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i LIFE OF JOHN ^D- MARSHAL LORD SE
G.'C.H., G.C.M.G., K."
COMPILED FF
BY G. C. MOORE SMITH.
EDITOR or THZ AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF SIR HARRY S
LONDON : 3HN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE STREET,
3-
THE LIFE OF JOHN COLBORNE, FIELD -MARSHAL LORD SEATON,
G.C.B., G.C.H., G.C.M.G., K.T.S., K.Sx.G., K.M.T., &c.,
COMPILED FROM HIS LETTERS,
RECORDS OF HIS CONVERSATIONS,
AND OTHER SOURCES
BY G. C. MOORE SMITH, M.A.,
EDITOR OF THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF SIR HARRY SMITH.
"FEW MEN ARE LIKE HIM; INDEED, EXCEPT THE DuKE OF WELLINGTON', I KNOW- NO OFFICER IN THE BRITISH ARMY HIS IQUAL."— Sir George Napier (1828).
LONDON : JOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE STREET, W.
1903.
OA
PREFACE.
THE materials for the following " Life of Field-Marshal Lord Seaton " are drawn (i) from his own letters and those of his wife and his friends, (2) from reports taken down by his daughters (from about 1847 onwards) of his spoken references to events in which he took part, (3) from the recollections of persons now living, (4) from published works.
For the use of letters, I am indebted in the first place to the Hon. Lady Montgomery-Moore, whose anxiety to see some such monument raised to her revered father's memory was my first encouragement towards undertaking this work ; and secondly to the Lord Seaton, to Lieutenant- Colonel the Hon. F. L. Colborne, to Miss Mary Yonge of Yealmpton, to John Yonge, Esq., of Puslinch, to Miss H. E. Yonge of Eastleigh, Hants, to the Hon. W. N. Bruce, grandson of Sir William Napier, and to Lieutenant-Colonel A. F. Mockler-Ferryman, Oxfordshire Light Infantry, who, one and all, put the letters and memoranda which were in their possession at my disposal. I have also to thank Field-Marshal H.R.H. the Duke of Cambridge for per- mission to publish two of his letters addressed to Lord Seaton.
For the portraits and other illustrations given in this book, I am indebted to His Grace the Duke of Wellington, the Lord Seaton, General Sir Alexander and the Hon. Lady Montgomery-Moore, the Hon. and Rev. Graham Colborne, Colonel the Hon. F. L. Colborne, and John Yonge, Esq., of Puslinch.
In the course of my work I have received most valu- able assistance and criticism from many sources. I must particularly mention General Sir Alexander and Lady Montgomery-Moore, the Lord Seaton, whose hospitality enabled me to see with my own eyes many of the scenes described in this book, the Hon. and Reverend Graham Colborne, Colonel F. A. Whinyates, late R.A, Captain
iv PREFACE.
M. F. M. Meiklejohn, V.C., Gordon Highlanders, the Reverend Canon Charles Evans of Parkstone, F. C. Carr- Gomm, Esq., The Chase, Farnham Royal, Captain B. Smyth, Lancashire Fusiliers, author of the History of the XX. Regiment, Lieutenant-Colonel A. F. Mockler-Ferryman, Oxfordshire Light Infantry, E. D. A. Morshead, Esq., Winchester College, the late C. W. Holgate, Esq., editor of the Winchester Long Rolls, Herbert Chitty, Esq., an enthusiastic Wykehamist, T. F. Kirby, Esq., Treasurer to Winchester College, the Reverend H. E. Moberley, Rector of St. Michael's, Winchester, R. L. Franks, Esq., Clerk to Christ's Hospital, A. W. Lockhart, Esq., Treasurer to Christ's Hospital, the Reverend E. H. Pearce, author of The Annals of Christ's Hospital, W. J. C. Moens, Esq., Tweed, Lymington, Charles Oman, Esq., Fellow of All Souls, and G. J. Turner, Esq., Lincoln's Inn. To these, and others not named, I return my most sincere thanks.
I should like also to express my thanks to a gentleman, who, at Mr. Murray's request, read my manuscript and gave me some valuable suggestions.
It is needless to say that I owe much to previous publications. Among those on which I have drawn most largely are articles by the late Miss Charlotte M. Yonge, in the Christian Remembrancer, October, 1867, and the Wykehamist, June, 1896, the privately-printed account of Lord Seaton's war services by Captain W. C. Yonge, the Reverend W. Leeke's book Lord Seatoris Regiment at Waterloo, Cannon's Historical Record of the 20th Regi- ment, Sidney's Life of Lord Hill, Moorsom's Historical Record of the $2nd Regiment, Napier's History of the Peninsular War, The Early Military Life of Sir G. T. Napier (for my use of which I have had the special per- mission of General William Napier, Sir George's son), Sir H. E. Bunbury's Passages in the History of the Great War, The Autobiography of Sir Harry Smith (whose account of his Brigadier first interested me in my subject), W. Henry's Events of a Military Life, Major J. Richard- son's Eight Years in Canada, and more particularly the History of Canada, by the late Dr. Kingsford. Mr. R. E,
PREFACE. v
Kingsford, LL.M., of Toronto, in kindly allowing me to make the use I have done of his father's book, sent me much valuable information in regard to the history of Upper Canada College, which Sir John Colborne founded, and of which Mr. Kingsford is a loyal Old Boy. This information unfortunately arrived too late for me to make as much use of it as I should have liked to do. I can only say here that the school has played a distinguished part in Canadian history, and at present, after passing through great difficulties, due to no fault of its own, appears to be entering on a no less distinguished future.
Miss Christabel Coleridge's memoir, Charlotte Mary Yonge, appeared only as this book was in the press. It deals greatly with persons who played a part in Lord Seaton's life, and the portraits it gives will be interesting to all readers of the following pages.
The index has been, in the main, the work of my sister, Miss M. A. Smith.
It gives me special pleasure to say that this book has been read in proof by Miss Julia Moore, niece of Sir John Moore. The passionate admiration felt by Colborne for Sir John Moore will be evident throughout this Life, and it is to me a fact of deep historic interest that the story of Lord Seaton's career should have been read after these many years by a venerable lady who, still enjoying her full intellectual powers, remembers that day of sorrow ninety-four years ago which brought to her father's house the tragic news of Corunna.
Although this book appears so long after Lord Seaton's death, I trust that an interest may still be awakened in the varied career of a great Englishman, whose military genius was at least equalled by the beauty and nobility of his character. What was thought of him by some of those who knew him best is briefly told in the extracts which follow : the justification of their words will be found writ large in the Life itself.
G. C. MOORE SMITH.
31, Endcliffe Rise Road, Sheffield.
( vi )
tl Colborne, a man of singular talents for war."— SIR W. C. F. NAPIER. History of the Peninsular War.
" The Master in the art of outposts under whom I learned more in six months than in all the rest of my shooting put together." — SIR HARRY SMITH. Letter to Sir J. Colborne, Cape of Good Hope, 2nd March, 1832.
" No man can point out to me any instance, either in ancient or modern history, of a single battalion so influencing the result of any great action as the result of the battle of Waterloo was influenced by the attack of the 5 2nd Regiment on the Imperial Guard." — GENERAL SIR J. SHAW KENNEDY. Letter to Captain Siborne, i5th May, 1864.
" Never did any man suffer more patiently than he did [after his wound at Ciudad Rodrigo]. But it was Colborne > and that is sufficient, there being no suffering in human life which he would not endure, if necessary, either for his country or his friends. Few men are like him; indeed, except the Duke of Wellington, I know no officer in the British army his equal. His expansive mind is capable of grasping anything, however difficult or abstruse ; his genius in war is so powerful that it overcomes all obstacles ; and his splendid talents and long experience have gained him the confidence and admiration of the whole army, which looks up to Sir John Colborne, should a war take place, as the man who will rise conspicuous above all others. The Duke of Wellington, from the time Colborne was a lieutenant- colonel, always placed the most entire confidence in him, and, although only a lieutenant-colonel, employed him constantly in every enterprise of difficulty and danger, and never did he fail once. He has, with the most intrepid bravery, a coolness of head in the very heat of action, which never fails him, and thus he penetrates with eagle eye into the enemy's intentions, and
( vii )
is sure to baffle his designs, when least expected. Nothing can take him by surprise or flurry him; and I am confident if Colborne was suddenly awoke out of his sleep and told he was surrounded by an army treble his numbers, it would only have the effect of making him, if possible, still more calm and collected, and that, if it was possible for mortal man to get out of the scrape, he would. His talents for civil government are also very great, as he has proved in Guernsey; and the Duke of Wellington and Sir George Murray have, in consequence of their high opinion of his abilities, sent him as Governor to Upper Canada, where he is doing everything that marks the steady, upright, fearless and able servant of his king and country, and where if any dispute should unfortunately arise between England and America, his military skill will be of most essential service." — SIR GEORGE NAPIER (1828). Early Military Life, p. 220.
" I had a good letter the other day from Lord Seaton. These men and their fellows ... I hold to be the foundation stones of England. In them is incarnate the sense of duty and obedience as a fixed habit, not a sentiment or conviction, as the people say, but a true witness of the Omnipotent who wills it thus." — MAJOR-GENERAL CHARLES BECKWITH, 2;th Jan. 1855. Autobiography of Sir Harry Smith, II., p. 303.
" Lord Seaton was certainly the noblest type of a soldier that I have known : . . Mildest, kindest, gentlest of human beings : clear-headed, calm, vigorous in mind as he was strong in body, he was always my idea of a soldier."— SIR WILLIAM FRASER. Words on Wellington, 1889.
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
COLONEL SIR JOHN COLBORNE, K.C.B., 52nd Regiment
(Photogravure) Frontispiece
From the portrait by J. W. Pieneman, painted about 1819, in the possession of His Grace the Duke of Wellington, at Apsley House. The portrait, which was bought by the Great Duke in 1825, seems to have been painted by Pieneman as a study for his famous picture of the Battle of Waterloo, now in the Rijks Museum, Amsterdam.
JOHN COLBORNE AS A CHILD To face p. 2
From a picture in the possession of the Hon. and Rev. Graham Colborne, Dittisham Rectory.
"SCHOOL," WINCHESTER COLLEGE ... ... ... ... ,, 6
MAP OF NORTH HOLLAND „ 10
MAP OF THE DISTRICT ROUND ALEXANDRIA , 26
MAP TO ILLUSTRATE THE BATTLE OF MAIDA ... ... ,, 52
MAP OF SPAIN AND PORTUGAL „ 83
PUSLINCH, YEALMPTON „ 124
MRS. COLBORNE (LADY SEATON) (Photogravure) ,, 180
From a miniature painted in 1813 in the possession of the Hon. Lady Montgomery Moore. Colonel Colborne had this miniature with him in the last year of the Peninsular War, and in his later life it stood constantly on his table.
COLONEL COLBORNE (Photogravure) „ 196
From a miniature painted in 1813 in the possession of the Hon. Lady Montgomery Moore.
MAP OF LOWER CANADA ... ... ... ... ... ,, 285
GENERAL LORD SEATON AT CHOBHAM CAMP „ 352
From a sketch, by an officer, in the possession of the Hon. Lady Montgomery Moore.
GENERAL LORD SEATON (Photogravure) „ 364
From a drawing made by George Richmond, R.A., about 1852, in the possession of the Lord Seaton at Beech- wood.
BEECHWOOD, PLVMPTON , „ 372
— And one, our bravest — in the years' dim cloud
A half-forgotten name —
Yet him our memory holds, in grey-haired fame. He climbed this height, our mimic wars he knew,
Till years brought toil more proud, And o'er his head war's louder breezes blew. Him first the swaying tides of battle bore From fight to fight ; he on Corunna's shore Strove by the side, bowed by the grave, of Moore ; And after, through the midnight murk of war, Followed, unflinching, England's rising star, Till o'er the Pyrenean crags rang out
The bugle and the shout — And when, one moment, seemed the star to pale,
And heroes' hands almost to fail, He clove the ranks at Orthez, plucked the bay
From out the doubtful fray. Last, in the last throw of the iron game
For stake of Death and Fame, He, high of heart as keen of eye,
Set on for victory,
And fiercely breasted, stemmed, and overthrew The last dark wave that swelled and broke at Waterloo.
E. D. A. MORSHEAD,
Evening on Hills (Winchester).
CHAPTER I.
BIRTH, 1778. CHRIST'S HOSPITAL AND WINCHES- TER, 1785-1794. GAZETTED TO THE 2OTH REGIMENT, 1794. EXPEDITION TO HOLLAND, 1799.
JOHN COLBORNE, the subject of this biography, was the son of Samuel Colborne, of Lymington, Hants, and Cordelia Anne, daughter of John Garstin, of Leragh Castle and Ballykerrin, County Westmeath, and his wife Alethea Farrell. Samuel Colborne had inherited property through his father from his great-uncle, Charles Colborne, of the Knollmans, Lyndhurst, and Barnes, Surrey, a Director of the East India Company, who died in 1747 at the age of 57. This gentleman, whose bust by Rysbraeck, with a laudatory Latin epitaph, still adorns the chancel of Lymington Church, was in his time a local celebrity. He was a burgess of Lymington as early as 1720, and in 1745 we find his name among those of the Tories of the town, Sir Harry Burrard being the leading Whig. Mr. King, in his Old Times Revisited (p. 118), records the following traditional account of Charles Colborne :
2 CHILDHOOD. [Cn. I.
" He was a tall, portly gentleman, with a long flowing wig, who drove a handsome gingerbread- coloured carriage with four black Flanders mares. He was a great favourite with the populace, whose liking for ' panem et circenses ' he gratified by plenty of ale and frequent bull-baitings. When his car- riage drove through the town, the rabble used to press round his coach with shouts for King Colborne."
Samuel Colborne and Cordelia Anne Garstin were married at Ellingham, Hants, where Miss Garstin had been staying, on 2Oth October, 1774. Their eldest child, Cordelia Anne, was born in 1775 ; a son, Samuel, who died as an infant, in 1776 ; John, their youngest child, on i6th February, 1778, and baptized on 3ist March following. Mr. Colborne, after suffering reverses of fortune, died in April, 1785. His son was then seven, and in after years retained little or no memory of his father. On Mr. Colborne's death his widow procured the admission of her son John to Christ's Hospital (i5th June, 1785) "on the presentation of Deputy Robert Harding."
To John Colborne, therefore, may be applied the words in which Samuel Taylor Coleridge, his elder contemporary at Christ's Hospital, speaks of his own schooldays :
" I was reared
In the great city, pent 'mid cloisters dim And saw nought lovely but the sky and stars,"*
and it is interesting to think that Colborne, like
* Colborne appears never to have been at the school at Hertford, but to have joined the London school from the beginning.
JOHN COLBOKNE.
To face p. 2.
1778-89.] CHRIST'S HOSPITAL. 3
Charles Lamb, may have seen their gifted school- fellow " in the day-spring of his fancies, with hope like a fiery column before him, the dark pillar not yet turned." In fact, if we would have a picture of some years of John Colborne's boyhood, we have only to turn to Lamb's essay on " Christ's Hospital five and thirty years ago."
On 6th February, 1787, Mrs. Colborne was married at Lymington to the Rev. Thomas Bargus,* who became a second father to his stepchildren, and received from them in return a lifelong affection. Mr. Bargus had been educated at Winchester and at Pembroke College, Oxford (B.A., 1773), of which he became a Fellow. From 1783 till April, 1784, he had been curate of Lymington, but he was now residing at Winchester, in St. Michael's parish, and receiving into his house (probably that now called "Witham Close," in Kingsgate Street) " commoners " of the school who lived at a distance — " street commoners," as such boarders in the town were called, in contrast to the commoners who boarded with the head master. Among them had been Lord Warwick's eldest son, Lord Brooke, who had died of scarlet fever while under Mr. Bargus' care in 1786, but was succeeded by another brother a year or two later. t
Mrs. Bargus brought her second husband a daughter, Alethea Henrietta (born 7th June, 1789),
* Mr. T. F. Kirby tells me that "Bargus*' is a corruption of " Baughurst," the name of a village in Hants.
f Miss C. M. Yonge, writing in the Wykehamist, June, 1896, states that Mr. Bargus was a Chaplain of Winchester College. Messrs. T. F. Kirby and C. W. Holgate, both well-known Wykehamist antiquaries, assure me that this was not the case.
B 2
4 BOYHOOD. [Cn. I.
but died on the i5th March, 1791, and was buried at Fareham, Mr. Bargus' birthplace.
Her only son, John Colborne, was then 13, and a scholar of Winchester. He always remembered his mother with the most tender love. He described her as the most beautiful woman he ever saw, and in his extreme old age spoke with tears of the misery which her death caused to his elder sister and him- self; while Mr. Bargus, in recording her death, spoke of her as " my ever-to-be-remembered dearest, dear, dear wife."
About August, 1792, Mr. Bargus found con- solation in a second marriage with Miss Mary Kingsman, daughter of the Rector of Botley, Hants, and by her had a daughter, Frances Mary (Fanny), born 1 3th January, 1795, whom John Colborne always called " sister." Miss Fanny Bargus became the mother of the popular writer, Miss Charlotte M. Yonge.*
John Colborne's removal from Christ's Hospital is recorded in the register of the Hospital under the date " 1789, January 29."
In the same year he entered Winchester School as a commoner, there not being sufficient vacancies for him to enter as a scholar, though his name had been placed on the roll for that purpose. When he entered the school, as he wrote in 1845, "Dr. Warton was Head-master, Woodhouse Senior Tutor, and Dr. Goddard Under-master. Lord Boyle
* Further particulars of Colborne's family will be found in Burke's Peerage under " Seaton," in his Landed Gentry of Ireland under "Garstin of Brag-ganstown," in his Landed Gentry of Great Britain under " Yonge of Pusilnch," and in Miss Coleridge's book, Charlotte M. Yonge.
1789-94-] WINCHESTER COLLEGE. 5
and a person by the name of Gleed were the Senior Prefects. I occupied a room in the Hall Gallery (in the Head-master's house, then called * Com- moners '), and afterwards, with the nomination of the Warden, succeeded to a vacancy in College."
He was placed in the senior part of Fourth Book (i.e., the lowest form but one in the school) and his position was looth out of the 109 boys then in the school. In 1790 he was admitted a scholar, and put in the 7th Chamber in College. In October this year he was 87th, in 1791, 85th, out of in boys. In 1792 he was 55th out of 115, in 1793 nth out of 109, the sudden rise being accounted for by the expulsions which followed the famous " rebellion " of 1793, when the boys imprisoned the Warden, the Usher and one of the Fellows, and barricaded the school. Colborne would tell in after years of the part he played in the rebellion, how he held a posi- tion against the masters, and hurled down stones from the battlements — the beginning of his military career and love of battles, as his wife would say jokingly. More fortunate than many of his school- fellows, he escaped expulsion, and remained at Winchester till July, 1794, when he was already a Prefect. He was now in ist Chamber.
Miss Yonge writes of Colborne's school-days : " He was considered to be dull and backward, though a lady who used to play chess with him always maintained that he showed the promise of something remarkable. However, his spirit and ability are said to have been chiefly shown in build- ing and defending snow forts."*
* Wykehamist, June, 1896. The " lady" was Miss Maria Kingsman.
6 TWENTIETH REGIMENT. [Cn. I.
A writer in the Christian Remembrancer, October, 1867,* while telling us that Colborne retained through life a warm affection for Winchester, remarks on the lack of discipline, and especially of religion, that prevailed in the school in his day. " Boys then prepared their lessons or read newspapers in chapel unreproved, and the general lawlessness broke out in the first of the two great rebellions still remem- bered in the traditions of the school. This renders more remarkable the deep sense of religion and the purity of mind, manners, and language which characterized John Colborne from his earliest to his latest years, and which became stamped on the memory of all who came in contact with him."
John Colborne was only 16 when, on loth July, 1794, he received a commission as Ensign in the 2Oth Regiment, by the interest of the Earl of Warwick.! He left school immediately afterwards. He became Lieutenant on loth September, 1795. The 20th did not return from the West Indies till the summer of 1796. Colborne, who had been assiduously devoting his time since he left school to the improvement of his education, joined his regiment in October, at Exeter, and served with it at Lichfield, Liverpool and Preston from 1796 to 1799. More than six feet high, and singularly hand- some, he must have looked every inch a soldier.
Colborne has told us nothing of his earliest
* This was also, without doubt, Miss C. M. Yonge.
f Lord Seaton told Mr. Eyre Matcham, of Newhouse, Salisbury, that as a little boy he had been intended for the Church, and that once when he came back from school he was told that he was to go into the army instead. He added " I was very glad." Mr. Matcham remarking "Well, you must be satisfied with the result," he replied simply "Yes, I am."
1 794-9.] ORDERED TO HOLLAND. J
days in the service, but the following story : — " I remember when I first joined, my Colonel, when speaking to me, pointed to an officer and said: * There, sir, that officer was shot through the body, and was all the better for it ; there's encouragement for you/ "
In the summer of 1799 the 2Oth Regiment received orders to join the expedition to Holland, which was to be commanded by H.R.H. the Duke of York. It marched from Preston to Canterbury, where it was joined by 1,800 excellent soldiers, volunteers from the militia regiments of many counties. Before leaving Preston, Colborne wrote the following letter to his stepfather, who had left Winchester in 1798, on being presented by Mr. Peachey, afterwards Lord Selsey, to the living of Barkway, Herts, a village situated on the chalk hills a few miles south-east of Royston : —
" Preston, July 2ist, 1799.
" Dear Sir, — I am this moment ordered to Windsor to receive the ist Staffordshire Militia, who have volun- teered into our regiment. The 2Oth Regiment marches to-morrow, and is destined for the second embarkation. Part of the 2nd Stafford and 3rd Lancashire have also volunteered for our regiment We shall soon be a thousand strong. Owing to the expense I shall be at in going to Windsor, and being ordered away at so short a notice, has induced me to do a thing not altogether proper. I have drawn on you for nve-and-twenty pounds three days after sight, payable to Captain Thos. Hipkins. I could not do without it, I assure you, for although my expences will finally be paid by Government, yet it will be some time before I shall receive the money. I shall be very much obliged to you if you will accept the bill,
8 IN HOLLAND. [Cn. I.
and beg you will deduct the amount from Mr. Lind's legacy. ... I am, yours affectionately,
" J. COLBORNE. " Rev. T. Bargus, Barkway."
From Canterbury the 2Oth proceeded to the camp at Barham Downs, where it was divided into two battalions, Lieut. Colborne being appointed to the ist, which was commanded by Lt.-Col. George Smyth. The main part of the intended force, amounting to about 15,000 men, left Barham Downs on August 8th, embarked on the I3th, and, landing at the Helder on the 27th, fought a successful action on the same day. On the following day a reinforce- ment of 5,000 men under Maj.-Gen. Don arrived. This included the I7th, 2Oth and 4oth Regiments (two battalions each) and the 63rd Regiment, the two battalions of the 2Oth and the 63rd forming a brigade. The whole army, until the arrival of the Duke of York, was commanded by Sir Ralph Aber- cromby.
Colborne said in later years : " We landed without our baggage on a cold, rainy night, and were on the bare sands with no food and no wood. General Don had a nice little cart with his things in, in which he was to sleep, and I recollect envying him when he said : ' Now, gentlemen, we halt here ; make yourselves comfortable! ' An officer I recollect shot a \vildfowl and roasted it himself, and gave us all
some."
Immediately on landing, the regiment formed in position on the sand hills a few miles south of Helder Town. It was afterwards moved to Zijp Dyke, and posted near the village of Crabbendam.
1 799.] THE FORCE LANDED. 9
The following narrative gives Colborne's remini- scences of his first campaigning days : — " Eight days after our landing Colonel Smyth was given a separate employment by General Abercromby — to take a dyke, I think. This was the first time I saw Sir John Moore, who rode up to us with General Abercromby. Colonel Smyth was exceedingly delighted, and I recollect his instruction was, ' March straight in, and if you see anything, don't fire, but push at them with the bayonet.' We pushed in accordingly, but saw no one. We took the dyke and a large farmhouse, in which I established myself very comfortably, and thought I was going to have a good night's rest, when I was suddenly ordered out on a picquet to inspect the road. I had not been there long when I heard a bugle sound. I was wondering what it could mean, when a sergeant said, ' Oh, sir, it must be for a truce ! ' However, a very smart French Dragoon officer came galloping clown with two led horses. He said he had brought General Don's horses, that General Don was de- tained by the French general, but the latter had sent back his horses, and the dragoon wanted a receipt for them. So I gave the receipt — the first time I ever had occasion to write French. The fact was that General Don had gone with some despatches to the French camp. We were then trying to entice Holland back to allegiance to the Stadtholder, and we all wore Orange ribbon. General Don had several yards of Orange ribbon in his pocket, as well as some proclamations, and, being an absent-minded man, in taking out the despatches he pulled out the Orange ribbon too. They then
10 IN HOLLAND. [Cn. I.
searched him and found the proclamations. So the French general said, ' I think this is a very suspicious thing. You come here with despatches, and you have these things to corrupt the soldiers with. I shan't let you go until it is enquired into/ and he detained him for three or four days.
