of Toulouse was fought, for the allies had entered Paris on March 31st,
and Napoleon had abdicated. It is alleged that Soult fought the battle
out of personal vanity or pique, since he had news--on April 7th--of
what had happened in Paris. It was perhaps his last desperate effort
for his master. However, this last battle of the Peninsular War was
fought with terrible determination on both sides; but when the range of
heights had been carried by the British, and the redoubts of the city
won, Soult abandoned the town of Toulouse with 3 Generals and 1,600 men
"prisoners at the generosity of the conqueror." The allied British,
Portuguese, and Spanish armies lost in killed and wounded about
4,650, the latter including Generals Brisbane, Pack, Mendizabel, and
Espelette, while the French had 5 generals and 3,234 men placed _hors
de combat_. These numbers include, British losses, 31 officers and 563
men killed; 248 officers and 3,898 men wounded; 3 officers and 15 men
missing.
[Illustration: PRUSSIAN JUBILEE MEDAL GIVEN BY WILHELM I IN 1863 TO
VETERANS OF 1813-14-15 CAMPAIGNS.]
[Illustration: JUBILEE MEDAL GIVEN BY THE CITY OF HANOVER TO VETERANS
OF WATERLOO.]
[Illustration: "ST. HELENA MEDAL" GIVEN BY NAPOLEON III TO SURVIVORS OF
WATERLOO AND THE NAPOLEONIC WARS.]
In storming the redoubts the 42nd Black Watch, which had the honour of
leading the attack, displayed their usual courage, but the withering
fire from the defenders was such that in a short time it would have
annihilated the regiment; indeed, out of the 500 who went into action,
scarcely 90 reached the redoubt, from which the enemy fled, but these
"leapt over the trenches like a pack of hungry hounds in pursuit."
Two officers and sixty men of inferior rank were all that remained
unwounded of the right wing of the regiment that entered the field in
the morning. During the battle the standard of the regiment had passed
through the hands of three wounded officers, until it was borne by
a sergeant and defended by a few men. The 42nd, likewise the 36th,
79th, and 61st, who also lost considerable numbers, were mentioned in
Wellington's dispatches. The 13th Light Dragoons, the 14th and 15th
Dragoons, and the 18th Hussars, were also mentioned for gallant conduct
during the advance on Toulouse.
The regiments represented at the battle were: 2 squadrons of the 1st
and 2nd Life Guards and Horse Guards; 1st Dragoons; 3rd and 5th Dragoon
Guards; 3rd, 4th, 7th, 10th, 13th, 14th, 15th, and 18th Light Dragoons;
1st, 2nd, 3rd, 5th, 7th, 11th, 20th, 23rd, 27th, 28th, 31st, 32nd,
34th, 36th, 39th, 40th, 42nd, 43rd, 45th, 48th, 50th, 52nd, 53rd, 57th,
60th, 61st, 66th, 71st, 74th, 79th, 83rd, 87th, 88th, 91st, 92nd, 94th,
and 95th.
=Rewards for Generals.=--On May 30th, 1814, a treaty of peace was
signed between Great Britain and France, Louis XVIII having been
restored, and Napoleon permitted to retire to the Isle of Elba, where
the allies allowed him to reign as sovereign. The Duke of Wellington
was raised to the rank and dignity of a Duke and Marquis of the United
Kingdom; Parliament suggested an annuity of £10,000, to be "paid
annually out of the consolidated fund for the use of the Duke of
Wellington, to be at any time commuted for the sum of £300,000 to be
laid out in the purchase of an estate," but the sum was objected to as
being too small, and an additional £100,000 was voted. Wellington's
lieutenants--Generals Hope, Graham, Cotton, Rowland Hill, and
Beresford--were also rewarded by pecuniary grants, and raised to the
peerage.
=Nothing for Officers and Soldiers.=--The majority of the officers and
all the men who had participated in this seven years' campaign were,
notwithstanding the generosity of the nation to the leaders, left
undecorated, and, irony of ironies, the Commander-in-Chief, who had
shed tears at the loss of brave soldiers, and who had been so well
rewarded, raised his voice against the bestowal of decorations upon the
men who had fought and bled with him!
CONTINENTAL PENINSULAR MEDALS
=Alcantara Medal.=--For the battle of Alcantara a medal of gold was
given to some of the officers, and Dr. Payne has in his collection
one awarded to Brigadier-General William Mayne, K.T.S., late Colonel
Loyal Lusitana Legion, which by his kindness I am able to illustrate.
