulden Thomson, which joined on
the day before the attack. There were three frigates:--1. _Seahorse_
(38), Captain Thos. Francis Fremantle; 2. _Emerald_ (36), Captain
John Waller; and 3. _Terpsichore_ (32), Captain Richard Bowen; also
the _Fox_ (cutter), Lieut. Commander John Gibson, and a mortar-boat
or a bomb-ketch, probably a ship's launch with a shell-gun.] of
Rear-Admiral Horatio Nelson, K.B., composed of nine ships, and
carrying a total of 393 guns, appeared off Santa Cruz, the port
of Tenerife, Canarian archipelago. The enemy at once manned and
put off his boats. One division of sixteen occupied our front; the
other twenty-three took the direction of the Bufadero valley, a wild
gap two or three miles to the north of the harbour.
'An alarm signal was immediately made in the town, when the enemy
returned to his ships, and made his troops prepare to disembark. At ten
A.M. the three frigates, towed by their boats, cast anchor out of
cannon-shot, near the Bufadero; whilst the other vessels plied to
windward, [Footnote: At the time the weather was calm in the town, but a
violent levante, or east wind, prevented vessels from approaching the
bay, where the lee shore is very dangerous.] and disembarked about 1,200
men on the beach of Valle Seco, between the town and the valley. This
party occupied the nearest hill before it could be attacked; its
movements showed an intention to seize the steep rocky scarp commanding
the Paso Alto--the furthest to the north of the town. [Footnote:
Nelson's rough sketch, vol. ii. p. 434, shows that it had 26 guns. San
Cristobal de Paso Alto commands the large ravine called by the Guanches
'Tahoide' or 'Tejode,' which is now defended by San Miguel. This is a
small rockwork carrying six guns in two tiers, the upper _en
barbette_ and the lower casemated.] Thus the enemy would have been
enabled to land fresh troops during the night; and, after gaining the
heights and roads leading to the town, to attack us in flank as well as
in front.
'Light troops were detached to annoy the invader, and they soon occupied
the passes with praiseworthy celerity and boldness. One party was led by
the Capitaine de Frégate Citizen Ponné [Footnote: James calls him Zavier
Pommier. He commanded the French brig _Mutine_ (14), of 349 tons,
with a crew of 135. As he landed at Santa Cruz with 22 of his men on May
28, 1797, the frigates _Lively_, Captain Benjamin Hallowell, and
the _Minerva_, Captain George Cockburn, descried the hostile
craft. Lieutenant Hardy, of the _Minerva_, supported by six
officers and their respective boats' crews, boarded her as she lay at
anchor. Despite the fire of the garrison and of a large ship in the
roads, he carried her, after an hour's work, safe out of gunshot. Only
15 men were wounded, including Lieutenant Hardy. This officer was at
once put in command of the _Mutine_, which he had so gallantly
won.] and by the Lieutenant de Vaisseau Citizen Faust. Both officers,
who had been exchanged and restored at the same port, showed much
presence of mind on this occasion, and on July 25 they applied to be
posted at a dangerous point of attack--the beach to the south of the
town, near Puerto Caballas, beyond where the Lazaretto now lies. When
the enemy purposed assaulting a more central post, they came up at the
moment of the affair, ending in our victory.
'A second party was composed of the Infantry Battalion of the Canaries,
[Footnote: This battalion afterwards distinguished itself highly in the
Peninsular war.] under Sub-Lieutenant Don Juan Sanchez. A third,
composed of 70 recruits from the Banderas [Footnote: _Bandera_ is a
flag, a depôt, also a levy made by officers of Government.] of Havana
and Cuba, was led by Second Lieutenant Don Pedro Castillo; a fourth
numbered seventeen artillerymen and two officers, Lieutenant Don Josef
Feo and Sub-Lieutenant Don Francisco Dugi. A fifth, and the last, was of
twenty-five free chasseurs belonging to the town, and commanded by
Captains Don Felipe Viña and Don Luis Roman.
'Our Commandant-General, H. E. Señor Don Juan Antonio Gutierrez,
[Footnote: Not Gutteri, as James has it, nor 'Gutienez,' as Mrs. Murray
prefers.] was residing in the principal castle of San Cristobal. His
staff consisted of the commandants of the Royal Corps of Artillery and
Engineers, Don Marcelo Estranio and Don Luis Margueli; of the Auditor of
War (an old office, the legal military adviser and judge), Don Vicente
Patiño; of Lieutenant-Colonel Don Juan Creagh (locally pronounced
Cré-ah); of the Secretary of Inspection Captain Don Juan Creagh; of the
Secretary to Government and Captain of Militia Don Guillermo de los
Reyes; of the Captain of Infantry Don Josef Victor Dominguez; of
Lieutenants Don Vicente Siera and Don Josef Calzadilla,
Town-Adjutant--the latter three acting as aides-de-camp to his
Excellency--and of the first officers of the Tobacco and Postal Bureaux,
Don Juan Fernandez Uriarte and Don Gaspar de Fuentes.
'The five parties before alluded to, numbering a total of 191, were, at
his own request, placed under Lieutenant-Colonel the Marquess de la
Fuente de las Palmas, commanding the division of chasseurs. The first to
mount the hill nearest the enemy, he saw the increased force of the
attacker, who had placed a 4-pounder in position; whereupon he sent for
reinforcements and some pieces of cannon. Our Commandant-General, on
receipt of the message, ordered up four guns (3- and 4-pounders) with
fifty men under a captain of the Infantry Battalion of the
Canaries. Universal admiration was excited by the agility and
intrepidity with which twenty militiamen of the Laguna Regiment, under
the chief of that corps, Florencio Gonsalez, scaled the cliffs, carrying
on their shoulders, besides their own arms and ammunition, the four guns
and their appurtenances.