" I sent round to my commanding officer, that he might receive the story from the Frenchman himself. The colonel talked to him a long time and extracted some valuable information from him, among other things that the road on which I was stationed with my picquet was the high road to Alkmaar. On dis- covering this the colonel said, ' This is of the utmost importance. There must be an intrenchment placed here/
" I was to remain with the picquets all night. At the grey of the morning the post was attacked, two men on my picquet were killed and some wounded. This was the first time I had been under fire, for at the disembarkation the 2Oth were in reserve.
"As I expected an attack I had the men on the watch. There were some militia on the picquet who had only been embodied ten days. As they were throwing up a trench I heard one of them say to another, ' Well, I'll stand as long as the officer stands ! ' and all did behave remarkably well. The French soon went back when they found that we were prepared for them. Colonel Smyth next morning gave me great commendation for having first caused a trench to be thrown up in a very good position, and for having then repulsed the enemy very gallantly and defeated the design of the French officer.
NORTH HOLLAND
to illustrate the HELDER CAMPAIGN
20 face p. 10.
1 799-] PICQUET ATTACKED. II
" Later that day Sir Ralph Abercromby came down himself to see all about it, and ask how far the enemy came, &c., and I was nervous and em- barrassed, thinking it a very formidable thing to speak to the Commander-in-Chief : when an old Dutch General, Sontag, who had come with him (he was known in the camp as £ General Ney/ on account of his long nose), came blustering out, * Now, Sir, speak out, and tell the General all you have seen ! ' I was so angry with him I felt as if I could have knocked him down, but his words made me conquer my modesty and speak out directly.
" On my returning to camp I was surrounded by all the officers of the 2Oth, and congratulated on having opened the ball.
" On another occasion I was visiting a distant picquet near a dyke when I heard a sound in the water which I thought at first was a dog, but on going with a sergeant to reconnoitre, we discovered a Dutch officer in uniform measuring the depth of the dyke with a stick, and we captured him. The dyke was about three feet deep in water and three in mud. It was thought he was measuring with a view to an attack, and the surmise proved to be correct, for we were attacked two days afterwards. I was much complimented by my commanding officer for what I had done.
" Before we went to Holland several soldiers from our regiment, as was then allowed, volunteered into the regiments ordered for service. However, a few months later we followed. I recollect two soldiers coming back to find their old regiment. I was lying half asleep on a sand bank, and I heard them coming
12 IN HOLLAND. [Ca. I.
along, and then one said to the other, * Here, Tom, here's the old drum, I'll be hanged if it isn't/ recog- nising the drum of their old regiment, and very sorry they had ever left it.
" The first man I ever saw shot was in Holland. There was a breach in the wall and the French were opposite. Several officers, and I among them, were standing round, when suddenly a shot came and carried off the leg of a poor artilleryman sitting on a cannon. The poor fellow screamed so, and seemed in such agony, that I hoped then I should never have my leg carried off."
On the loth September the French and Dutch made a determined attack on the positions occupied by the British troops at the head of the Zijp Dyke. They gained some advantage on their right, but were met with determined resistance on their centre and left, especially from the 2Oth Regiment, who gallantly repelled the attack of their centre column on the entrenchments raised upon the dyke at Crabbendam. They were eventually driven back with a loss of nearly 1,000 men.
This affair (Schagen Brug) was John Colborne's first battle. He himself was among the wounded, as were, in his own battalion, Lieutenant-Colonel Smyth, Major Ross (afterwards " Ross of Bladens- burg "), Captain Powlett, and Lieutenants DesVceux and Hamilton.
The following letters were sent home by Colborne after the battle : « yjey [- ? viie],
" Zephyr.
" Dear Sir, — I have only time to say we were yesterday attacked by a very large force. Our regiment suffered
1 799.] BATTLE OF SCHAGEN BRUG. 13
particularly. I am wounded in the head, but not severely. Three thousand of the enemy were killed and wounded. — I am, yours affectionately,
"J. COLBORNE. "Rev. T. Bargus, Barkway."
"Heelder, I3th September.
" My dear Delia, — Of course you have heard of the action before this. I should have written to you immedi- ately after it, but was so situated then, I could get but one sheet of paper before the packet sailed, which I sent to Mr. Bargus. I was wounded in the head, and feel no inconvenience, except from the violence of the blow and the sudden compression, which occasioned violent pains in the head. I have been bled twice, and find myself greatly relieved.
"The ist Battalion have had the advanced post ever since we have been [here]. On the loth the Dutch and French made an attack on the whole line. They attacked the right and left first, but only as a diversion, and then advanced with nearly their whole force against the ist Battalion of the 2Oth. They came down in three large columns with their riflemen in front, who soon spread them- selves around us. The grenadiers of our regiment de- fended an outpost three hours, till all our ammunition was expended. We were then obliged to retire, as a company of the battalion had given way, placed on our right at a bridge. Neither the artillery nor our own men had any ammunition remaining. The enemy crossed the bridge. We then charged them with the 2nd Battalion, who came to our assistance, and drove them over the bridge. We charged twice in a village which they had taken. They then retired, leaving heaps of dead and wounded behind. Our regiment behaved uncommonly well. The first [bat- talion] had but six hundred men, as we left part of the regiment at the Texel Island. Our army is very much
14 W HOLLAND. [Cn. I.
scattered No regiment but the 2nd Battalion came to our assistance till the action was over. It lasted from four till eleven [a.m.]. I hope to join the regiment in two or three days again. — I am, yours affectionately,
"J. COLBORNE. " Miss Colborne."
" Heelder,
" 1 3th September.
"Dear Sir, — Since we have been here the 1st Battalion of the 2Oth have had the honour of occupying the advanced post of the whole army, consequently we have been but a few yards from the enemy for this last fortnight Our picquets have had frequent skirmishes ; but on the loth September the enemy made an attack on the whole line, advancing on the right and left as a diversion, but making their real attack on our battalion. Three large columns advanced on us in very good order with riflemen in front, who spread themselves on all sides in a few minutes, and came within eight or nine yards, picking out the officers to fire at. The grenadiers were advanced about a quarter of a mile in front of the battalion and defended the post until all their ammunition was expended, firing more than a hundred rounds. At this time a company in our rear, defending a bridge, was obliged to retire, the officer of the artillery being wounded and having no ammunition remain- ing ; we then retreated with difficulty. The enemy passed the bridge and pressed on us. Part of the 1st and 2nd Battalions charged and drove them back ; we then charged them twice in a village which they had taken ; they re- treated immediately, leaving heaps of dead and wounded on the field. Our army being so much scattered no regi- ment could come to our assistance till the enemy had retired. The action began between four and five, and ended about twelve. Sir Ralf was very much pleased with the conduct of the regiment ; indeed, it was impossible for
1799] BATTLE OF SCHAGEN BRUG. 15
them to behave better. Six officers of the 1st Battalion were wounded out of eighteen who were engaged. The wounded are removed to this place. I hope in a few days to join the regiment again. The bullet took me on the'' side of my head just above the temple, but fortunately I had my hat on sideways, which prevented the ball from entering the skull ; there is no fracture. I have been bled twice and find myself greatly relieved. Remember me to Mrs. B. and the children.
" The Rev. T. Bargus, " Barkway, near Royston, Hertfordshire."
Colborne referred to the action in later years as follows :
" During the course of the battle General Aber- cromby came galloping among our artillery, exclaim- ing, ' Now fire one more round at them.' The officer in command said, ' We have no ammunition left.' ' The first time I have ever seen the artillery ill served/ said the General, in vexation, and then, turning to the 2Oth, ' Now are there not forty or fifty of you who will charge with me into the village and drive the French back ? " Immediately the whole regiment rushed forward, and a good many militia with them, who had only just come from England and had not had time even to change their militia uniforms. Sir Ralph, recognising this, called out, ' Come along ! You are as safe here as if you were in Norfolk!'
" General Hamilton lost his leg in the battle — his first battle and my first battle, and so did Sir Charles DesVceux. Hamilton did not care a bit about it, but Sir Charles was a very different person, of a low, nervous temperament. I recollect his saying, ' I
1 6 IN HOLLAND. [Cn. I.
have lost my leg, and on my birthday, too ! ' Hamilton was going soon after to Yorkshire to see a person very famous for making wooden legs, and on his way he met with a young lady with whom he fell in love. She turned out to have a large fortune, and he married her; so he found a wife and a wooden leg in one journey.
" My own wound was caused by a bullet which grazed my head. I was taken to the house of a priest, who treated me very kindly. The doctors thought it a bad wound, but after being laid up for three weeks or a month, and fed on rice, I joined again ; the wound was, however, still open."
In the priest's house Colborne and his host, says Miss C. M. Yonge, had no common language save Latin, " and this (as he used to tell) convinced him of the value of the classical studies which he had hitherto rather despised, and from that time, through all his stirring life, he set himself steadily to self- improvement. He managed to acquire French, Italian, and Spanish, and even filled quires of paper with exercises of strokes to improve his handwriting."
In other respects, the time for reflection caused by the wound seems to have had a lasting influence on Colborne's character. In the early days of his ser- vice he was, as he used to say, a " wild fellow," but the wound " sobered him." From this time onwards he was conspicuous for his extreme abstemiousness, and for his refusal to follow the fashionable habit of swearing. " I determined," he said, " to abjure it altogether."
During the time that Colborne was laid up with his wound, the Duke of York landed at the Helder
1 799-] RETURNS TO THE REGIMENT. 17
(i3th September) with three brigades of British troops, and was followed by 17,000 Russian auxiliaries. Many of the Russian soldiers wore medals, which was astonishing to their British allies, as at that time no British medals were conferred on private soldiers.
The allied army attacked the enemy at Petten on iQth September, but without success, owing to the inconsiderate valour of the Russians, and on the 2nd October made another attack on the position occupied by the French and Dutch troops between Bergen and Egmont op Zee.
Colborne's presence in this action was an early proof of his courage and determination. It was only three weeks since he had received his wound in the head, and he had tasted nothing but rice since, but though his wound was by no means cured, and his physicians were afraid of the consequences of any exertion, he had determined on joining his regiment before the impending battle, and nothing could detain him. He desired to go in a commissariat waggon, but the commissary would not permit this, and the dispute grew so violent that they were both taken before Lieutenant- Colonel Smyth, of the 2oth, who was then ill from wounds received on loth Sep- tember. Colborne, in a violent passion, exclaimed to the commissary, " You actually think a bag of biscuits of more value than a British officer ! " at which the Colonel laughed heartily, but said, " Remember, Colborne, this won't do." So, being refused the commissariat waggon, he had to do the twenty miles on foot. On the way he met Colonel MacDonald, who said, " Well, Colborne, are you for
1 8 IN HOLLAND. [Cn. I.
England? " " No," he replied, " I was wounded at Schagen Brug, and am on my way to join my regi- ment before the battle 1 " Colonel MacDonald ex- pressed his delight at the spirit shown by the young lieutenant, and when he reached his regiment he was quite repaid for his long walk by the enthusiasm with which he was received by his brother officers.
During the early part of the action, the 2Oth (who were in Pulteney's column) were not engaged, but afterwards deployed and advanced among the sand hills, where they showed great gallantry in a fierce musketry battle lasting till nightfall, in which they had fifty soldiers killed and wounded. The regiment still bears " Egmont op Zee " on its regimental colours.
Colborne told a story of this battle : " At that time we had so little baggage, and there was so much difficulty in getting things, that we all wore our large cloaks strapped on to us. I had mine slung across my shoulders. I was standing with an old Scotch officer, a friend of mine, Captain Walker of the 2Oth, as the enemy were firing from a hill opposite to us, when a shot hit me, at least on the cloak, and when I took it off I found it had gone through and through every fold. Captain Walker said, ' Ah ! I see they are determined to have you yet.' Captain Powlett, of the 2Oth, received a wound in his head, and putting up his hand, exclaimed, ' I'm done for! ' on which I took the command of the company.
"At this battle a militia officer named Musket, a very fierce-looking man, his face covered with black whiskers, &c., took fright almost at the first shot, set spurs to his horse, galloped for his life to the Helder,
1 799.] BATTLE OF EGMONT OP ZEE. 19
embarked for England, and was never afterwards heard of. Innumerable were the jokes and epigrams made in the army on this occasion. Colonel Mac- Donald declared that the captain of the ship, seeing an officer arrive at full gallop, thought he was the bearer of despatches, and sent a boat off for him.
" Cunningham, afterwards General Cunningham, was engaged to be married just before embarking for the campaign. At Egmont op Zee he was wounded, and dreadfully disfigured in the face. So, on his return, he offered to release the lady from her engagement, saying that he was not at all the same person as the man to whom she had engaged herself. However, she would not hear of it, and they were married immediately."
The result of the Battle of Egmont op Zee (or Alkmaar, or Bergen), in which the British loss amounted to 1,200 men, was the capture of Alkmaar and the retreat of the enemy on his last strong posi- tion at Beverwyk. But the enemy, on 6th October, again opposed the advance of the allies, and an in- decisive battle took place near Castricum, or Egmont Binnen, in which the British lost 1,400 men — among the regiments which suffered most being the two battalions of the 2Oth. As the Dutch did not appa- rently reciprocate our desire that they should abandon their French friends and return to the allegiance of the House of Orange, the Duke of York again retired beyond the Zijp, and in consequence of a capitulation signed at Alkmaar on i8th October the allies re-embarked unmolested before the end of October, after restoring 8,000 prisoners. Though the land war in Holland had thus proved a failure,
20 RETURN TO ENGLAND. [Cn. I.
we had obtained possession of the Dutch fleet and the island of Surinam, which had surrendered to our arms on 2Oth August.
John Colborne had been twice shot through the cap in the course of this campaign. On the return of the expedition to England, as he was sitting in a coffee-house at Yarmouth, he heard two officers say to each other. " Impossible ! " as they examined the bullet-holes at a little distance. They indeed testi- fied to a narrow escape.
CHAPTER II.
MINORCA AND EGYPT, 1800-1801.
COLBORNE thought himself ill-used at not receiving promotion for his services in Holland, merit in those days, as he held, being subordinated to interest. He called on the military secretary to the Commander- in-Chief to represent his case. " I was stammering, and feeling rather nervous, when he said, ' Come, Sir, speak up ; my time is precious/ which so touched me up that I began to speak quite fluently — and when he asked me ' How long have you been in the army? ' it put me quite in a rage, and nothing makes a man speak so well as that. So I said, ' How long have I been in the army? That's nothing to the purpose ; look at that letter, and that.' So then he said, ' Yes, Sir, yes, it is a very hard case ; put in on paper, and I will give it to the Commander-in-Chief.' He was sitting up at a desk like a clerk, and I recollect striking the desk with a little twig I had in my hand and saying, ' I do think it a confoundedly hard case, to use no other terms.' ' The visit seems to have been not without effect, as on I2th January, Col- borne, not yet 21, became brevet-captain.
Early in 1800 the 2Oth Regiment proceeded to Ireland and was stationed at Cork, where its num- bers were increased by volunteers from several corps of Irish militia.
22 IN MINORCA. [Cn. II.
In June the 2Oth was despatched with a small expedition against Belle Isle. According to Miss Yonge* Colborne used to tell the story that as he embarked at Cork an old Irish woman blessed him v/ith the prophecy that he would come back com- mander-in-chief, a prophecy literally fulfilled fifty- five years later. The attack on Belle Isle having been abandoned, the troops were landed on the little isle of Houat, where for a week they had nothing to do but to gallop about on the rough ponies with which the island abounded. The regi- ment then proceeded to the island of Minorca, where it remained ten months.
The following letter was written soon after the disembarkation to his elder sister, Miss Colborne : —
" Fort George,
" loth September, 1800.
" Dear Delia, — Have you not been daily expecting a large quantity of Genoa velvet? I am sorry to say the velvet must now be changed into Minorca honey. I am very much disappointed. After our expectations had been raised with the idea of co-operating with the Austrian army, we find ourselves garrison troops at Minorca, with our light baggage only. My wardrobe consists of four shirts, as many stockings, and other necessaries in propor- tion— very agreeable in a hot climate. Our original destination was Genoa — but through the late arrival of Sir Ralph Abercrombie and the treachery of Melas' armyt the grand expedition which has covered the seas for so long a time was rendered useless. Until / am at the head of affairs these expeditions never will be properly managed.
* Wykehamist, June, 1896. f Melas was defeated by Napoleon at Marengo, I4th June, 1800.
i8oo.] LIFE AT FORT GEORGE. 23
" The battalions of the 2Oth, from the time of their enter- ing the harbour of Mahon, voluntarily remained on board, hoping there would still be some expedition going on. Two days before Sir Ralph sailed we were ordered to disembark, as he had received orders from England to leave behind those regiments which received militia. The men, as much disappointed as their officers, and thinking the expedition might be going out of Europe, volunteered for general service. The Commander-in-Chief could not accept their services without an order from England.*
" I am quartered at Fort George (formerly Fort St. Philip), remarkable for the siege in 1782. I send this by the ' Guillaume Tell/ one of the Nile fleet that escaped in Nelson's action. If you can steal a few old newspapers dated since the latter end of May (for I have not perused a paper from the time I left Sweet Ireland), send them to me, and I shall be yours for ever. You must learn Italian immediately, for I speak nothing but the ' bella lingua Toscana.' I mean to make the Grand Tour as soon as the Governor and the dollars will permit. By the way, I must tell you that we are well paid in this island, and, what is more, I save money for the first time in my life. The sun has already made some impression on me, inas- much as that I am getting very thin and, of course, genteel. The word 'thin' reminds me of the garrison of Malta, who have entered the harbour this morning, starved out of the fortification of Valetta.t
" As I am not to be actively employed, I prefer this place to England I can live on my pay comfortably, I have good rooms, and I have an opportunity now of spending (except when on duty) the greater part of the day in pri- vate. I assure you I am sensible of the number of days that I have lost, and am determined now, in a manner, to regain them. I am now astonished, on reflection, how I
* Militia-men were received in regiments of the line with the stipulation that they should not be employed out of Europe.
f Malta surrendered to the British forces early in September, 1800, after an investment of nearly two years.
24 IN MINORCA. [Cn. II.
could have thrown away so much good time, and as activity of mind gives life to the most dreary desert, so I am willing to convert this dull fortress into a social world ; for the constant society of redcoats to a military man is no society. Female society we have none. The Minorca ladies are some of them pretty, but disfigure themselves much by their dress, wearing their hair down to their feet twisted in the form of a cow's tail, a close cap, and formidable stays with a peak as long as Teneriffe. A strange custom and barbarous, the parents have, of sending their daughters that are pretty to a nunnery — the ' uglies ' are suffered to enjoy the pomps and vanities. The military are obliged to behave very reverently to the friars, and pay the great- est respect to the religions of the country. There are about nine monasteries and two nunneries in the island But one nun has been stolen from the convents since the arrival of the British. This holy sister was carried off by an officer of the 42nd Regiment, but was obliged to be sent back in faded splendour wan.
" Fancy, how sublime, romantic, and picturesque, to see and hear the happy swains playing under the windows of their charming brunettes. This is the mode of making love. They are only allowed to see the fair for the first two years at the window, except at Mass. The third year they are admitted to kiss the hand, and the fourth, if agree- able to the parties, the courtship ends. As I think a month's attendance on these occasions is quite sufficient, I have no chance of marrying here. The society you would like, I have no doubt, and, when tired, you would have an opportunity of entering a very elegant nunnery, which is a place I would recommend to you if you would promise not to run away and bring disgrace on the sisterhood. — I am, yours affectionately,
"J. COLBORNE.
"Miss Colborne, Salton."
At Minorca Colborne did indeed set himself — as he hinted — to " redeem the time." " I used to ride
iSoi.] ORDERED TO EGYPT. 2$
at four o'clock every morning several miles to a man who taught me French, Italian and drawing. I used to translate Latin into Italian. I used to ride back again by ten, and tie up my horse in the town and be in time for parade. My time in Minorca was a very happy one." He adds one little trait: " We could get no vegetables in Minorca except pumpkins, and we used to have pies made of them, mashing them with pepper."
Meanwhile Lieutenant-General Sir Ralph Aber- cromby had proceeded with a British force to Egypt to force the French "Army of the East" to evacuate that country. A landing was effected on the 8th March, and three engagements favourable to British arms followed; but on the 2ist March Sir Ralph Abercromby was mortally wounded and the command devolved on Lieutenant-General. Hutchinson. Hutchinson advanced up the country to attack Cairo. Reinforcements were ordered to join the army in Egypt, and on the 24th June the 20th Regiment embarked from Minorca, and landing in Aboukir Bay on 24th July, took post on the east side of Alexandria. Lieutenant-General Hutchin- son, having returned from Cairo, whose garrison had capitulated on 27th June, resolved to press the siege of Alexandria with vigour. This was the situation when Colborne wrote the following letter to his step- father :
" Camp before Alexandria,
" ;th August, 1 80 1.
" Dear Sir, — We arrived in the Bay of Aboukir the 1 7th of July, after a short passage from Minorca, and are now encamped about five miles from Alexandria on a
26 IN EGYPT. [Cn. II.
sandy desert, the sea on our right and a large lake on our left, which has been cut so as to inundate a vast extent of country. I see Pompey's pillar at a distance, and probably in a few days shall have an opportunity of inspecting it nearer, as the attack is to be made on Menou's strong position before the town, as soon as the French that capitu- lated at Cairo are embarked. They consist of 9,000 effective Frenchmen, 4,000 auxiliaries, Greeks, Copts, &c, and 63 pieces of cannon. General Hutchinson is thought to have acted politically in getting so large a force out of the country without fighting — his forces consisting but of 5,000 English, the rest being Turks, who are any- thing but soldiers, a mere undisciplined rabble, not to be depended on. General Coote commands the division before Alexandria, which has remained inactive since the 2 ist March. There is now an immense army here, in general healthy, sore eyes being the chief complaint, which occasions frequently loss of sight for a month or six weeks. There are but few instances of men going blind entirely. I prefer the climate to Minorca. Here you have a fine, steady breeze continually blowing from the north-west ; there, during three months, not a breath of wind can be perceived. We have only to dread the Sirrock, or hot southerly wind, which has blown but twice since the arrival of the army. Sir Ralph was told by the Consul, Baldwin, that no water could be found, but fortunately we get water by digging under any palm tree, of which there are plenty — indeed, Julius Caesar has shown us the way, who says he found * copia dulcis aquae ' by digging near the sea. The leaves of the palm afford us shelter— we make com- fortable huts from them which enable us to enjoy the breeze, at the same time screening us from the burning sun. — Yours affectionately,
" J. C. "The Rev. T. Bargus, Barkway."
In after days Colborne told a story of the siege of Alexandria. " As I and another officer were walk-
i8oi.] ALEXANDRIA TAKEN. 27
ing round the walls, a French officer called out to us from the rampart and told us there was a friend of his whom we had taken prisoner to whom he wished to send a letter and some money. He then threw the letter and a purse over to us. I thought it showed great confidence in English officers. I inquired about the prisoner, who had been wounded, and sent him the money.53
Before the date of the conclusion of the following letter Alexandria had fallen.
" Camp near Alexandria,
" 2Qth August.
"Dear Sir, — The army remained inactive till the i/th August, when General Coote sailed up the Lake Mareotis with 4,000 men, and landed without opposition near Mara- bou, westward of Alexandria. The same day General Hutchinson forced the enemy from a strong position on the east side. Coote advanced on the 2ist three miles; the enemy retired in great confusion, leaving us seven pieces of cannon. We encamped within three quarters of a mile of Alexandria. Our camp was annoyed by shells from the French batteries previous to our attacking another of their positions on the night of the 2/th [25th?] August, which was carried without any loss. The same night they endeavoured to make our picquets retire by firing at us about two hours. Next morning General Menou requested a cessation of hostilities in order to arrange the terms of capitulation.
" 2nd September. Our grenadiers this day marched into the principal forts of the enemy, agreeable to the Articles of Capitulation, which are much the same as those of Cairo. Thus has ended the Egyptian expedition, in which neither French or English generals have displayed great military talents. However, those who read the elegant letters of Hutchinson will be persuaded that he is one of the greatest generals of the age.
28 IN EGYPT. [Cn. If.
" That part of the army which arrived at the commence- ment of the affair have suffered unexampled hardships with cheerfulness, and on every occasion shown courage and discipline. Since the death of Sir Ralph,* Fortune has decidedly been Hutchinson's greatest friend in every instance. The French generals have either behaved treacherously or injudiciously. We are not permitted to enter Alexandria yet. The country immediately about us is much improved by the junction of the lakes Maadie and Mareotis,t lately stinking marshes. By the heaps of ruins, catacombs and baths (which, of course, are called Cleo- patra's), it appears Alexandria extended as far as our en- campment formerly.
