[258, Nov 1812]

CHAPTER XVII

HE battalion, with the First Brigade now commanded by Lieut.-Colonel (Brigadier-General) Stewart of the 50th, rejoined the Second Division on the Arapiles, where Wellington concentrated his united force of 60,000 men, and prepared to give battle to Sault with 90,000.  The weather in the evening was horrible; the men were without tents, their clothing worn bare; provisions were scarce, and of money they had none.  The only thing that kept up their spirits was the chance of beating the enemy, whose infantry they could see on a height a mile away, while an immense body of his cavalry was drawn up on the plain below.  The Second Division, not having been at Salamanca, were in hopes of taking part in a repetition of that victory on the same ground.

On the morning of the 15th November, the Allies were drawn up in order of battle.  All forgot their hardships, and expectation was at its height; but Soult declined the challenge and manœuvred to the British right, threatening to cut off their communication with Portugal, from whence their supplies came.  In consequence of this, the order to retreat was given, causing gloom and dismay where before there were cheerfulness and confidence; but everyone felt satisfied that nothing but the most pressing necessity had compelled their Chief to retire before his adversary.  Wellington, feeling too weak to attack, and seeing the enemy’s cavalry pointing to the Ciudad Rodrigo road, suddenly formed three columns, and defiled in order of battle before the enemy at little more than cannon shot, carried his army round the French left, and crossed the Valmusa River.  In this bold manœuvre he was favoured by fog and rain, which rendered the lanes and fields by which the enemy moved nearly impassable, while he had the use of the high roads.  About 2 p.m.  the Second Division marched on the high road to Ciudad Rodrigo, crossing a flooded plain, where their dress gave the Highlanders an advantage, but soon a stream swollen by the heavy rain took the men to the middle.  On gaining the rising grounds the 92nd had entered an open wood, when the French cavalry made a furious charge right up to the bayonets, but were so roughly handled that they took themselves off without doing much damage, nor did they receive serious injury from the Highlanders, whose ammunition was wet, and many muskets would not go off, but they lost some men and horses by the fire of our artillery.

Although they are not noticed in “Cannon’s Record,” it appears that Private Donald MacLeod was killed on this day; and Private Andrew Sibbie died of his wounds on the 18th, though it does not appear on what date he was wounded.

The Gordons bivouacked in a wood behind the Rio Valmusa. [259, Nov 1812]  They managed to light fires with the wet branches and thus got some large trees kindled, which gave out a good heat.[1]  Bread was so scarce that at one place a staff officer asked a peasant journeying with his wife and children to Ciudad Rodrigo to sell him a loaf he was carrying, and offered a doubloon (about £4)’ The man refused, saying, “My little ones cannot eat gold.”

On the 16th, 17th, 18th, and 19th the allied army continued its retreat.  The 92nd bivouacked near Matilla on the 16th, and behind the Rio Cuebra on the 17th.  During these days the rear guard was engaged more or less with the enemy.  On the 18th, the battalion bivouacked near Moraes Verde.  The French cavalry pressed on them, sometimes riding so close as to bandy wit in Spanish with the British, and any man who fell to the rear was sure to be taken prisoner.  As a battalion was halted for rest, they might see a column of dragoons in their brass helmets and white cloaks appear upon the scene, ready to charge; but the infantry stood to their arms, and showed that, though retreating, it would not be safe to molest them.  The enemy penetrated in the forest between the columns of march, and once made a dash at a party of officers, taking some prisoners, among them Lieut.-General Sir Edward Paget.  The rivers were all in spate, and only passable at fords.  At one of these a mule, laden with biscuit, with the proverbial stubbornness of his kind, stopped in mid-stream and declined to move.  The 92nd had crossed, and part were left to guard the passage of commissariat from the pursuing French, who were coming up on the other side.  The muleteer bolted, and the precious bread seemed sure to be lost, when a bugler, gathering up his kilt, waded back, mounted the mule behind the panniers, and, leaning forward, sounded the “advance” in its ear; the startled beast obeyed double quick, and as the plucky boy landed, a voice from the rocks above called, “Well done, my lad, you shall have all the biscuit!” It was Brigadier-General Stewart, commanding the brigade, who had been watching the performance, and the narrator, who was in the bugler’s company, added, “We had a real good feed that night.”

It is customary in Spain to drive the swine into the oak forest to feed on the acorns.  One night a fusilade was heard as the hungry soldiers shot the pigs, causing the troops to stand to their arms, thinking the enemy was upon them, which afterwards drew a severe rebuke from the general.  Some of the 92nd were about to join in this noisy proceeding, when a young officer said, “Don’t shoot them; stick the beggars!” His advice saved both their [260, Nov 1812] credit and their bacon, and that officer found a pork chop placed handy for his supper!

