CHAPTER VII.
THE PASSAGE OF THE DUORO--TALAVERA.
Very severe was the drill and discipline, and not very abundant wasthe food, and there was a general feeling of pleasure when, by thegeneral concentration of the army at Coimbra, it was evident thatactive operations were about to commence. On the 5th of May 9000Portuguese, 3000 Germans, and 13,000 British troops were assembled.Sir Arthur was already there, and upon the 6th General Beresfordmarched with 10,000 men, and orders were issued for the rest of thearmy to march out early the next day.
The Norfolk Rangers were in high glee that night, and many were thetales told by the old soldiers of former engagements in which theyhad taken part. Next morning, at daybreak, the tents were struck, thebaggage packed, and the wagons loaded. The people of Coimbra came outin crowds to see the troops march, and many were the blessings andgood wishes poured out as the long line wound through the streets ofthe city.
Hill's division was the last, and the rain was pouring down with greatforce by the time they started. The march, however, was not a verylong one, for Beresford's division, which was to operate upon theUpper Duoro, had a long distance to make, and it was necessary thatall should be ready for simultaneous action. For this purpose the armyhalted the next day, and upon the 9th marched to Aveiro on the RiverVonga. Here a large flotilla of boats was found, and the NorfolkRangers with two other regiments were ordered to embark at once. ThePortuguese fishermen entered heart and soul into the business, and inperfect silence the little flats were rowed up the lake of Ovar.
The soldiers were greatly crowded in the boats, and were glad, indeed,when just as morning dawned they landed at the town of Ovar.
By this movement they were placed upon the right flank of Francheschi,the general who commanded the advanced division of the French army.Soon after they had landed the French were attacked in front, andfinding their flank turned, and the whole British force, which theyhad believed to be seven days' march away, in their front, they fellback hastily.
To their great disappointment, the Rangers took no share in this thefirst skirmish of the war. But Hill's orders were not to press on theenemy's rear. Three days more of marching and skirmishing brought themclose to the Duoro on the evening of the 11th. The enemy crossed thatevening and destroyed the bridge, and during the night the Britishtroops were all brought up, and massed behind the hill called theSerra. This hill stood upon a sharp elbow which the river makes justabove the town of Oporto, and the British were here completely hiddenfrom Marshal Soult, who had no idea that they were so close at hand.Indeed, knowing that the bridge was broken and that all the boatshad been carefully taken over to that side of the river, the Marshaldreamt not that Sir Arthur would attempt to cross, but imagined thathe would take boats lower down near the mouth of the river and thereendeavor to cross. To prevent such an attempt Soult had massed hisarmy below Oporto.
The troops were ordered to pile arms, and eat their breakfast, but tokeep in position. "I wonder how we are to cross the river, Tom?" Petersaid. "It is three hundred yards across, with a rapid current, no manin the world could swim that, and carry his musket and ammunitionacross."
"I expect Sir Arthur is reconnoitering, Peter; I saw him go up thehill to that convent there; he must be able to see from there rightover Oporto."
An hour passed, and then two or three officers were seen coming downfrom the hill; one went up to General Hill, who happened at thatmoment to be talking to Colonel Tritton. "You are to prepare to cross,sir, Colonel Waters has discovered a small boat brought across by aPortuguese in the night. They are going to cross to that great conventyou see upon the other side. They will bring back boats with them, andyou will cross at once, take possession of the convent, and hold itagainst any force that may be brought against you until reinforcementsarrive."
Very quickly were the orders passed, and with a smile of satisfactionthe men took their arms and fell in. They were moved near the river,and kept under shelter of some houses.
"Keep near me," Colonel Tritton said to Tom and Peter, "I may want youto carry messages, there will be no sounding of bugles to-day."
Keeping under the shade of some trees so that they could command aview of the river without being seen from the opposite side, ColonelTritton with two of his officers and his two buglers, watched whatwas going on. A few paces ahead of them were Generals Paget and Hill,like themselves, watching the daring experiment. Behind, under shelterof the houses, were the troops in dense masses. The Rangers, as thefirst regiment in General Hill's division, were in front, and wouldnaturally be the first to cross. It was a most anxious moment, asColonel Waters and two Portuguese pushed the tiny boat from shore andpulled across stream. The bulk of the Serra Hill hid the river at thispoint, and even the convent opposite, from the sight of the Frencharmy formed up below the town, but there were no doubt stragglers allover the city, and the whole baggage of the French army was in retreatby the road to Valarga which ran at a short distance behind theconvent.