" Sir Sydney Smith is now off the Old Harbour, about to take possession of a Venetian 64 and two frigates, ' L'Egyptienne ' and ' La Justice/ which are now in a fine bason near the town ; the entrance is rendered difficult by shallows. The New Harbour is on the east side of the town and separated from the Old by a presqu'isle, at the end of which is Pharos. The harbourage is bad, and ships are exposed to the northerly winds. Pompey's Pillar rises majestically from amidst the sand hills, about half a mile from the town, composed of three pieces of granite, the base, shaft and capital. They say it is 94 feet high. I have not measured it. I have more than once trembled lest this vast work, which has so long withstood time, should be demolished or injured by the shot from our gunboats, whose fire was directed at a redoubt very near it. I am happy to find the balls have paid_ respect to this elegant column. General Coote made a regimental band play ' God Save the King ' round it this morning. There appears no historical proof why it should be called Pom- pey's Pillar, Damietta being the place where he fell. M. Sonnini is anxious it should be called hereafter Buona- parte's Pillar, or the Column of the French Republic, and says, ' Posterity will recollect that this was the headquarters
* On the 28th March preceding, f 1 2th and I3th April.
i8oi.] ALEXANDRIA. 29
from whence Buonaparte issued orders for the escalade, and it is not easy to determine whether of the two heroes, the Founder or Restorer, will excite most admiration in their eyes.' Were you to see the wretches whom the Restorer fought against, and the old towers that were taken by escalade, the point would easily be determined in your own mind. Alexandria, at that time, was only sur- rounded by the old walls erected by the Arabs on their invasion. This enclosure forms modern Alexandria. The Grand Vizier's army is composed of the most despicable rabble ever collected together. The annihilation of Turkey is at no great distance ; not even a Belisarius would save this sinking State. These people, the proudest in the world without any reason, now condescend to shake an Englishman cordially by the hand and pass him with the greatest respect, repeating frequently, ' Buono Inglese.' As for Buonaparte, they have curtailed his name, and now know him by no other than ' Parte.' The Indian army is at Rosetta — they remain in Egypt for the present. So pleasant is the climate to me that should no other expedi- tion take place I would rather remain also. The oph- thalmia is much in the army, fevers are very common also., I never enjoyed better health, having had no complaint since my arrival. I intend going to Rosetta to-morrow on my way to the Pyramids.
" It is most probable that we shall perform quarantine at Gozo, a small isle near Malta.
" The climate in whose praise I have been so lavish has carried off in a few hours my most intimate friend, a young man respected by the whole regiment. — Yours affectionately and sincerely,
"J. C."
The 20th was detained in Egypt for two months more.
" Camp near Alexandria,
" 5th November, 1801.
" Dear Sir, — We have been encamped since September
30 IN EGYPT. [Cn. II.
on very unpleasant ground near Pompey's Pillar. The dust, in which there is a mixture of lime, annoys us per- petually. At present there are 240 men blind in the bat- talion. We expect to sail in a few days — Malta, it is sup- posed, will be our winter quarters. Five thousand men remain here, exclusive of the Indian army — they consist of the Irish regiments and the Foreign Brigade. Alexandria is a most villainous town — Cleopatra's Needles and a few baths are the only antiquities to be seen in this once splen- did city, except some granite pillars which you frequently see adorning a mud-house.
" I have been to Rosetta.* The streets are similar to those of Alexandria, but the eye is refreshed by the green fields of the Delta and the Nile running rapidly by them. From Rosetta we proceeded to Cairo. The Nile was at its height. It does not inundate the whole country like a sea, as travellers have represented, but seems perfectly under the control of the husbandmen, who, by canals and wheels, admit what quantity of water they think proper into their fields. We made our headquarters at Gizeh, a village where Murat Bey formerly resided, situated oppo- site Cairo on the left bank of the Nile. We set out from this place at 10 o'clock p.m., and managed to be on the top of one of the Pyramids before sunrise.
" Cairo is a large, stinking, ill-built town. The streets are so exceedingly narrow that it requires some exertion to pass through the groups of Arabs, Mamaloucs and Turks, mules and loaded animals, which latter take up the whole
* " While we were at Rosetta we met one or two parties and with one of them was an old brother officer of the 2Oth, Captain Colborne. He was very much teased with the musquitos one night when many of us were lying down to rest in a large room at one of the inns at Rosetta : he thought he would hit upon a plan to give the musquitos the slip, thinking they were on the walls of the room ; he therefore shifted his bed to the middle of the room, and much to our amusement the musquitos attacked him worse than ever, and I believe few of us had any rest that night ; we tried to smoke them out, but all would not do, and we arose in the morning very little refreshed." — Lieut.-Col. Chas. Steevens, Reminiscences of my Military Life, p. 31.
i8oi.] NEWS OF PEACE. 31
breadth of the street The only decent part to be seen is the Place d'Eau, a large square where Menou has built a house a la Turque.
" There happened a few days since a most horrid assassination, which now makes every Englishman ashamed to have acted with such detestable allies. The Mamalouc Beys, who have materially assisted in expelling the French, and whom the Commander-in-Chief promised to protect on the arrival of the army in Egypt, were invited by the Pacha to a magnificent breakfast. He afterwards per- suaded seven of them to enter his boat on pretence of calling on Lord Cavan, the commandant of Alexandria. In a few minutes he changed his boat and went on shore, pretending a despatch had arrived from the Grand Vizier. Another boat came alongside of that which the Beys were in, filled with armed soldiers, and massacred Osman Bey and four others. General Hutchinson has behaved with spirit, and has acted like a soldier, if not as a politician.* The affair now detains us here.
" The news of Peace has just reached us, but not officially.! — Yours affectionately,
" J. C."
At the moment of the fall of Alexandria General Baird had arrived with an Indian army in fine order, but found nothing for him to do. Colborne had some idea of joining him on his return to India, but abandoned the intention. He said afterwards, " It would have made a great change in my fortunes if I had gone."
Colborne's love of knowledge often led him into
* Colborne told the story in 1847. " General Hutchinson went to the Pacha's tent and upbraided him with it, and he said it was not his doing. * I had received my orders — what could I do ? ' We buried them with military honours, and it was a most impressive spectacle."
f The " Lodi " brig carrying the official intimation entered Alex- andria on November i5th.
32 EMBARKATION FROM EGYPT. [Cn. II.
rash escapades. One of these seems to have occu- pied his last days in Egypt. " I rode a very foolish expedition by myself, day and night, all through the Turkish camps, and when I got back to Alexandria I found the army was to sail next day."
( 33 )
CHAPTER III.
MALTA, 1802-1805.
FROM Egypt the 2Oth was sent to Malta (disembark- ing on Qth December), which island, according to the terms of the Peace of Amiens, we were then to evacuate. However, owing to the ambiguous conduct of Bonaparte, the British Government determined to retain the island, and war soon broke out afresh. Colborne had not been long in Malta when, taking advantage of the interval of peace, he obtained leave to spend some months in an adven- turous tour through Sicily and Calabria, and thus acquired a knowledge of those countries which was afterwards of much use. He found some brother officers ready to accompany him, among them Robert Ross, afterwards the victor of Bladensburg, and the Hon. William Lumley. One night at an inn, as Colborne used to relate, the people came round and began firing into the windows at them. He knew no reason, unless it was that one of his com- panions had given some offence in the town during their visit. On another occasion they lost their way late one night and got into a river, after which they were shown to a gentleman's house, who received them very kindly and entertained them for several days. Strange to say, four years later, this casual
c
34 IN MALTA. [Cn. III.
acquaintance was renewed, the British force being encamped, after the battle of Maida, in the neigh- bourhood of this gentleman's house. Some other incidents of the tour we may give in Colborne's own words :
" In Sicily a tailor once sent in a bill about four times as much as it should have been, so we agreed to pay each £3 and present it on the points of our swords. The tailor, thus treated, would not take the money, so we went on presenting it till he was driven into a corner, and every time the sword touched him, screamed out * O Signori ! ' At last he snatched the money from each of the swords and ran off as hard as he could. Afterwards, on our tour, whenever they brought us a bill which we thought too much, Ross, a very funny fellow, always said, ' I think we must prick this man.'
" None of us could speak Italian, but we had an Italian grammar with us, and we had learnt a list of adjectives and expletives. So at one place — where the man charged too much — we went on calling him one term of abuse after another, the man quite sur- prised where we could have got them all, till we came to ' Boja ' (' hangman J), which made him very angry. Afterwards, when we were coming back, we stopped a night at the same place and called at the inn. The man looked out, recognized us, and shouting, ' lo non sono Boja' slammed the door in our faces."
" Malta,
"20th April, 1802.
"Dear Sir,— I am lately returned from Sicily. The description of it by Brydone is poetry. I was much disap- pointed in this renowned island We landed at Syracuse,
1802.] TOUR IN ITALY. 35
a miserable hole, and then proceeded to Catania, slept at a village on the mountain, and ascended to the crater early in the morning, a dangerous experiment at this time of the year. The effect of the cold we did not recover [from] for many hours.
" Messina was our next stage, from which place we crossed to the town of Scylla. The current is amazingly rapid, and our Messinese mariners were as much frightened at it as their forefathers could have been at Scylla and Charybdis.
" We experienced many difficulties in passing through Calabria to Naples — the greatest obstacles were rivers swollen by the rains. I found my swimming of use to me. The Calabrian gentlemen were very polite, and we made it an invariable rule to enter the best house in the town [where] we halted. We travelled in uniform, and being English officers, it was a sufficient introduction to the in- habitants. Having seen Vesuvius, Naples and all the lions, we returned by Palermo, where we saw his Sicilian majesty, whose chief employment is making butter. Although his amusements are so innocent, yet he is a detested tyrant It is a most miserable government that these Neapolitans and Sicilians live under, and they are such wretches a -principio that they deserve no better.
" The second battalion is about to be reduced. I stand seemingly, with or without a company. On the battalions being consolidated we shall have about 1,000 men for general sendee. We evacuate this island in two months, and then to the West Indies it is reported we go. Eighty of our men are sent home blind, who I think will never recover their sight — Yours affectionately,
"J. COLBORNE."
"2gth April, 1802.
" Dear Delia, — I have heard nothing of you for an age. You either do not pay the inland postage or never write. One letter only have I received from you in Egypt,
C 2
36 IN MALTA. [Cn. III.
although I have expended a quire of paper in writing to you. We expect to evacuate Malta in a month. It is reported that we are destined for the West Indies. If that be really our destination, you may expect me to return in the course of three or four years, not with the fat cheeks that you were wont to see, but emaciated, scorched and shrivelled beneath the burning zone. You will be unable to trace my unmeaning features.
" Garstin, of the 2Oth Regiment, your coz, has been here a long time sick. I recollect you once mentioned that he was a handsome man, from which speech I must infer that either your eyes deceived you or that the poor animal is miserably fallen away.
' Meagre and very rueful were his looks, Sharp misery had worn him to the bones. Famine is in his cheeks.'
(Otway, hem!) *
" I am not exactly certain whether it is sharp misery that has made the man such an object, but at present 1 am at a loss whether to compare him to the Apothecary in Caius Marius, or Lismahago.t He was very attentive and polite to me in Egypt
" Charles Greville passed this place on his way to England. He is not a great coxcomb, only the poor man can't open his mouth. ' Will you dine with me to-day, Greville ? ' Three times was I obliged to repeat the ques- tion before I could discover whether he said ' yes ' or * no.' At last, by a certain motion of his head, I conceived that he answered in the affirmative. He certainly is a very fine young man.
" I have been three months in Sicily and Naples, experi- enced many difficulties in passing through the most romantic country in the world, Calabria — saw Hercu-
* Colborne is quoting from Otway's History and Fall of Caius Marius, a classicized version of Romeo and Juliet. All that is Otway's in these lines is the addition, "and very rueful "; the rest is Shake- speare's, though Colborne was perhaps unaware of it.
f In Smollett's Humphry Blinker.
i8o2.] TOUR IN ITALY. 37
laneum, Pompeii, Pozzoli, Baias and Cumaa, and ascended the two mountains ^Etna and Vesuvius— and am returned, . perfect master of Italian, speak it fluently, much better than a Neapolitan and full as well as a Roman — never praise yourself. I shall not attempt giving a description of these countries, the history of which, both antient and modern, you are so well acquainted with. Besides, any poetical descriptions would swell my letter too much. I presume you have read Brydone. I have discovered that his volumes are poesy, that is, fiction, the greatest part; he deserves praise for his ingenuity. I doubt whether he ever visited Sicily.
" I am afraid now my chance for a company is not great, unless we go to the West Indies, where, if we go, I would not compound for a majority.
" You will say this is a strange hand he writes now, but know, this is a pattern for you to copy — I think there are more words in one page of this than in any letter I have ever received from you. Your words are in general so stretched, that even if you had news or inclination to fill your epistle, no common sheet of paper would contain your thoughts.
" I see by the paper my Uncle Colborne is dead, the last of the family that was good for anything (present company excepted).
" As for Mrs. G. — , I will never call on her if I should be in London for a year. I recollect that woman opened a letter of yours about six years ago. It has made an im- pression on my mind. She must be an old sinner, for a woman or a man that would commit the above-mentioned action would not scruple at any mischief. Am sorry you called on her. — Yours affectionately,
"J. COLBORNE."
The following reminiscences relate to this time. " When I was in Sicily, on my return from Cala- bria, an officer at Malta in order to escape marrying
38 IN MALTA. [Cn. III.
a lady or being assassinated by her brother, set off in a tremendous storm in a little shironata, and sailed to Syracuse. It was a great wonder that he was not swamped. We were all watching her in. After he had arrived and told his story, an American sea captain who was present said to him, ' Sir, I would rather have married the vilest woman on earth than have set out in such a storm as this ! J
' This American captain was a very ugly fellow — the ugliest man I ever saw. At Gibraltar there was an officer — I forget his name — but he was always called ' Ugly Jack/ One day, when this American captain was on the parade ground, he went up to this officer, and pulling out a snuff-box, said, ' There, Sir, that's yours.1 ' How mine ? What do you mean ? ' * Why, that snuff-box was given me to give to any man that I found uglier than myself, and I think I've found him ! '
' The same man once said to me, ' The President asked me what I thought of having chaplains on board every ship, and I said, " I don't like it at all, I have sailed in six or seven British ships and only met one respectable chaplain."
" He said at another time, ' Your navy will be much better than ours ; there are very few of us old fellows left in our navy, and when we are gone it will be worth nothing ! '
" He once gave a ball at Naples, and borrowed a beautiful band, and after the ball was over he sailed away and took the band off to America, as a present to the President. For this he was dismissed the
service."
During the 2Oth's long stay in Malta, from 1802
I802-S-] STUDIOUS HABITS. 39
to 1805, it was quartered first at Vittoriosa, later, from May, 1803, at Valetta.* Colborne remained still zealous for self-improvement. " At Malta," he once said, " I was learning several things, and wanted all the time I could get, so I had a bell fixed to my bed and gave a man a dollar or so a month to ring it at four every morning when he went to ring the bell of the neighbouring church; and I used to get up immediately. I found, after the first two or three mornings, that I awoke before the bell rang. Among other things, as it was the time that the French gave up the Ionian Islands, and there was some chance of our going there, I got a Greek master and set to work to learn Greek, and soon knew a good deal of it." Late in life it was Colborne's lot, as Lord Seaton, to govern the Ionian Islands, but he had then forgotten his early attainments in Modern Greek.
Colborne was not, however, merely a student himself ; he encouraged his subalterns to study also. In a memoir of Colonel T. F. Wade, C.B.,t we are told : " On joining the regiment [at Malta, 2ist July, 1805], Ensign Wade had the good fortune to be posted to the company of Captain John Colborne ; and by this great soldier he was instructed, not only in his duties as a subaltern, but in much beside, especially in foreign languages."
But the time at Malta was one of play as well as work. On one occasion Colborne formed one of a
* From April, 1804, to September, 1805, Colborne's schoolfellow, S. T. Coleridge, was living in Malta as secretary to the Governor. Did Colborne meet him, one wonders.
f Lancashire Fusiliers' Annual for 1893, p. 71.
40 IN MALTA. [Cn. III.
party who, at a masquerade at the palace, were to represent Silenus and his crew.* "We took the colonel's donkey, and after we had stolen him, the difficulty was to get him upstairs. However, we carried him up. On entering the room the first person we saw was the colonel himself. He came up, looking very hard at the donkey, and said, ' Why, I do believe that is my donkey ! ' I was dressed as a Bacchanal attending Silenus. An intimate friend of mine was dressed as a town crier, and had papers, ' Lost such and such a thing/ which he read out, and when he saw someone laughing at the allusion to some one else, he pulled out another paper which reflected on him. He offended nearly every one in the room, and no one could find out who he was.
" On another occasion, when some private theatricals were being arranged, two friends of mine, to play a joke, sent another person to request me to be manager. It was just at a time when I was working hard and occupied all day. So, when this person was shown in to me, and made his request, I was as angry as possible, received him in the most formal manner, and said, ' Certainly not/ He went out quite confused, and I heard afterwards that he said he would never have been induced to go if he had known what sort of a person I was.
" The rain at Malta in the winter is very violent indeed. I remember once when we were there, after a few days' rain, such a torrent came down a street against the gate of a guard-room that it was broken open, and a sergeant and two soldiers of the
* Cp. C. Steevens, Reminiscences, p. 41.
I802-5-] THE DUKE OF KENT. 41
guard were washed away. It was near the sea, and the sergeant was washed into it and drowned, but the two men saved themselves."
During part of the time of Colborne's stay in Malta, H.R.H. the Duke of Kent was Governor of Gibraltar. Colborne used to tell stories of the Duke's extraordinary attention to small points of dress. " When the Duke of Kent was at Gibraltar, as soon as a ship arrived, he used to send on board a tailor and a hairdresser to measure the men's cuffs and collars and hair, lest they should not be accord- ing to regulation. He was so particular, that I remember when we were at Malta, if an officer arrived from Gibraltar, the whole garrison used to turn out to see the Gibraltar dress. The Duke was once cleverly out-manoeuvred. As he was riding out with his staff he saw a man in a fatigue dress and immediately gave him chase, but the man disap- peared, and they could not find him. However, the Duke had a capital eye, and next morning at parade he recognized the man. So he called him out and said, ' Now, I'll forgive you if you'll tell me how you escaped? ' * Why, Sir/ was the reply, ' I saw a fatigue party coming along, and I took up step and joined them, and you passed me/ So the Duke had been beaten through the man's presence of mind ! Once, at a review of Russian troops, after getting Prince
W to bring out his best regiment and go
through some manoeuvres, he said, * Well, that was well done, and I ought to be a judge, for for twelve years (or whatever the number was) I have never one single day missed a parade ! ' "
42 IN MALTA. [Cn. III.
The following letters of Colborne's date from these years in Malta: —
" Malta,
" 1 3th October, 1802.
" Dear Sir, — As there are no tidings of the Grand Master, I shall recommence a correspondence which has been interrupted for several months by the appearance of a speedy evacuation of Malta. It is generally believed that the English garrison will remain here till the summer. Two thousand Neapolitan soldiers have been sent to us, rather prematurely. The French envoy is arrived, a major-general, possessing, to a great degree, all the im- pudence peculiar to his nation. His aide-de-camp has already caused some disturbance at the theatre. Thinking it beneath the duty of a Republican to conform to English customs, he refused to stand up while ' God save the King ' was played ; in consequence of which he was turned out, not in the politest manner, apparently by the universal consent of the audience. Alexandria is still in our pos- session, and there are no preparations for the departure of our troops. A French frigate has been dispatched there to ascertain the cause of the delay in conforming to the definite treaty. The Mamelukes are killing the Turks without mercy ; the former are victorious in every action. The 2Oth Regiment will probably revisit Egypt before England.
" We have had ' dira febris ' among us, which has been more destructive than battles or sieges ; but the climate is now become mild and agreeable, and, of course, more healthy. The heat for three months was intolerable. Our two battalions are consolidated — Yours affectionately,
"J. COLBORNE."
" Malta,
"gth December, 1802.
" Dear Sir, — I am sure it will give you great pleasure to hear of my appointment to a company. My commission
I802-5-] POLITICAL SITUATION. 43
is dated 2Oth May.* I esteem myself most fortunate, as there is not another instance of promotion going in a regi- ment where the vacancy has been caused by duelling. Had it not been for this step I might probably have remained many years in my former situation, as the vacan- cies now are generally filled up by the half-pay. — Yours affectionately, " J. CoLBORNE."
Writing to Mr. Bargus, in July, 1804, Colborne says he has sent a bracelet for his sister and slippers for Mr. Bargus. He comments on the engagement of his sister, Miss Colborne, to the Rev. Duke Yonge, and continues :
" The French are in full march to Naples, a Neapolitan frigate has been dispatched to Lord Nelson for assist- ance. I hope it may be productive of some active service. Ten thousand men might be employed advantageously in Sicily, and would save many a broken head. The French will be there before us ; to drive them out when they have possession of Syracuse and Messina will be very difficult
" We are all delighted that the reign of the Addingtons is ended. Their abilities seem to have [been] useful to a few bishops and the Addington family ; the loss of them to the country will not be very great We have an imperfect account of another monstrous coalition, Pitt and Fox, etc. The dread of an invasion will never cease. You are as safe in England as we are in this impregnable Malta. The new Emperor will not land a man in England, neither will he attempt it Let him have a million gunboats, still he will never use them. Ireland is certainly the vulnerable heel, but to wound it he must hazard much. Politicians think he has a deeper scheme. There has been an in- surrection at Tripoli incited by la republique imperiale. It is reported the Emperor means to occupy the whole of the African coast in the Mediterranean. — Yours affectionately,
" J. COLBORNE."
* Colborne had been a Brevet-Captain since I2th January, 1800.
44 W MALTA. [CH. III.
Writing from Malta on i5th September, 1804, to his half-sister, Miss Alethea Bargus, he acknow- ledges the gift of a pin containing her hair, and continues : - -
" As your hair becomes darker, so mine on the contrary takes a lighter shade, and I fear before we meet it will be a beautiful grey.
" Do not forget to collect all the laughable family anec- dotes, as I am become very grave and my mouth now resembles that of the parish clerk of Barkway. I am quite tired of Malta, and half roasted by the heat of last summer. I will not invite you to pay me a visit here, but I shall be happy to see you when we are at Naples. — Your affectionate brother,
"J. COLBORNE."
To Mr. Bargus.
" Malta,
" 1 8th October, 1804.
" Dear Sir, — Thank God the hot weather is passed and we are again in our own climate. We have lost too many of our men in the hot months, owing to their sacrificing so frequently to Bacchus. We are now about 800 bayonets, and in the highest order. I really think there is no regi- ment in the service that has so much esprit de corps as the 20th.
" Transports are ordered to be ready to receive 4,500 men, but for whom we are ignorant. The order has caused a variety of speculations — some say they are for the Rus- sians, who have already 12,000 men assembled at Corfu, others say the garrison is going on an expedition. I am of opinion we shall not be idle in the spring.
" They have not yet given us a 2nd battalion. His Royal Highness the Duke ought to consider that our two battalions last war were Egyptian volunteers, the only
I804-5-] PREPARATIONS FOR DEPARTURE. 45
regiment of that description in Egypt I speak feelingly, for a 2nd battalion would probably make me 2nd captain. Colonel Oliphant is about to sell out; the step will pass over me as the four senior captains are too poor to pur- chase. It is a hard case to see a junior captain, almost blind and quite unfit for a field officer, leap over all our heads. I have no reason to complain, for I believe there is not a more fortunate man than myself.
" I should like to see your improvements at Barkway, and hope to pay you a visit when we have Peace, provided the French do not plunder the "parsonage. — Yours affectionately, " J. COLBORNE."
[Malta],
" loth February, 1805.
" Dear Sir, — Lord Nelson was off Messina on the 3Oth January. The French left Toulon on i8th January. They have passed the island for Egypt — a second expedi- tion must be the consequence. — Yours affectionately,
"J. C"
CHAPTER IV.
EXPEDITIONS TO NAPLES AND CALABRIA, 1805-6. BATTLE OF MAIDA.
DURING the campaign, which ended on 2nd Decem- ber with the battle of Austerlitz, Russia and England agreed each to send a force into the kingdom of Naples, although the King of Naples committed a breach of faith by countenancing the project, as he had bound himself not to admit into his ports or territories the fleets or armies of any power at war with France. As the 2Oth Regiment formed part of the British force under Lieutenant-General Sir James Craig, it at last " escaped from Malta," as the following letters of Colborne show. The first letter, it may be noted, was written eleven days after Trafalgar, but the great victory remained unknown to the force till after its arrival at Naples. It would seem that even then only the bare news of the victory arrived at first, as Colborne used to relate that the Queen of Naples said she was sure Nelson must have been killed or he would have written to her.
To Mr. Bargus.
" Malta, " 1st November, 1805.
" My dear Sir, — We embarked yesterday and sail to-
1805.] SAILING FOR NAPLES. 47
morrow for Syracuse to unite with the Russians — thence we proceed to Italy. — Yours affectionately,
"J. COLBORNE."