It is 1⁷⁄₂₀ in. in diameter, enclosed in a gold-rimmed glass case,
suspended from a gold-hinged waved bar 1⁷⁄₁₀ in. long by a salmon-pink
ribbon 1½ in. wide, with a gold buckle attached thereto. On the obverse
is engraved an outstretched sleeved arm and hand, below is the word
CUIDADO, and above an eye, the whole within a wreath of palm and olive.
On the reverse is the inscription, in bold Roman capitals, AL MERITO,
and underneath, in script, "De la Juntade Gobierno y guerra de la Villa
de Alcantara MDCCCIX." On the rim the name of the recipient is engraved
in Spanish: AL CORONEL MAYNE DE LA LEAL LEGION LUZITANA.
=Gold Cross for Albuhera.=[4]--On March 1st, 1815, it was decided by
the Spanish Government to issue a cross to Generals, officers, and men
of the army of Estremadura, who had distinguished themselves at the
battle of Albuhera on March 16th, 1811. This is an oblong, four-pointed
cross of gold enamelled red, the points terminating in gold knobs,
having red enamelled gold-edged flames issuing between the arms of the
cross. In the centre of the cross, on a white enamelled ground, is the
letter F in script, with VII in gold, surrounded by a frosted gold oval
band bearing the inscription in bright gold letters AL BUHE RA. The
cross is suspended from a squat green enamelled laurel wreath, to which
is fixed a gold loop and ring for attachment to the ribbon, which is 1½
in. wide, and red with blue edges.
[4] Should be Albuera, but is spelt ALBUHERA on cross, also bars.
=Gold Cross for Vittoria.=--On April 22nd, 1815, a gold enamelled cross
was instituted in Spain for presentation to officers to commemorate the
battle of Vittoria, June 21st, 1813. The battle was won by the division
of the 4th Corps of the Army, under the command of the Captain-General,
the Duke of Ciudad Rodrigo (Wellington), and Field-Marshal D. Francisco
Thomas de Longa. The cross is 1⅕ in. in diameter, and enamelled white
with a red four-pointed star (see facing page 36), and between the
cross, which is enamelled the same both sides, is a green enamelled
laurel wreath; the cross is suspended from a gold Spanish crown
surmounted by an orb ensigned with a gold fleur-de-lis; the ring for
attachment to the ribbon being run through the ball. On the obverse is
a white enamelled circle with gold borders encircling a red irradiated
ground, whereon are three gold crossed swords, with a gold ribbon
(inverted) bearing the motto IRURAG BAT. On the reverse, on a domed
gold ground, is the legend in raised stamped letters, arranged in three
lines, RECOMPENSA DE LA BATALLA DE VITTORIA. This cross depends from
a 1½ in. ribbon composed of equal stripes of black, crimson, and pale
blue.
=Gold Cross for Commanders.=--This gold cross, as the illustration
facing page 28 shows, is star-like in form, but owing to the number
of engagements recorded the number of arms varies. This particular
cross, weighing nearly 2 oz., was awarded to Lieutenant-Colonel Richard
Brunton, of the 13th Light Dragoons, late of the Portuguese Service,
and forms part of the great collection of Dr. A. A. Payne. The cross
was instituted by King John VI of Portugal, on July 26th, 1816, and was
given to British officers who served on the Portuguese Staff during the
Peninsular War, and who were in command of divisions, brigades, or
regiments. The arms of this cross, enamelled white, have double points
terminating in gold beads, resting on a blue enamelled band bearing
a gold wreath of laurel; on each of the arms is a green enamelled
torpedo-shaped overlay, each recording the name of an action in which
the recipient was engaged: a gold scroll forms the attachment for the
loop which carries the broad red ribbon, edged with blue, by which the
cross was suspended from the neck. On the obverse a small gold bust of
King John occupies the centre, which is enamelled light blue surrounded
by a conventional continuous border of leaves. On the reverse, within
a similar band, but on a white enamelled ground, are the initials of
the recipient. Sir Denis Pack was awarded the cross with eleven actions
recorded on it.