“In nine cases out of ten a bivouac is more or less enjoyable, but from the 15th to the 19th anyone unacquainted with the service could hardly be persuaded to credit the sufferings we endured; deluged with rain, roads deep and miry, repeatedly fording rivers and streams, some of them breast high.  The ground of our bivouacs soaked, no dry wood to be had, fires smoky and cheerless; miserably provided, having neither bread, biscuit, nor flour.”[2]  The officers and men were to be seen gathering acorns to eat instead of bread with the beef which they cooked in the ashes on the points of swords or ramrods, for the camp kettles were with the baggage and often a day’s march ahead of the troops, but they had bullocks driven along, which, if they arrived in time, were slaughtered as they halted.  The marches were not long, but from the circumstances and nature of the ground they took a long time, and the men had an immense weight to carry, for the ordinary marching order weighed about 60lb., besides the blanket; while the feeling of retreat has always a depressing effect, and the difficulty of bringing the various columns along without jostling, and if possible without being attacked, caused long and tiresome halts.

On the 18th November a handful of Indian corn was issued to each man, which they ground between large stones, passing them from one to another till far on in the night, while the noise banished sleep.  On the 19th, the 92nd went into quarters in a miserable little village crowded to excess; the people had little to spare, but the commissary managed to buy potatoes, of which each man got 2lb.  The baggage was here restored, and, miserable as were the cottages, officers and men recovered their gaiety as they roasted chestnuts and boiled their potatoes in the chimney corners.

The enemy had now given up the pursuit; they had gathered a great spoil of baggage and over 3500 prisoners.  In the whole retreat of Wellington’s army from Burgos, together with that of Hill’s from the Tagus, the loss in killed, wounded, and prisoners was not less than 9000 men-British, Portuguese, and Spaniards, including those lost in the siege of Burgos.  The loss of Hill’s army, however, between the Tagus and the Arapiles was only 500 in killed, wounded, and prisoners, including that of the First Brigade at Alba.

It being rumoured that Soult intended to invade Portugal by the valley of the Tagus, Hill’s troops were moved as far as Robleda, to which place the 92nd marched on the 20th.  An officer of the battalion describes its appearance on parade.  He compares the jackets to “parti-coloured bedcovers,” the “clothing literally [261, Nov 1812] composed of shreds and patches.” Colonel Cameron, writing to Sir John Hope of the campaign from the 27th of October, says—”Since that time to the 20th November we have been exposed to more hardships than I thought the human frame could bear.  Mine, I know, had very nearly yielded.  In weather which would have been thought inclement in England, with the canopy of heaven for a covering, wet, cold, and hungry, we were marching day and night generally.  During the days of the 16th, 17th, and 18th, fifteen poor fellows of the 92nd fell down and were lost.  My heart bled for them.”

Robleda was a dirty place, and the streets and lanes where they were cantoned were at once cleaned by the battalion.

R.O., Robleda, 22nd November 1812.—0fficers commanding companies will please arrange with the batmen and servants of their companies to give up their kilts for the purpose of mending the kilts of the duty men; such batmen and servants as give up their kilts to march in their pantaloons till the new clothing is issued.  The shoemakers and tailors to be constantly employed in mending the shoes and clothes of their companies.  The commanding officers of companies to report personally as to the state and appearance of their companies, and on the arrangement made with the batmen and servants respecting their kilts.

R.O., Robleda, 22nd November.—Sergeant-major Ewen Kenedy is appointed to do duty as quartermaster-sergeant, in room of Quartermaster-sergeant Cameron, promoted to a commission.  Sergeant Duncan Macpherson is appointed to do duty as sergeant-major until further orders, in room of Sergeant-major Kennedy, appointed quartermaster-sergeant.

Men who had been guilty of any misconduct during the march were ordered for drill.  The officers and men received their pay up to the 24th of June.

On November 22nd it was announced that a battalion, “to be called the 13th Royal Veteran Battalion, is to be formed at Lisbon.  Ten companies of 100 rank and file of men from different regiments who are fit only for garrison duty.  The lieutenants to be transferred from the line, or old quartermasters or ensigns who have been n.c.  officers.  The ensigns to be entirely deserving n.c.  officers.” Sergeant Symon and thirty-six rank and file of the 92nd were transferred to this battalion.

R.O.—Prisoners who are not to be tried by court-martial to be employed on all regimental fatigues, and all prisoners to parade, properly dressed, in rear of the battalion, and to be inspected by the officers of their companies.