Most anxiously their eyes were strained upon the opposite bank, fromwhich they expected to see the flash of musketry, as the little boatneared the convent. All, however, was as still as death. Behind themthey heard a rumble, and looking round saw eighteen guns on their wayup the hill. From this eminence they could command the ground aroundthe Seminary, as the convent across the water was called, and thusafford some aid to the troops as they crossed.
There was a murmur of satisfaction as the boat neared the oppositeshore, and after lying still for a moment to reconnoiter the convent,pulled boldly up to the landing-place, where its occupants disembarkedand entered the Seminary. Their absence was not long. In a few minutesthey reappeared with eight or ten men, and then at once entered andcast off three large boats moored along side.
The boys could hardly repress a cheer as they saw them fairly underweigh. An officer now left the side of the General, and came toColonel Tritton, "You will get your first company in readiness toembark, sir; do not let them show themselves until the last moment."
Colonel Tritton joined his men. "Captain Manley, take your companyforward, when the first boat touches the shore embark. Let there be nonoise or confusion."
"God bless you, Peter," Tom said, as they separated; "your companywon't be many minutes after us;" for the bugler of the first companywas ill, and Tom was ordered to take his place.
As the boat touched the shore Captain Manley ordered the leading filesof his company to come from under cover and take their place in theboat. Twenty-four men entered, and when the other boats were also fullCaptain Manley took his place, followed by his bugler, and the boatspushed off again.
There was a dead silence in the boat, broken only by the sound ofthe oars as the Portuguese tugged manfully at them, each oar beingdouble-banked by a soldier. The rest sat with their muskets in theirhands, their pouches open ready for use, and their eyes fixed upon theshore. All was quiet, and with a sigh of relief, and a hearty hurrahmuttered under their breath, the men leapt from the boat and ran up tothe Seminary.
It was a large building with a flat roof, and the enclosure around itwas surrounded by a high wall which swept round to the water's edgeon either side. The only entrance was through a stout gate studdedwith iron. This was already closed and barred; the captain at oncedistributed his men at the upper windows of the Seminary, with ordersnot to show themselves until the alarm was given.
They had scarcely taken their places when they were joined by theoccupants of the second boat, while those of the third, in whichGeneral Paget himself crossed, were but a minute or two later. Just asthey touched the shore, however, there was a sudden shout heard, thiswas followed by others, and in five minutes a wild hubbub was heard inthe town. Drums beat to arms, and it was evident that the enemy wereat last awake to the fact that the British had effected a lodgmentupon their side of the stream.
"We shall have it hot presently," Captain Manley said to Tom. "Theywill be a quarter of an hour before they can get round here, and weshall have the three boats bac
k by that time. The one we came in ishalf-way across already."
Seven or eight minutes later a heavy column of men was seen pouringout of the upper gate of the town. As they got into the open ground,they threw out clouds of skirmishers, and pushed down towards theconvent. A heavy fire was at once opened upon them by the English gunsupon the Serra Hill. There was no longer any need for concealment. Thesoldiers in the convent took their places at the windows, and as theydid so could hear the loud hurrahs of their comrades as they crowdeddown to the bank upon the other side of the river to await their turnto embark. Before the enemy were within musket-shot, three boat loadsmore had been landed, and there were, therefore, 150 men now in theconvent. From the gates of the city the French artillery came pouringout, and, taking up a position upon an eminence, opened fire upon theconvent just as the infantry had got within musket-range.
So suddenly did the noise of the enemy's cannonade, the crashing ofthe balls against the thick walls of the Seminary, the rattle of theenemy's musketry, and the louder roar of the muskets of the defenders,blended on both sides with shouts and cheers, break out, that for aminute or two Tom felt almost bewildered. He had no time, however, tothink, for an officer came up to Captain Manley. "The general is up onthe roof; he wants a bugler sent up to him."