=Officers' Gold Crosses.=--King John VI also instituted, on July
26th, 1816, an officer's cross for bestowal upon those officers who
had participated in all or any of the six campaigns which were fought
during the Peninsular War. The cross of gold was awarded to all who
fought in at least three campaigns, crosses of silver being given to
those who had only been engaged in one or two. The cross illustrated
was given to Lieutenant-Colonel Richard Brunton, for service in four
campaigns. It has four ornamental arms, 1¹¹⁄₂₀ in. long, resting
upon a green enamelled laurel wreath. In the centre of the obverse
are the arms of Portugal in gold on a convex ground, surrounded by a
blue enamelled circle, with the inscription GUERRA PENINSULAR. On the
reverse is a continuous gold wreath of laurel, enclosing the pierced
Roman numerals indicative of the total campaigns in which the recipient
was engaged. The loop to carry the broad red blue-edged ribbon is
attached to the cross by means of an inverted husk of gold. The gold
cross, awarded to Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Edward Brackenbury, differs
somewhat from that awarded to Colonel Burton. The arms on the obverse
of the cross are 1⁷⁄₂₀ in. long, and the coat-of-arms is of a somewhat
different character, and is not surmounted by a crown. On the reverse
the single gold pierced figure 4 is within a blue enamelled circle.
A gold ball and swivel bar are used for attachment to a blue watered
ribbon 1⅗ in. wide.
=Officer's Silver Cross.=--This was of the same size as
Lieutenant-Colonel Brackenbury's, and suspended from a gold swivel bar,
but the ribbon for suspension was blue silk ribbed, with broad pale
yellow borders; the width 1⅗ in.
=Crosses for Ciudad Rodrigo.=--These were instituted on December 6th,
1819, for bestowal upon those who had distinguished themselves at the
sorties on July 10th, 1810. They were given in gold to officers and
in silver to privates who comprised the garrison. The cross has four
arms, with blue enamelled edges tipped with gold beads. On the obverse
is a gold tower, with rays issuing therefrom, upon a red enamelled
ground enclosed by a white enamelled oval band. On the reverse is
an inscription in gold letters upon a white enamelled ground, VALOR
ACREDITADO EN CIUDAD RODRIGO. (See facing page 36.)
=Medal for Brunswick Contingent.=--On October 30th, 1824, Duke
Charles II decided to award a medal to those who formed the Brunswick
Contingent, which came to England in 1809 with the Duke Frederick
William, and took part in the Spanish and Portuguese war against
Napoleon. The Contingent fought in nearly all the battles between
1810-14. The officers received a silver medal, and sub-officers and
privates one of bronze. The medal, 1³⁄₁₆ in. in diameter, has a plain
double border, and is suspended from a crimson ribbon by means of
a loop and ring. On the obverse is a wreath of laurel and oak and
PENINSULAR; on the reverse is a military trophy with a studded shield,
arranged sideways, on which the Duke's initials, C. C., are arranged in
monogrammic form.
=Medal for British German Legion.=--King Ernest Augustus founded, on
May 11th, 1841, a medal for distribution to the survivors of the
British German Legion, who had served in the Peninsular War between
1803-14. The medal, having a double rim, was of bronze made from
captured cannon. One and seven-twentieths inch in diameter, it bears
on the obverse a cross _patée_ with double raised edges, in the centre
of which is the King's monogram, E. A. R., surmounted by a crown; on
the reverse within a laurel wreath is the inscription TAPFER UND TREU
(Brave and Loyal), and within the rim KÖNIGLICH-DEUTSCHE LEGION (Royal
German Legion). The medal is suspended from a 1⅖ in. white ribbon, with
yellow stripe near the edge, by means of a ring and loop. I have in
my possession one without the inscriptions, a laurel wreath and 1813
entirely filling the reverse. (See facing page 58.)