On the 28th of November the 71st and 92nd, under Colonel Cameron, marched to San Payo, and thence across the Sierra de [262, Nov 1812] Gate in lovely weather and through splendid scenery, the road winding, rugged and dangerous, through thick woods overhanging steep precipices and round the boldest rocks, which re-echoed the sound of pipe tune or marching song.  They lay that night in Perales, and on the 30th they occupied Casas de Don Gomez.  During the march the usual measures were adopted to prevent men from falling out; one of these was stopping the allowance of wine; another, which seems a little hard, was not dismissing a company till any straggler belonging to it came in; but as an old Peninsular soldier said to the writer, “If the officers didna claw us, the general would claw them.”  They went into quarters on the 1st of December at Corea, a town of about 600 houses, prettily situated on the River Alagon.  Here newspapers arrived, and there was plenty of game to shoot.  There was a good market, and they were well supplied with food and wine, also with shirts and other necessaries from Lisbon; but the colonel, not wishing to put the men to the expense of new fatigue pantaloons, “will not at present order new ones, and hopes that by a little care and mending they may stand for some time, and such men as have none may make them out of old greatcoats brought by the quartermaster from Lisbon.”  The names of all n.c.  officers and men who were present with the battalion between the 15th and 19th November are to be sent to the Orderly Room, agreeable to General Order, probably for them to get an allowance for clothing.  Many men were in hospital at Corea; and Lieut.-General Sir W.  Erskine, commanding the cavalry of Hill’s Corps, Colonel Stewart of the 50th, and Colonel Wilson, 39th, died from the effects of exposure.  A good many had died or been invalided from the 92nd during the past year, a return of Walcheren fever and ague being often the cause; with rare exceptions, the invalids were described as of “good character.”  At Corea the battalion had resumed its usual smartness.  Any man seen walking in the streets in a slovenly manner, or not properly dressed, “to be ordered to his quarters by any officer who meets him.”

At this time Wellington addressed a circular letter to the superior officers of the army.  After saying that he will be able to keep the troops in cantonments for some time, and that clothing and necessaries are on their way to the different divisions, he draws particular attention to discipline, which, he remarks, becomes relaxed in every army after a long and active campaign.  He goes on to declare “that discipline had deteriorated during the last campaign in a greater degree than he had ever witnessed or ever read of in any army, and this without any disaster, any unusual privation or hardship, save that of inclement weather; that officers had from the first lost all command over their men, hence outrages [263, Dec 1812] of all kinds and inexcusable losses had occurred.  No army had ever made shorter marches in retreat, no army had been so little pressed by a pursuing enemy; and that the true cause of this unhappy state of affairs was to be found in the habitual neglect of duty by regimental officers.  He does not question their zeal, far less their gallantry, but their constant and minute attention to the conduct of the soldiers, as well as to their arms, ammunition and food; and remarks the facility with which the French soldiers cooked in comparison with our army,” etc.

These severe reproaches caused great dissatisfaction.  It was felt that in some particulars they were founded on statements which were unintentionally inaccurate.  The marches, though short as to distance, were long as to time: “the troops, ankle-deep in clay, mid-leg in water, lost their shoes, and with strained sinews heavily made their way, and withal they had but two rations in five days.”[3]  “ Wellington knew not that the commissariat stores he had ordered up did not arrive regularly because of the extreme fatigue of the animals who carried them, and were often not available because the conductors, alarmed by reports of the enemy’s cavalry, carried off or destroyed the field stores.”[4]  The destruction of the swine, though it was a serious loss to the unfortunate owners, may be in some measure palliated, because that evening the soldiers had nothing but acorns to eat; but no doubt there had been great disorder in some parts of the retreat, and much of the suffering of all arose from these very disorders on the part of some.  If soldiers break up the arrangements of their general by want of discipline, they have no right to complain of the misery which those arrangements were designed to prevent.  The circular was not strictly just because it excepted none from blame; and those brigades and battalions who knew that they had honestly done their duty felt that their hard working, if unobtrusive exertions had not been appreciated.

With regard to cooking, that most important part of military lore—for an army marches on its belly—a n.c.  officer of the 92nd remarks that the camp kettles then in use were made of strong iron to hold sixteen quarts for twelve men, and were carried on mules; and when the troops were engaged with the enemy or retreating before him, the baggage often did not arrive till midnight; but in 1813 they got light kettles, one to six men, which they carried themselves, and then they could cope with the French in cooking as well as in fighting.