" 1 4th November [1805]. At sea,
" My dear Sir, — I was very fortunate in receiving your letter of the nth August the day we sailed from Malta, whence we escaped 3rd November. Harassed by per- petual contrary winds, we beat about Cape Passaro till the loth, and were unable to join the Russians before that day. We are now standing towards Maretimo on our passage to Naples. The expedition should have arrived there early in the present month, but these democratic winds have so long delayed us that a salute from the French on our land- ing will probably be the consequence. Commodore Gregg* commands the Russian squadron, consisting of four sail of the line, two frigates, and troopships carrying 14,000 hardy barbarians. The whole combined army is com- manded by Field-Marshal Lacy, about 22,000. The French force at Terracina, about three days' march from Naples, amounts to 23,000, commanded by St. Cyr. Nature has not been lavish in her gifts to the English generals on the expedition, they are men of very limited capacities and no experience, but I trust this defect in our army will be remedied by the conduct of the excellent regiments that compose it. The service for which we are destined will more tencl to form good soldiers, and improve us in the knowledge of our profession, than any that British troops have lately been employed on. I have already planned the campaign. The Austrians that occupy the position [on] the Adige between Verona and Legnago are to attack that of the French extending from Peschiera to Mantua. Another Austrian army will then cross the Po and advance towards Genoa, which motion will render the situation of the army which we mean to beat very
* Called by Bunbury, p. 202, Greig.
48 EXPEDITION TO NAPLES. [Cn. IV.
dangerous, and should they not make a rapid retreat, will probably be cut off.
" Provided your humble servant is not a head minus, you shall have a correct account of our operations, and am, — Your truly affectionate, " J. C."
Alas, the star of Austerlitz was in the ascendant, and the hopes of the young British strategist were quickly belied !
"Baola (?),
" 1 3th January, 1806.
" My dear Sir, — Nothing of importance having occurred, I have not written to you since our disembarking at Castel a Mare ; but little did I think that my next letter would inform you of a retrogade movement without firing a shot. The combined army was cantoned in the vicinity of Naples till the 1 1 th of December, when it moved forward, passed the Volturno at Capua, and providentially arrived in good order as far as the Massic Mountains, an extraordinary circumstance considering the talents of our generals. The headquarters of the Russians were fixed at Teano, those of the English at Sessa. In these cantonments we remained till the loth of January, anxiously expecting to cross the Garigliano. But how great was our surprise at the British troops being ordered to recross the Volturno! It was intended that we should have occupied the pass at Fondi, the Russians that of Ponte Corvo, and 30,000 Neapolitans were to have defended our right near Sul- mona, extending our line from the Mediterranean to the Pescara, but the defection of the Russians has been the cause of Sir James Craig making a most inglorious, ridicu- lous retreat, and so dangerous was our situation thought that he ordered the regiment which had advanced as far as Itri to retire 36 miles in one day and burn the bridge over the Garigliano in its retreat. Possibly these precautions were necessary, yet the enemy was not within forty leagues of us, and might have penetrated the Neapolitan dominions
x8o6.] SIX J. CRAIG'S RETREAT. 49
by Ponte Corvo had he been inclined to interrupt us in our retreat. This disgraceful haste, added to the slovenly, confused manner of our march, increased the alarm of the peasantry who thought themselves abandoned, and the cause desperate. Admitting that our force scarcely deserved the name of army, and was incapable of resist- ing any considerable number of the enemy, and that ulti- mately we must have evacuated the country, yet our remaining in it to the last moment would have checked that democratic spirit so prevalent here. Gaeta, a strong fortress, was open to us, and we might have retired there or into Calabria, had we been hard pressed. The Cala- brians, who are well affected, might have been raised en masse. We are now in full march to Castel a Mare to re- embark. Our precipitate retreat has given the Neapolitans a very unfavourable impression of the spirit of English soldiers. You may easily conceive with what regret I shall leave the canipania felice, and how vexed and disappointed I am at the conclusion of this expedition, after speculating so much on the success of the campaign. Acting with large armies is the only method of obtaining a knowledge of our profession, and even this short affair has pointed out many defects among us, which will exist as long as inactive old men are selected to command. The Commander-in- Chief is at present afflicted with the dropsy, or some other disease that renders him unfit for active service. There are five generals with us, one of them alone can speak the language of the country to which they were sent.
" The sudden transition from a sterile, parched-up rock to a fertile, picturesque country, from a sickly hot climate to one cold and bracing, might be compared to a passage from the dismal regions to Elysium. Remaining so long at Malta, one's ideas became as contracted as the island Thus the delightful scenery of the Bay of Naples, the immense hills covered with oaks, olives and vineyards and the many grand objects that were presented to our view on entering it, formed a most striking contrast to the country we had lately left, and had a double effect on us
50 IN SICILY. [Cn. IV.
Maltese. While I was at Nocera I had an opportunity of revisiting the ruins of Herculaneum, Pompeii and Pestura " The farther we advanced the more beautiful was the appearance of the country, but the misery of the inhabi- tants and infamy of the government are but too conspicu- ous.— Your affectionate."
The retreat, which caused Colborne so much disappointment, requires a few words of explanation.
The triumphant Emperor of the French, on the morning after the signing of the Treaty of Press- burg, issued a proclamation that as a punishment for its perfidy, " the Neapolitan dynasty had ceased to reign," and soon afterwards despatched an army of 50,000 men, under Massena and his brother Joseph, to take possession of Naples. Such an army could not be withstood by the Russian and English forces now in the Peninsula. On the 7th January the Russians received orders to retire, and the British, being freed from any further obligation, re-embarked at Castellamare — with the intention, however, not of returning to Malta, but of holding Sicily for King Ferdinand. The king, however, who had himself fled to Palermo, was so much irritated by the British desertion of the mainland that though the force arrived in the harbour of Messina on 22nd January, for four weeks he would not allow it to be landed. Eventually, on i7th February, it was permitted to land and occupy Messina. On i5th February Joseph Bonaparte had entered Naples amid popular rejoicings, and two months later, by his brother's decree, he was created King of the Two Sicilies.
Meanwhile the Prince of Hesse Philippsthal still held the citadel of Gaeta against the French, and
i8o6.] EXPEDITION TO CALABRIA. 5!
Major-General Stuart, who had succeeded Sir J. Craig in the command of the British forces, thought a fresh venture might be tried, and a French design of invading Sicily anticipated. Accordingly a force was collected and landed in the Bay of St. Eufemia on ist July. One company of the 2Oth, under Captain McLean, was included in the Light Infantry Brigade under Lieutenant-Colonel Kempt, another company of the 2Oth was included in the Grenadier Battalion, which with the 27th Regiment formed Cole's Brigade. The battalion companies of the 2Oth Regiment, under Lieutenant-Colonel Ross, were not despatched with the main force, but were ordered, before landing, to make a diversion on different points of the coast. Accordingly they landed only on 4th July, when Colonel Ross, hearing that the main army was about to be engageH with the French, hurried his regiment forward — partly at a running pace, and succeeded in arriving on the plain of Maida just at the moment to decide the issue of the day.
Colborne's account of the battle, given in the following letter, is another instance of his singular modesty, as he says nothing whatever about himself, and we are left uncertain whether he came on the field with Ross or had been present from the beginning of the action. If the latter, as his account seems to imply, he had probably commanded the grenadier company of the 2Oth.
To Mr. Bargus.
" Camp near Monteleone,
" nth July, 1806. " My dear Sir, — This sheet of paper you will perceive
52 EXPEDITION TO CALABRIA. [Cn. IV.
bears strong marks of active service, and as all my baggage is contained in my pocket it has, of course, been consider- ably damaged. I have not time to give you a detailed account of one of the most glorious battles that an English army has ever fought.
" The expedition sailed from Messina, and arrived in the Bay of St. Euphemia on the ist of July. On the 4th Sir John Stuart moved on to attack the French army under the command of Regnier, who occupied an excellent position in a wood above the plain of Maida, but confident in his own genius, the superiority in numbers both cavalry and infantry, and despising us too much, he ad- vanced to the plain to meet us. The right was first en- gaged, and some of the best regiments of the enemy charged us with the greatest intrepidity, nor were our men) less forward to meet them. Reserving our fire till we came within a short distance, the astonished invincibles were mowed down by a well-directed fire, and the right of our line passed through their left. Few of them escaped. Their dead and wounded marked the original line. In this affair our light infantry distinguished themselves.
" All the force of the enemy was now directed to the left, endeavouring frequently to turn it, but owing to the cool and gallant conduct of Lieutenant-Colonel Smith and the 27th Regiment under his command, who penetrated the design of General Regnier, this attack succeeded as the one on the right. The 2Oth, coming up at this critical moment in echelon, and forming on the left of the 2/th, the enemy retired in the greatest confusion, and had we had cavalry, every man of them would have been a prisoner. The loss in our regiment has been chiefly confined to the flank companies, above five and thirty privates and one captain [McLean], a particular and intimate friend of mine and the only officer killed in the field. He was shot through the heart at the commencement of the action. The field of battle after the action was a horrid sight. The loss of the French in killed, wounded and prisoners is almost incredible, nearly 2,000. Our army entered the
//ivt^^S ° H •\\""\v'y»v7 -T: —
i8o6.] BATTLE OF MAI DA. 53
field with 4,600, the enemy had 7,200 bayonets and 300 cavalry. Fortunate it is for us that the spectators were numerous. I now begin to think, as our ancestors did, that one Englishman is equal to two Frenchmen. — Yours affectionately, " J. C."
The action is excellently described by Sir H. E. Bunbury.^ He tells us that after McLean's death Colborne succeeded to the command of the light company of the regiment. He was possibly selected for the duty on account of his knowledge of Italian.
Colborne related afterwards that at Maida two Swiss regiments, but for an accident, would have been actually opposed to one another. " Colonel Claval, one of the Swiss with the French, was wounded and taken prisoner. I went to see him with a Swiss officer from a regiment which had always been in our service. After we left, the Swiss with me said, * I know that man perfectly well, we are from the same canton, but he did not recognize me.' }
On the day after the battle, as Bunbury tells us, the army marched to the little town of Maida, where Sir John Stuart devoted the day to writing his des- patch. " In the meantime, Colonel Kempt had advanced some distance along the hills and detached the light company of the 2Oth (under Captain Col- borne) to follow the track of the enemy and gather information. It pressed forward, expecting that our army was advancing in the same direction, and it overtook the rear of the French column, which was marching in great confusion ; but discovering to his mortification, at the end of the second day, that he
* Pp. 244, 245.
54 EXPEDITION TO CALABRIA. [Cn. IV.
was entirely without support, Captain Colborne found it necessary to fall back on his battalion."
The following represents Colborne's account of this business as he gave it in conversation towards the end of his life : -*•
" It was after the battle of Maida, and we were going on towards a town called Borgia, and were not at all certain where the French were. I commanded the advanced guard — about 87 soldiers and two dra- goons (these were my cavalry). I had only one other officer with me. The column was some way behind us, and my guide was getting frightened, so I said, ' Well, I can't help it ; if you don't show us the way, or get another guide, you must be hanged/ So he went with two or three soldiers and tried to knock up somebody in a cottage. At last a man was found who said he would lead us if we would let him go when we were within a hundred yards of the town. When we were within sight of the town he took care to put us in mind of our engagement, and we let him go. Then I had not the least idea whether the French were there or not. Just at the entrance to the town I saw a man, so I said, ' There, catch him ! make haste ! ' We ran after him and tried to catch him, but he ran into his cottage, and the same thing happened with two or three others, until we actually found ourselves half- way up the town. At last we got a man who hap- pened to be the ' Capo Genti,' the head of the town ; so I said, ' Dove sono i Francesl ? ' * Oh, they passed through five or six hours ago, and are encamped a few miles further on.' Then all the people, when they found we were English, came flocking round
i8o5.] COLBORNffS ADVANCED COLUMN. 55
us, and I had begun to take lodgings for us all, when a message came from our column that it had retreated. Hearing rockets and fireworks they thought it must be the enemy, when really it was the people in the town firing for joy of our arrival. This retreat of our column was a great pity. The French retired still further the next day, and the people of the town were very angry with us, because, in my expectation of the column, I had ordered 4,000 rations. They all turned out and reproached us, and I was anxious as to wrhat would happen. I said, ' It is not my fault. I am very sorry indeed to go back/ But they were very angry all the same.
" So after marching all day and all night, at four o'clock we had to march back again. I had a bad fever afterwards, but I do not know if that was the reason. Great numbers had fever owing to the carelessness of the Quartermaster-General's depart- ment, who took up our quarters close to a marsh; although you are sure to get malaria if you sleep anywhere where there is stagnant water and the ther- mometer between 80 and 90. About sixteen in a company died of it, and the doctors did not know how to treat it, and bled for it, so it was nearly a year before the army was free of it. I was bled for it, and had all my hair shaved and went over to Messina."
Of the moral effect produced on Englishmen by the battle of Maida, Alison speaks in terms which recall the last sentence of Colborne's letter. " It was a duel between France and England, and France had fallen in the conflict . . . people no longer hesitated to speak of Cressy and Azincour." Even
56 RETURN TO SICILY. [Cn. IV.
the local results were for the moment considerable. The French forces hastily retreated, leaving artillery, stores, ammunition, and every town or fort in Cala- bria to the victors. But on the i8th July Massena took Gaeta, and his army of 18,000 men was free to assist Reynier. Sir John Stuart had no course before him buf to re-embark his forces for Palermo, though by doing so he was forced to incur the reproach of abandoning the peasantry whom he had stirred up to war.
( 57 )
CHAPTER V.
SICILY AND GIBRALTAR AND RETURN TO ENGLAND, 1806-1807.
To Colborne himself the Calabrian expedition resulted in good; in fact, it laid the foundations of his future fortunes. General Fox, brother of the Minister, having been sent to Sicily to supersede Sir John Stuart in the command of the British forces in the Mediterranean, Colborne became his military secretary,1* and was thus brought into close contact with Sir John Moore, who, nominally Fox's second in command, was practically, as a more vigorous and experienced soldier, his adviser and equal. When Fox was recalled, and Moore succeeded to his com- mand, Colborne still remained military secretary, and acquired a devotion to his master which lasted beyond the dark hour at Corunna and became the inspiration of his life.
But if Moore's friendship and protection were valuable to Colborne, we do not doubt that they were well earned by Colborne's own qualities. Even in the criticisms which he passes on others in the following letters we see the fruits of native
* It is said that in making the appointment General Fox wrote : " You owe your appointment to the reputation and name you have acquired in the Army."
58 IN SICILY. [Cn. V.
military genius improved by years of serious study and dauntless adventure.
To Mr. Bargus.
" Messina,
"3 ist August [1806].
" My dear Sir, — I have had a very narrow escape, and have been very ill with a violent fever contracted in Cala- bria, but, however, it has been a fortunate expedition to me, and by a lucky accident [I] have acquired some good friends. General Fox has appointed me his military secre- tary, a confidential post, and thirty shillings per diem in addition to my pay as captain — but it is no sinecure. I have not had a single moment to myself, but General Fox goes to Palermo to-night and I shall have time to write
to you Yours affectionately,
"J. COLBORNE."
" Messina,
" 23rd June, 1807.
" My dear Sir, — The few letters you have lately received from me, I am afraid, will make me appear to you a most ungrateful fellow. The fact is, I have nothing to say in my defence, except that procrastination has generally been the cause of my not writing. ... I do not mean to offer this as a tolerable excuse, as one can always find time to write, if determined.
" I received your letter of the 1st of November, and am much obliged to you for it The Fox's have always been very attentive and civil to me.
" I work excessively hard, and in truth it is a most laborious office ; the confinement does not agree with me, activity in the open air being more congenial with my dis- position.
" I have acquired some very good friends since the Cala- brian expedition. General Sir J. Moore has behaved to
i8o6-;.] MILITARY SECRETARY. 59
me in a most friendly manner, and I am under great obliga- tion to him. Being now the senior captain in my regiment, I have some chance of getting a majority ; at least, I shall be much disappointed if I do not succeed. The senior major has memorialed to succeed to a lieutenant-colonelcy now vacant. If this promotion does take place I have every reason to expect the majority from a letter Sir J. Moore has been good enough to write home about me. General Fox did not know I was the senior captain, and I thought it would be impudent to remind him.
" You will have heard of our disasters in Egypt. A more foolish expedition never was planned, and I am sorry to say the misfortunes that have happened to our force there since its arrival can only be attributed to the incapacity of the chiefs ; 1,400 men have been lost to the service in a most provoking manner. The British troops are now at Alexandria, and in perfect security. If 3,000 men had been sent with Admiral Duckworth to the Dardanelles, it would have given quite a different turn to affairs in that quarter.
" England and Russia are now very anxious for peace with the Porte ; this war Has been the cause of Austria hanging back. Our army here has been mutilated by the different detachments sent from it to Egypt and Malta; without reinforcements we can do nothing.
" The Prince of Hesse has had the folly to undertake an expedition in Calabria, and mistaking the falling back of the French outposts for the retreat of their army, he ad- vanced to Mileto, near Monteleone, where he was culbute in a most complete manner, and his army, upon the first discharge, ran 25 miles without looking behind them. We remain silent and inactive spectators, and, / think, make a most ridiculous figure. I should not be surprised were General Fox to be recalled, he is too honest to be em- ployed in such a corrupt country as this, and by a corrupt
" You have no idea of the imbecility of your Ministry, I mean, both parties, for, believe me, there is very little
60 IN SICILY. [Cn. V.
difference in their conduct. The bad information they have of all this part of the world is incredible. The people they employ on what they call secret missions or em- bassies are quite children, all theory, waiting for orders, and take up half their lives in communicating with England.
" This army has dwindled into nothing by the neglect of the late Ministers ; no orders, no instructions for those in command how to act have been received from them. We are looked upon here as the supporters of an oppres- sive government, and I can venture to say, a more infamous one never existed. We have lost our popularity here altogether, for the Sicilians expect nothing from us. This army, had it been kept afloat (leaving garrisons in the forti- fied towns of this island), ready to act in the north of Italy, or Dalmatia, might have annoyed the enemy greatly, and assisted our allies. We might have destroyed every Frenchman in Italy, and prevented them reinforcing their Armies from that part. . . . Your most obliged and faithful,
"J. COLBORNE."
" Messina,
"2nd August, 1807.
" My dear Sir, — In my last letter I mentioned to you that I should not be surprised at General Fox being re- called ; and in a few days after the date of it, a communi- cation from the Duke of York unexpectedly arrived, begging him to attribute his recal to the fear of His Majesty's Ministers that he would not be able to support the fatigue of an active campaign, from bad health ; and expressing a wish that he should give up the command of the army in the Mediterranean to the person to whom the executive part must ultimately fall, General Sir John Moore.
" Now, as General Fox has not enjoyed better health
1807.] Sf£ JOHN MOORE. 6 1
for many years, and had received directions from Ministers relative to active operations a few days previous to the receipt of the duke's letter, he is (not without reason) much mortified at leaving this command.
" Mrs. Fox is good enough to say she will forward this to you. They embark to-morrow on board the ' Intrepid.'
" I might have easily obtained leave to go to England, and perhaps with some advantage, but much as I wish to see you again, I could not quit this part of the world, fore- seeing an active campaign, and not being a little flattered at Sir John Moore's asking me a few hours after he knew of General Fox's recal whether I had any objection to remain with him in the same situation.
" Sir John Moore is one of the best generals we have (that, you will say, is not much to his credit), an active, acute, intelligent officer, about 43 years of age, and full of that coolness in action and difficult situations, so necessary to those who command. He is one of those determined and independent characters who act and speak what they think just and proper, without paying the least regard to the opinion of persons of interest or in power. If he have a fair opportunity, I conceive he will prove a most excellent general.
" Considering my unntness for an office of the kind which I occupy, both from disposition and habit, I have got through the business of it tolerably well, but not without infinite labour, and have been harassed almost every hour for these last twelve months. The particular situation of General Fox's command in Sicily has involved him in a most extensive and important correspondence;* this, added to the detail and routine of the army here, has allowed me but few leisure moments.
" You may easily conceive that I shall part with Genera! Fox with the greatest regret. He is an honest, good- hearted man. Having been now acquainted with his family so long, I feel quite hurt at the thoughts of
* General Fox was not only in military command, but British Minister to the Neapolitan court.
62 IN SICILY. [Cn. V.
separating from them. Mrs. Fox is an amiable woman, and one of the best and [most] ladylike characters I have ever met with.
" Yesterday we were alarmed with the report of a peace with [between ?] Russia and France. I believe it ; and am afraid the Battle of Friedland has been but too deci- sive. Things cannot be worse with us. We shall have soon enough to do in this part of the world. . . . Yours truly and affectionately,
"J. COLBORNE.
" P.S. — I have sent by Mrs. Fox a few silks for gowns or anything else for Mrs. R, Delia, Alethea, Fanny and Maria.* They tell me they are at present fashionable."
In Sicily Colborne was still training himself for war.
" I remember at that time I thought it was the best way to prepare for active service by sleeping and eating as you would in the field ; a bad plan in some respects, for I found afterwards that the more you saved yourself the more you could bear after, but not altogether. It is very bad to sleep on a feather bed, for example — a good hard mattrass is the thing. Now, I had a very thin one, scarcely enough to save my bones from the boards; a sort of truss! I do not suppose there was one officer in a hundred did as I did, and it occasioned a good deal cf joking among them. At Palermo, being military secretary, I had a very fine house, and I remember some officers passing through my room being struck with my luxury, and the contrast between my bed and the magnificence of the house. However, it was :i very good thing, all that. I kept myself in good
* Maria Kingsman, a niece of Mrs. Bargus.
i8o6-7.] WORK AND PLAY. 63
health and good habit of body, without which I should never have got over my wound afterwards. I mean I was quite strong, but not fat or soft. After Sicily, when I went into active service I had very little baggage, all in a very small compass, and I tried placing my mattrass on boards, but I found I was too near the ground. If I had slept on the ground in a tent I should have got ill, you know. Then I got a very nice little iron bed which answered exactly; it folded up and took up very little room, and scarcely weighed six pounds."
He tells the story of a practical joke played at this time in Sicily. " The 2Oth invited the 52nd to dinner. I was away at the time with General Fox. Poor Diggle of the 52nd was seated between two funny young officers of the 2Oth, who persuaded him, when they got to the toasts, that it was the custom of the regiment always to propose a toast ' Confusion to all General Officers.' So up he got, and with Colonel Ross seated at the head of the table, said, ' President, I have a toast to propose, " D — n all General Officers!" The officers of the 52nd at that time were a most proper set, all very anxious to please Sir John Moore, and the Colonel was so scandalized at this behaviour that at a meeting of the officers they almost agreed to turn Diggle out of the regiment. One of the officers wrote to me to tell me so. However, Colonel Ross understood how the whole thing had happened, and begged the colonel of the 52nd not to take any notice of it, as it was all a joke. Their great alarm was that it should come to Sir John Moore's ears, but I don't think he ever heard of it."
64 IN SICILY. [CH. V.
He tells the following stones of Sir John Moore and of General Fox: -
" Sir John Moore once, in 1 806, in the presence of Mr. Drummond, our Minister Plenipotentiary, and General Fox, said jokingly, with reference to the Queen of Naples, ' Oh, we can easily ship her off to Trieste.' This, Mr. Drummond most mis- chievously and unwarrantably repeated to an associ- ate of Her Majesty. Sir John Moore was told that he had done so, and from that time conceived a bad opinion of Mr. Drummond, so much so, that when the queen came to Sicily, he held an interview with her without first asking Mr. Drummond to present him. The queen said to him, * Well, Sir John, so I find you are a Jacobin.' * Not more than Lord Nelson,5 he replied. When Mr. Drummond remon- strated with him on what he called his ' very irregu- lar proceeding/ Sir John replied, c I am well aware, Mr. Drummond, of your irregular proceeding — that you have repeated a private conversation/ Mr. Drummond had the effrontery to deny that he had done so, though the fact is undoubted. However, Sir John, owing to this, did not get on well with the queen. The British Government expected that she would entrust her forces to the British general.
" General Charles O'Hara, who was Lieutenant- Governor of Gibraltar in 1792-3,* when Sir John Moore was serving there with the 5ist Regiment, was very anxious that Moore should disguise him- self as a sailor with a red cap, and make some obser- vations on the French at Ceuta, but Sir John said,
* He was full Governor from 1795 to 1802.
1806-7.] MOORE AND O'HARA. 65
' No, thank you, general. I have no objection to go in my uniform, but I have no wish to be taken and hung as a spy.' It is, of course, allowable to hang anyone as a spy who goes in disguise, but an officer taken in uniform would not be hung, although he were engaged in the same occupation.
" O'Hara was a very agreeable man, very talented and witty — in fact, a specimen of a well-bred Irish gentleman. He was very angry when the army and navy had to cut their tails off. Gibraltar was a great place for soldiering in those days. Four or five hundred men mounted guard every day, and all the officers on guard used to stand behind the general on the parade ground. O'Hara was in a great rage one day when Moore appeared on parade without his tail. He said, ' I should not have been surprised if it had been one of the other officers, but Moore, who has been brought up under my own eye, I never expected him to do such a ridiculous thing ! ' They used to tell a story that when he was introduced to Colonel England, who was a man of very large proportions, he said aside to the officer who intro- duced him, ' England, indeed ! Great Britain, Ire- land and France ! ' He was a very good officer, and had seen a great deal of service.
" At the time I was military secretary to General Fox he was thought an old officer; he was about fifty. He had a great objection to anything in the shape of display, and I recollect once, in making the tour of Sicily, he desired that no salutes should be fired for him. When, however, we came by Fort Auguste, they began to roar out a tremendous salute. So old Fox turned round very angrily and said,
D
66 IN SICILY. [Cn. V.
' Really, this is treating me very badly/ and sent off his aides-de-camp scampering right and left to stop the salute.