Captain Manley nodded to Tom, who followed the aide-de-camp on to theroof. Here he could see all that was passing, and an exciting sightit was. Crowds of French soldiers were approaching the wall, keepingup a tremendous musketry fire, whilst behind them three batteries offield-guns were sending their messengers of death. From every upperwindow of the convent the answering flashes came thick and fast, whileoverhead hummed the shot from the British guns, on the Serra Hill.Oporto itself was in a state of uproar. Drums were beating, trumpetssounding, bells clanging, while from the house-tops the population,men and women, were waving their handkerchiefs to the English,gesticulating and making all sorts of pantomimic expression of joy.
Looking at the river behind, Tom saw with pleasure that some moreboats had been obtained, and that strong reinforcements would soon beacross. The whistling of the bullets and the hum of the round shotwere incessant, and Tom acknowledged to himself that he felt horriblyuncomfortable--much more uncomfortable than he had any idea that heshould feel under fire. Had he been actively engaged, he would havehardly experienced this feeling; but to stand impassive under a heavyfire is trying to the nerves of the oldest soldier. He was angry withhimself that he was not more indifferent to the whizzing of the balls;but the sensation of discomfort under fire is beyond the control ofthe will, and it is no unusual thing to see a young soldier who, laterin the day, may display an almost reckless courage, yet at firstflinch whenever balls hiss close by him, in spite of all his effortsto the contrary. Tom was able, however, to control any outwardmanifestation of his feelings, and took his place a few paces behindGeneral Paget, who was standing with one of his officers by his side,watching the force which, momentarily increasing, was, in spite of theBritish fire, making its way onward towards the gate.
It was evident that the general considered the danger to be pressing,as he once or twice looked back to see how quickly the reinforcementswere crossing the river. The first time that he did so, his eye fellon Tom. "Get behind those big chimneys, lad. There is no use inexposing yourself unnecessarily."
Tom obeyed the order with alacrity, and, once in shelter, was soonable to bring his nerves under control, and to look round the cornerof his shelter without flinching when the bullets sang past. In fiveminutes General Hill joined Paget on the roof, and just as he did sothe latter was severely wounded and fell.
Tom ran forward to assist him, and, kneeling beside him, partiallysupported him until four men came up and carried him below. Theposition of the little garrison was now very precarious, the artilleryfire concentrated upon them was heavy, and the French swarmed upto the wall, which they in vain endeavored to climb. The Englishkept up a tremendous fire upon them, cheering constantly as freshreinforcements arrived, or as the enemy was momentarily repulsed.
Tom had now lost all nervousness, and was standing eagerly watchingthe fight, when a ball knocked his shako off. The general happened toturn around at the moment. "That was a narrow escape," he said with asmile. "What is your name, lad?"
"Scudamore, sir," Tom answered.
"Scudamore--Scudamore. Yes, I remember the name now. You are one ofthe lads General Craufurd spoke to me about. I want to see you. Cometo me to-morrow with your brother. Go down now and join your company;I do not want you here."
Tom gladly went down, for he longed to be doing something. He soonfound his company, and, taking up a firelock of one of the men who hadfallen, was soon hard at work loading and firing into the assailants.For an hour the strife continued. Fortunately General Murray hadfound some boats three miles higher up the stream, and had crossed,thus menacing the enemy's line of retreat. Suddenly a great pealingof bells were heard in Oporto, with shouting and cheering, and thehouse-tops were covered with people waving their handkerchiefs. TheFrench were evacuating the town. The inhabitants at once took acrosssome large barges to Villa Neva, a suburb lying across the river andjust below the Serra Hill. Here Sherbrooke began to cross.
It was now the time for the English to take the offensive. There werenow three battalions in the seminary, and as the French drew sullenlyoff to join the column now flowing steadily out from Oporto along theValonga road, the gates were thrown open, and the English passing outformed outside the walls, and poured volley after volley into theretreating foe. Had Murray fallen upon their flank, the disaster ofthe French would have been complete; but this general feared that theenemy would turn upon him, and destroy his division before assistancecould arrive, and he therefore remained inactive, and allowed the longcolumn of fugitives to pass unmolested.