An officer of the 92nd admits that discipline was permitted to relax to a criminal degree in some regiments; “but I cannot allow that the misconduct of one or of a dozen battalions could ever form a good apology for bestowing upon the others a sweeping censure [264, Dec 1812] for offences which they knew they had never committed.” He believes that if Wellington had taken a little time before giving vent to his indignation, he would have distinguished between the guilty and those who had done their duty under all circumstances.  Since, however, this course was not followed, he affirms “publicly and unhesitatingly, that every officer in the regiment to which I belonged performed their several duties with credit to themselves and advantage to the service; and I fearlessly assert that throughout the whole of the retreat, the n.c. officers and privates obeyed the orders of their officers with the same cheerfulness and alacrity for which they have ever been distinguished.”  Colonel Cameron seems to have been of the same opinion, for in Regimental Orders he calls attention to the orders of the Commander of the Forces, and “in the most pointed manner” desires that they may be enforced by the captains of companies, and that they see that the subalterns and n.c.  officers exert themselves “to prevent in the 92nd Regiment what has given occasion to the Commander of the Forces so strongly to animadvert upon the conduct of some other corps.”  Sergeant Robertson writes that after the imputation cast on the commanding officers, discipline was exercised with the utmost rigour.  “The 92nd was not so severely dealt with as several regiments; but whether we deserved it or not, I cannot say.”

R.O., December 24th.—The commanding officer requests officers commanding companies will endeavour to give their men as good dinners as they possibly can to-morrow and something (extra) for breakfast, as it is Christmas Day, and that they will see them at it.

A letter from the adjutant-general, Horse Guards, to Lord Wellington was published at Corea.  His earnest attention is requested by command of H.R.H.  the Commander-in-Chief to a branch of the service from which H.R.H.  expects the most essential benefits will be derived; “I allude to the establishment of military chaplains and the duties which attach to them.” The letter continues that the chaplains have “been selected with the utmost care and circumspection by the first prelates of this country.”  They are to have the pay and allowances of major, and are to receive from all persons that respect which is so justly due to their rank and profession.  They are to visit the sick and the hospitals at least twice a week.  At divine worship no more are to be assembled at one time than the voice can reach; service to close with a “short practical sermon suited to the habits and understandings of soldiers”—”in conformity with the custom of the Established Church.”[5]

[265, Dec 1812] R.O., 28th December 1812.—The detachment joined this day, under Lieut.  Macpherson, to be posted to companies.[6]

R.O., Corea, 31st December 1812.—As to-morrow is New Year’s Day, the commanding officer recommends it to officers commanding companies to feed their men well by letting them have a breakfast and as good a dinner as they can upon that occasion, and that they will visit them at their meals.

No doubt their Spanish hosts entered into the festivities of the soldiers, who would keep up “first footing” and “Oidche Challuinn “ with all the spirit of their country; the Spanish wine making the best of “plotty,” and aguardiente doing duty for mountain dew as the dram which rewards the rhymers in the latter quaint old custom.[7]

R.O., Corea, 3rd January 1813.—It is intended to commence the regimental school to-morrow.  Such n.c.  officers and men as wish to attend it will be allowed leave from evening parade daily and from one day’s duty each week; and the commanding officer strongly recommends the officers to advise their n.c.  officers and the young men of their companies to attend the school as a thing which will tend so much to their own advantage hereafter.

Corea, 5th January 1813.—The battalion will march to-morrow morning at eight o’clock, agreeable to this day’s brigade orders.  First pipe to sound at half-past six.

This unexpected move was caused by an expedition of the French, under General Fay, for the capture of Bejer, a town about half-way between Salamanca and Corea, in order to ascertain if any large body was collected behind it, for the vivacity of Sir Rowland Hill troubled the French, on whom his successful enterprises had [266, Jan 1813] made a profound impression, so that his slightest change of quarters caused them to concentrate their troops, expecting one of his sudden blows.  Also the enemy was aware that a large quantity of woollen cloth was in the possession of a manufacturer there, and, being badly off for clothing, they intended to seize it.

Sir Rowland Hill, on receiving notice of this intention, at once sent the First Brigade, then under command of Lieut.-Colonel Cameron of the 92nd, to prevent it.  The 71st and 6th Caçadores moved from Monte Hermosa to aid the inhabitants of Bejer, while the 50th and 92nd were pushed forward from Corea to Monte Hermosa.  These movements convinced Foy that the rich prize would not be tamely given up, and he thought it prudent to retire.