'Meanwhile our troops replied bravely to the enemy's deliberate fire of
musketry and field-pieces. As he sallied out to a spring in the Valle
Seco, two of his men were killed by the French party and the levies of
Havana and Cuba, whilst a third died of suffocation whilst scaling the
heights. At the same time Lieutenant-Colonel Don Juan Creagh, commanding
the Infantry Battalion, accompanied by a volunteer, Don Vicente Siera,
Lieutenant of the local corps (_fixo_) of Cuba, led thirty of his
men and fifty Rozadores [Footnote: The insular name of an irregular
corps, now done away with. Literally taken, the word means sicklemen.]
belonging to the city of La Laguna. They proceeded across country in
order to reconnoitre the enemy's rear. Before nightfall they succeeded
in occupying high ground in the same valley opposite the heights held by
the English, and in manning the defiles through which the latter must
pass on their way to the town.
'As soon as the enemy saw these troops, he formed in five companies near
his field-gun. Lieutenant-Colonel Creagh was joined by some 500 men of
the Laguna militia, and their lieutenant, Don Nicholas Quintin Garcia,
followed by the peasantry of the adjoining districts, under the Alcalde
or Mayor of Taganana. These and all the other troops were liberally
supplied with provisions by the _Ayuntamiento_ (municipality) of
the Island.
'On the next morning (July 23) our scouts being sent down to the valley,
found that the enemy had disappeared during the night. Notwithstanding
which, the Marquess de las Palmas ordered a deliberate fire to be kept
up in case of surprise. Our General, when informed of the event,
recalled the troops. The Marquess, who unfortunately received a fall
which kept him _hors de combat_ for many days, [Footnote: I find
pencilled in the original volume, 'Que caida tam oportuna!' (What a
lucky fall!)] obeyed with his command at 5 P.M., leaving behind him
thirty men under Don Felix Uriundo, second lieutenant of the Battalion
of Canaries. Don Juan Creagh did the same with his men. But as the
French commandant reported that some of the enemy were still lurking
about the place, our General-in-Chief directed Captain Don Santiago
Madan, second adjutant of the same corps, to reconnoitre once more the
Valle Seco with 120 Rozadores. This duty was well performed, despite the
roughness of the paths and the excessive heat of the sun.
'The enemy's squadron now seemed inclined to desist from its attempt. At
6 A.M. of July 23 Rear-Admiral Nelson's flagship, which, with the other
ships of the line, had kept in the offing, drew near, and signalled the
frigates to sheer off from the point and to rejoin the rest of the
squadron. These, however, at 3 P.M., allowed themselves to drop down the
coast towards the dangerous southern reaches between Barranco Hondo,
beyond the Quarantine-house and the village of Candelaria, distant a
day's march from Santa Cruz. To prevent their landing men, Captain Don
Antonio Eduardo, and the special engineer, Don Manuel Madera,
reconnoitred the shore about Puerto Caballas, to see if artillery could
be brought there. Meanwhile Sub-Lieutenant Don Cristobal Trinidad, of
the Guimar Regiment, watched, with fifty of his men, the coast near San
Isidro, [Footnote: Here the landing is easiest.] which is not far from
Barranco Hondo. The squadron, however, retired to such a distance that
it could hardly be discerned from the town, as it bore S.E. 1/4 E.:
notwithstanding which, all preparations were made to give the enemy a
warm reception.
'At daylight on July 24 the squadron again appeared, crowding on all
sail to gain the weather-side. The look-out at Anaga Point, north of the
island, signalled three ships from that direction, and two to the south,
where we could distinguish only one of fifteen guns, which was presently
joined by the rest. At 6 P.M. the enemy anchored with his whole force on
the same ground which the frigates chose on the 22nd, and feinted to
attack Paso Alto Fort. Our General and chiefs were not deceived.
Foreseeing that we should be assaulted in front, and to the
right or south, [Footnote: The town of Santa Cruz runs due north and
south in a right line; the bay affords no shelter to shipping, and the
beach is rocky.] they made their dispositions accordingly, without,
however, neglecting to protect the left.
'At 6 P.M. a frigate and the bomb-ketch approached Paso Alto, and the
latter opened fire upon the fort and the heights behind it. These
positions were occupied by 56 men of the Battalion of the Canaries, 40
Rozadores, under Second Lieutenant Don Felix Uriundo, and 16
artillerymen, commanded by Sub-Lieutenant of Militia Artillery Don Josef
Cambreleng. [Footnote: A Flemish name, I believe: the family is still in
the island.] Of 43 shells, however, only one fell in the fort, bursting
in a place where straw for soldiers' beds had been stored, and this,
like the others, did no damage. [Footnote: A fragment of this shell is
preserved in the Fort Chapel for the edification of strangers.] Paso
Alto, commanded by the Captain of the Royal Corps of Artillery, Don
Vicente Rosique, replied firmly. At the same time Don Juan del Castillo,
sub-lieutenant of militia, with 16 men, reconnoitred, by H. E. the
Governor's orders, the Valle Seco. The operation was boldly performed,
despite the darkness of night and other dangers; and our soldiers
returned with a prisoner, an Irish sailor of the _Fox_ cutter, who
had swum off from his ship.
'The enemy now prepared his force for the attack. One thousand five
hundred men, [Footnote: James numbers 200 seamen and marines from each
of the three line-of-battle ships, and 100 from each of the three
frigates, besides officers, servants, and a small detachment of Royal
Artillery. This made a total of 1,000 to 1,060 men, commanded by
Captain, afterwards Admiral, Sir Thomas Troubridge, Bart. Nelson
(_Despatches_, vol. ii. p. 43) says 600 to 700 men in the squadron
boats, 180 on board the _Fox_, and about 70 or 80 in a captured
boat; total, at most, 960.] as we were afterwards informed, well armed
with guns, pistols, pikes, swords, saws, and hatchets, and led by their
best officers, among whom was the Rear-Admiral, embarked in their
boats. At 2.15 A.M. (July 25) they put off in the deepest silence. The
frigate of the Philippine Islands Company, anchored outside the shipping
in the bay, discovered them when close alongside. Almost at the same
moment the Paso Alto Fort, under Lieutenant-Colonel Don Pedro de
Higueras, and the Captain of Artillery Don Vicente Rosique, gave the
signal to the (saluting) battery of San Antonio [Footnote: This old
work, _à fleur d'eau_, still remains; and near it are the ruins of
the Bateria de los Melones, on land bought by the Davidson family.] in
the town, held by the Captain of Militia Artillery Don Patricio
Madan. They alarmed the citizens by their fire, and the enemy attacked
with rare intrepidity.