For the next eight days the English army followed hotly in pursuit,and several skirmishes occurred; but Soult effected a most masterlyretreat, saving his army, when it seemed upon the brink ofdestruction, by leaving his guns and baggage behind him, and leadinghis men by paths over mountains supposed to be impassable for anylarge body of men. He lost altogether 6000 men in this short campaign.This included 3600 prisoners either captured in action or left behindin the hospitals, and 1400 killed. The number of guns left behind wasfifty-eight. The English had only 300 killed and wounded.
Sir Arthur's plans for the invasion of Spain were not yetcomplete, and he accordingly halted his army to await supplies andreinforcements. During this time the young buglers had no opportunityof calling upon Major-General Hill. The transport supplied by theSpanish Government had failed grossly, and the troops were badly fedat a time when, taking long marches, they most required support. Thefirst day after they halted the boys determined that they would, assoon as they were off duty, call upon General Hill. While parade wasgoing on, however, they saw the general ride up to Colonel Tritton,and enter into conversation with him. The bugler, who was standingnear, was ordered to sound the call for the officers to assemble infront; and when they did so, Colonel Tritton left the general's sideand spoke a few words with them. There was a short conversation,and then the colonel rejoined the general's side, and the officersreturned to their places. The colonel now rode forward to the centerof the line, and said in loud tones, "Men, I have a piece of news totell you which I think that you will be glad to hear. Upon my arrivalat Lisbon I reported the gallant conduct of Tom and Peter Scudamorein rescuing one of their comrades when washed overboard in the Bayof Biscay. Captain Merivale, of the "Latona," also reported it, andGeneral Hill, when he heard the circumstances, was also good enough tosend home a report recommending them for promotion. He has receivedan answer from the Commander-in-Chief announcing that they are bothgranted commissions in this regiment as a reward for their act ofdistinguished gallantry. The regiment is dismissed."
As the men fell out they gave a loud and general cheer, and Tom andPeter were surrounded by their comrades, who shook them by the hand,and congratulated them upon their pro
motion. The boys were too muchsurprised and affected to speak, and they had scarcely recovered fromtheir bewilderment, when Carruthers came up to them, and led themto the colonel. Here General Hill first, and then all the officers,warmly shook hands with them. The boys were much touched by the warmthwith which they were received, and were soon hurried off to the tentsof the officers. Several of the ensigns were slight young men, andthey insisted upon rigging the boys out in uniform, and the boyshad the less scruple in accepting the kind offer, inasmuch as theyexpected every day to enter Spain, when the baggage would be cut downto the smallest possible proportion, and the officers as well asthe men be obliged to leave almost everything behind them. Sam wasdelighted at the promotion of his friends, and asked to be appointedtheir servant, a request which was at once acceded to. The regimenthad now been three months in Spain, and the boys had continued towork hard at Spanish, devoting several hours a day to its study, andtalking it whenever they could find an opportunity--no difficultmatter, as Portugal was full of Spanish who had crossed the frontierto avoid the hated yoke of the French.
The delay in invading Spain was caused partly from want oftransport, but more by the utter incapacity of the Spanish Junta orgovernment, and by the arrogance and folly of Cuesta, the SpanishCommander-in-Chief, who was always proposing impracticable schemes toWellington, and, inflated with Spanish pride and obstinacy, believedthat his own worthless troops were fully a match for the French, andwas jealous in the highest degree of the British general.
At last, on the 27th of June, the British army advanced. Scarcely hadthey made a day's march, however, when the utter faithlessness of theSpaniards became manifest. The provisions and transport promised werenot forthcoming, and from the very day of their advance the Britishwere badly fed, and indeed often not fed at all; and so great weretheir sufferings during the campaign--sufferings caused by theheartlessness of the people whom they had come to deliver from aforeign yoke, that the British soldiers came to cherish a deep andbitter hatred against the Spanish; and it was this intense feeling ofanimosity which had no little to do with the cruel excesses of theEnglish soldiery upon the capture of Burgos and San Sebastian.
After many delays from these causes, the British army reached Oropesaupon the 20th July, and there formed a junction with Cuesta's army.Upon the 22d the allied armies moved forward, and upon the sameday the Spaniards came in contact with the French, and should haveinflicted a severe blow upon them, but the ignorance and timidity ofthe Spanish generals enabled the enemy to draw off and concentratewithout loss.