The Gordons regretted their agreeable quarters at Corea, for Monte Hermosa was exclusively occupied by farmers, who in Spain do not generally reside on their farms; the streets were filthy and in bad repair, the houses had wooden shutters in place of glass in the windows, giving a choice between darkness and a draught, and were altogether rather comfortless.  But if the farmers were slovenly in their habits, they had an example of the contrary in the Highlanders, whose commanding officer was most particular on that point; the streets were cleaned, and the main guard had orders to confine any man seen in the market not properly dressed with side arms—as an old soldier said, “If you had but ae button on your coat it bode to be bricht.”

The battalion was practised constantly in light infantry drill, and the men were employed in taking down the feathers from their old bonnets, and in dressing them and putting them in good order for the new bonnets.  “They will likewise wash and clean their heckle feathers, as it was not in the commanding officer’s power to procure new ones for them.  Every man who has any knowledge of tailor work is to be employed with the clothing.  The commanding officer expects that every man is now supplied with good gartering and rosettes.”

Monte Hermosa, 21st January 1813.—Sergeant John M’Combie of the Grenadier Company is appointed to do duty and receive pay as quartermaster-sergeant until further orders, in the room of Quartermaster-sergeant Kennedy, promoted to a commission.

On the 24th, the commanding officer was so well pleased with the schoolmaster-sergeant’s report that, unless particularly ordered to the contrary, the scholars are excused morning parade every second day.

The following prices of necessaries may interest soldiers of the present time.

R.O., Monte Hermosa, January 1813.—Prices of articles furnished by Quartermaster MacFarlane, fixed by a board, the trades-men’s [267, Jan 1813] bills being produced—Shirts, 6s.  8d.  each; black gaiters, 2s.  11d.  a pair; grey trousers, 10s.  6d.  a pair; shoe brushes, 2s.  3d.  a pair; gartering, 3d.  a yard; writing paper, 3s.  6d.  a quire; a paper of ink-powder, 1s.  6d.; soap, 1s.  4d.  a lb.; tobacco, 4s.  6d.  a lb.; a razor, l0d.  Hose tartan to be charged to officers commanding companies at 2s.  8d.  a yard, and by them to the men at the rate of 2s.  a pair.

On the 3rd of February the battalion was inspected by Sir Rowland Hill in their new clothing; knapsacks neatly packed, greatcoats and blankets well folded and rolled, canteens well cleaned, etc.  The haversacks, being so bad, were not to be worn, and, as the feathers had not been put up, they paraded in “humble bonnets.” The men to wear purses, but, as all had not got them, “the front rank men and the flanks of the rear ranks will be completed with purses.”

At Monte Hermosa the officers and soldiers of the battalion received their share of prize-money for the captures at Arroyo dos Molinos, and also their pay up to the 24th of September last, the captains to retain a sufficient sum to provide their companies with vegetables.  The men were now rich, and “officers commanding companies are to cause all the wine houses in their cantonments to be shut up at eight o’clock, patrols to clear the houses after that hour”; and the Alcalde issued a proclamation to prevent the inhabitants selling wine after that hour.  Still, many a jovial evening was spent by the soldiers with their hosts and their wives and daughters-dancing, or singing in Spanish, English, and Gaelic.  So the time passed, till the second week in February, when General Foy put a stop to their gay doings by making another dash at Bejer.  Sir Rowland Hill, however, received timely notice, and ordered the brigade to advance.  When the 71st and Caçadores occupied Bejer on the 12th of February, Foy was only a few miles from it, but on hearing of the British advance he again retired.  To secure the place against future attacks, the 50th and Caçadores were thrown into Bejer as a permanent garrison; the 71st occupied the villages of Puerta de Banos and Candaleria, and the 92nd the town of Banos.  The 60th Rifle Company were quartered in Herbas.