'The defence was gallantly kept up by the battery of San Miguel, under
Sub-Lieutenant of Artillery Don Josef Marrero; by the Castle of San
Pedro, [Footnote: The San Pedro battery dated from 1797. It defended the
southern town with six embrasures and three guns _en barbette_. For
many years huge mortars and old guns lay outside this work.] under the
Captain of Artillery Don Francisco Tolosa; by the Provisional Battery de
los Melones, [Footnote: Now destroyed. It was, I have said, near the new
casemates north of the town.] under the Sergeant of Militia Juan
Evangelista; by the Mole-battery, under Lieutenant of the Royal Corps of
Artillery Don Joaquim Ruiz and Sub-Lieutenant of Militia Don Francisco
Dugi; by the Castle of San Cristobal, under the Captain of the Royal
Regiment of Artillery and Brigade-Major Don Antonio Eduardo, who
commanded the central and right batteries, and Lieutenant of Militia
Artillery Don Francisco Grandi, to whom were entrusted the defences on
our left; by the battery of La Concepcion, [Footnote: Where the Custom
House now is, in the middle of the town.] under Captain of the Royal
Regiment of Artillery Don Clemente Falcon; and by that of San Telmo,
[Footnote: Near the dirty little square south of the Custom House. The
word is thus written throughout the Canary Islands; in Italy, Sant'
Elmo.] under the Captain of Militia Artillery Don Sebastian Yanez.
'The rest of our line did not fire, because the enemy's boats had not
passed the Barranco, or stony watercourse, which divides the southern
from the northern town. In the Castle of San Juan,
[Footnote: It is the southernmost work, afterwards used as a
powder-magazine. To the south of the town are also the Bateria de la
Rosa, near the coal-sheds, and the Santa Isabel work. The latter had 22
fine brass guns, each of 13 centimètres, made at Seville, once a famous
manufactory.]
however, Captain Don Diego Fernandez Calderia trained four guns to bear
upon the beach, which was protected by the Laguna militia regiment,
under Lieutenant-Colonel Juan de Castro.
'So hot and well-directed was our fire, that almost all the boats were
driven back, and the _Fox_ cutter, with her commander and 382 of
the landing party--others said 450--also carrying a reserve store of
arms and ammunition, was sunk. [Footnote: Nelson, _loc. cit._, says
180 men were in the _Fox_, and of these 97 were lost. So Captain
Brenton, _Naval History_, says 97. In vol. ii. p. 84, speaking of
Trafalgar, he informs us that the French ship _Indomptable_ (84),
M. Hubart, was wrecked off Rota, where her crew, said to be 1,500 men,
_all perished_. Add, 'except M. Maffiote, of Tenerife, and about
143 others.'] Rear-Admiral Nelson lost his right arm before he could
touch ground, and was compelled to return to his flag-ship, with the
other officers of his boat all badly wounded. [Footnote: The grape-shot
was fired from the Castle of San Pedro; others opine from San Cristobal;
and the Canarese say that a splinter of stone did the work. According to
most authorities, Nelson was half-way up the mole. James declares that
Nelson's elbow was struck by a shot as he was drawing his sword and
stepping out of his boat. In Nelson's _Despatches, loc. cit._, we
read that the 'mole was instantly stormed and carried, although defended
by 400 or 500 men, and the guns--six 24-pounders--were spiked; but such
a heavy fire of musketry and grape-shot was kept up from the citadel and
houses at the head of the mole that we could not advance, and nearly all
were killed.'] The brave Captain Bowen was killed on the first step of
the Mole, a volley of grape tearing away his stomach. [Footnote: This
officer is said to have caused the expedition, by describing it to
Admiral Jervis and the British Government as an easy exploit. He had
previously cut out of this bay a Philippine Island frigate, _El
Principe Fernando_; and he had with him, as guide, a Chinese
prisoner, taken in that vessel. The guide was also killed. Captain
Bowen's family made some exertions to recover certain small articles
which he carried about him--watch, pistols, &c.--and failed. One pistol
was lost, and for the other its possessor modestly demanded 14_l_.]
Nineteen other Englishmen were struck down by a discharge of grape. The
gun which fired it had, on that same night, been placed by the governor
of the Castle of San Cristobal, Don Josef Monteverde, [Footnote: There
is a note in my volume, 'Father of the adopted son, Miguelito Morales.']
at a new embrasure which he caused to be opened in the flank of the
bastion. [Footnote: This part of the castle has now been altered, and
mounted with brass 80-pounders.] Thus it commanded the landing-place,
where before there was dead ground. The enemy afterwards confessed that
the injury thus done was the first cause of his misfortunes.
'Notwithstanding the Rear-Admiral's wound and the enemy's loss in men
and chief officers, a single boat, carrying Captain and Commodore
Troubridge, covered by the smoke and the darkness, landed at the Caleta
[Footnote: 'Caleta' means literally a _cul de sac_. At Santa Cruz
it is applied to a rocky tract near the Custom-house Battery: in those
days it was the place where goods were disembarked.] beach. At the same
time the main body of the English, who had escaped the grape of the
Castle of San Cristobal and the batteries La Concepcion and San Telmo,
disembarked a little further south, at the Barranquillo del Aceyte,
[Footnote: This ditch is now built over and converted into a drain. It
runs a little above the present omnibus stables.] at the Butcheries, and
at the Barranco Santo. [Footnote: Also called de la Cassona--'of the
Dog-fish'--that animal being often caught in a _charco_, or pool,
in the broad watercourse. So those baptised in the parish church are
popularly said to have been 'dipped in the waters of the Dog-fish
Pool.'] The levies of Havana and Cuba, posted in the Butcheries under
Second Lieutenant Don Pedro de Castilla, being unable to repulse the
enemy's superior force, retreated upon the Battalion of Infantry of the
Canaries, consisting of 260 men and officers, including the
militia. This corps, supported by two field-guns, [Footnote: In the
original 'canones violentos,' _i.e._ 4-pounders, 6-pounders, or
8-pounders.] ably and energetically worked by the pilots, Nicolas Franco
and Josef Garcia, did such damage that the English were in turn
compelled to fall back upon the beaches of the Barranco and the
Butcheries.