The British troops had now been for many days upon half rations, andSir Arthur gave notice to the Junta, that unless his requisitions werecomplied with, he should retire from Spain. Cuesta, however, believingthat the French were retreating in haste, pushed his army across theriver Alberche, with the vain idea of defeating them, and enteringMadrid in triumph. Sir Arthur, seeing the fatal consequences whichwould ensue, were the Spaniards attacked alone, laid aside hispreviously-formed resolution, and put his army in motion acrossthe Alberche. The position of the allied armies was now mostdangerous--far more so, indeed, than the English general supposed.Badly informed by the Spanish, he greatly underrated the enemy'sforces. Taking advantage of the delay caused by the want of provisionsand carriage, Soult, Victor, and Ney were marching their forces fromvarious points, and concentrating to crush the invading army. Upon the26th the French met the Spanish army. General Zayas, who commandedthe Spanish advance of 4000 infantry and 2000 cavalry, scarcelyoffered any resistance, his men broke and fled in disorder, and thepanic would have spread to the whole Spanish army, had not GeneralAlbuquerque brought up 3000 more cavalry and held the French atbay, while Cuesta retreated in great disorder. The Spanish loss bydispersion and flight was no less than 4000 men, and the whole armywould have been broken up had not General Sherbrooke advanced with hisdivision, and placed it between the French and the flying Spaniards.
The allies now recrossed the Alberche and took up a position to coverTalavera. Sir Arthur chose a strong defensive position, as it wasevident that the Spanish were worse than useless in the open field.The Spaniards were placed with their right resting upon Talavera,their left upon a mound whereon a large field-redoubt was constructed.Their front was covered by a convent, by ditches, stone walls,breastworks, and felled trees; and thus, worthless as were the troops,they could scarcely be driven from a position almost impregnable.
The line beyond the Spanish was continued by Campbell's division, nextto which came that of Sherbrooke, its left extending to a steep hill.Mackenzie and Donkin had not yet fallen hack from the Alberche. Hillwas in rear. The British troops, including the German legion, were19,000 strong, with thirty guns. The Spaniards had 33,000 men andseventy guns. The Spanish contingent could, however, be in no wayrelied upon, and were, indeed, never seriously engaged. The realbattle was between the 19,000 British troops and 50,000 French.The French attacked the British outposts with great impetuosity,and Mackenzie and Donkin were driven in with a loss of 4000 men.The latter took up his position with his brigade on the hill onSherbrooke's left; the former took post with Campbell's division, towhich he belonged. The French cavalry now galloped up towards theportion of the line held by the Spanish, and discharged their pistolsat them, whereupon 10,000 Spanish infantry and the whole of theirartillery broke and fled in wild confusion. For miles they continuedtheir flight, but in the evening the Spanish cavalry were sent roundin pursuit, and drove some 4000 of these cowards back to their lines.Seeing the wild confusion which was raging on the allies' right,Victor resolved, although evening was at hand, to make a sudden dashupon the hill upon their left, which, held only by Donkin's brigade,was the key of the position. The hill was very steep upon the front,or French side, while towards the rear it sloped gradually. Ruffin'sdivision was ordered to the attack, followed by Villette in support,while Lapisse was ordered to engage the German legion, which was onthe left of Sherbrooke's division.
Hill's division was lying down behind the hill when Ruffin's troopsadvanced to the attack. There was no expectation of an attack thatevening, and the woods and increasing darkness covered the movementsof the French troops. Weary and hungry, the English soldiers,disgusted at the inhuman neglect of the Spaniards, and furiousat their cowardice, were chatting over the events of the day anddiscussing the chances, by no means bright, of the expected battleto-morrow. All that day they had had no food whatever save a smallportion of grain, served out raw and unground. Tom and Peter had beenchatting with the officers, who were grouped under a tree, when Sambocame up to them and beckoned them aside.
"Look here, Massa Tom, here six eggs; tree for you, tree for MassaPeter."
"Thank you, Sam, that is capital; but you know you will get into a rowif you get caught taking things."
"Me no take 'em, massa. Old hen give them to me."
Tom laughed.
"How was that, Sam?"
"Well, Massa, me saw her sitting on nest. Me went up and said to her,'Give me some eggs, old girl.' She say 'Cluck.' I says, 'Cluck meansyes, I suppose?' She say 'Cluck' again. Clear 'nuff that, so me takeeggs, eat tree, bring six, young massa."