A few days after this attempt had been frustrated, Foy, thinking to gain his object by surprise, advanced again at the head of 3000 picked troops, with so much secrecy that one of the outlying pickets was nearly surrounded before its officers knew that the enemy was nearer than Salamanca.  Driving in the pickets, the French were before the gates of Bejer in a few minutes, expecting an easy conquest of the place and the stores it contained.  The attack was made with all the bravery characteristic of their nation, but the entrances were guarded with unflinching courage by the old 50th; and [268, Feb 1813] notwithstanding his superiority of numbers, Foy, after reiterated attempts, was unable to intrude himself into Bejer society, and retired with the loss of a hundred killed and wounded, his aide-decamp being amongst the latter.  On the first notice of Foy’s attack, Colonel Cameron, commanding the brigade, advanced the 92nd and four companies of the 71st, but they were too late to take part in the action.  The 92nd were now cantoned in Banos, which town is situated in a narrow valley surrounded by rugged mountains, on the borders of the provinces of Leon and Estremadura.  People resorted to it from all parts of Spain on account of its hot mineral springs, and the houses were furnished in a superior manner for the accommodation of visitors, so the battalion found themselves in most comfortable quarters.  In April a draft of forty-six n.c.  officers and men joined from the 2nd Battalion.  The people of Banos were famous for their industry, and for their loyalty to their sovereign and the cause of Spain, and the Highlanders and inhabitants were soon on most friendly terms.  An officer of the 92nd describes the pleasant situation in which “our merry blades” found themselves on entering Banos, “where in every house the nut-brown knee and weather-beaten countenance met with nothing but smiles and the most marked attention.”  “The longer we remained among them the more friendly did the townspeople become, till the soldiers and the inhabitants of each house messed together as one family, the former furnishing beef, bread, etc., and the latter pork, oil, and all sorts of vegetables.”  The spring is a glorious season in Spain, flowers and creepers surround the houses, and the people sit smoking and singing in the evening air.  The dancing parties were started again, Highland games were practised, and all went happily till a sad event cast its gloom over the battalion.  “

In the latter end of March, a military execution of a most afflicting description took place.  The crime for which the unfortunate young man was condemned to die was desertion to the enemy, and attempting to stab the n.c.  officer who apprehended him.  A little before the hour of execution, the regiment was drawn up so as to form three sides of a square, the other side was left open as the place of execution.  The schoolmaster-sergeant accompanied the poor lad to the fatal spot, and all the way from the village read portions of Scripture.  On their arrival at the point assigned them, the criminal joined very audibly in singing a few verses of a Psalm, and then, after spending a few minutes in prayer, the fatal cap was drawn over his eyes, and the provost-marshal with his party advanced from the rear to carry the sentence into effect.  At this awfully affecting part of the scene the whole regiment, officers and men, knelt down, and, on behalf of him who then stood [269, March 1813] on the verge of eternity, offered up humble supplications to the throne of mercy.  In a few moments the party fired, and in an instant the world closed upon the culprit for ever.”

The above is taken from the memoir of an officer of the regiment.[8]

Although there was no sympathy with the crime of desertion to the enemy, there seems to have been an impression that the man was not at heart a traitor to his country, but had been led to the rash act by a love affair.

While at Banos the men who had enlisted in 1806 for seven years were given the opportunity of renewing their engagements.  Men not above thirty-five years of age were allowed to enlist for life, and received sixteen guineas of bounty; those above thirty-five, for seven years only, and received eleven guineas.  These were large sums in those days, sufficient to send a welcome help to the old folks at home, and leave enough to drink their healths in many a cup of Spanish wine.  There seems to have been a charm about the constant variety and adventure characteristic of the Peninsular campaign, which appealed powerfully to manly natures and outweighed the occasional hardships and dangers; and most of those who could do so re-engaged for unlimited service, which also entitled them to a pension.

The delay in opening the new campaign arose from various causes.  At the close of the campaign of 1812, the cavalry and artillery had lost great numbers of horses, which had to be replaced.  The clothing and accoutrements of the infantry had to be renewed; the heavy camp kettles of the soldiers had been exchanged for light ones carried by the men, and the mules now carried tents, which were of great advantage at halts, though they did not always arrive in time to be of use on rapid marches.  Wellington had to wait till men, horses, money, and military stores could be brought from England; but these difficulties being removed, and having reorganised the Spanish troops at his disposal, he prepared to take the field with as fine an army as could be desired.

The relative strength of the contending forces was no longer in favour of the French, whose numbers had been reduced by drafts to Germany to 231,000 men and 29,000 horses; 30,000 men were in hospital.  Wellington had so well used the winter months that nearly 200,000 allied troops were ready to take the field.[9]  Officers and men were filled with the warlike intelligence gained by the experience of several campaigns; full of vigour and confidence, their bronzed and daring countenances looked danger [270, March 1813] boldly in the face, as if they cared neither for man nor devil; and their great leader, confident that they would grandly execute his well-planned design for driving the enemy to the Pyrenees, rose in his stirrups as he passed the stream which marks the boundary between Spain and Portugal, and, waving his hand, cried, “Farewell to Portugal!”[10]

The various parts of the great military machine being prepared, an order of readiness to move was received in the middle of May; and the Gordon Highlanders left Banos on the 20th, and encamped with the Second Division near Bejer, where they renewed their acquaintance with the regiments from whom they had been separated in winter quarters.  To show the attachment of the inhabitants to the Highlanders, which he attributes to “the kindred spirit which seems to possess the breast of every mountaineer throughout the world,” an officer mentions the following fact.  When Sir Rowland Hill passed through the town a day or two after the Highlanders had left Banos, a deputation of the principal inhabitants waited on him to return thanks for the protection he had afforded them against the enemy.  The General inquired if they had any complaints to prefer against the regiment that had just left them, to which the head of the deputation replied, “Sir Rowland Hill, had you been here when the Highlanders marched out of our village, our tears would have answered your question.”