" In Sicily they always have a quantity of bells hung round their mules' necks, and they can tell by the sound if the mule is lazy or going well. General Fox, being tired and unwell, was once ending a day's journey in a sort of covered sedan chair drawn by mules, and he told his aide-de-camp to desire the man to take the bells off the mules because the noise disturbed him. The man made great objections and said, ' Why, they would think I was carrying a dead person! ' So the aide-de-camp said, * Why, if he were dead, then you might have the bells, because he would not mind/ which tickled the fancy of the bystanders, and they laughed so much that the man was obliged to take off the bells.
"A merchant named Warrington, who lived at Naples, told me that at the time when everybody was expecting that the king and queen were going to leave [December, 1798], he thought the best way was to go and watch the palace himself. So he went, and actually met the king and queen and Lord Nelson and Lady Hamilton coming downstairs, and he overheard Lady Hamilton say to Lord Nelson, ' You did not forget the watch, did you ? ' He con- cluded directly from that that it was a regular flight, and hastened home as hard as he could and told his wife to pack up for Sicily. He proved to be right. The king and queen went on board the fleet that day."
Colborne used to tell another story in connexion with Lord Nelson. Once at a ball at Sir
1807.] NELSON. 67
.William Hamilton's, Josiah Nisbet, Nelson's step- son, after drinking too much wine, pointed at Lady Hamilton and Nelson, and said, " That woman is ruining that man." Lady Hamilton went into hys- terics, and Nisbet, as he was being dragged away, shouted, " Clap a swrab to her neck ; that will bring her to ! "
In the autumn of 1807, Napoleon having sent a large army under Junot to take possession of Lisbon, Sir John Moore received orders to sail from Sicily with the 2Oth and other regiments to support the Portuguese government. " We received the order to embark," said Colborne in 1847, "without being told where we were going. I was military secretary to Sir John Moore at the time, and Colonel Ross, a very great friend of mine, came to me and said, ' Can you tell me where we are going, or give me the least hint, whether east or west? It is of the greatest consequence to me, for if we go east, I shall leave Mrs. Ross here, but if west, we may be off anywhere, and in that case I should see her off for England directly.' I said, * Of course, I know where we are going, but I cannot give you the least hint; how- ever, I will go and ask Sir John Moore if I may tell you.' So I asked Sir John Moore, and he said, ' Well, Ross is an honourable man, you may tell him/ We were going to Portugal."
The next letters were written on the voyage to Gibraltar.
To Miss Bargus.
" ' Queen,' off Sardinia,
" 7th November, 1807.
" My dearest Alethea, — We are now fighting with an ill-
D 2
68 IN SICILY. [Cn. V.
tempered westerly wind, which will not permit us to weather Sardinia — seven days blowing from the same quarter — it really is enough to irritate even a greater philosopher than myself.
" On the 24th of October we embarked on board the ' Chiffone ' frigate at Messina, and proceeded to Syracuse, where we changed to the ' Queen/ a three-decker, and, the convoy being collected, set sail to the southward and passed Sicily with a fair wind after being driven con- siderably to the eastward by a contrary gale.
" If you chance to have a quarter of an hour to yourself, collect the news quickly, and let me hear from you during the time I remain at Gibraltar. You must be quick, or possibly I may be a thousand miles further.
"Your last letter is dated on the i8th of June, in which you tell me you expect a copy of a poem from me. Now, although they say I am extremely flighty, yet 1 have a most unpostical head, but, be assured, had I been inspired, the muse would have sent forth at least a sonnet by every packet to you and Fanny. Instead of subscribing to my poem, I must insist on your taking two copies of a print designed by a particular friend of mine, Captain Pierre- pont, of the 2Oth Regiment I have not seen it in its finished stats, but I believe Loutherbourg has improved it and made it a very good picture. The subject, the battle of Maida.
" I hope Richard Bargus has escaped the danger which seemed to threaten him. I am always sorry to hear of a military man being so foolish as to marry.
" The conclusion of your last letter amused me very much. ' Your dutiful and loving sister, Rebecca Bargus.' How infinitely better Rebecca sounds at the end of the sentence than Alethea. Deborah or Tabitha might have been still more respectable.
" Believe me, your most affectionate, but unwillingly I am obliged to add, your most undutiful brother,
" J. COLBORNE."
i8o;.] SAILING FOR GIBRALTAR. 69
To Mr. Bargus.
" ' H.M.S. Queen,' off Sardinia,
"8th November, 1807.
" My dear Sir, — Thus far we are, on our passage to Gibraltar, with about 7,000 men, which it is supposed will be considerably increased on our arrival there. Our final destination is as yet a secret We have been so long with an unfavourable wind, I fear the object of the expedition will be known before our force is concentrated.
" The Twentieth Regiment is in the fleet. I am in the same ship with Sir J. Moore — and almost too comfortable. You may conceive that changing from a small transport to a three-decker is not much against my inclination.
" The troops, I am sorry to say, are not abundantly sup- plied with provisions.
" The more I see of the general, the better I like him ; and most sincerely hope he will be successful in the ser- vice for which he is intended.
" Enclosed is a bill of exchange for £"247 los. on the Lords of the Treasury, which sum, on settling my accounts at Messina, I found due to me. I ought to have saved more, but horses and other unavoidable expenses, and having no time to attend to my own affairs, prevented me from being very economical.
" You must allow that the Ministry are endeavouring to be active, and indeed had not some unlocked for circum- stance occurred which prevented the evacuation of Egypt from taking place sooner, a respectable force would have been collected in Sicily four months ago. The great dis- advantage in not being able to circulate orders quick is the cause of many difficulties.
" The details of the affair at Buenos Ayres, as we hear it through the French papers, are most disgraceful, and from the notorious bad character of Whitelock we are inclined to believe the whole of them. — Most sincerely yours,
"J. COLBORNE."
70 GIBRALTAR. [Cn. V.
Things having advanced so far in Portugal that nothing could be done there — Lisbon having fallen into the hands of the French, and the royal family having fled to the Brazils — Sir John Moore was obliged to bring his force home to England. Accordingly, Colborne saw his native shores for the first time since June, 1800.
To Mr. Bargus.
" Gibraltar,
" 4th December, 1 807.
" My dear Sir, — We arrived here on the 1st inst, after a most tedious passage. I am now only waiting for a fair wind to take a cruise in the ' Chiflone ' with Sir John Moore ; and it will soon be decided in what manner we are to be disposed of. If no military operation takes place (which is very probable), I shall have the pleasure of seeing you in a few weeks — or months. — Most affectionately yours,
"J. COLBORNE."
" Gibraltar,
" 1 2th December, 1807.
" My dear Sir, — We returned this morning from off the Tagus, and having found that the Prince of Brazils, the Court, and the nobility came out to Sir Sidney Smith about ten days ago, with nine sail of the line, intending to pro- ceed to the Brazils, we are preparing to sail for England with the greater part of the force under Sir J. Moore's command ; the service for which we were intended is now at an end.
" I am very much pleased that the 2Oth return to Eng- land, as I believe I shall not join again as captain.
" It is very probable we may arrive by the latter end of January.
" The French marched into Lisbon, the 4th, 14,000 men. — Yours most affectionately,
"J. COLBORNE."
!8o7.] RETURN TO ENGLAND. Ji
" St. Helen's [Isle of Wight], " ' Euryalus,'
"2Qth December, 1807.
" My dear Sir, — After a passage of only thirteen days the whole of the convoy, consisting of forty sail of transports, came to an anchor yesterday evening. We have not yet had any communication with the shore, but suppose we must remain in quarantine two or three days.
" It is Sir J. Moore's intention to remain here until he receives orders from London. I hope to have the pleasure of seeing you at Barkway in eight or nine days. — Yours most affectionately,
"J. COLBORNE."
Enclosure, addressed " Miss Alethea Bargus"
" St. Helen's,
" ' Euryalus,'
" 29th December, 1807.
" I beg leave to announce to you the following important intelligence: 'Yesterday, arrived at St. Helen's, thirteen days from Gibraltar, Captain Colborne, 2Oth Regiment. The captain is very fat and having slept during the great- est part of the passage most profoundly, is supposed to have thriven exceedingly on board. Upon the whole, con- sidering an absence of nearly eight years from his native land, he looks tolerably well.' "
CHAPTER VI.
SWEDEN, 1808.
COLBORNE announced his arrival in London in the following note to his stepfather :
" Ibbotson's Hotel, " Vere-street,
" 5th January, 1808.
" My dear Sir, — I arrived here last night, but am afraid it will not be in my power to see you before Friday. I have seen Sir John Moore this morning, but cannot yet tell what is to become of us. I rather think we shall soon be afloat again. I shall be very happy to accompany General Moore, whatever part of the world may be his destination. — Yours most affectionately,
"J. COLBORNE."
On 2ist January, 1808, Colborne gained the rank of major in the army. He was now nearly 30.
The following letter shows that he was anxious to obtain also a regimental majority. Colborne had no doubt already visited his stepfather and family at Barkway, and the strengthening of old ties of affec- tion is marked by the fact that his letters henceforth are no longer addressed " My dear Sir," but " My dear Mr. Bargus." Preparations for a new expedi- tion were — as will be seen — already being made.
i8o8.] WHITELOCKE'S TRIAL. 73
" Ibbotson's Hotel, " i yth March.
0 My dear Mr. Bargus, — On my arrival here I found that Colonel Clephane had nearly concluded a bargain with a Major Campbell, of the 4ist Regiment, relative to the disposal of his commission, the final arrangement was to take place on Thursday. I immediately, therefore, set off to General Moore and mentioned the state of the case. He received me very kindly, and assured me that should Wallace decline in my favour, he would do everything in his power to assist me. I went down to Brabourne Lees and explained the nature of my visit to Major Wallace. I was not long in ascertaining his determination, for after a short conversation he fairly told me he would much rather see a stranger come into the regiment than allow a junior officer to pass over his head. So thus ends the affair, and perhaps it may yet turn out better for me, should we be employed in the spring.
" I found it necessary to return to London ; my old friends at Brabourne seemed all very happy to see me, and had I not lately been at Barkway, I could have fancied my regiment another home.
" Will you have the goodness to despatch Kingsley with my horse to London, so that he may arrive at the Found- ling Hospital by six o'clock to-morrow evening ? I merely mention that place because it is probable he may know it I will meet him there. It is my intention to ride to Bra- bourne, and I shall leave town on Saturday morning. The horse I have at the regiment is so hot and unsteady that it will be some time before I shall be able to mount him at a parade.
" Notwithstanding all you see in the newspaper, I have reason to think that no commander is yet fixed on for the expedition, nor any regiment appointed, but believe that most of the regular regiments will be employed in two months.
" General Whitelock's trial* is finished The paper
* For misconduct at Buenos Ay res.
74 BRABOURNE LEES. [Cn. VI.
gives a very imperfect account of it He read part of his defence on Monday, beginning with an ill-judged attack on the Judge-Advocate, Mr. Ryder, accusing him with tampering with his aides-de-camp. He endeavoured to prove that General Gore* caused the failure of the expedi- tion, and said that General Craufurd did not execute his orders. General Craufurd was present and Colonel Birch opposite to him, enjoying the charge against him. White- lock looked angrily and in a very significant manner at General Moore, whenever he thought he had answered any of his questions. He called on General White for a character, the very person who must have been acquainted with his conduct at St. Domingo, t He wept exceedingly, but the tears appeared to proceed from passion, and being exhausted he was obliged to sit down. Lewis, his brother- in-law, and General Maude read the rest of his defence. People think he has not refuted a single charge. The judge-advocate's observations when the defence was finished were excellent, and must have been very cutting to General Whitelock. He stated that if ever there was a time that called for the Commander-in-Chief exposing his own person, it was during that attack, but that he, instead of using any exertion, remained in a situation where the tops of the nearest houses could scarcely be seen, and slunk back half a mile to the rear in the evening. If I can procure a pamphlet of the trial I will send it you. — Believe me, most affectionately yours,
"J. COLBORNE."
" Brabourne Lees,
"28th March, 1808.
" My dear Mr. Bargus, — I like this quarter very much, but am singular in my opinion. We are completely
* Leweson-Gower.
f In San Domingo in 1794 Whitelocke tried to gain Port de la Paix by bribing its commander, who indignantly challenged him to single combat. See Annual Register, 1794, pp. 174, 175. Shortly after- wards Whitelocke was superseded by Brigadier-General Whyte.
i8o8.] EXPEDITION TO SWEDEN. 75
separated from the non-combatants — the nearest town is Ashford, five miles from us ; Hythe is seven. They could not have chosen a more proper situation to inure troops to the more northern climate of Sweden, should we be intended for that service. It is extremely cold, but the old bones of our men seem to bear the change well ; I have not seen them look better for many years. We have been obliged to discharge fifty, totally unfit for service.
" Yesterday I had a letter from Sir John Moore. No news. The Sicilian mail has arrived and has brought me some letters ; our popularity in Sicily becomes less and less daily. The few friends we had have deserted us since the Russian war. Scylla, I am afraid, is taken. — Yours most affectionately,
"J. COLBORNE."
From Brabourne Lees Miss Alethea Bargus received an Italian letter from her half-brother, dated "28 di Marzo" and signed " Vostro fratello affettuosissimo. — J. COLBORNE."
In his letter to Mr. Bargus of 28th March, Col- borne had mentioned Sweden as the destination of the new expedition. The British Government, with the intention of assisting the King of Sweden against a Russian invasion, collected some 10,000 troops, which sailed from Yarmouth Roads on roth May, under Sir John Moore's command. Colborne was again military secretary to the general, who had as an aide-de-camp Colonel Graham, afterwards Lord Lynedoch. The fleet reached Gottenburgh between the 1 7th and 2Oth May. General Moore and most of his staff resided on shore, but the King of Sweden refused to allow the troops to land, and claimed that they should be at his own disposal. After communi- cating with England, Sir John Moore started for
76 IN SWEDEN. [Cn. VI.
Stockholm on the I2th June. Colborne, who accompanied him, wrote the following letter soon after his arrival in the capital:
" Stockholm,
" i gth June.
" My dear Alethea, — I have but a few minutes to write to you, but as a messenger is about to be despatched direct to England, I will just say that I have not suffered much from our arduous campaign.
" What a pleasant way of travelling ! without trouble or expense. General Moore is at present residing in this capital, where he was obliged to come on business. The army is still at Gottenburgh.
" I am much pleased with every part of Sweden I have seen. We travelled in an open chaise from Gottenburgh to Stockholm in fifty-nine hours. The roads are excellent, the country covered with beautiful woods.
"We passed several large lakes, the Winer and Malar, &c. The peasants are the best people I have seen in any country; strictly honest and very civil. They are all dressed in the old costume such as might have been worn in England about two centuries ago.
" At Gottenburgh I was acquainted with a very pleasant family. The ladies in it were so beautiful that I really believe I am smitten, so instead of returning covered with wounds from a hard campaign, should you not be surprised to see me groaning with une Suedoise, and hobbling from the load of a wife instead of the spoils taken from the enemy ?
" Stockholm is the most quiet metropolis in the world — you would conceive yourself in a village on entering it, but its situation is different from any other town I have seen. The Old Town is on an island and the suburb is the most fashionable quarter to reside in. It is a most delightful scene all around us — I have not time to describe its beauties — but what has above all repaid me for my journey is that I have grasped the swords of Gustavus
i8o3.] AN IMPRACTICAL KING. 77
Vasa and Gustavus Adolphus, and worn the hat of Charles the 1 2th. This is an honour which I never expected to have had. It is light enough to read the whole of the night. I am now very anxious to get as far as Tornea, where the sun is seen nearly the whole 24 hours. I wish much to be frozen up here the winter, but am afraid it will not be the case. — Most affectionately yours."
Colborne apparently did not succeed in making the journey to Tornea. In later years he gave the following particulars of his time in Stockholm, which show that his zeal for improving every occasion had not abated : " As we thought we should stay in Sweden for some time I worked hard at Swedish. I used to get up at four o'clock to study it. My teacher was a young man named Anderson, who was living in the same house. I did not find it very difficult. I liked Stockholm very much. It was a very gay capital."
The whole business, however, degenerated into farce. The King of Sweden, who was all but a madman, wished to employ Moore on wild schemes of his own, and when Moore declared that he was compelled by his instructions to return to England, the king practically put him under arrest. Sir John, leaving Colborne behind him, then escaped incog- nito to his fleet, which he reached on 29th June. Colonel Murray left Stockholm later, on the 27th. The fleet sailed from Gottenburgh on 3rd July. Colborne had succeeded in joining it the day before,* having left Stockholm on the 29th. They anchored in the Downs on the i5th, and next morning were
* Colborne's diary shows that Sir G. Napier is wrong in saying that Colborne overtook the fleet at sea. Early Military Life of Sir G. N., p. 42.
78 IN SWEDEN. [Cn. VI.
ordered to proceed to Portsmouth on another service.
Colborne told this story in later years: "When we were in Sweden, the king sent an invitation to Sir G. Murray to dinner. As the king had insulted Sir John Moore he was going to decline, but the aide-de-camp said, ' The king said if Colonel Murray did not come he would send a file of soldiers to make him ; and you may be sure he will do it! ' "*
To Mr. Bargus.
" H.M.S. ' Audacious/
" i6tK July.
" My dear Sir, — Once more we are in a British port. General Moore is going this moment to town. We all go round to Portsmouth, and are now getting under weigh. We expect to be in Spain in a few weeks. I have a long story to tell you about Sweden. We were very near being detained prisoners at Stockholm. — Most affectionately yours,
"J. COLBORNE."
"H.M.S. 'Audacious/ Dover Roads,
" i;th July.
" My dear Alethea, — We arrived in the Downs from Gottenburgh on the I5th. We found orders for us to go to Portsmouth, from whence we shall sail, I believe, as soon as the transports can be victualled. General Moore is gone to town, but I expect to find him at Portsmouth by the time the fleet reaches that place.
" I hope you received my short letter from Stockholm.
* Colonel Murray (afterwards Sir George Murray) was invited by the king on the 26th June. The invitation was declined, but Colonel Murray did see the king the same day. See An Historical Sketch of the Last Years of Gustavus IV., Adolphus, London, 1812, which con- tains the correspondence and accounts of the interviews between Moore and the king.
i8o8.] RETURN TO ENGLAND. 79
My adventures in that part of the world, after I had written to you, were numerous and extraordinary, and I look on myself as very fortunate in getting away. You will have seen by the paper some account of Sir John Moore's leaving Stockholm; part of it is true, and as I remained a few days after him at Stockholm, it was thought probable that the foolish King of Sweden would have been ridiculous enough to have stopped the suite of the general, but we managed to get away without being discovered.
" I am afraid we shall not meet before I leave England. This first expedition has finished but badly ; indeed, there was nothing to be done in the Baltic, so perhaps it is better that this force still remains entire. — Yours affectionately,
"J. COLBORNE."
CHAPTER VII.
PORTUGAL. VIMIERO AND THE CONVENTION OF CINTRA, 1808.
ON his return from Sweden Sir John Moore learnt that he was to carry his troops at once to Portugal, the British Government having determined to assist the Spaniards and Portuguese to throw off the yoke of Napoleon. But in this expedition Moore wras not to be in supreme command, but to serve under Sir Hew Dalrymple and Sir Harry Burrard. Moore protested against this " unworthy treatment," but submitted to it like a soldier.
What Colborne thought of it we see in the following letter, undated, but evidently written from Spithead between 25th July, when General Burrard arrived, and 3ist July, when the fleet sailed from St. Helen's:
" My dear Mr. Bargus, — I must write to you before I leave England to inform you of the changes that have ta,ken place. Sir John Moore, from the intrigues and dirty cabals of Ministers, is not thought worthy to be entrusted with the chief command, nor even to be second in com- mand. Sir Hew Dalrymple is to command the army when united, Sir H. Burrard is second in command. The Ministry have treated Sir John in an infamous manner,
i8o8.] SIR JOHN MOORE SUPERSEDED. 8 1
and have tried to vex him in order that he may not go out with us, but he has conducted himself in a temperate and dignified manner, telling them that he thought his former services entitled him to some respect, that he had raised himself by his own exertions to the rank he held without mixing in any party or intrigues, that he would go cheer- fully on the service he was ordered, and would exert him- self with the same zeal and activity in the service of his country and King as he had always done when employed. The Cabinet sent him a menace that ' had not the military arrangements been so far advanced that they could not change them without detriment to the service, they would relieve him from the unpleasant situation in which he must be placed at present, and that the Cabinet would take the first opportunity of relating to His Majesty the conversation which took place between Sir John Moore and Lord Castlereagh in London ' (for he had told him his sentiments and what he felt). Sir John answered that he had already fully expressed his sentiments to Lord Castlereagh, that a repetition would be needless, that he should proceed on the service he was ordered without the least objection, but that it gave him great pleasure that it was the intention of the Ministry to lay the whole before His Majesty, as he should be in most perfect security in the justice of the King, and had the firmest reliance in trusting his honour, conduct, and reputation in His Majesty's hands. This cuts short the correspondence ; they are afraid to recall him, for he had documents that would make them tremble, were he to produce them. The fact is, no man has more merit and none more enemies, even among the generals of high rank. They have not the sense to hold their tongues, but you may be assured Sir John Moore is the only soldier good for anything amongst the whole set, with very few exceptions. Sir John, immediately he knew his situation, offered to get me in the Quartermaster- General's department or the Adjutant-General's, but I thought it best to refuse both and join my regiment, which is on the passage to Portugal or Spain. The former would
82 PENINSULAR WAR. [Cn. VII.
have been a more comfortable and easy situation, and a much more profitable one as to pay — but the latter more honourable, I think, particularly as I belong to such a regiment as the Twentieth. Sir John was pleased with my choice, and hoped I should be a lieutenant-colonel the sooner for it I certainly shall learn more as a major, and have no doubt but that I shall do very well. We meet with fewer competitors in the field than in the office, and I have never found many candidates offer when any real service is going on. I am convinced Sir J. Moore will be my friend as long as he lives, and I do not wish a better, for he must rise again in spite of their cabals. I go with him on board the ' Audacious/ and shall join the regiment where I find it. Sir Harry Burrard sent for me to-day and begged I would carry on the business until Sir H. Dalrymple took the command. I told him that my object was to join my regiment, and thera could not be much business until we arrived, but if it would facilitate business or be any convenience to him, I shoujd be happy to remain in the situation until I fell in with the regiment. I was anxious to explain to him that it was doing me no sort of favour, but merely for his convenience. Indeed, if it had not been so, I do not suppose that it would have been offered to me. But, however, it is settled that I embark with him and Sir J. Moore, and for the present I remain.
" We go to Portugal to attack Junot first. If the busi- ness has been executed by Sir A. Wellesley previous to our arrival, we proceed to Spain and act according to circum- stances. The Spaniards, I am sorry to say, have been beaten with the loss of thirteen pieces of cannon — near Benevente.
" We are to sail to-morrow, they say. I do not think we shall. You may venture to write to me the same direc- tions as usual, ' Mil. Sec. to Sir John Moore, H.M.S. " Audacious." ' I took a walk the other night after dinner to Fareham and called on Dr. Bogue. Miss Bargus made her appearance ; she said I was very much like Delia. As it was quite dark (about half-past nine o'clock) she might
i8o8.] BATTLE OF VIMIERO. 83
have imagined it, so I agreed with her that everyone thought so. They were all very civil and attentive, John Bogue as erect as a bed-post, but full of fine speeches and com- pliments.— Yours most affectionately,
"J. COLBORNE."
The fleet sailed from St. Helen's on 3ist July. On 1 6th August Sir Harry Burrard went on, ordering Moore to lay to till he received further orders. Meanwhile, another portion of the expedition, under Sir Arthur Wellesley, having left Cork on i2th July, had already landed (6th August) in Mondego Bay. This force fought the battle of Roliga on I7th August and that of Vimiero on the 2ist. Sir Harry Burrard arrived at Vimiero in time to witness Welles- ley's defeat of Junot, though his first act of inter- position was to forbid any pursuit. Next day he was himself superseded by the arrival of Sir Hew Dalrymple. Sir Hew, with the concurrence of Burrard and Wellesley, now concluded with Junot the Convention of Cintra, by which the French were embarked with their arms and baggage and sent home, and Portugal was restored to independence. The Convention excited a storm of indignation in England and in Portugal. Sir Hew, Sir Harry and Sir Arthur all went home in consequence, and Moore received a despatch, dated 25th September, by which he was put in chief command of the army to be em- ployed in Spain.
Colborne's next letter gives his impressions of the battle of Vimiero and of the Convention that followed it. His regiment, the 2Oth, had arrived in Mondego Bay on igth August, too late for the combat of Roliga, but in time to play its part at
84 PENINSULAR WAR. [Cn. VII.
Vimiero on the 2ist, where it attacked the enemy's flank with great gallantry. Colborne, who had sailed with Sir Harry Burrard and Sir John Moore, had unfortunately not been able to join it before the battle. Whether he arrived on the field with Sir Harry Burrard in the course of the action, or had been left in the fleet with Sir John Moore, is not clear.
" Camp near Veimira, "3rd September, 1808.