"I am afraid, Sam," Tom said, laughing, "your story would hardly saveyou from the triangles, if you had been caught. However, as it is rudeto return a present, of course you cannot take them back to the hen. Isuppose they are raw?"
"Yes, massa; no good make fire; make hole bofe ends, suck 'em."
"All right, Sam; it is not the nicest way, but, under thecircumstances, perhaps it is the best; at any rate, I am too hungry towait till we can get a fire lighted."
So saying, the boys sucked the raw eggs, and then joined the men,when, just as they did so, first a dropping rifle shot, and then aperfect roar of musketry broke out upon the hill above them. It neededno order to be given. The men fell into their places and prepared toclimb the hill and assist Donkin's brigade, which was evidently unablealone to resist the attack. Knapsacks were thrown off, firelockstightly grasped, and the regiment impatiently
awaited orders toadvance. None were more impatient than the colonel, who after a fewminutes, seeing by the fire that the English were falling back, andthat the French had gained the crest of the hill, waited no longer fororders, but gave the word for the regiment to advance. They were buthalf way up the hill when General Hill himself galloped down to meetthem, and then turning, led the way beside Colonel Tritton.
General Hill had had a narrow escape. Donkin had repulsed the Frenchwho attacked him in front, but his force was insufficient to guard thewhole crest of the hill. Consequently, the enemy had come up roundhis flank, and were now in actual possession of the crest. GeneralHill, ignorant of this, had ridden with his brigade-major rightinto the midst of the French before he found out his mistake. Hisbrigade-major, Fordyce, was killed, his own horse wounded, and hisbridle seized by a French grenadier. He had, however, broken away, andhad ridden off under a storm of bullets.
With a cheer the Norfolk Rangers followed their gallant leader. Theyreached the crest, poured a tremendous volley into the enemy, andcharged with the bayonet. The French, of whom but a small portionhad as yet gained the crest, were unable to resist the impetuousonslaught, and at once gave way.
The Rangers were now joined by the 48th and the 29th, so that these,with Donkin's brigade, formed a strong body of troops. The French,who had fallen back, now united with their main body, and the attackwas renewed with all the force of Ruffin's division. The heavy masspressed upwards, in spite of the destructive fire of the British, andwere within twenty yards of the crest, when, with a hearty cheer, theEnglish troops burst upon them with the bayonet, and the French againfell back, broken and disheartened.
This ended the fighting on the 27th of July. Long lines of bivouacfires soon blazed upon either side. The wounded were carried down thehill to the field-hospital, which had been erected under its cover,and the men, eating their scanty supper, wrapped themselves in theirgreat coats, and were soon asleep. The officers chatted for a shorttime longer, but as all were tired, and the next day was sure to be asevere one, they, too, soon lay down by their fire.
When morning broke, it was seen that the enemy had massed a largeforce of artillery upon a hill just opposite to the one held by theEnglish. Soon afterwards Ruffin's division, as before supported byVillette, advanced to the attack, covered by the tremendous fire fromhis artillery. The British had no adequate force of artillery to replyto the iron storm, and the balls swept through their lines, mowingdown their ranks, and causing great loss. The regiments in reserve laydown to avoid the iron shower, while the Rangers and 48th prepared toresist the French when they came within fighting distance.
As their men approached the summit of the hill, the French artillerywas obliged to cease playing in that direction, and turned itsattention to the British center, while a fierce musketry contest tookplace between the French and Hill and Donkin's men.
The ground was rough, and the troops on both sides, broken up intosmall bodies, fought desperately. General Hill was wounded, and theBritish troops fell fast. The French, however, suffered even more,and, as Hill brought up his reserve, the English gained ground foot byfoot, until they drove them again down the steep side of the hill. Asthe French retired, their artillery once more opened fire to covertheir retreat.
A pause now ensued; the French in this brief contest had lost 1400men, and the British had suffered severely. The French then held acouncil of war, and determined to attack along the whole line inforce. Hours passed away; the English munched their corn, smoked theirpipes, and watched the enemy scattered over the plain. The weatherwas very hot, and the men of both sides went down to a little streamwhich divided their positions, drank, and filled their water-bottlesin perfect amity. Some of the officers, who spoke French conversedwith the French officers, exchanged cigars for brandy, and joked andlaughed as if they had been the best of friends.