On the 23rd the Second Division, now commanded by Lieut.-General the Hon.  William Stewart, was reviewed by Sir R.  Hill; and on the 24th the 92nd marched to Fuenteroble, and continuing, crossed the Tormes near Salamanca on the 26th, where Wellington and Hill joined forces, and where they had a brush with the enemy, who had retired from the city.  The French, under Villatte, though not strong in numbers, were posted advantageously, and maintained their position against repeated assaults of our cavalry and horse artillery, till the Second Division forded the river in haste above the city, intending to cut them off; but as soon as they gained footing on the other side, the French retreated in good order, to the admiration of their opponents.  The troops, both British and French, suffered much from the intolerable heat.  In this affair the enemy lost about 160 killed and wounded, 140 prisoners, and six guns.

The battalion then encamped with the division half a mile above Salamanca, where they were visited by numbers of the higher class of the citizens.  Some of them were rather disconcerted by [271, May 1813] the ladies, whose curiosity induced them to pull aside the doors of the tents without the smallest ceremony, in order to have a full view of “los Ingleses,” who were not all at the moment in drawing-room costume.

On the morning of the 27th, Hill’s troops were informed that the Marquis of Wellington would review them on the march.  He took post with his numerous staff on a height about four miles from Salamanca, and each battalion marched past in ordinary time.  The morning was extremely fine, and the appearance of the troops truly magnificent.  As each corps passed, Wellington paid them a flattering compliment, and as the last company saluted, he turned and said, “Sir Rowland, I will take the gloss off your corps this campaign”—and he kept his word.

It happened that the commissariat had killed a lot of sheep the day before, and the heads, not being appreciated by the English troops, had been appropriated by the Highlanders, of whom many carried them slung on the backs of their knapsacks; when the battalion halted to clean and brush up before passing the Commander of the Forces, some officers just come out were shocked at the idea of men marching past with sheep’s heads dangling at their backs; but Sergeant Robertson remarks that before the campaign was over, they would have carried them themselves if they could have got them! Wellington was evidently of the sergeant’s opinion; for, after saying that he had seldom seen so fine-looking a regiment, he noticed the heads, and remarked, laughing, that the Highlanders were a day ahead with their rations, and he wished all regiments understood campaigning as well.

The morning state, 1st Battalion 92nd, on the 27th May 1813, shows:—

Officers Present
Lieut.-colonel, 1; major, 1; captains, 8; lieutenants, 15; ensigns, 5 ; staff, 6. 

Sergeants
Present for duty, 45; sick absent, 3  on command, 6.- Total, 54.

Drummers
Present for duty, 15.-Total, 15.

Rank and File
Present for duty, 820; sick present, 16; sick absent, 70; on command, 16; prisoners of war, 14.- Total, 936. 

Sir Thomas Graham’s Corps, forming the left of the allied army, had crossed the Douro, ascended the Esla and advanced on Zamora, and now, the line of the Tormes being gained, Wellington pushed forward his troops so as to cover his communications with [272, May 1813] Ciudad Rodrigo, and keep open communication with Graham.  He now left Hill in command, while he himself went off to see after his combinations on the Esla—crossing the Douro in a basket slung on a rope stretched from rock to rock, the river foaming several hundred feet below![11]

After the review of the 27th, the Gordons encamped at Orvada, where the regiments of the Second Division took the opportunity to practise brigade drill, which, from their separation during the winter and spring, had been impossible; and during the few days they rested here, games and amusements were promoted, the officers taking an active part in the sports.  At this place they were joined by the Life Guards and Blues.