'These were the only places where the enemy was able to gain a footing
in the town. He marched in two columns, one, with drums beating, by the
little square of the parish church (La Concepcion) to the convent of
Santo Domingo, [Footnote: Afterwards pulled down to make room for a
theatre and a market-place.] and the other to the Plaza [Footnote: Plaza
here means the square behind the castle. In other places it applies to
the fortified part of the town.] of the San Cristobal castle. His plan
of attack was to occupy the latter post, but he was driven back from the
portcullis after losing one officer by the hot fire of the
militia-Captain Don Esteban Benitez de Lugo. Thus driven back to the
Caleta, the invaders marched along the street called "de las Tiendas."
[Footnote: It is now the 'Cruz Verde.' In those days it was the
principal street; the Galle del Castello (holding at present that rank)
then showed only scattered houses.] They then drew up at the head of the
square, maintaining a silence which was not broken by nine guns
discharged at them by the Captain of Laguna Chasseurs Don Fernando del
Hoyo, nor by the aspect of the two field-pieces ranged in front of them
by the Mayor, who was present at all the most important points in the
centre of the line. The cause was discovered in an order afterwards
found in the pocket of Lieut. Robinson, R.M. It ran to this
effect:--[Footnote: This and other official documents are translated
into English from the Spanish. According to our naval despatches and
histories the senior marine officer who commanded the whole detachment
was Captain Thomas Oldfleld, R.M. The 'Relacion circumstanciada'
declares that the original is in the hands of Don Bernardo Cologan y
Fablon, another Irish-Spanish gentleman who united valour and
patriotism. He was seen traversing, sabre in hand, the most dangerous
places, encouraging the men and attending to the wounded so zealously
that he parted even with his shirt for bandaging their hurts.]
'July 24, night.
'SIR,--You will repair with the party under your command
to H.M.S. _Zealous_, where you will receive final
instructions. Care must be taken to keep silence in the
ranks, and the only countersign which you and your men
are to use is that of "The _Leander_."
'I am, Sir, &c. &c.,
'(Signed) T. THOMPSON.
'Lieutenant Robinson, R.M.
'Standing at the head of the square, the enemy could observe that not
far from them was a provision-store, guarded by Don Juan Casalon and Don
Antonio Power, [Footnote: The original has it 'Pouver,' a misprint. The
Irish-Spanish family of Power is well known in the Canaries.] the two
"deputies of Abastos." [Footnote: Now called _regidores_--officers
who are charged with distributing rations.] The English seized it,
wounding Dons Patricio Power and Casalon, who, after receiving two blows
with an axe, escaped. They then obliged, under parole, the deputy Power
and Don Luis Fonspertius to conduct into the Castle a sergeant sent to
parly. Our Commandant-General, when summoned to surrender the town
within two minutes, under pain of its being burned, returned an answer
worthy of his honour and gallantry. "Such a proposal," he remarked,
"requires no reply," and in proof thereof he ordered the party to be
detained. [Footnote: According to James, who follows Troubridge's
report, the sergeant was shot in the streets and no answer was
received.]
'Meanwhile our militiamen harassed the first column of the enemy,
compelling it, by street-fighting, to form up in the little squares of
Santo Domingo and of the parish church. Our Commandant-General was
startled when he found that this position cut off direct communication
between San Cristobal and the Battalion of the Canaries, whose fire,
like that of the militiamen on the right, suddenly ceased. But he was
assured that the battalion was unbroken, and all the central posts
except the Mole were supported, by the report of Lieutenant Don Vicente
Siera: this officer had just attacked with 30 men of that battalion the
enemy's boats as they lay grounded at the mouth of the Barranco Santo,
dislodging the defenders, who had taken shelter behind them, and making
five prisoners. The English were stopped at the narrow way near the base
of the pier by the hot fire of the troops under Captain and Adjutant of
Chasseurs Don Luis Roman, the nine militiamen under Don Francisco Jorva,
the sergeant of the guard Domingo Mendez, and a recruit of the Havana
levy; these made forty-four prisoners, including six officers, whilst
twelve were wounded. Our Commandant-General was presently put out of all
doubt by Don Josef Monteverde. This governor of San Cristobal, when
informed that 2,000 Englishmen had entered the town, intending probably
to attack the Castle with the scaling-ladders brought from their boats,
resolved himself to inspect the whole esplanade, and accordingly
reconnoitred the front and flank of the Citadel.
'All our advantages were well-nigh lost by a report which spread through
the garrison when our firing ceased. A cry arose that our chief was
killed, and that as the English who had taken the town were marching
upon La Laguna, they must be intercepted at the _cuesta_, or hill,
behind Santa Cruz. It is easy to conceive what a panic such rumours
would cause among badly armed and half-drilled militia. The report arose
thus:--Our Commandant-General seeing the defenders of the battery at the
foot of the Mole retreating, and hearing them cry, "Que nos cortan!" (We
are cut off!), sallied out with Don Juan Creagh and other officers, the
Port Captain, the Town Adjutant, and the chief collector of the
tobacco-tax. After ordering the corps of Chasseurs, 89 men and 9
officers, to fire, our chief returned, leaning upon the arm of Don Juan
Creagh, and some inconsiderate person thought that he was
wounded. Fortunately this indiscretion went no further than the Chasseur
Battalion of the Canaries and the militiamen on our right.
'When this battalion was not wanted in its former position it was
ordered to the square behind the Citadel. The movement was effected
about daybreak by Don Manuel Salcedo, Lieutenant of the King.