At one o'clock the French drums were heard to beat, and the men weresoon formed in order. Tom and Peter stood with a group of officers onthe brow of the hill. Nothing could be finer than the sight. Far awaythe view stretched over the country, thickly wooded, and with chateauand farm-houses scatted here and there. Through the trees the densemasses of the French could be seen, as they moved in columns towardsthe positions from which they were to attack. Upon an eminence,nearly opposite to their position, the boys could see a long line ofthe French artillery. Far away, to the right, rose the churches ofTalavera, while behind the hill were the British and Spanish cavalry,ready to charge should the French endeavor to turn the British left bypushing round its foot. Fifty paces from the officers of the NorfolkRangers sat Sir Arthur Wellesley, on horseback, watching attentivelythrough a field-glass the movements of the enemy, and at a shortdistance behind him were his staff. The British troops were standingin easy order, a little behind the crest of the hill, so as to besheltered from the artillery fire with which the French were sure tocover the advance of their column of attack.
"This is a grand sight, Peter," Tom said, "but I wish they wouldbegin; it makes one fidgety waiting for it."
Scarcely had Tom spoken when, as if in answer to his wish, a seriesof jets of white smoke puffed out from the opposite hill, and two orthree seconds later came the thunder of eighty guns, and the whizzingsound of as many balls. Instinctively the group drew back a pace, butit was not upon them that this tremendous fire was opened. It wasdirected against the right of the British line, and almost at the samemoment a cloud of skirmishers appeared among the trees, followed bythe dark columns of Sebastiani's division.
Upon these the English guns at once opened fire; but rushing forwardwith their usual impetuosity, they cleared away the obstacles whichhad been raised across the British front, and charged with furyagainst the British position. Campbell's division, however, assistedby Mackenzie's brigade and two Spanish battalions, stood firm, anddriving back the skirmishers, advanced in line, cheering loudly. Thehead of the French column withered away under their tremendous fire,and, pushing forward, they overlapped it, and drove them back withterrible loss, capturing ten guns. Then Campbell prudently recalledhis men to their first position, and the British artillery, which hadnecessarily been silent while friend and foe were mingled together,opened furiously upon the French as they tried to re-form upon theirsupports. A Spanish cavalry regiment dashed down upon their flank, andthey retired again in great disorder.
Every incident of the fight could be seen from the British position onthe hill, and the troops almost held their breath with excitement asthe British lines clashed against the head of the French column, and aloud shout of triumph burst out spontaneously as the French broke andfled.
But it was now the turn of the left. Already Villette's division,preceded by the Grenadiers and supported by Ruffin's division, wasadvancing, and the British cavalry were ordered to charge them. Theground was, however, quite unfit for cavalry. Colonel Arentschild, avery experienced officer, who commanded the German Hussars, drew uphis regiment at the edge of a deep cleft which crossed their front,and refused to take his men to certain destruction. The 23d Dragoons,however, dashed into the ravine. Men and horses rolled over in alldirections; still, they got across, and, charging furiously betweenthe French infantry regiments, which poured in a terrible fire,fell upon a brigade of Chasseurs in their rear. Victor sent up hisPolish lancers and Westphalian light horse to the assistance of theChasseurs, who already outnumbered the 23d, and this gallant regimentwas completely broken, the survivors escaping to the shelter ofBassecourt's Spanish division, which lay beyond the hill, having lost257 men and officers.
Tom and Peter did not see this disastrous affair, for on the approachof the enemy's column they fell into their places in the ranks. Itwas, however, in vain that the French tried to gain the crest of thehill, their efforts at this point being indeed far more feeble thanthey had been either in the morning or upon the previous night. It wasin the center that their great effort was made. Here Lapisse threw hisdivision against that of Sherbrooke, and, covered by his own artilleryand by the guns upo
n the hill, charged right up to the position. TheBritish, however, repulsed them, and the guards, carried away by theexcitement of the moment, followed them with reckless ardor. TheFrench reserves of infantry and cavalry came up, the artillery pliedthe British with shot and shell, the fugitives rallied and again cameto the attack, and the Guards fell back in confusion. The Germans nextto them, severely pressed, began to waver, and for a time it seemedthat the British, victorious upon both flanks, were yet to lose thebattle by being broken in the center.