=Eve of Waterloo.=--On February 27th, 1815, Napoleon, untamed by
adversity, escaped from Elba, and on March 1st landed at Cannes in
Provence with 1,000 determined followers, but so rapidly did the people
rally to his standard that by the 20th he had reached Paris with an
army of such proportions that Louis was compelled to retire to Ghent,
and the Bourbon dynasty was again forgotten. Early on the morning of
June 12th Napoleon quitted the capital, on the 14th joined the army
collected on the frontier, and commenced his last campaign, which was
to terminate on the 18th at Waterloo. Wellington had been sent to take
charge of an army which he described in a letter as "very weak and
ill-equipped, and a very inexperienced staff," but we now know that,
though it was "a green army," the right material was there, and only
required the moulding of opportunity to make good form. Wellington's
army comprised British, Hanoverian, and Belgian troops, with
contingents of Nassau and Brunswick Oels. Of the 78,500 men comprising
it, only about 43,000 were British, German, or Hanoverians. By the
18th it had been reduced to 74,040. The Prussian army was 115,000
strong. The French army, estimated at not less than 154,370, with 296
pieces of cannon--and variously at 127,000, 122,000, and 115,000, with
350 guns--was mainly composed of men "whose trade was war, and whose
battles were as many as their years"; so that against the heterogeneous
mass of men of various tongues commanded by Wellington, his great
opponent was to hurl an army of veterans who could well be called upon
to repeat the deeds of Marengo, of Friedland, and of Austerlitz. As it
happened, the raw levies of Britain were to emulate the deeds of their
brethren at Badajoz and Albuera.
On June 15th Napoleon's army crossed the Sambre, and on the morning of
the 16th at Ligny he forced back the Prussians, but Blucher--falling
back upon Wavre instead of Ligny--upset the French General's
calculations. Meanwhile Wellington, having made arrangements with
Blucher, was with his officers in the celebrated ballroom of the
Duchess of Richmond at Brussels. Two hours after midnight the gaiety of
the brilliant ballroom was subdued, and following the "sound of revelry
by night" came "the cannon's opening roar" at Quatre Bras.
=Quatre Bras.=--By 8 o'clock the British had left Brussels, the 42nd
and 92nd Highland Regiments having assembled to the sound of the
pibroch, "Come to me and I will give you flesh"--an invitation to
the wolf and raven, for which, as Forbes relates, the coming day did
in fact spread an ample banquet. At 2 o'clock, after a march of 20
miles in sultry weather, they arrived at the hamlet of Quatre Bras, to
find the Prince of Orange pluckily but feebly endeavouring to check
the enemy, who had already gained Le Bois de Bossu. There, at the
intersection of the Charleroi-Brussels and Namur-Nivelle roads, 7,000
Dutch-Belgians with 16 guns and no cavalry stood against Marshal Ney
with 16,000 infantry, 1,700 cavalry, and 36 guns. It was, indeed, an
unequal contest until the arrival of Pack's and Kempt's brigades.
Wellington at once decided the wood must be taken, and then ensued
an exceedingly sanguinary conflict ere, with the ultimate arrival
of the Guards, the French were forced to retire. The Guards (mostly
young soldiers) had arrived from Enghein after a march of 27 miles,
having started at 3 o'clock in the morning to join the main body.
They had halted at Nivelles to rest and feed, but the arrival of a
Staff officer, urging them to hurry on, induced them to abandon their
meal, and resume their march. They arrived on the field of battle at
an opportune moment, and then, despite their fifteen hours' march
without food or drink, the first brigade of Guards, having loaded their
muskets and fixed bayonets, pushed their way into Le Bois de Bossu, and
within half an hour regained possession of it, but they could do no
more than hold it. Meanwhile a series of splendid struggles had been
taking place. When the 95th had been ordered to clear Le Bois de Bossu,
the Royals and the 28th (Gloucesters) were severely engaged on the
left, while the 44th, the 42nd and 92nd Highland Regiments were hotly
assailed on the right.
The 28th, after gallantly standing its ground under a furious
cannonade, was suddenly, and on three different sides, assailed by
French cavalry. Two faces of the square were charged by the lancers,
while the cuirassiers galloped down upon another. It was, as Maxwell
states, a trying moment. "There was a death-like silence; and one voice
alone, clear and calm, was heard. It was their colonel's (Sir Philip
Benson), who called upon them to be 'steady!' On came the enemy! The
earth shook beneath the horsemen's feet, while on every side of the
devoted band the corn bending beneath the rush of cavalry disclosed
their numerous assailants. The lance-blades approached the bayonets of
the kneeling front rank--the cuirassiers were within forty paces--yet
not a trigger was drawn; but, when the word 'Fire!' thundered from the
colonel's lips, each face poured out its deadly volley--and in a moment
the leading files of the French lay before the square, as if hurled
by a thunderbolt to the earth. The assailants, broken and dispersed,
galloped for shelter to the tall rye, while a stream of musketry from
the British square carried death into the retreating squadrons."
[Illustration: BRUNSWICK WATERLOO MEDAL.]