[Footnote: An old title (now changed) given to the military governor of
Santa Cruz and the second highest authority in the archipelago. Marshal
O'Donnell was Teniente del Rey at Tenerife, and he was born in a house
facing the cross in the main square of Santa Cruz.] That officer had
never left his corps, patrolling with it along the beaches where the
enemy disembarked, and he had sent to the barracks twenty-six prisoners,
besides three whom he captured at San Cristobal. When the battalion was
formed up and no enemy appeared, the Adjutant-Major enquired about them
in a loud voice. Meanwhile the Laguna militia, who in two divisions,
each of 120 men, under Lieut.-Col. Don Juan Baptista de Castro, had been
posted from San Telmo to the Grariton, [Footnote: Meaning a large
_garita_, or sentry-box. It is a place near the windmills to the
south of the town.] were also ordered to the main square. In two
separate parties they marched, one in direct line, the other by upper
streets, to cut off the enemy's retreat and place him between two
fires. As the latter, however, entered the little square of Santo
Domingo, their commander, Lieut.-Col. de Castro, hearing a confusion of
tongues, mistook for Spaniards and Frenchmen the English who were
holding it. Thereupon the enemy fired a volley, which killed him and a
militiaman and wounded many, whilst several were taken prisoners.
'The attackers presently manned the windows of Santo Domingo, and kept
up a hot fire against our militiamen. They then determined to send an
officer of marines to our Commandant-General, once more demanding the
surrender of the town under the threat of burning it. At the order of
Lieut.-Col. Don Juan Guinther the parliamentary was conducted to the
Citadel by Captain Don Santiago Madan. Our chief replied only that the
city had still powder, ball, and fighting men.
'Thereupon the affair recommenced. One battalion came up with two
field-guns to support its friends, and several militiamen died
honourably, exposing themselves to the fire of an entrenched enemy. Our
position was further reinforced by the militia-pickets that had been
skirmishing in the streets, and by the greater part of those who,
deceived by a false report, had retired to the slopes of La Laguna.
'Already it was morning, when a squadron of five armed boats was seen
making for our right. Our brave artillerymen had not the patience to let
them approach, but at once directed at them a hot fire, especially from
the Mole battery, under Don Francisco Grandi. That officer, accompanied
by the second constable, Manuel Troncos, had just passed from the
Citadel [Footnote: La Ciudadela, to the north of the mole, is not built,
as we read in Colburn (_U. S. Magazine_, January 1864), on an
artificial wall. It has a moat, casemates, loopholes, and twelve
_bouches à feu_ for plunging fire. The lines will connect with La
Laguna and complete the defences of the capital.] to the battery in
question, and had removed the spikes driven into the guns by Citoyen
François Martiney when he saw them abandoned. [Footnote: The English
diary shows that the Spaniards had spiked the guns.] The principal
Castle and the Mole batteries, supported by that of La Concepcion,
rained a shower of grape at a long range with such precision that three
boats were sunk and the two others fell back upon the squadron. At the
same time the Port Captain and Flag Officer of the frigate ordered his
men to knock out the bottoms of eighteen boats which the enemy after his
attack had left on the beach.
'The English posted in the convent, seeing the destruction of their
reinforcements, lost heart and persuaded the prior, Fray Carlos de Lugo,
and the master, Fray Juan de Iriarte, to bear another message to our
chief. The officer commanding the enemy's troops declared himself ready
to respect the lives and property of those about him provided that the
Royal Treasury and that of the Philippine Company were surrendered,
otherwise that he could not answer for the consequences.
'This deputation received the same laconic reply as those preceding
it. Seeing the firmness of our Commandant-General and the crowds of
peasantry gathering from all parts, the enemy's courage was damped, and
his second in command, Captain Samuel Hood, came out to parley. This
officer, perceiving that the Militiamen who had joined the Chasseurs
were preparing to attack, signalled with a white flag a cessation of
hostilities, and our men were restrained by the orders of Don Fernando
del Hoyo. Both parties advanced to the middle of the bridge, where they
were met by Lieutenant-Colonel Don Juan Guinther, commanding the
Battalion of the Canaries, who could speak many languages, and by the
Adjutant-Major, Don Juan Battaler. These officers also withheld their
men, who were opening fire as they turned the corner of the street in
which, a little before, Don Rafael Fernandez, a sub-lieutenant of the
same corps, had fallen, shot through the body, whilst heading an attack
upon the enemy.
'With a white flag and drums beating, the English officer, accompanied
by those who had already parleyed with our Commandant-General, marched
to the citadel. At the bridge of the street "de las Tiendas" he was met
by the Lieutenant of the King, by the Sergeant-Major of the town, by
Lieutenant-Colonel Creagh, by Captain Madan, carrying the flag of truce,
and by the Town Adjutant, who conducted him with eyes bandaged to the
presence of our chief. Captain Hood did not hesitate again to demand
surrender, which was curtly refused. This decision, and the chances of
destruction in case of hostilities continuing, made him alter his
tone. At length both chiefs came to terms. The instrument was written by
Captain Hood, and was at once ratified by Captain Thomas Troubridge,
commanding H.B.M.'s troops. The following is a copy of the _'Terms
agreed upon with the Governor of the Canary Islands._
[Footnote: The original is in the _Nelson Papers_. It is written by
Captain Hood, and signed by him, Captain Troubridge, and the Spanish
Governor.]
'Santa Cruz: July 25,1797.
'That the troops, &c., belonging to his Britannick
Majesty shall embark with their arms of every kind, and
take their boats off, if saved, and be provided with such
others as may be wanting; in consideration of which it is
engaged on their part that the ships of the British squadron,
now before it, shall in no way molest the town in any
manner, or any of the islands in the Canaries, and prisoners
shall be given up on both sides.
'Given under my hand and word of honour.
'SAML. HOOD.
'_Ratified by_
'T. TROUBRIDGE, Commander of the British Troops;
'JN. ANTONIO GUTIERREZ, Com'te.-Gen. de las Islas de Canaria.
'This done, Captain Samuel Hood was escorted back to his men by those
who had conducted him to the Citadel.
'At this moment a new incident occurred at sea. The squadron, convinced
of the failure of its attempt, began to get under way: already H.B.M.'s
ship _Theseus_, carrying the Rear-Admiral's flag, and one of the
frigates had been swept by the current to opposite the valley of San
Andres. [Footnote: A gorge lying to the north of the town, like the
'Valle Seco' and the Bufadero.] From its martello-tower the Lieutenant
of Artillery Don Josef Feo fired upon them with such accuracy that
almost every shot told, the _Theseus_ losing a yardarm and a cable,
She replied with sundry broadsides, whilst the bomb-ketch, which had got
into position, discharged some ten shells, and yet was so maltreated,
one man being killed and another wounded, that she was either crippled
or hoisted on board by the enemy.