Now, however, the 48th, which Sir Arthur had ordered down from thehill when he saw the rash advance of the Guards, was seen advancingin line through the disordered masses. Wheeling back, it allowed theretreating regiments to pass through it and then again formed and fellupon the flank of the victorious French column. The French paused intheir advance, the Guards and Germans rallied and came back again tothe fight, the shots of the British guns plowed lines in the column,the French wavered, and, as the British light cavalry trotted up withthe intention of charging them, fell back, and drew off to theirfirst position amidst shouts of victory along the whole length of theBritish line.
Thus the battle ceased, each party occupying the ground it had held inthe morning. The British loss in killed, wounded, and missing, in thetwo days' fighting, was 6200; that of the French 7400. Had the Britishbeen in a condition to have sallied from their position and pursuedthe retiring enemy, the victory would have had far greater results;but, exhausted and half-starved, the British were incapable offollowing up their advantage.
The next morning at daybreak, the French army quitted its position,and, retiring across the Alberche, formed line of battle there, andawaited the attack, should the English take the offensive. This theywere in no position to do, although in the course of the day Craufurdhad come up with the 43d, 52d, and 95th Regiments. These threeregiments had heard of the first day's fighting from the Spanishfugitives, and had marched with all speed to the assistance of theirfriends. They had, carrying their kit and ammunition, weighing from 50lb. to 60 lb., actually marched sixty-two miles in twenty-six hours inthe hottest season of the year, one of the greatest feats recorded inmilitary history.
The Rangers had suffered heavily, and in the two days' fighting hadlost thirty-eight killed and 109 wounded. Among the former were twoofficers, while several others were wounded. The Scudamores had,fortunately, both escaped without a scratch. The inhumanity of theSpaniards was now more markedly shown than ever. Although both inCuesta's army, and in the town of Talavera provisions were abundant,yet the inhabitants carefully concealed them, while both the woundedand fighting men of the British army were in want. So great was themisery and indignation of the soldiers at this shameful treatment,from those for whom they were doing so much, that they would willinglyhave attacked the Spanish army and plundered the town; and from thisperiod to the end of the war the British hated the Spanish with a deepand bitter hatred.
Wellesley now received news that Soult had crossed the mountainsthrough the pass of Banos, which had been left undefended by theSpanish, and was marching upon his rear. Believing that Soult had only13,000 men with him--whereas in fact, he had 50,000--Sir Arthur leftthe Spanish army at Talavera in charge of the hospitals, with 6000sick and wounded, and retraced his steps, with the intention of givingbattle to this new enemy.
Upon the 3d, however, he learned the real strength of Soult's army,and upon the same day heard that General Cuesta had basely retreatedfrom Talavera, without having provided any transport whatever,according to his promise, for the British sick and wounded. All ofthese who had strength to crawl rejoined the British army, but 1500,who were unable to walk, were left behind, and fell into the handsof the French, by whom they were treated with far greater kindnessand attention than they had been by the Spanish. Upon the 4th Cuestajoined Sir Arthur, and at six o'clock next morning the only possiblecourse for safety was adopted. Victor was advancing from Talavera,Soult was hurrying from Placentia to cut off the retreat of theBritish, and accordingly Sir Arthur fell back upon Arzobispo, on theTagus.
The artillery, the baggage and wounded, first crossed the bridge, andat two o'clock the entire army was across. So great was the hunger ofthe men that a herd of swine happening to be seen close to the lineof march, the soldiers ran upon them, shot and bayoneted them, anddevoured them raw. Taking up a strong position, guarding the bridgesof the Tagus, the British army remained quiet until the end of August.During this time they became so weakened by starvation that they couldscarcely walk; a great portion of the cavalry horses, and nearly allthe baggage animals died of hunger, and at last, Sir Arthur, findingthat no remonstrances availed with the Junta, fell back again to thePortuguese frontier by slow marches, for the army was so utterlyenfeebled that it resembled a vast body of invalids, rather than anarmy of unbeaten soldiers.