" My dear Mr. Bargus, — We are now on the march towards Lisbon, where it is said the army will remain until the whole of the French are embarked. It seems to be the general opinion that they have let them off too easily. Sir A. Wellesley advanced as far as Leiyra without opposition. On the i/th ult. his march was opposed by 4,000 men posted at a strong pass [Rolic^a], many officers think that our army might have forced it with less loss. The bull was taken by the horns, and more bravery than generalship was shown. However, the French lost near 1,500 men. Sir Arthur halted at Veimira. His army was posted on some rugged hills forming nearly a half circle, the centre considerably advanced, and his two flanks inclining towards the sea. It was the intention of Sir A. to have advanced himself this [that ?] morning and attacked the enemy at Torres Vedras, but the arrival of Sir H. Burrard in the bay prevented him. Junot having left his position in the night, arrived in the woods about Veimira early in the morning. His army having halted to breakfast, he commenced a furious attack on the centre and left about 9 a.m., but the conduct of our men was so steady and spirited that neither of the columns of the enemy gained an inch at any part of the action. He was repulsed with great loss, some say 4,000, leaving 1 6 or 17 pieces of cannon on the field. This was the time to have destroyed his whole army, our right
i8o8.] BATTLE OF VIMIERO. 85
had not fired a shot ; indeed there were 7,000 men not engaged. Sir Arthur, seeing the enemy retiring in con- fusion, wished to have advanced his right, intending to cut off their retreat (this is what people say and I believe it, for almost any general would have done so), but tile evil genius of the army sent Sir H. B. on the field during the action, and although he did not interfere while the battle was going on, yet he would not agree to any pursuit The next day the enemy requested a suspension of hostilities. We are ignorant of the terms of the capitulation, but the French are allowed to return to France ; they should have all been sent to England. The Russians, of course, become prisoners, with seven sail of the line and four or five frigates. I presume the lenity of our general will be as- cribed to his wish to employ this army immediately in another quarter. I hope there will be no delay.
" The weather has been unfavourable, very hot during the day and heavy rain at night. We have no camp equipage, but the country being woody, we erect huts, which answer very well when it does not rain.
"I will write to you from Lisbon. — Most affectionately yours,
"J. C."
Colborne had a story in later years in regard to the Convention of Cintra. Before it was signed, Sir Hew Dalrymple was discussing its terms with General Kellermann, at Coimbra, and, to obtain better terms, was insisting that the fleet containing Sir Harry Burrard's army was already in sight off Oporto. At this moment Sir James Douglas rushed into the Toom, and to Sir Hew's infinite annoyance, ex- claimed, very mat a propos, " I have been looking out for the last two hours and the fleet is nowhere in sight." General Kellermann related this story on the ship on which he was afterwards conveyed to France, and said that Sir James Douglas's speech had
86 PENINSULAR WAR. [Cn. VII.
enabled him to rise considerably in his demands. General Kellermann suffered dreadfully from sea sickness on that voyage, and one of the navy officers used to say to him in the midst of his paroxysms, " Ah, General, if I only had you now at Coimbra, I should get better terms from you."
The following stories relate to the same time :
" General Hervey, at Lisbon, asked Junot if the famous anecdote was true, that when he was acting as secretary to Napoleon, and a shell burst near him, he quietly remarked, * Voila de la poudre ' [i.e., ' There's powder for blotting the ink.']. Junot replied, ' The emperor wanted to write an order, and called out, " What, is there no one here who can write ? " I came forward, and it is true that as I was writing a shell burst very near us, and I may have said, " Voila de la poudre!'
:< When Lord Paget was presented to Junot he was in a general officer's uniform, at that time a very unbecoming dress, and Junot, going up to Graham, said, ' fat toujours suppose que Lord Paget etait le plus beau garcon d'Angleterre, mais je ne le crois pas du tout! However, when next day he came to dine in his splendid Hussar uniform, Junot changed his mind. ' Ah, il faut avouer a present quil est ires -beau!
" After the conclusion of the Convention I was selected to carry to Elvas General Kellermann's order for the surrender of that important fortress. I rode with it night and day, Elvas being 130 miles from Lisbon. At Estremoz, about 30 miles from Elvas, I was surprised, at a turn of the road, to see a number of armed men just before me, my orderly
i8o8.] COLBORNE'S MISSION TO ELVAS. 87
riding up at the same time and saying, ' I don't like the looks of these men, Sir.' The people had mis- taken me for a Frenchman as they saw me approach- ing, and had ridden out to capture me. Resistance was useless, and I was led in triumph into the town, hooted and pelted at, and only thankful to escape without a pistol ball through my head. The mere loss of time was most provoking. Fortunately there was a French emigre officer in the town, attached to the Spanish army. He immediately saw the mis- take, and called out from a balcony, ' This is not a Frenchman, my friends ; this is an English officer/ I informed this friend-in-need of the object of my mission ; and the anger of the Spaniards was con- verted into friendship. I was taken up into the Governor's house and regaled with coffee and cake, and a body of Spaniards escorted me to Elvas.
"The Spanish army was lying encamped round Elvas. When I requested an escort the Spanish general was delighted to grant it, assuring me that it was * con mucho gusto ' that he heard that Elvas was to be given up. The fort of Elvas was situ- ated on a hill, very much like Fort Abraham, a glacis sloping away regularly and fortified at the corners. It was the most beautiful work in Europe.* As I advanced with my flag of truce I was seen from the fortress, but as a matter of form a party was sent
* Sir W. Gomm wrote Aug. 4th, 1810 : " The fortification of Elvas is the most interesting thing I have ever seen. There are three hills ; upon the centre one stands Elvas and its castle ; on the right, looking towards Badajos, stands a fort which commands great part of the works of Elvas ; and on the other side, upon much higher ground and com- manding everything, stands the impregnable Fort La Lippe. Nothing but starvation ought to dispossess a garrison of Elvas." Carr-Gomm's Letters, &c.t of Sir W. Gomm, 1881, p. 178.
88 PENINSULAR WAR. [Cn. VII.
lo meet me with pointed muskets, and I was marched blindfold up a steep hill into the presence of the governor, or commandant, an engineer officer named Girod. A Swiss officer, who was second in com- mand, was sitting in the same room. This Swiss said to me, * Directly I saw you I was sure the French had had the worst of it. However, whatever misfortunes occur, I shall remain faithful to the em- peror, though not obliged to be so.' On which Girod remarked to me in an ' aside/ ' Quelle bete!'1 "When I showed General Girod the paper in General Kellermann's hand ordering him to give up the. town, he looked at it and said, ' // faut penser deux fois before giving up a fortress of this import- ance.' So I was in a great rage, and said, ' Why, look there, don't you see General Kellermann's hand and seal ? ' ' Oh, yes, I see that, but these things are sometimes forged.' So at last I said, ' Well, will you let me go into the town of Elvas, and get post- horses, and I will take any officer you like down to Lisbon to judge for you?' He said he would let me do that, and accordingly the gates were opened and I went in, and was kissed and embraced by every lady (and gentleman too) whom I met. They were delighted to see an Englishman ; it was a sign to them that their troubles were over. So I had a very good breakfast, and then, in two hours' time, set off again to ride back to Lisbon to obtain con- firmation of Kellermann's order. It is astonishing how one gets used to riding all day ; one feels as if one would never wish to sleep. Though I had already ridden a great distance, now, in going back, I was keeping up the same pace.
i8o8.] COLBORN&S MISSION TO ELY AS. 89
' The poor French officer, after being so long shut up in a besieged town, was soon knocked up, and did not at all approve of the rapid rate at which I travelled. He was constantly wanting to stop for rest and refreshments, but I was determined he should not; I was determined to work him. I myself, as was usual with me on such journeys, par- took of nothing but tea, which I carried in my pocket, and bread which I obtained in the villages. The French officer said, ' You do not exemplify the proverb, " Boire comme un anglais! " ' I always thought the proverb was " Boire comme un alle- mand! " 5 I replied.
" How well I remember the scene at Kellermann's when we reached Lisbon! He was in such a rage at the scrupulousness of M. Girod. ' What, did he not see my handwriting? I'll have none of his tricks. His folly will detain us here five or six days longer than necessary. Go back, sir, directly with this officer, and ask him to give up the town immediately.' I made no hesitation about return- ing, but the French officer, on being ordered to accompany me, begged to be excused. ' Monsieur, jc suis si fatigue' ' How is it this English officer can ride double the distance without being tired ? ' exclaimed Kellermann, in anger. ' Oh, il est anglais? ' Go, then, and desire a cavalry officer to get ready to go/ I had again only two hours' rest.
" When I reached Elvas a new difficulty had arisen. The Spaniards claimed that the fortress should be surrendered to them, and not to us, and they were now blockading it. Before, the French would not come out ; now, the Spaniards would not
90 PENINSULAR WAR. [Cn. VII.
let them. (The Portuguese said afterwards that the Spaniards did it in order that they might destroy the works.) I had to ride back to Lisbon for fresh orders. At Lisbon I was instructed to ride to Badajos, to obtain from Galluzzo, the Spanish general there, the order that Elvas was to surrender to the British. This time I had the company of Colonel Thomas Graham (afterwards Lord Lynedoch). It was the first time I ever saw Badajos."
Lynedoch's diary supplies some additional details.* They started on 24th September, travelled all night, but met with delays at every post. For one stage they were so badly mounted that they had eleven falls between them, which created great merriment. On the 25th, for want of horses, they had to make a stop at Estremoz till 4 a.m. on the 26th. They breakfasted at Elvas, and were supplied by the postmaster with fine horses, which they found afterwards belonged to French officers. They arrived at Badajos very wet at 2 p.m. They saw General Galluzzo twice, and after hearing from him " the most absurd language on the subject of his pretensions as a besieger," obtained the order and took it next day to Elvas, where they obtained the surrender of Fort La Lippe. The town itself had been previously surrendered to the Spaniards.
From Elvas Colonel Graham went on to Madrid, while Colborne obtained leave of absence from his regiment, now at Elvas, and started alone on a romantic ride towards Calahorra, the headquarters of the Spanish army of General Castanos. From
* Life by Delayoye, p. 268.
i8o8.] MOORE PUT IN COMMAND. 91
this characteristic adventure he was recalled by Sir John Moore when the latter succeeded to the supreme command.
On his return he wrote the letter which follows : —
" Lisbon,
" i ;th October, 1808,
" My dear Mr. Bargus, — I am as usual in a violent hurry. We are to commence our march towards Spain in two days. Behold me once more a knignt of the quill. Sir John Moore, you will have heard, is appointed to com- mand 40,000 men in Spain. This appointment has given great satisfaction to the army, and it certainly must be highly flattering to himself, for you must well know that
M [Ministers] have been certainly driven to it ; and
why? Because they could find no one else fit for the situation. We have a long march before us to Burgos and Vittoria.
" I had proceeded as far as Canaveral on my way to Salamanca, and in consequence of having had several very narrow escapes and many adventures (for I was pursued through every village and constantly taken for a Frenchman — whether there was anything in my appearance against me, or that the ugly face of my ser- vant did not please the peasants, I know not, but I con- ceived it must be the latter), I determined to return to the frontiers of Portugal, to leave him at Elvas, and take a Spanish peasant acquainted with the roads as my squire. On my going through a town called Albuquerque I met an officer who brought me Sir John Moore's letter relating to the extraordinary change that has taken place. I managed to arrive at Lisbon forty-eight hours afterwards. You may now direct to me ' Military Secretary, &c.'
" The enthusiasm prevalent in Spain is beyond what I expected. I really do not think a Frenchman will be able to pass through that country for many years, either in peace or war. — Most affectionately yours,
-j. c-
92 COLBORNE'S JOURNEY OF ADVENTURE. [Cn. VIL
Some further details of Colborne's ride in quest of Castanos are given in the following extract from a letter (to Miss Townsend) of the 9th March, 1809: *
" Immediately after the Convention I obtained leave of absence, and putting on the Helmet of Mambrino, entered Spain unshackled, for the first time completely inde- pendent, chief in command; in fact, my own master. I was resolved not to be traced, and pushed straight across the country for Calhorra, the headquarters of Castanos. I proceeded about 50 leagues, but met with so many inter- ruptions from the ignorant and inquisitive peasantry, and either my own physiognomy or that of my servant was so much against us, that we scarce passed through a village unmolested, and were daily examined by the cure of the parish, or corregidor, amidst a barbarous mob. This was intolerable, and I returned to Elvas, determined to leave my servant and take a Spaniard as compagnon de voyage. It was there I received a note from my unfortunate friend that he was appointed to the command, and wishing me to join him at Lisbon. Although at the time he received the appointment nothing was prepared, yet the different columns were in motion in seven days."
Colborne seems to have resumed his duties as military secretary to Sir John on the I7th October.
( 93 )
CHAPTER VIII.
THE PENINSULA. SIR JOHN MOORE'S ADVANCE
AND HIS RETREAT TO CORUNNA, 1808-1809.
His DEATH.
MOORE waited at Lisbon till the 27th October, when the several divisions of his army had moved off. On the 8th November he was at Almeida, on the nth at Ciudad Rodrigo, on the I3th at Salamanca, where he halted, intending that place to be the rendezvous of all his forces. Even now he wrote, " The moment is a critical one : my own situation is particularly so : I have never seen it otherwise ; but I have pushed into Spain at all hazards : this was the order of my Government, and it was the will of the people of England."* He had then only three brigades of infantry with him; the rest would take ten days to assemble, and Burgos and Valladolid, at three days' march distance, were occupied or menaced by the French army. He at once sent orders to Baird and Hope to march with all speed to Salamanca, the former from Corunna, the latter from Madrid.
* Moore 's Campaign, p. 25.
94 MOORE'S CAMPAIGN. [Cn. VIII.
Colborne used to contrast Moore's behaviour during his stay at Salamanca with that of Keller- mann when he was staying at Lisbon. " At Sala- manca, Moore was in the house of a very rich man, but he desired his own major domo to provide everything he required. When the gentleman heard this he said he would not allow it ; if they stayed in his house he would provide everything. Sir John Moore said, ' Impossible ! I am going to have people with me every day. I cannot think of putting you to so much expense.' ' Well, if you will not let me give you everything,' he replied, ' you shall not stay in my house,' and Sir John Moore was forced to submit. It was the custom of the French generals, when they were in a town, to quarter them- selves on someone, and make him supply everything, even wine. At the time of the Convention of Cintra, Kellermann was living in Lisbon in a man's house, and the man, hearing of the Convention, had locked up his cellar and gone out. Kellermann had asked Paget and myself to dine, and after dinner no wine was forthcoming, and Kellermann was told the reason — the master of the house had locked up the cellar. ' Quon force la porte? he said. Perhaps the servants then found the key. At any rate, we had plenty of good wine."
To return to the story. Moore, as has been said, had ordered Baird and Hope to join him with all speed at Salamanca. But as one Spanish army after another was defeated, and it was plainly hopeless for the British army alone, even if united, to withstand the vastly greater forces of Napoleon, Moore and his staff came to see no way before them but retreat.
i8o8.] GATHERING GLOOM. 95
In this gloomy situation Colborne wrote the following
letters :
" Salamanca,
"26th November, 1808.
" My dear Mr. Bargus, — We have been here about a week, collecting our force. Owing to the badness of the roads, the cavalry and artillery were obliged to march by a different route,* and we are very much separated.
" Take your map. We have 14,000 men at Salamanca, 4,000 at Escorial, and Sir David Baird at Astorga. The French are at Valladolid, and they have beat General Blake, dispersed his army, and have defeated the Estre- madura army. I am afraid they will attack us before we are united. They have about 80,000 men in Spain, or more.
" Remember me to Mrs. B., Alethea, Fanny and Maria, and believe me, my dear Mr. Bargus, yours affectionately,
"J. COLBORNE."
" Salamanca,
"2;th November, 1808.
"My dear Mr. Bargus,— Since my last letter a third army has been defeated, the Aragoneese.f I fear we shall not be able to unite. The Spaniards are a fine people, but have fallen into bad hands, not a person fit to direct them. I rather think we must retire on Portugal. We expect to be attacked in our turn. Nothing can be more unfortunate.
" Remember me to Mrs. Bargus, and Fanny and Maria. — I remain, most affectionately yours,
"J. C.
" Dear Alethea, — I am quite ashamed I have not written to you, but in better times you shall hear from me. — Yours most affectionately."
* i.e., Hope's force, which marched by Madrid, f Palafox's.
96 MOORE'S RETREAT. [Cn. VIII.
Next day arrived the news of the defeat of Castafios' army. This made Moore's course plain to him. He wrote on the 28th to Baird that he had determined to retreat upon Portugal with his own corps and with Hope's, if Hope could join him by forced marches, and he directed Baird to fall back on Corunna and thence to sail to the Tagus. But, deceived by information of growing enthusiasm in Madrid, on 6th December (when Madrid, though he knew it not, had already fallen) he countermanded his former order,* and bade Baird return to Astorga. Hope was now in the neighbourhood of Salamanca, so* Moore's position was altogether more secure. On 7th December Moore was joined by Hope's divi- sion ; on the 2Oth, having advanced to Mayorga, he effected a junction with Baird's. He had now 24,000 men, and moved against Soult with the in- tention of drawing Napoleon after him. His plan succeeded. Napoleon, who had taken Madrid on 4th December, on hearing of Moore's advance, made against him with 1 80,000 men. Having gained his point, Moore commenced his famous retreat, wnicn ended, after innumerable hardships, with the suc- cessful stand against Soult at Corunna on i6th January, and Sir John Moore's own death.
* This change of plans was due in part to finding that the French had not already taken Valladolid, as he had been informed. Gomm, who was sent there to find out the truth, brought back this com- paratively cheering news. " By evening I was entering Sir John Moore's quarters with the report. Colonel Colborne, then military secretary, looking half incredulous and something more at first of the fact of Valladolid having been really reached [by me], but hastening with the letter to his anxious chief, secured him a balmier rest through its contents than he had for many a night enjoyed." Carr Gomm's Letters, &c., of Sir W. Gomm (1881), p. 114.
x8o8.1 BENAVENTE. 97
Colborne told the following stories of the retreat :
" On the morning of the cavalry affair at Bena- vente (291)1 December) I happened to be detained behind the staff. My horse was already at the tent- door, and my servant packing, when a dragoon came galloping by with his sword drawn. My servant went out to inquire the reason, and returned saying, ' The French are crossing the ford, Sir ! ' So, instead of following the staff, I immediately galloped to the scene of action.
" It was an immense plain. The French were crossing the river and our cavalry waiting to receive them. Lord Paget, who commanded, galloped up twirling his moustachios, and said, ' You see, there are not many of them.' I remained by his side during the action, which lasted some hours and ended in the repulse of the French without much loss on our side.
" After the action, when Lord Paget was reporting the affair to Sir John Moore, he suddenly turned round and said, * But there's your military secretary ; he was there, and knows all about it,' to Sir John Moore's astonishment, who had not the least idea of the manner in which his military secretary had been employed. Graham said, ' You must have the gift of second sight, Colborne, and that was the reason you stayed behind ; you knew what was going to happen.' I received a clasp for the action."
In this fight near Benavente the French general, Lefebvre Desnouettes, was taken. " I was con- sulted by Sir John Moore," said Colborne, "as to whether it would be right to ask him for a written
E
98 MOORE'S RETREAT. [Cn. VIII.
promise not to escape. I advised not, as I remem- bered a French officer in Sicily being much affronted at such a request. Sir John Moore said, ' I am glad you told me this. Of course, I will not ask/ and as Lefebvre had surrendered his sword Sir John cour- teously presented him with his own. However, after Moore's death, Lefebvre broke his parole by escaping from England.
" Once, during a halt on the retreat, Sir John Moore had no book, and said to me, ' Come, Col- borne, have you no book to amuse me with?' I happened to have a copy of Lord Lyttelton's Memoirs* with me, and the book greatly entertained him."
On 3rd January, near Villafranca, Colonel Graham (afterwards Lord Lynedoch) had an almost miracu- lous escape from death. Colborne tells the tale thus : " A narrow road ran through a ravine, on one side of which was a precipice with a river at the bottom. There was scarcely room for a horse to walk, and the night being very dark, Graham's horse stumbled and fell over. I was riding behind him, and thought he was gone, but fancied I heard a noise, and told a sergeant to put down a pike and sash, and so we dragged him up, six or seven of us. With great presence of mind he had extricated himself from his horse and supported himself by some bushes on the side of the precipice. He said after- wards he heard someone say, ' Put down a pike and sash to him.' "t
The following story of Colonel Graham probably
* The Letters of Thomas Lord Lyttelton ? f Cp. Delavoye's Life of Lord Lynedoch, p. 294.
i8o8-9-] COLONEL T. GRAHAM. 99
relates to this retreat: — "Lord Lynedoch, though near fifty when he entered the army, had as much activity and spirit as the youngest officer. One day, towards evening, after a very fatiguing march, I and one or two other staff officers were bringing up the rear, endeavouring to keep the men together as we were descending a hill. We knew that the French must be very close on our heels, but men and horses were too much exhausted to ride back and ascertain how close they were. Presently Lord Lynedoch rode up to me and said, * Now, Colborne, should not you like to ride up to the top of the hill and see exactly where the French are ? ' ' No, thank you/ said I, * I am much obliged to you, but even if I wished it, my horse really could not do it.' The words were hardly out of my mouth before Lord Lynedoch was nearly at the top of the hill. * What a regular old fox-hunter! } said Sir H. Clinton to me."
Colborne told another story of Lynedoch's energy. " Lord Lynedoch was a man who had a pleasure in doing anything for anybody, and he was a most active, energetic man. Once when he was a mem- ber of Parliament, he was in Dublin on an occasion when it was of great consequence to have every possible vote, and they were saying it would be quite impossible for him to arrive in time. So Mr. Dundas, who was a great friend of his, said, * Tell him he can't do it, and you will be sure to have him in time.5 They did so, and Graham arrived with his watch out about a quarter of an hour within the time ; and a journey from Dublin was a longer affair
then by a good deal than it is now."
E 2
IOO MOORE'S RETREAT. [Cn. VIII.
On 8th January, at Lugo, the British army took up a position and expected a French attack, which, however, was not made. " Sir John and his staff were sitting together in their tent, and Colonel Graham, who was always eager for enterprise, said, " Well, Sir John, after you have beaten them you will take us on in pursuit of them for a few days, won't you ? ' ' No/ said Sir John, ' I have had enough of Galicia.' ' Oh, just for a few days ! '
" On the morning of the battle of Corunna Sir John was not aware that the French were so close, or that they would venture to attack. He said to me only ten minutes before the battle, ' Now, if there is no bungling, I hope we shall get away in a few hours.' A few minutes after Sir John Hope came with the news that the French were advancing in great force, and they soon opened a furious cannonade on us from the heights."
So many attacks have been made on Moore's generalship, from 1809 to the present time, that it is worth while to show that Colborne, no less than the historian Napier, for whose history of Moore's campaign Colborne supplied much information, was among Moore's most thorough admirers.* In an (unpublished) review of Southey's History of the Peninsular War he thus writes, in 1827, of his revered commander:
"It is our intention to demonstrate, with the aid
* See also Appendix I. Colborne wrote from Brussels, 3oth August, 1814, indignantly to refute a statement that he had compared Sir John Moore unfavourably with Wellington. " I never have stated or thought that Sir John Moore was less decided or less qualified for the command of a large army than Lord Wellington." (Cp. p. 365.) Yet, as will be seen, he lauded Wellington's generalship to the full.
i8o8-9-] COLBORNE VINDICATES MOORE. IQI
of many valuable documents, that the reputation of Sir John Moore was basely sacrificed to party spirit, and that the attacks with which his character has been continually assailed, are as inconsiderate as they are unmerited. We, who have followed him from early youth and cannot forget his professional zeal and devotion to his country, and the estimation in which he was held by the army of Holland and of Egypt, may not enter on his defence with the cool- ness of an historian who compiles from gazettes and periodical publications sent forth in the midst of tumult and party — but we pledge ourselves for the accuracy of the statements made.
:< This General appears to have been visited with the extraordinary bad fortune of being placed in a series of embarrassing situations, so that he had no sooner extricated himself from one than he was thrown into another. The first command that was offered to him would, had he accepted it, have given him the charge of that very absurd operation, the taking possession of Alexandria in 1808 [1807?] The second to which he was named involved him in an unpleasant affair with the Queen of Naples and the British Minister at Palermo ; the third made him responsible for the assembling of a force dispersed between Egypt, Sicily and Gibraltar, depending for its union on the result of Russian and Turkish treaties, but which had in view a service that ad- mitted of little delay in execution. The fourth sent him to Sweden with 10,000 men, on an expedition some degrees less ridiculous than the Egyptian one planned by the Whig administration, and which brought him in collision with the ex-King of
102 MOORE'S RETREAT. [Cn. VIII.
Sweden. The fifth appears to have been hopeless from the first moment of his appointment."
From the same article we give Colborne's account of the close of the campaign :
" When the army had passed the Esla, and the convoy of artillery stores which returned from the Ford of St. Juan had reached Benevente, the con- tinuation of the retreat could be no longer delayed. Two divisions had marched on La Baneza and Astorga on the 26th December. Napoleon was within a few leagues of the Esla on the 28th, and Soult, having received orders to move to Leon, his advanced guard appeared in front of the Spaniards at Mansilla on that day.