'When the terms of truce were settled, the English troops marched in
column out of the convent; and, reaching the bridge of the Barranquillo
del Aceyte, fired their pieces in the air. Then with shouldered arms and
drums beating they made for the Mole, passing in front of our troops and
of the French auxiliaries, who had formed an oblong square in the great
plaza behind the Citadel, from whose terrace our chief watched them.
'When Captain Hood suddenly sighted his implacable enemies the French,
he gave way to an outbreak of rage and violent exclamations, and he even
made a proposal which might have renewed hostilities had he failed to
give prompt satisfaction. He presently confessed to having gone too far
and renewed his protestations to keep the conditions of peace.
'Boats and two brigantines (island craft) were got ready to receive the
British troops at the Mole. Meanwhile our Commandant-General ordered all
of them to be supplied with copious refreshments of bread and wine, a
generous act which astonished them not less than the kindness shown to
their wounded by the officials of the hospital. They hardly knew how to
express their sense of a treatment so different from what they had
expected. During their cruise from Cadiz their officers, hoping to make
them fight the better, told them that the Canarians were a ferocious
race who never gave quarter to the conquered.
'Our chief invited the British officers to dine with him that day. They
excused themselves on the plea that they must look after their men, upon
whom the wine had taken a strong effect, and deferred it till the
morrow. They also offered to be the bearers of the tidings announcing
our success and to carry to Spain all letters entrusted to their
care. Our chief did not hesitate to commit to their charge, under
parole, his official despatches to the Crown; and all the correspondence
was couched in terms so ingenuous that even the enemy could not but
admire so much moderation.
'During the course of the day the English re-embarked, bearing with a
guard of honour the corpses of Captain Bowen and of another officer of
rank. [Footnote: This is fabulous. Captain Richard Bowen, 'than whom a
more enterprising, able, and gallant officer does not grace H.M.'s naval
service,' was the only loss of any consequence. All the rest were
lieutenants.] They (who?) had stripped off his laced coat when he
expired in a cell of the Santo Domingo convent, [Footnote: In Spanish
two saints claim the title 'Santo,' viz. Domingo and Thomas: all the
rest are 'San.'] disfigured his face, and dressed him as a sailor. The
wounded, twenty-two in number, did not leave the hospital till next day:
among them was Lieutenant Robinson in the agonies of death.
'Rear-Admiral Sir Horatio Nelson hearing the politeness, the generosity,
and the magnanimity with which our Commandant-General followed up his
success, and feeling his own noble heart warm with grateful sentiments,
dictated to him an official letter, which he signed for the first time
with his left hand. [Footnote: The original of this peculiarly
interesting document, written on official paper, was kept in a tin box
under lock at the Captain-General's office, Santa Cruz, and in 1864 it
was transferred to the archives of Madrid. The writing is that of a
secretary, who put by mistake 1796 for 1797. A copy of it, published in
Harrison's _Life of Nelson_ (vol. i. p. 215), was thence
transferred to Nicolas's _Despatches and Letters_. It is _bonâ
fide_ the first appearance of Nelson's signature with his left hand,
despite the number of 'first signatures' owned by the curious of
England.]
'_To His Excellency Don Antonio Gutierrez, Commandant-General
of the Canary Islands._
'His Majesty's ship _Theseus_, opposite Santa Cruz de Teneriffe:
July 26, 1796.
'Sir,--I cannot take my departure from this Island
without returning your Excellency my sincerest thanks for
your attention towards me, by your humanity in favour of
our wounded men in your power or under your care, and
for your generosity towards all our people who were
disembarked, which I shall not fail to represent to my
Sovereign; hoping also, at a proper time, to assure your
Excellency in person how truly I am, Sir, your most
obedient humble Servant,
'(Signed) HORATIO NELSON.
'P.S. I trust your Excellency will do me the honour
to accept of a cask of English beer and a cheese.
'To Señor Don Antonio Gutierrez, Commandant-General,
Canary Islands.
'Having received with due appreciation this honourable letter, our
chief replied as follows:--
'Muy Señor mio de mi mayor attencion! [Footnote: This
courteous Castilian phrase would lose too much by
translation.]--I have received with the greatest pleasure
your estimable communication, the proof of your generosity
and kindly feeling. My belief is that the man who follows
only the dictates of humanity can claim no laurels, and to
this may be reduced all that has been done for the wounded
and for those who disembarked: I must consider them my
brethren the moment hostilities terminate.
'If, sir, in the state to which the ever uncertain fortunes
of war have reduced you, either I or anything which this
island produces could afford assistance or relief, it would
afford me a real pleasure. I hope that you will accept two
demijohns of wine which is, I believe, not the worst of our
produce.
'It would be most satisfactory to me if I could personally
discuss, when circumstances permit, a subject upon which
you, sir, display such high and worthy gifts. In the
meantime I pray that God may preserve your life for many and
happy years.
'I am, Sir,
'Your most obedient and attentive Servant,
'(Signed) Don ANTONIO GUTIERREZ.
'Santa Cruz de Tenerife: July 26, 1797.
'P.S. I have received and duly appreciated the beer and
the cheese with which you have been pleased to favour me.
'PP.S. I recommend to your care, sir, the petition
of the French, which Commodore Troubridge will have
reported to you in my name.
'To Admiral Don Horatio Nelson.