[Illustration: SAXE-GOTHA-ALTENBURG WATERLOO MEDAL.]
=42nd and French Lancers.=--The 42nd were not so fortunate, although
their difficulty gave them the opportunity of again demonstrating the
stern stuff of which they were moulded. The 42nd and 44th, the two
foremost regiments posted in line on a reverse slope on the top of
the Charleroi road, were suddenly and unexpectedly attacked in the
rear by the French lancers under Wathier. The 42nd had almost formed
square in the tall rye grass, all but the two flank companies having
run in to form the rear face, when the leading squadron of lancers
drove in the incompleted square, carrying along with it, by the impetus
of their charge, several men of these two companies, and by spearing
a number created considerable confusion, during which those who had
been detached in the _mêlée_ fought back to back until the fire of
their comrades drove off the cavalry, and enabled them to rejoin
the ranks, where the body of the Black Watch, coolly standing firm,
gradually closed up its faces, and bayoneted the daring lancers who
had penetrated their square. These brave fellows, however, died hard;
they killed the commanding officer, Sir Robert Macara, and wounded the
three officers upon whom the command had devolved in the space of a few
moments. The 42nd lost at Quatre Bras 298 officers and men killed and
wounded.
The 44th were still more unfortunate, for, like the 42nd, they had
found a difficulty in forming up in the corn, which was up to their
shoulders, and having less time faced their ranks about and waited for
the French lancers to get in close before firing a volley. The foremost
went down, but those lancers were veterans who did not easily pale
before the leaden storm, and individual troopers dashed on; they were,
however, repulsed by the rear of the 44th, and galloped away eastward
under a fire from the left company of the line. As a result of the
cavalry attacks the 42nd and 44th were so reduced in numbers that at
5 p.m., when the first main attack had concluded, the remnants of the
two regiments formed in a single square. Pack's Brigade, formed of the
42nd, 44th, 92nd, and 95th, lost in this strenuous engagement 800 out
of 2,000 men.
The next cavalry charge fell upon Halkett's division, from which, in
response to an appeal from Pack, whose men were out of ammunition,
the 69th Regiment had been dispatched to assist. The 69th were later
ordered by Halkett's aide-de-camp to form square to receive the advance
of Kellerman's cavalry, which had trotted in from Charleroi, but the
Prince of Orange unwisely countermanding the order, Kellerman and
Guiton, leading the 8th Cuirassiers, passed round the flank of the 42nd
and 44th square, and charging the unfortunate 69th in line, completely
rolled them up; and within a few moments, of the 580 composing the
69th, 150 were dead or dying. During this unfortunate episode, Mr.
Clarke, a volunteer, fought with remarkable desperation, killing three
cuirassiers and preserving the colours he was carrying, although he had
received twenty-six sabre cuts. Kellerman's success was short-lived,
for the British artillery fire had begun to play havoc with his
cavalry, while the fierce charge of the squadrons of cuirassiers upon
the square of the 28th was repelled by deadly discharges of musketry,
and the French cavalry were compelled to flee, and in their wild
course, 2 miles from the field, they swept 2,000 dismounted horsemen
into the stampede. Another incident should be recorded: the 92nd,
having repulsed an attack of cavalry and infantry in an advanced
movement, were retiring to the wood, when a French column halted and
fired upon the Highlanders; already assailed by a superior force, this
notwithstanding they held their ground until relieved by a regiment
of the Guards, when they retired to their original position, but not
before the regiment had lost 28 officers and nearly 300 men.
=Losses at Quatre Bras.=--Night compelled the cessation of hostilities,
as at Ligny, and the French, having retired to their position held in
the morning, left the British in possession of Gemioncourt and the
southern end of the Bois de Bossu. The allied army lost at Quatre Bras
3,750 men, and of these 327 killed and 2,156 wounded were British; the
French losses were at least 4,500. All those who took part in this
battle, where the bull-dog tenacity of the British soldier was shown at
its best, were awarded the Waterloo medal. In his dispatch Wellington
stated, "I must particularly mention the 28th, 42nd, 79th, and 92nd
regiments and the battalion of the Hanoverians." In addition to these
the following British regiments were present at Quatre Bras: 2nd and
3rd Batts. 1st Foot Guards; Royal Scots; 32nd, 33rd, 44th, 69th, and
95th Regiments.
WATERLOO