" The inferiority of the British army, and its critical position, would have induced Sir John Moore to retire sooner on Astorga than he did, if the am- munition and stores could have proceeded on the route by which it was intended they should be con- veyed. But the officer in charge of the convoy had been driven off from his first route, and had, in con- sequence of the heavy rains having rendered the river impassable, so increased his march that a halt at Benevente became necessary.
" Sir David Baird left Valencia on the 29th, and the reserve retired from Benevente the same day. Several arches of the bridge of Castro de Gonzalo were blown up, and the cavalry occupied Benevente with their picquets extended along the right bank of the river.
" A few days after Sir John Moore and the reserve had marched from Benevente, General Lefebvre Desnouettes, with the chasseurs of the Imperial
i8o8.] BENAVENTE. 103
Guard, arrived on the high ground near Castro de Gonzalo, and observing the picquets on the plain below apparently unsupported, imagined that only a rearguard of cavalry might be left in Benevente. The peasants having shown him a ford, he deter- mined to press on. He passed the river rapidly, formed on the right bank, and advanced in echelon towards the town.
' The picquets, which had assembled on the first alarm, opposed his march by disputing the ground with his leading squadron, and reinforced by a part of the hussars of the German Legion, retarded his progress. Lord Paget, who arrived on the plain soon after the Imperial Guards had passed the river, ordered the picquets to retire slowly in order to draw the enemy on towards the town till the loth Hussars could be brought up.
" Without any means of ascertaining what support- ing force might be preparing to cross from the left bank of the Esla, it appeared no easy matter to decide how far the enemy should be allowed to advance. The loth Hussars, however, were formed in line not 100 yards from his left flank before Lefebvre discovered his error, and that he had been drawn on skilfully by his opponent till the interval between the loth and the picquets and the leading squadron of the chasseurs was so much diminished that their escape was scarcely possible. At this moment Lord Paget charged with the whole of the loth. Lefebvre, perceiving the force against him, had just time to wheel about and to retire at full speed.
" The race was so equal that for a few minutes it
104 MOORE'S RETREAT. [Cn. VIII.
was doubtful whether the enemy's mass gained dis- tance or not, but fortunately for the chasseurs, the left of the pursuing squadrons, in endeavouring to get on their flank, passed over less favourable ground for the charge than that on which the former moved. This circumstance alone prevented the entire cap- ture of the chasseurs. All that were badly mounted, and among them General Lefebvre, were overtaken and made prisoners. The greater part forded the river in confusion and made an effort to form up on the left bank, but after a few rounds from our horse artillery they retreated. The cavalry remained at Benevente till the evening. The reserve marched in two days to Astorga, which the cavalry reached on the 3 1 st.
"The 30th the bridge over the Esla was made passable, and the enemy occupied Benevente in force. The corps, under Soult's orders, marched from Palencia and Paredes on Mansilla to join the troops moving from the Carrion.
:{ The branches of the Asturian Mountains which project to the southward run behind Astorga, and thence form a chain to the westward with the Sierra Segundera and De Mamed. This barrier and the mountains of Galicia are formidable to an enemy, but had we attempted to defend the passes and Galicia in the winter by placing a regular army in position — without cover or supplies — in a country exhausted by the continual passage of troops, it must have been exposed to such fatigue and privations as would have occasioned its destruction.
" Near Astorga the ground is not sufficiently favourable to induce an inferior army to wait the
i8o8-9-] HIS PLANS VINDICATED. 105
attack of an accumulating force or risk an action. At Foncebadon, one of the points of defence of this mountainous district, an enemy might be opposed with advantage ; but no important object was to be gained by halting there and defending that pass. The Galicias may be penetrated by roads from Zamora, Benevente and Braganza to Puebla de Sanabria, and thence by the Val de Jares and the valley of the Sil to Lugo. Magazines and cover for the troops would have been required had Sir John Moore halted, and the enemy, being able to choose his time of attack, would have compelled him to abandon the mountains, when his combinations might have rendered a retreat impracticable.
' The Marquis de Romana proposed to defend Astorga. He was without provisions, he had but 5,000 men fit for service, and no means of procuring supplies, and if he had remained near the British army would have proved only an encumbrance.
' Thrown back on an accidental line of operations, without being able to fix precisely his base and what kind of defensive movements should be followed, depending on the efforts of the enemy and his demonstrations of force, Sir John Moore was per- suaded that he could not maintain himself in Galicia with advantage to the Spaniards or without risking the destruction of his army. To defend a pass a considerable corps must be posted near it, prepared to meet the mass of the enemy. Therefore the only question to be considered was whether, if the enemy followed in great numbers, it would not be more advisable to outmarch him, and embark the army before he could interrupt that operation, or whether
106 MOORE'S RETREAT. [Cn. VIII.
a corps should be sacrificed in opposing him on the march.
" It was for the interests of Spain that Sir John Moore should endeavour to divide and isolate the French forces by drawing them into the mountains till the enemy's line might become dangerously extended.
" He decided, then, to continue his retreat, and if he should be forced into Galicia, to embark the army, after which operation it could te moved to any point where the Spaniards or Portuguese required its support.
" On this principle his movements were guided, and on it he continued to act, regardless of the common fame he might acquire by fighting a battle without an object. The safety of his army and the ultimate effect of his operations alone influenced his decisions.
" It is true that his army had been disappointed, and that various were the opinions of officers of rank respecting his movements. But neither in advance nor in retreat did one single breach of discipline take place in consequence of these opinions, and it is absurd to suppose that he paid any attention to them. Officers talked and discussed the views of the general, as they always do ; but beyond that, no symptom of disapprobation or the reverse was shown or heard of. His orders, in which the term 'dis- organization' was used, referred to the stragglers, and the supposed want of exertion in some corps in preventing their soldiers from halting and falling out in villages.
" Sir John Moore has been accused of not fighting
1808-9.] MOORE'S GREAT QUALITIES. 107
in Galicia, but the principles on which he conducted his retreat and his character will show that it is not possible that he would be actuated by the frivolous motive of engaging with the enemy for the mere pur- pose of increasing the reputation of the army which had driven the French out of Portugal the year before.
:< To suppose otherwise would be a great injustice to his character. I know of no other general who was more qualified to command. He had firmness, resolution, activity, courage and prudence, and from a long service with his troops, and his being the principal in the operations of the landings in Holland and Egypt, he was perfectly acquainted with the superiority of the British soldier to any other. His judgment of ground and the advantages of a position was unrivalled.
" Before we listen to clamour, the unexpected posi- tion in which he was placed must be considered, the unprepared state of the Portuguese, and, for instance, the great diversion he did effect for the recovery of the cause, and through his judicious action the French lost by allowing themselves to be drawn into Galicia and by the separation of their corps.
'* The retiring of Buonaparte from Astorga to prosecute his Austrian war was never known to Sir John Moore. He had only to judge what was most probable to happen, that the whole disposable force would be brought to Galicia. Having been driven into it by superior force, the sooner he could get out of it, the better for the Spaniards.
" If the French had made the great attack on
108 MOORE'S RETREAT. [Cn. VIII.
Portugal in 1809 with their whole force, no general would have been warranted in risking his army at that time in its defence.
" His disinterestedness, his great value in all the preceding operations, were fully known, and his last hours fully corresponded with his former conduct. So nothing could be more impressive than his death — his anxious enquiries as to the result of the battle — solicitude for his country's opinion and interest in his friends ; and his exclamation, ' You know I always wished to die thus,5 is such a picture of the man's mind, that there was not a man who witnessed his death, the serenity of his countenance . . ."
The rest of the passage is lost. But a letter written by Colborne to Miss Townsend on Qth March, 1 809, more than completes the sentence :
" You have, of course, heard various reports which have been spread with uncommon assiduity by the malicious and ignorant, to injure his reputation. His movements can be fully justified. Fortune never smiled. He was soon aware of his situation, but never discovered the true state of things until he had actually entered Spain. He was disgusted at the infamous conduct of the soldiers, and the inattention of inexperienced officers. We cannot endure hardships ; we have not the military patience with which our enemies are gifted. We can stand to be shot at as well, or better than, most people, but this quality, although essential, is not sufficient for a military nation. 1 What unheard-of difficulties, hardship and labours ! living on turnips ! no sleep ! ' All this frightens mama, but do not believe the quarter that you hear. John Bull is as fond of the marvellous as an Italian or a Spaniard.
" I was not present when Sir John received his wound. About a quarter of an hour after the firing had commenced he sent me with a message to General Paget On my
1809.] DEATH OF MOORE. 109
return with the answer, I could not find him, but heard he had lost his arm. At this time I had no idea the wound was mortal, and therefore did not return to Corunna till dark. On my entering the room where he was you may conceive my situation. I saw that all was over. The surgeons were examining the mangled wound. It is impossible to imagine a more horrid one ; the ball had carried away his left breast, broken two ribs, shattered the shoulder, and the arm was scarcely attached to it — the whole of his left side lacerated. One would have supposed that the first gushing out of the blood would have instantly caused his death, or made him insensible — the most resolute minds and firmest nerves when thus assailed sink under pain, and Nature, exhausted, yields, but he, cool and collected, continued talking, recol- lecting the most minute and trifling circumstances till the last moment. His lungs were affected, and his voice from this was rather hoarse. He knew everyone, and while conversing was suddenly suffocated by internal bleeding, and who would not have wished to be him at that instant ? No distorted countenance, no sign of anguish, the picture of the mind could be traced by the serenity of the face, the one calm and dignified as the other was pure and heroic.
"On falling from his horse no alteration in his counten- ance took place. They wished to take off his sword, but he said as it was not in the way he begged it might remain on. A most extraordinary man. The nearer you saw him, the more he was admired. He was superior by many degrees to everyone I have seen : he had a magnificent mind. A most perfect gentleman. A determined enemy to the corrupt, corruption, and jobs, he never spared where he thought it his duty to inflict. A man of this cast must create a host of enemies, and he certainly had his share of them.
" To pursue melancholy subjects. We never heard of the death of poor Mrs. Fox until a short time before our arrival at Corunna. He thought her the most valuable and
110 MOORE'S RETREAT. [€H. VIII.
excellent woman with whom he ever was acquainted. He received General Fox's letter the day before the action. I beg to be kindly remembered to the General and Miss Fox. — Most sincerely yours,
"J. COLBORNE."
It is v:orth while even to add to Colborne's narra- tive a fuller account of Moore's last hours, because if Colborne's name had been remembered in no other connexion, this ever-moving story, preserved by the pious affection of Colonel Anderson, must have kept it alive :-« «
As the soldiers were carrying the wounded general from the battlefield, " he repeatedly made them turn round to view the battle and to listen to the firing, the sound of which becoming gradually fainter, indicated that the French were retreating. Before he reached Corunna it was almost dark, and Colonel Anderson met him, who, seeing his general borne from the field of battle for the third and last time, and steeped in blood, became speechless with anguish. Moore pressed his hand and said in a low tone, ' Anderson, don't leave me.' As he was carried into the house, his faithful servant Frangois came out and stood aghast with horror ; but his master, to console him, said, smiling, * My friend, this is nothing.'
" He was then placed on a mattrass on the floor and supported by Anderson, who had saved his life at St. Lucia; and some of the gentlemen of his staff came into the room by turns. He asked each as they entered if the French were beaten, and was answered affirmatively. They stood around ; the pain of his wound became excessive, and deadly pale-
1809.] DEATH OF MOORE. 1 1 1
ness overspread his fine features. Yet, with un- subdued fortitude, he said at intervals, * Anderson, you know that I have always wished to die this way. I hope the people of England will be satisfied. I hope my country will do me justice ! '
( Anderson, you will see my friends as soon as you can. Tell them — everything. Say to my
mother ! ' Here his voice faltered, he became
excessively agitated, and not being able to proceed, changed the subject.
' Hope ! — Hope ! I have much to say to him — but cannot get it out. Are Colonel Graham and all my aides-de-camp safe ? ' (At this question Ander- son, who knew the warm regard of the general towards the officers of his staff, made a private sign not to mention that Captain Burrard was mortally wounded.) He then continued :
c I have made my will, and have remembered my servants. Colborne has my will and all my papers.1 As he spoke these words Major Colborne, his mili- tary secretary, entered the room. He addressed him with his wonted kindness; then, turning to Ander- son, said, ' Remember you go to Willoughby Gordon* and tell him it is my request, and that I expect he will give a lieutenant-colonelcy to Major Colborne ; he has been long with me — and I know him to be most worthy of it.'t
* Military Secretary to the Duke of York.
f It is very characteristic of Colborne's character that he was reluctant to allow this testimony to his merits borne by his dying general to be published. Captain Graham Moore writes to him on the 29th May, 1809 : "The purport of my letter is ... chiefly at this moment [when] James is employed in an attempt to have justice done to our brave brother's memory, to endeavour to prevail upon
112 AfOORE'S RETREAT. [Cn. VIII.
" He then asked the major, who had come last from the field, * Have the French been beaten ? ' He assured them they had, on every point. ' It's a great satisfaction/ he said, ' for me to know that we have beat the French. Is Paget* in the room?' On being told he was not, he resumed, ' Remember me to him ; he is a fine fellow.'
;< Though visibly sinking, he then said, ' I feel myself so strong — I fear I shall be long dying — it's great uneasiness — it's great pain !
c Everything Fran£ois says is right. I have great confidence in him ! ' He thanked the surgeons for their attendance. Then, seeing Captains Percy and Stanhope, two of his aides-de-camp, enter, he spoke to them kindly, and repeated to them the ques- tion, * If all his aides-de-camp were safe ? ' and was pleased on being told they were.
" After a pause Stanhope caught his eye, and he said to him, c Stanhope, remember me to your sister.'t He then became silent. Death, un- dreaded, approached, and the spirit departed."^:
you to give up your objection to making public every particular circumstance in the last scene of his life. ... To every candid and liberal mind it must appear honourable to you, as well as to himself, the strong interest he felt that you should have justice done you, and as it is certainly a strong characteristic trait of the General, I do hope and request of you, in the name of my mother and all our family, that you will give up your objection to the whole of what he said on that sad occasion being made public."
* The Hon. Edward Paget, who commanded the reserve.
f Lady Hester Stanhope, whose warm attachment to Moore is well known. A seal which she gave him was cut off Moore's fob after death by Colborne. He gave it to Mr. Carrick Moore, who however returned it to Colborne, saying, " You have the better right to it." It is now in the possession of the Hon. Lady Montgomery- Moore.
$ Moore's Life of Sir J. Moore, ii., pp. 226—230.
1809.] DEATH OF MOORE. 113
The story is continued by George Napier, who had been Moore's aide-de-camp from the beginning of the campaign.
" With a heavy heart I turned my sorrowful steps to the headquarter house. On entering I saw no light; I heard no sound, no movement — all was silent as the grave. A cold, dread chill struck upon my heart as I ascended the gloomy stairs and opened the opposite door, from whence I imagined I heard the half-stifled sob of grief. Oh God ! what was my horror, my misery, my agony! Sir John Moore lay stretched on a mattrass ; a dreadful wound bared the cavity of the chest; he had just breathed his last. .... Never shall I forget the scene that room displayed on that fatal night. Colonel Anderson, who had been from youth the tried friend and companion of his general, was kneeling with his arm supporting Sir John Moore's head, with blanched cheeks, half- parted, colourless lips, and his eyes intently fixed on that face, whose smile of approbation and affection had been his pride and his delight for years ; but the look of keen anguish that Anderson's counten- ance expressed is far beyond my powers of descrip- tion. Next in this group stood Colborne, whose firm and manly countenance was relaxed and overcast with thoughtful grief, as though he pondered more on his country's than on private sorrow, for he felt and deeply mourned the amount of England's loss. Then high-spirited, guileless Harry Percy, pouring forth in convulsive sobs the overflowing of his warm and generous heart, and poor James Stanhope com- pletely struck down and overwhelmed by the double loss of his brother* and his friend. Although last
114 MOORE'S RETREAT. [Cti. VIII.
in this imperfect sketch, not least absorbed in the deep anguish of despair stood his faithful and devoted servant, Francois, bending over his master's mangled body, his hands clasped in speechless agony, his face as pale as the calm countenance he wildly gazed upon. That eye, which was wont to* penetrate the inmost soul, was glazed in death. That manly, graceful form, the admiration of the army, lay stretched a bloody lifeless corpse ; the great spirit had quitted its earthly habitation ; all around was sad and gloomy. Moore was dead! "t
At midnight on the i6th January Sir John Moore's body was removed by torchlight from the house on the quay, where he had died, to the quarters of his friend Colonel Graham in the citadel of Corunna. An entry in Graham's diary of I7th January gives us the last scene of the story.
"A grave was dugj: in the centre of the flat bastion of the citadel where poor Anstruther§ lay, and there, at eight o'clock in the morning|| the general's body, without a coffin, was interred. Anderson, Colborne, Percy and Stanhope were
* Charles Stanhope, who had been killed, was second to Charles Napier in command of the 5oth. Charles Napier, who had been taken prisoner, was believed at this moment by his brother to have been killed also.
f Early Military Life of Sir G. T. Napier, pp. 75—77.
J Apparently by the Qth Foot. See Earlier Letters of Sir W. Gomm, p. 116.
§ Brig.. General Anstruther, a great friend of Moore's, had died on reaching Corunna.
|| Wolfe's famous lines say " at dead of night," and Sir W. Napier writes : " The battle was scarcely ended " when Moore was buried. But Graham's statement is the true one.
iScx,.] BURIAL OF MOORE. 115
present only,* Napier and I being joined to General Hope's staff ; and, some firing from the point having taken place, they hurried it over."t
It was still early, as George Napier writes, when " Colonel [Major] Colborne| and myself went on board the * Audacious/ 74 gun ship, Captain Gos- ling, having with much difficulty reached her, as in consequence of the enemy bringing some guns to the heights, which in fact commanded the bay, and opening a fire on the transports, they were cutting away their cables and were in much confusion, and it was a service of danger to get through them."§
In the following note from Falmouth Colborne announces to his stepfather his return to England :
" 25th January, 1809.
" My dear Mr. Bargus, — I have only time to say that I am well. You will know the loss we have sustained. || I shall soon see you. — Yours most affectionately,
"J. COLBORNE."
* The service was read by the Rev. H. J. Symons. (Notes and Queries, Ser. I., Vol. VI., p. 274.)
•j- Delavoye's Life of Lord Lynedoch, p. 299.
J Should Napier have written " Colonel Graham " ?
§ Early Military Life of Sir G. T. Napier, p. 78.
|| Miss Yonge says that fifty years later Lord Seaton's voice trembled as he spoke of Moore. (Miss Coleridge's C. M. Yonge, p. 19.)
CHAPTER IX.
LONDON. RETURN TO THE PENINSULA AND SERVICE WITH THE SPANISH ARMY, 1809.
THE following letters show that Colborne, after reaching London, had much work on hand in settling the accounts of the late expedition with the Commissary. He was in frequent communication with Sir John Moore's family, and warmly interested in defending his military character against the attacks which were made on it. In his own case, the General's dying request had been complied with. He was appointed to a lieutenant-colonelcy in the 5th Garrison Battalion on 2nd February, 1809.
These garrison battalions were corps of old soldiers formed to remain in England, but Colborne obtained permission to return to the Peninsula.
" London,
" Ibbotson's, " Vere-street, " January [25 ?], 1809.
" My dear Delia, — Knowing that you would be uneasy, I sent you a short note immediately after the action. I hope it arrived before the public news reached you, as the officer who carried the dispatch put it in the post-office Falmouth. I ought to have been sent with General Hope's letter, but Sir D. Baird preferred one of his own aides-de-camp.
1809.] DEATH OF MOORE. 117
" General Hope sent me to London as soon as we arrived at [Portsmouth] with a copy of his dispatch, and I only reached this place a few hours after the original*
" It seems a dream — I can scarcely believe that I am in England. Indeed, this is the first day since the action I have had time to reflect and lament my friend. He was a noble fellow — had I not seen him die I should have thought it impossible for the firmest mind to have endured bodily pain with such indifference, with such calm serenity — for although when in health, and sound, one conceives a possibility of bearing every ill, yet the stoutest hearts yield to nature and sink under the pain of a mutilated body.
" General Moore was struck on his left breast and shoul- der by a cannon shot which [broke] his ribs, his arm, lacerated his shoulder and the whole of his left side and lungs. From the gushing out of the blood I should have thought he would have instantly expired. His voice was rather hoarse from inward bleeding. When knocked off his horse he did not say anything, nor did the shot make him change countenance. He was carried away in a blanket, and spoke to everyone as he passed. I remained out until the action was over, and when dark rode to Corunna. On my entering the room the General knew me, and spoke most kindly to me and said, ' Colborne, have we beaten the French ? ' I replied, ' Yes, we have repulsed them in every point* ' Well,' says he, ' that is a satis- faction. I hope my country will do me justice.' He then said to Colonel Anderson, ' Go to Colonel Gordon when you arrive in England, tell him it is my wish — remember, I request — that Colborne gets a lieutenant-colonelcy.' He then said, ' Remember me to General Paget — General Edward Paget — he is a fine fellow.' He asked everyone that came into the room about the enemy, and died in a moment after he had spoken, without the least symptom of pain. He was buried by his own aides-de-camp and my- self, on a bastion at Coranna.
* Captain Hope, who brought the original, arrived in London late on the 23rd.
IlS IN LONDON. [CH. IX.
" The Duke of York received me with great kindness, and was much affected on reading General Hope's dispatch.
" I can tell you nothing certain about myself. The greater part of the fleet is not come in, but I have yet much business to finish, if possible. I need not assure you how happy I shall be to pay Duke and little Delia a visit. Remember me to them, and believe me most affection- ately yours,
"J. COLBORNE.
" Mrs. Duke Yonge, Antony,
" Tor Point, Plymouth Dock, Devon."
" London,
"2;th January, 1809.
" My dear Mr. Bargus, — I arrived in London about one. I have seen General Hope ; as yet he knows nothing, but appears very anxious to get away.
" I found a note from F. Moore,* begging me to defer my visit to Richmond until to-morrow. This I was not sorry for, as I find that only 7,000 men are arrived at Portsmouth, and until the Commissary and Paymaster- General arrive, or that General Hope returns to Portsmouth, it will be useless my going there.
" I cannot tell you how long I shall be obliged to remain here. Government find themselves exceedingly encouraged about this letter.^ General Stewart has blundered, and said it was General Moore's wish to have it published. I can assert that this is not the fact.
" They talk of an immense force being sent to Spain.
* Francis Moore, who was in the War Office, was a younger brother of Sir John Moore. Their father " Dr. Moore," had died at Richmond in 1802.
f General Moore's letter to Lord Castlereagh of I3th January. General Stewart had been sent to England with it before the battle. It was printed by Order of the House of Commons, though Sir J. Moore says, " My letter, written so carelessly, can only be considered as private." See Annual Register, 1809, p. 426.
1809.] LIEUTENANT-COLONEL. 119
If so, I can safely say it will not be ready for six weeks or two months.
" My wish is to get the command of a regiment on the new expedition, but I fear this is impossible.
" I find some people have been making inquiries where I am to be found. I have reason to suppose they wish to sound me about General Moore's dispatch. However, they will get nothing from me, to whatever Party they may belong. — Yours affectionately,
" J. COLBORNE."
" 14, Chapel-place,
" Vere-street,
" 3Oth January.
" My dear Mr. Bargus, — I have just received your letter. You seem to have formed a great notion of my merit. I only wish I deserved half as much as you think or wished.
" They have behaved very handsomely in giving me the first vacancy, and you will be surprised when I tell you it pleases me. My promotion is in a garrison battalion. There are hundreds who like to be idle, and will exchange. Therefore I shall have time to look about me, and get into a good regiment — perhaps the Twentieth, for it is in vain to look to command a regiment immediately — most regi- ments have two battalions and two lieutenant-colonels.
" An office will be opened in London where all my busi- ness must be arranged.
" The Wellesleys will have the command of the new expedition. — Most affectionately yours,
" J. COLBORNE."
"8th February, 1809,
" 14, Chapel-place,
" Vere-street.
" My dear Alethea, — . . . Friday it will be neces- sary to call on the Duke to thank him for my promotion.
120 IN LONDON. [Cn. IX.
I was gazetted last night. You may now give me my rank. "... I have called several times on Lord Castle- reagh, and had an interview this morning.
" J. COLBORNE."
In a letter to Mr. Bargus, dated " London, 2ist February, 1809," Colborne says " I begin my work to-morrow morning."
" London,
" ist March, 1809.
" My dear Mr. Bargus, — I have nearly settled all my business, but the Commissary with whom I must finish my account is not in town, nor will be here until Monday. I am determined not to leave things half settled, therefore you will not see me before Wednesday.
" Colonel Ross called on me yesterday, previous to his going down to the Twentieth. He means to push Colonel Campbell for an immediate answer.* Should it not be favourable, I have my application ready for Colonel Gordon, which I am convinced will not be refused. I saw the Duke the day before yesterday. I was resolved not to -forsake him while under a cloud.t The parading at the levee of the King is by no means necessary, the only ad- vantage to be reaped from such a ceremony consists in reading one's own name in the newspaper the next morn- ing. I must defer taking Lady Selsey'st advice till I return from Spain, or till I have achieved some grand exploit.