'Such was the end of an event which will ever be memorable in the annals
of the Canarian Islands. When we know that on our side hardly 500 men
armed with firelocks entered into action, and that the 97 cannon used on
this occasion, and requiring 532 artillery-men, were served by only 320
gunners, of whom but 43 were veterans and the rest militia; [Footnote:
According to James, who follows the report of Captain Troubridge
(vol. ii. p. 427), there were 8,000 Spaniards and 100 Frenchmen under
arms. Unfortunate Clio!] when we remember that we took from the enemy a
field-gun, a flag, [Footnote: This was the ensign of the _Fox_
cutter, sunk at the place where the African steamships now anchor.] two
drums, a number of guns, pikes, swords, pistols, hand-ladders,
ammunition, &c. &c., with a loss on our part of only 23 killed
[Footnote: Two officers--viz. Don Juan Bautista de Castro, before
alluded to; Don Rafael Fernandez, also mentioned--and 21 noncommissioned
officers, 5 soldiers of the Canarian battalion, 2 chasseurs, 4
militiamen, 1 militia artilleryman, 4 French auxiliaries, and 5
civilians.] and 28 wounded, [Footnote: Namely, 3 officers--Don Simon de
Lara, severely wounded at the narrow part of the Mole, Don Dionisio
Navarro, sub-lieutenant of the Provincial Regiment of La Laguna, and Don
Josef Dugi, cadet of the Canarian battalion--25 noncommissioned
officers, 5 men of the same battalion, 1 chasseur, 1 sergeant, 11
militiamen, 1 soldier of the Havana depôt, 1 ditto of Cuban ditto, 1
militia artilleryman, and 5 French auxiliaries. This, however, does not
include those suffering from contusions, amongst whom was Don Juan
Rosel, sub-lieutenant of the Provincial Regiment of Orotava.] whereas
the enemy lost 22 officers and 576 men [Footnote: Nelson
(_Despatches_, vol. ii. p. 424) says 28 seamen, 16 marines killed
(total 44); 90 seamen, 15 marines wounded; 97 seamen and marines
drowned; 5 seamen and marines missing. Total killed, 141; wounded, 105;
and grand total, 246 _hors de combat_. The total of 251 casualties
nearly equals that of the great victory at Cape St. Vincent.]--when, I
say, we take into consideration all these circumstances, we cannot but
consider our defence wonderful and our triumph most glorious.
'We must not forget the gallant part taken in this affair by the two
divisions of the Rozadores irregulars, who were provided with sickles,
knives, and other weapons by the armoury of La Laguna. One division of
forty peasants was placed under the Marquess del Prado and the Viscount
de Buenpaso, who both, though not military men, hastened to the town
when the attack was no longer doubtful. The other body of thirty-five
men was committed to Don Simon de Lara, already mentioned amongst the
wounded. In the heat of the affair and the darkness of night the first
division was somewhat scattered as it entered the streets leading to the
Barranco Santo (watercourse), where the Canarian battalion was attacking
the English as they landed. The Marquess, after escaping the enemy, who
for half an hour surrounded without recognising him, and expecting
instant death, attempted to cross the small square of Santo Domingo to
the Plaza of the Citadel. He was prevented from so doing by the voices
of the attacking party posted in the little place. He therefore retired
to the upper part of the town, and took post on the Convent-flank. The
Viscount marched his men to the square of the Citadel, where they were
detained by Lieutenant Jorva to reinforce the post and to withdraw a
field-gun that had been dangerously placed in the street of San Josef.
'Equally well deserving of their country's gratitude were sundry others,
especially Diego Correa, first chief of the Provincial Regiment of
Guimar, who, forgetting his illness, sprang from his bed at the
trumpet's sound, boldly met the foe with sword and pistol, and took
eleven prisoners to the Citadel. Don Josef de Guesala, not satisfied
with doing the mounted duties required of him, followed the enemy with
not less courage than Diego Correa, at the head of certain militiamen
who had lost their way in the streets.
'Good service was also done by the Alcalde and the deputies [Footnote:
The local aldermen.] of the district. In charge of the four parties,
composed of tradesmen and burghers, they patrolled the streets and
guarded against danger from fire. They also issued to all those on duty
rations of bread and wine punctually and abundantly from the night of
the 22nd till that of the 25th of July.
'No circumstantial account of our remarkable success would be complete
without recording, in the highest and the most grateful terms, the zeal
with which the very noble the Municipality (_ayuntamiento_) of
Tenerife took part in winning our laurels. Since July 22, when the first
alarm-signal was made at Santa Cruz, Don Josef de Castilla, the Chief
Magistrate (_Corregidor_), with the nobility and men at arms
(_armas-tomar_) assembled in force on the main square of La Laguna
(_Plaza del Adelantado_). The Mayor (_Alcalde Mayor_), Don
Vicente Ortiz de Rivera, presided over the court (_cabildo_), at
which were present all those members (_ regidores _) who were not
personally serving against the enemy. These were the town deputies, Don
Lopo de la Guerra, Don Josef Saviñon, Don Antonio Riquel, Don Cayetano
Pereza, Don Francisco Fernandez Bello, Don Miguel de Laisequilla, and
Don Juan Fernandez Calderin, with the Deputy Syndic-General, Don Filipe
Carillo. Their meetings were also attended by other gentlemen and
under-officers (_ curiales _), who were told off to their
respective duties according to the order laid down for defending the
Island. After making a careful survey of the bread and provisions in the
market, also of the wheat and flour in the bakeries and of the reserve
stores, they promptly supplied the country-people who crowded into the
city. Wind being at this season wanting for the mills, we were greatly
assisted by a cargo of 3,000 barrels of flour taken before Madeira from
an Anglo-American prize by the Buonaparte, a French privateer, who
brought her to our port. This supply sufficed for the militia stationed
on the heights of Taganana, in the Valle Seco, near the streams of the
Punta del Hidalgo, Texina, Baxamar, the Valley of San Andrés, and lastly
the line of Santa Cruz, Guadamogete, and Candelaria, whose posts cover
more than twenty-four miles of coast between the north-west and the
south of the island.
'Equally well rationed were the peasants who passed by La Laguna _en
route_ to Santa Cruz and other parts; they consumed about 16,000
lbs. of bread, 300 lbs. of biscuit, seven and a half pipes of wine;
rice, meat, cheese, and other comestibles. Meanwhile, at the application
of the Municipality to the venerable Vicar Ecclesiastic, and to the
parish priests and superiors of the community (_prelados_), prayers
were offered up in the churches, and certain of the clergy collected
from the neighbouring houses lint and bandages for the wounded. The
soldiers in the Paso Alto and Valle Seco received 100 pairs of slippers,
for which our Commandant-General had indented. Many peasants who had
applied for and obtained guns, knives, and other weapons from the Laguna
armoury were sent off to defend the northern part of the island. On the
main road descending to Santa Cruz the Chief Magistrate planted a
provisional battery with two field-pieces belonging to the Court of
Aldermen. When thus engaged an unfortunate fall from his horse compelled
him to retire.