Hill was now ordered to advance along the main road to Burgos, and make the French yield the castle or fight, and on the 3rd of June the 92nd marched from Orvada, crossed the Guarena, and encamped at Villa Buena on its bank.  Here 200 French prisoners passed them on their way to England, having been captured in an action by the Hussar Brigade and Don Julian Sanchez’ Spaniards.  On the 4th of June they crossed the Toro by a bridge, of which two arches, which had been destroyed in 1812, had been rendered passable for one man only at a time by boards laid across; but so elastic were they, that some men could hardly keep their footing, and General Stewart, who stood at the far end till all had passed, caught the hand of one of the 92nd just in time to save him.  The mounted officers and baggage animals crossed by a ford, some of them swimming.  That night they encamped at Morales, on the road to Valladolid; a fifteen-mile tramp brought them to Villa Sexmil on the 5th, where, as there was neither Wood nor long grass to boil the kettles, two houses were given by the Chief Magistrate to supply them with fuel, compensation being paid.  Leaving Valladolid to their right, they encamped at Mueientes on the 6th, and, pursuing the retreating enemy, they encamped on the 7th at Duennas, which the French had just left.  At Torquemada (which King Joseph left the previous day), on the 8th, it blew a hurricane and the rain poured.  Next day they plodded on up to their knees in mud, and after crossing the Pisuerga, encamped on the bank of that river.  On the 11th June they only moved forward three miles to Los Valbasas, and the following day they drew near to Burgos, through a country luxuriant in cornfields and vineyards.  Here they expected warm work, and just as the division had taken up its ground and the usual order, “Make yourselves comfortable,” had been given, the sound of artillery in front called them to arms, and in a few minutes they were on the road to the scene of action.  Soon they were stopped by a deep little stream, [273, June 1813] the enemy having destroyed the bridge, but, surmounting the obstacle, they advanced two miles and halted; for the little fight between our light troops, aided by the horse artillery, and the enemy’s rear guard, was over; the latter losing some killed and wounded and one gun.  The troops, wet and weary, retraced their steps to camp.

In the morning, about daylight, a tremendous explosion was heard, which made every man jump to his feet, and soon afterwards they learnt that Joseph had blown up the Castle of Burgos and evacuated the town.  The destruction of this fortress was the first fruits of Wellington’s admirable plan of operations; it was evident the enemy did not intend to join battle south of the Ebro.  Sir T.  Graham had been successful on the left, and continued to manœuvre and fight to the Ebro, which he crossed on the 14th, and by turning the enemy out of this position, opened a passage for the Centre Division on the 15th, and for Hill’s Corps on the 16th.

On the 14th of June the battalion marched to Villa Toro, and on the 15th to Villa Esquiar; during these days they came up with some of the enemy and took them prisoners.  The road on the 16th lay through a dreary wilderness of rocks and stones, till all at once they found themselves looking down on the valley of the Ebro, near Arenas, one of the richest, loveliest, and most romantic spots in Spain.  The road led down a deep corrie, then in zig-zag down the face of a high and rugged mountain, the rocks re-echoing the wild notes of the bagpipe with very beautiful effect.  Below they were all among fruit and flowers, and as the division crossed the bridge over the Ebro the music of each battalion struck up the “Downfall of Paris,” and the happy band of British soldiers made hill and valley resound with their cheers.  Such was the effect of the exhilarating scene that many of the men were seen dancing with delight across the bridge.[12]

The Gordons wended their way a short distance up the left bank of the river, with inaccessible mountains on their right, the road cut out of the rock which overhung it; then, turning up a lovely valley to the right, encamped at Pesquez.  On the 17th, 18th, and 19th they continued marching through the grandest scenery, the road winding sometimes over steep mountain passes, sometimes through luxuriant orchards and flower gardens, while horse, foot and artillery appearing and disappearing as they moved along, with music playing and arms glittering in the sun, gave a lively interest to the scene.  At the entrance of every village through which the troops passed, they were welcomed by the peasant girls with garlands of flowers, dancing before them, rewarded, no doubt, by many a compliment in Scots Spanish.

[274, June 1813] Though the country afforded many excellent defensive positions, the pressure both on his front and round his right flank by the British left was so great that the enemy dared not take advantage of them, but continued to concentrate his forces on Vittoria.  The Light Division, however, came suddenly upon a French corps crossing their path, took their baggage and pursued for some little distance.  On the 20th the army closed up to within twelve miles of Vittoria, where the French, under King Joseph Bonaparte and Marshal Jourdan, had taken position the preceding day in order of battle.  The 92nd encamped that night at Robeo.[13]  Wellington with extraordinary determination and rapidity, had mastered the line of the Douro, and placed Graham’s Corps upon the Esla before the enemy were aware of his intention.  His admirable plans had been so well carried out by his generals and by the hardy, high-spirited and well-disciplined troops they commanded, that Joseph had been obliged to retire behind the Ebro; and had gathered not only his army, but all his baggage, treasure, stores and encumbrances of all sorts, in the valley or basin of about ten miles by eight, at the farther end of which stands the city of Vittoria.