'That patriotic body the Municipality of Santa Cruz sat permanently in
the Mansion House, engaged in the most important matters from the dawn
of July 22 to noon on the 25th; nor was its firmness shaken even by the
sinister reports to which others lent ear. When on the morning of the
latter day our chief communicated to them the glowing success of our
arms and the disastrous repulse of the enemy, they hastened to appoint
July 27 for a solemn Te Deum. It is the day on which the island of
Tenerife was conquered exactly three centuries before, and thus it
became the annual festival of San Cristobal, its patron.
'The secular religious and the regular monastic communities performed
this function with pomp and singular apparatus in the parish church of
Our Lady of the Conception. The Town-court carried the banner which had
waved in the days of the Conquest, escorted by a company of the Canarian
battalion and its band. These stood during the office at the church
door, and saluted with three volleys the elevation of the host. Master
Fray Antonio Raymond, of the Order of St. Augustine, preached upon the
grateful theme to a sympathising congregation. The court, retiring with
equal ceremony, gave a brilliant banquet to the officers of the
battalion, to the chiefs of the provincial regiments of La Laguna and
Guimar, and to all their illustrious compatriots who had taken part in
the contest. Volleys and band performances saluted the three loyal and
patriotic toasts--"the King," "the Commandant-General," and "the
Defenders of the Country." The town, in sign of jubilee, was illuminated
for several successive nights.
'A Te Deum was also sung in the parish church of Los Remedios at La
Laguna, with sermon and high mass performed at the expense of Don Josef
Bartolomé de Mesa, Treasurer-General of the Royal Exchequer. Our
harbour settlement obtained from the King the title of "very noble,
loyal, and invict town, [Footnote: _Villa_, town, not city.] port
and fort of Santa Cruz de Santiago." [Footnote: Holy Cross of
St. James.] Recognising the evident protection of St. James, patron
saint of Spain, on whose festival the enemy had been defeated, a
magnificent procession was consecrated to him on July 30. His image was
borne through the streets by the four captains of the several corps,
whilst six other officers, followed by a picket of garrison troops and a
crowd of townspeople, carried the colours taken from the English.
'On the next day were celebrated the obsequies of those who had fallen
honourably in defence of their beloved country. The ceremony took place
in the parish church of Santa Cruz, and was repeated in the cathedral of
Grand Canary and in the churches and convents of the other islands. The
Ecclesiastical Court of Tenerife ordered the Chapter of Music to sing a
solemn Te Deum, at which the municipal body attended. On the next day a
mass of thanksgiving was said, with exposition of the Holy Sacrament
throughout the day, and a sermon was preached by the canon superior, Don
Josef Icaza Cabrexas. Lastly, a very solemn funeral function, with
magnificent display, did due honour to their memory who for their
country's good had laid down their lives.' Mrs. Elizabeth Murray, wife
of H.B.M.'s Consul for Tenerife and author of an amusing book,
[Footnote: _Sixteen Years of an Artist's Life in Morocco_,
&c. Hurst and Blackett, 1859. I quote from vol. i. chap. iv.] adds
certain local details concerning Nelson's ill-fated attack. It is boldly
stated that during the rash affair the Commandant-General and his staff
remained safely inside the Castle of San Cristobal, and that when the
English forces captured the monastery the Spanish authorities resolved
to surrender. This step was opposed by a sergeant, Manoel Cuera, who,
'with more familiarity than is usual when soldiers are separated so far
by their respective ranks, placed his hand upon the shoulder of his
commanding officer and said, "No, your Excellency, you shall not give up
the Plaza; we are not yet reduced to such a strait as that."' Whereupon
the General, 'assuming his usual courage, followed his sergeant's
advice, and continued the engagement till it was brought to a
termination equally honourable to Englishmen and Spaniards.'
Mrs. Murray also declares that Captain Troubridge, when invested in the
monastery by superior numbers, placed before his men a line of
prisoners, and that these being persons of influence, the assailants
fired high; moreover that Colonel M(onteverde?), the commander of the
island troops, was an Italian who spoke bad Spanish, and kept shouting
to his men, 'Condanate vois a matar a la Santisima Trinitate!' The
officer sent to parley (Captain Hood) was, we are told, accompanied to
the citadel by a gentleman named Murphy, whom the English had taken
prisoner. A panic (before mentioned) came from three militia officers,
who, mounting a single animal, rode off to La Laguna, assuring the
_cabildo_ and the townspeople that Santa Cruz had fallen. One of
this 'valiant triumvirate' had succeeded to a large property on
condition of never disgracing his name, and after the flight he had the
grace to offer it to a younger brother who had distinguished himself in
South America. The junior told him not to be a fool, and the property
was left to the proprietor's children, 'his grandson being in possession
of it at the present day.'
The chapter ends with the fate of one O'Rooney, a merchant's clerk who
cast his lot with the Spaniards, and whom General Gutierrez sent with an
order to the commandant of Paso Alto Fort. Being in liquor, he took the
Marina, or shortest road; and, when questioned by the enemy, at once
told his errand. 'In those days and in such circumstances,' writes the
lively lady, 'soldiers were very speedy in their decisions, and the
marine who had challenged O'Rooney at once bayonetted him, while his
comrade rifled his pockets and appropriated his clothes.'
Remains only to state that the colours of the unfortunate cutter
_Fox_ and her boats are still in the chapel of Sant' Iago, on the
left side of the Santa Cruz parish church, La Concepcion. Planted
against the wall flanking the cross, in long coffin-like cases with
glass fronts, they have been the object of marked attention on the part
of sundry British middies. And the baser sort of town-folk never fail to
show by their freedom, or rather impudence of face and deportment, that
they have not forgotten the old story, and that they still glory in
having repulsed the best sailor in Europe.