" I went to the House on Friday, and remained till five
* Colborne desired to exchange back into his old regiment.
f The conduct of the Duke of York had been impugned in the House of Commons on 2;th January. He resigned the office of Com- mander-in-Chief on iSth March.
J Hester Elizabeth [Jennings], in her own right, Lady of the Manor of Barkway, wife of Hon. John Peachey, who became second Baron Selsey in 1808. She and her husband had presented Mr. Bargus to the vicarage of Barkway on a8th November, 1798.
1809.] DEBATE ON MOORE'S CAMPAIGN. 121
in the morning. I was disgusted with the impudent false- hoods on the part of Canning.*
" The Ministers had the advantage, for the opposition attacked in the dark. Had I been in the front row, I really believe the spirit would have moved me to have given the Ministers the lie direct.
" They all speak very bad ; Windham's is the most disagreeable voice I ever heard ; Canning affected to put himself in a passion, but made no impression on the House, at least, if I can judge by my own feelings. Tier- ney speaks like a country gentleman, blunt, and sometimes even eloquent ; Perceval both speaks and looks like an apothecary. The minor orators, if they can be called orators, are worse than could be found in the meanest spouting club of a country school : the few words they uttered were sputtered out with ' I wish, sir/ ' I con- ceive, sir,' ' I hope, sir/ ' my right honourable friend/ ' the gallant general/ and ' the right honourable lord ' squeezed in, almost in every sentence, so as to make them unintelligible to us that are not in the habit of attending the House. Of this class were Brigadier-General Stewart, Lord Milton, a Major Allen, and many others. I forgot Lord H. Petty. He speaks very clear and distinct, but there is a monotony in his harangues which offends my ear exceedingly. I sat in the midst of newspaper reporters, who frequently put down (when they cannot hear) anything to make up a
* " Lord Castlereagh and Lord Liverpool paid an honorable tribute to the merits of the commander ; but Mr. Canning, unscrupulously resolute to screen Mr. Frere, assented to all the erroneous statements of the opposition, and endeavoured with malignant dexterity ;to convert them into charges against the fallen general. Sir John Moore was, he said, answerable for the events of the campaign ... for he had kept the Ministers ignorant of his proceedings. . . . Not long afterwards Sir John Moore's letters, written almost daily and fur- nishing exact and copious information of all that was passing in the Peninsula, were laid before the House." (Napier, Bk. V., chap, i.) The debate Colborne attended was that held on 24th February, when Mr. Ponsonby moved for an inquiry into the circumstances of the late campaign, and was defeated by 220 to 127.
122 IN LONDON. [Cn. IX.
sentence. Not one of the speeches appeared in the papers correct, or even like the originals.
"Yesterday I walked to Richmond and dined with F. Moore, and returned in the evening. I was not more than an hour and a [half] going and about an hour and three quarters on my return. I spoke to him seriously about publishing certain letters.
" It is reported that the Brest fleet are now in Rochefort — Most affectionately yours,
"J. COLBORNE.
" I am much obliged to Mrs. B. for Miss Law's letter. I mean to write to General Fox or some part of his family."
" London,
";th March, 1809.
" My dear Alethea, — Most heartily tired I am of accounts and claims. By way of exercise after the fatigues of the morning I have frequently walked to Richmond and back the same night. Sunday I slept there, and returned early on Monday morning.
" Antonio,* I am afraid, is very troublesome. Let him be made useful, if possible ; he is very idle. Is there any- thing that you or Maria wish from this gay city? Was it ' Mordaunt ' or ' Edward '* that Maria wished to have ?
" The party to Mr. M 's is inevitable is it not ? Were
I to live with you two months I certainly should be thought the greatest brute in the county of Herts. Instance the first Here is a man, hospitable to a degree unknown amongst the good people of England in general : rides through snow, over hedge and ditch, to see me, and yet I am such an ungrateful, unsociable and extraordinary animal that I do not feel the least inclination to partake of his good -cheer. More silly than mad, you will say, but such is the nature of the beast — la societa non mi piaca a-ffatto.
* A Calabrian servant whom Colborne had left at Barkway. f Both novels written by Dr. Moore, Sir John Moore's father.
1809.] SETTLING ACCOUNTS.
123
"Adieu, my sweet old maid, and believe me, with kind remembrance to all the family, your very humble servant and brother to command, « j COLBORNE "
Miss Townsend, to whom the following letter is addressed, was apparently a member of General Fox's family who had lived in his house in Sicily. Colonel Bunbury had married the eldest Miss Fox.
" 14, Chapel-place,
" Vere-street,
"9th March, 1809.
" My dear Miss Townsend, — If I had been cudgelled for a month, there is not one hour out of the many days since I had the pleasure of seeing you that I could have sat down deliberately with the intention of writing to any of my own correspondents. I have heard of people com- posing elegant stanzas and writing very pretty letters during the deepest distress, but I confess, when I am disappointed, vexed or afflicted, I am one of those who can neither write nor read. I resign the appellation with which you or Colonel Bunbury* honoured me, ' the Philo- sopher/
" I promised to write to you from Sweden, and much there was in that country to describe, for a most delightful one it is, but the foolish errand on which we were sent put me out of humour not a little.
" Away we go to Portugal, where I once more joined my old regiment"!
" London,
"gth March, 1809,
" 14, Chapel-place.
"My dear Alethea,— I shall ruin you in postage. It will be impossible to close my business before Saturday;
* Colonel H. E. Bunbury, the author of Narrative of some Passages i-,i the Great War, was Quartermaster- General to the British forces in the Mediterranean.
f The rest of this interesting letter has been given already, pp. 92, 108.
124 IN LONDON. [Cn. IX,
therefore I cannot be with you till Sunday or Monday. Nothing shall prevent me from leaving town on Monday, I may probably get away before.
" Whether the climate, the wind or the smoke of London affects the nerves of your melancholy brother, I cannot say ; but most certain it is that I never felt so strong an inclination to hang myself — at times. This is only fa$on de parler, for I should think twice and look at my garters a long time before I exalted myself. But I am really miserable and what is more extraordinary, I cannot find out the cause ; this is very provoking. Pouring out the tea with one hand and my letter in the other, I think T see you much inclined to read this letter to the public. If I find you proclaiming my secrets, I shall not write to you.
" The Duke of York will, I think, keep his place ; the Ministry support him. Last night the debate was ad- journed.— Most affectionately yours,
"J. COLBORNE.
" I have just heard but I cannot vouch for its authenticity, that Lord Paget went off a few days ago with Mr. Henry Wellesley's wife, sister of Lord Cadogan, and that Sir Arthur Wellesley called out Lord Paget and killed him in the first fire. The first part of the story is certainly true."
Circumstances prevented Colborne from leaving England as soon as he intended. On the 2;th March his stepfather, Mr. Bargus, was seized with convulsive spasms while officiating as Justice of the Peace for Herts, and died in a few hours, and Col- borne was called upon to give his filial assistance to the widow of his stepfather. He had, at the same time, the pleasure of hearing from Mr. Bargus' old friend, Dr. Goddard of Winchester, the esteem which Mr. Bargus entertained for him. Dr. God- dard wrote on the 2nd April :
" I feel true satisfaction in assuring you that he has
1809.] A FIRST MEETING. 125
often expressed himself to me as amply repayed for the care and anxiety he had experienced on your account by your exemplary conduct, and the estimation in which you were held by those who were most intimately acquainted with your character."
On the following day Sir George Murray wrote to say that he had mentioned Colborne to Sir Arthur Wellesley for the post of military secretary. This post he declined — at the price, it is said, of some displeasure on the part of Sir Arthur — and being greatly occupied with his private affairs and those of Sir John Moore, he found himself unable to join the army till three months after Sir Arthur's landing at Oporto (22nd April).
It was in this interval that Colborne first met the fair lady who was destined to be his wife, Miss Elizabeth tYonge, called "the beauty of Devonshire." She was the eldest daughter of the Rev. James Yonge, squire of Puslinch, Devon, and rector of Newton Ferrers. Her cousin, the Rev. Duke Yonge, of Antony, near Plymouth, had married Miss Cordelia Colborne on the I4th May, 1806. Miss Yonge writes in her diary under the date " 2ist June, 1809 " : " Duke Yonge and Colonel Colborne called at Puslinch," to which she added, some time later, " The first time we ever met, and this day four years we were married ; not aware, for some time, of its being the same month and day." Colonel Colborne called at Puslinch again with his brother-in-law on the 2 Qth, but a few days later, when his business was done, he took his passage to the Peninsula to •see further service. The following letter testifies to his warm affection for his half-sister, Miss Alethea
126 PENINSULAR WAR. [Cn. IX.
Bargus, and to his desire as far as possible to take the place of the father she had lost.
" Falmouth,
" 2 ist July, 1809.
" My dear Alethea, — I arrived here yesterday. I intend to proceed to Cadiz in the packet, but we are detained by the embargo. I remained one night with Delia. I expect you will be a first-rate performer when I return. Two hours at drawing, two at music and three at history — savcte qualche cosa — then, provided you will rise at 7 you will have three hours for other employments. Read by yourself every day, and recollect what you have read at the end of the week; that is, make an abridgment. Always continue your chain of reading, even if it is but half an hour each day.
" I must beg of you to buy another of Moore's books and send it to Mr. Sisson, with my compliments.* Never were there materials so mangled [as] by that stupid doctor, and the publication is full of errors. However, the letters are well selected, and certainly do honour to Sir John Moore.
" Have you determined on a house ? — Most affectionately yours,
" J. COLBORNE."
Colborne reached the Peninsula too late to take part in the passage of the Douro (i2th May) and the battle of Talavera (28th July), but in his con- versations in later years he told some stories of these feats of arms :
" The Duke was occasionally not above writing in his despatches to please the aristocracy. At the passage of the Douro, Hervey made a very brilliant charge with his regiment, something like the Bala-
* A Narrative of the Campaign of the British Army in Spain commanded by . . . Sir John Moore. By James Moore, Esq., 1809.
I8D9-] PASSAGE OF THE DOURO. 127
clava charge, right through the French, and Sir Charles Stewart (afterwards Lord Londonderry), who was riding with him, waved his hat, but had nothing whatever to do with it. Hervey was obliged to retire again across the river, and when among the infantry had his arm shot off. In the despatch all the credit was given by the Duke to Stewart.*
" Poor Hervey said to me when he was wounded, ' Now, did you ever see anything like that? I wanted some little puff of that kind, and Stewart could get on without it; besides, it was my affair.'
" I don't mean to say this was peculiar to the Duke ; it used to be a common thing with general officers. Old Admiral Duckworth, after the passage of the Dardanelles, during which Lord Burghersh was present on the deck of his ship, wrote home in his despatch, * and among the most animated on the deck was Lord Burghersh.' The different captains who had carried their ships through it all were very indignant, and said, ' What a shame of the old fellow diverting the attention of the public to a man who had nothing to do with it ! '
" After Hervey had lost his arm he was attacked by a Frenchman, sword in hand, but directly the Frenchman saw that Hervey had but one arm, he put up his sword, made him a courteous bow, and left him !
' The Duke made a great mistake in fighting the battle of Talavera. Owing to false information, he
* " Brig.-General the Hon. C. Stewart then directed a charge by a squadron of the I4th Dragoons, under the command of Major Hervey, who made a successful attack on the enemy's rear-guard." Despatch of 1 2th May, 1809, Oporto.
128 PENINSULAR WAR. [Cn. IX.
was not aware of the overwhelming force against him, and he did not know that besides the army in the field there were three immense corps (Tarmee behind. It was entirely owing to disunion and jealousy between Victor and the other French- generals that we were not completely annihilated. As it was, we lost one-third of our army, and though we remained master of the field, we were obliged to retire into Portugal. The Duke as much as owned his error to me in discussing the affair afterwards. He said, * The fact is, they had too many men for
us.'
Colborne, after landing at Cadiz, seems to have arrived at Sir Arthur Wellesley's headquarters at Jaraicejo about nth August, and to have been at once despatched to the Spanish army commanded by Cuesta, with instructions to follow its movements and report on them. On his arrival, he found that Cuesta* had just been superseded by General Eguia (i2th August). The latter took great umbrage that Sir Arthur Wellesley's letter had been ad- dressed to Cuesta and not to himself, and professed to see in this a personal insult.
As Colborne related in after years : " On reach- ing the Spanish headquarters I was shown into a room completely filled with despatches intercepted from the French army. The Spaniards, with char- acteristic negligence, left them lying about for any- one to do as he liked with them, but made no real use of them. Lord Wellington frequently com-
* Colborne is made to say that he arrived at the moment when Venegas was superseded by Eguia. But I think for " Venegas " we should read « Cuesta." See Napier, Bk. VIII., ch. III.
1809.] WITH A SPANISH ARMY. 129
plained, even after this, that he was never sent im- portant information, even if the Spaniards had intercepted any. I made use of my time to select the cream of the correspondence and send it to Sir George Murray. One of the despatches which I sent to headquarters was one from Soult, regretting that he had not besieged Ciudad Rodrigo according to his first intention. This first informed Sir Arthur Wellesley that such had been Souk's intention, and caused him to march north instead of south. Sir George Murray accordingly wrote back to me that Sir Arthur was much pleased, and wished much that I wTould ( send more of such despatches,' and for that purpose would attach myself to the staff of the Spanish army. I was unwilling to do this, as it would interfere with my prospects in the British army, but as long as I remained in La Mancha I said I was willing to make myself useful."
Soon after joining the Spaniards Colborne wrote the following letter to the widow of his stepfather :
" Merida,
" ist September, 1809.
" My dear Mrs. Bargus, — I arrived at Cadiz the beginning of last month, and proceeded by way of Seville to the army in Estremadura. The battle of Talavera and the position of the French armies since that affair have changed the appearance of things in this country, I mean, consider- ably for the worse. The British army is retiring on Portugal, and has suffered so much from the campaign that I doubt whether it will be fit for any service of im- portance for several months; the sick amount to ten thousand. The French will not molest the British army until they receive reinforcements.
" I intend returning to the south in a few days. The
F
130 PENINSULAR WAR. [Cn. IX.
country through which I have passed seems tired of war, and the Central and Provincial Juntas are disputing with each other respecting the appointment of an officer to command their armies. Amidst so much discord and stupidity, I am afraid the French will not find many obstacles opposed to them, should the affairs in Austria be finally settled.
" My friends, the Spaniards, have behaved very ill in the battle of Talavera. Cuesta is a perverse, stupid old block- head. To him most of the misfortunes must be attributed.
H Sir John Moore's letters, after what has happened, are quoted by every person who has been in Spain as a faithful picture of the country. I am sadly vexed they have been brought before the public by James Moore. His work is a most miserable performance, and the language coarse and vulgar, but notwithstanding these disadvantages attending the letters of Sir John Moore, they will con- vince the world that he possessed more foresight and judg- ment than those who abused him, whilst the manly spirit that runs through the whole of them must be admired by even the most prejudiced. As things have turned out, [ regret that I did not accept the offer of General Aber- crombie to accompany him to India. . . ." (Remainder wanting.)
Colborne remained with the army of La Mancha for three months. At the end of October General Eguia was replaced in the command by General Areizaga, who entered on operations of extra- ordinary rashness, which ended with the complete destruction of his army by Soult, at Ogafia, on igth November.*
Colborne describes the battle in the following letter, in which he also announces that he has been appointed to the 66th Regiment, t To get a regi-
* Napier, Bk. IX., chap. V. f His appointment was dated 2nd November.
i8og.] BATTLE OF OCANA. 131
ment was no doubt very gratifying to him, for the last few months had been a time of great expense.
" Badajos,
" 5th December, 1809.
" My dear Alethea, — On my return to Badajos from the Spanish army of La Mancha (which has been completely defeated and dispersed) I found that I was appointed to the 66th Regiment. The 2nd Battalion being here, I have taken the command of it, so you may direct to me in future in Portugal, where we are about to proceed in two or three days.
" Thanks to a good horse and fortune I have arrived safe and in excellent preservation at the British army.
" You may easily conceive the confusion* when I tell you we had 46,100 infantry and 6,000 cavalry drawn out in a very bad position. The French attacked with about 27,000, and having turned the right of the first line of the Spaniards, my friends were thrown into confusion, and retired to an olive wood, where, the Spanish cavalry press- ing in upon the infantry, the confusion was completed.
" The French pushed on their cavalry, and in about a quarter of an hour the whole Spanish army dispersed, leaving guns, equipage, &c., to the enemy, who pursued us about 4 leagues.
" I have received two letters from you, and am glad to hear you have at last taken a house. I am afraid you will be soon tired of Sloane-street I still think a house in the country would have been better.
" The French have dispersed another Spanish army near Salamanca. f It is, therefore, I believe, thought proper or prudent that the British army should now retire to Portugal. We shall not remain quiet long.
" I have scarcely been a night in the same place lately, and found it impossible to write to you when with the Spanish army.— Believe me, your most affectionate brother."
* Battle of Ocana, igth November, t Battle of Alba de Tormes, 26th November.
F 2
( 132 )
CHAPTER X.
CAMPAIGN OF 1810. WITH THE 66ra REGIMENT IN HILL'S DIVISION.
THE 2nd Battalion of the 66th Regiment, which Colborne now commanded, formed part of the 2nd (Hill's) Division of Wellington's army.
On 1 8th December Lord Wellington informed Sir Rowland Hill of his arrangements for the defence of Portugal. " I shall form two principal corps, both consisting of British and Portuguese troops, the largest of which will be to the northward, and I shall command it myself, and the latter will be for the present upon the Tagus, and hereafter it may be moved forward into Alemtejo." The command of the latter corps he now gave to Hill. Accordingly, Hill's division quitted Spain for Portugal.
" Abrantes,
" 3rd February, 1810.
" Dear Mrs. Bargus, — I had the pleasure of receiving your letter soon after my return from La Mancha.
" It is not impossible but that we may be compelled to abandon this country in the spring or summer; however, of that we shall be better able to judge in a few weeks.
" I do not wish to have Roscius disposed of yet He
i8io.] LIEUT.-COLONEL OF THE SIXTY-SIXTH. 133
may be useful to me should any accident bring me to England with my regiment.
" I now command the regiment, and am much pleased with the officers of it. The corps has suffered considerably during the campaign by sickness and battle. The senior lieutenant-colonels are on the staff as b[rigadier] generals, which will probably be the cause of my going to India when we get out of Portugal.
" The French entered Seville on [ist February], and are on the march to Cadiz. We have sent four regiments to that garrison. We shall not be attacked here till April in my opinion.
" I am not sorry to find myself once more with a British army. My poor friends the Spaniards are really to be pitied; the nation has been lost by an infamous govern- ment. With the battle of Ocafia every hope ended. The general-in-chief was a weak and silly man, without a military idea. It was a most distressing scene. — Most sincerely yours,
"J. C."
On 1 2th February, in consequence of the French having approached Badajos, Hill was directed to move forward to Portalegre in order to protect the sick in Elvas till they could be removed to Lisbon. He had with him his own British division, two bri- gades of Portuguese infantry, one brigade of British cavalry, the 4th Regiment of Portuguese cavalry, and one brigade of German and two of Portuguese artillery. He was instructed to co-operate with certain Spanish troops then supposed to have crossed the Tagus, and to prevent the French, if possible, from attempting any serious operation against Badajos. However, they had retreated on his approach.*
* Sidney's Life of Lord Hill (1845), P- 125.
134 WITH THE SECOND DIVISION. [Cn. X.
" Portalegre,
" 24th February, 1810.
" My dear Alethea, — We have once more passed to the south of the Tagus. The French, under Marshal Mortier, have appeared before Badajos, which movement has alarmed us a little, as our hospitals are not yet removed from Elvas. Joseph Bonaparte and Victor entered Seville on the ist inst Part of their force has proceeded towards Cadiz. I think they will not be able to take it. Venegas, the governor, is a very honourable man, and a great friend to us. The enemy is threatening in several points north and south, but I do not think he will attempt anything serious for several weeks. You must send us out reinforce- ments immediately.
" I like my battalion very much. It is in very good order, but I wish it was stronger.
" Some of the regiments are still very sickly. This is very extraordinary, as we are now in a most delightful climate. Your brother never enjoyed ruder health, and except having been desperately in love (which he attri- butes to remaining three weeks in the same place), has met with nothing since his last letter to ruffle his temper. However, it has been the cause of his making considerable progress in the Portuguese language. You see you have fully my confidence and all my secrets. — Your most affec- tionate brother,
" J. C."
" Portalegre,
" 2 ist March, 1810.
" My dear Alethea, — The French have made no con- siderable movement on this side of the Tagus lately. We are still in our old position. The enemy's force is increas- ing to the north. Napoleon is expected at Salamanca, Marshal Ney is before Ciudad Rodrigo with 25,000 men. In my humble opinion we shall not be attacked until May. The Spaniards are still my favourites ; had they but a
i8io.] CHARACTER OF THE SPANIARDS. 135
tolerable government they would become the finest people in Europe. Their character in England is quite mistaken ; they are in general abused by the British army without reason. The inhabitants of Badajos are determined to defend themselves. The place is weak, and must fall unless the people follow the example of Saragossa and Gerona.* In that case, there is no calculating how long the besiegers may be kept at work.
" The army under Romana and Odonnel immediately in our front still puts on a good countenance, and skirmishes with French detachments frequently, in spite of disasters and the black appearance of their country's cause. The poor fellows have been driven about by the enemy from province to province, exposed to the summer's heat and winter's cold, without provisions, without clothing, and scarcely knowing what money is. Do you think a British army would cling together under such unfavourable cir- cumstances ?t The fact is, we are a most boastive nation, and have disgusted the Spaniards wherever we have mixed with them. However, you must not believe all I say, as I am called a madman by many, and even by my friends, an enthusiast
" I think in a few weeks I shall be able to judge what prospect there may be of our army being successful. — Your most affectionate brother,
" J. C."
Colborne's statement, that some of his friends
* Saragossa surrendered to the French on 2ist February, 1809, after a siege of two months, Gerona on loth December, 1809, after a siege of six months.
f Colborne, who had seen more of the Spaniards than most English officers in the Peninsula, was always their warm defender. He wrote in an article years later : " The privations and misery endured by a large mass of the people of Spain from their patriotism and hatred to their oppressors, were seldom equalled. With a brave, hardy, active, abstemious, peasantry, fond of glory, it may appear extraordinary that the struggle of the Spaniards was prolonged for six years without any decided success, but the Central Junta and the presumption and obstinacy of most of the men placed at the head of the armies ren- dered their perseverance and courage useless."
136 WITH THE SECOND DIVISION. [Cn. X.
called him an enthusiast, is perhaps explained by the following story told by him in his later years :
After speaking of General Cameron, afterwards Sir Alan Cameron (1753-1828), whom he had known in Holland and Sweden, he went on to say : " I met him some years after in Spain. It was the worst time he could have seen the army, when it was retreating into Portugal. He had been riding on some way with me, asking me about everything, and I had been giving him a rather good account of the Spaniards. He then rode some way in front, and turning round, called back to me before all the soldiers, ' Colborne, you know you always were a d — d enthusiast! 3
" He was a rough old Goth. When he shook hands with you he gave you such a squeeze that it made you squeal again. There is a story that he once fought a duel with a cousin of his in a cave, and cut him in half. Some people said that he once threw his wife overboard in a passion and then jumped in and saved her. However, I believe she was in a fever, and threw herself in. He was in Holland with a Highland regiment which he had raised himself, and when the Duke of York told him that they were going to draft his regiment, the 79th, into another, he said in broad Scotch, * That's more than your Royal Highness's royal father could do ; for they are all Camerons ! ' "*
Colborne had not long had the command of the
* Cameron raised a regiment called the 79th or Cameron High- landers in 1794. This was drafted into the 42nd in 1797, after which Cameron raised a second regiment under the same name which served in Holland in 1799. The above story is also told by Colonel W. K. Stuart, Reminiscences of a Soldier, II., 233.
i8io.] HILL AND REYNIER. 137
2nd Battalion 66th before he found himself com- manding the brigade of which the 66th formed a part. It consisted, besides, of the 3rd Buffs (ist Battalion), 3ist Huntingdonshire (2nd Battalion) and 48th Northamptonshire Regiments.
In consequence of Reynier's threatening to cross the Tagus, General Hill wrote, on July i3th, that he should, in consequence, incline to his left, and hold everything prepared to cross at Villa Velha if he found him [Reynier] serious in crossing the river. Accordingly, on the i5th, Hill set off to Alpalhao to be ready to act on either side of the Tagus.* As will be seen from Colborne's next letter, Reynier crossed as anticipated, upon which Hill crossed also.
" Camp near Atalaya,
"25th July, 1 8 10.
" My dear Fanny, — We are on the march, encamping every night. Be it known to you, I am now a very great man, and if I continue so, a few days (or weeks) more, my situation must either prove advantageous to me or much the reverse. I command a very fine brigade, by accident, and we most probably shall be engaged in a short time. At present we are watching General Regnier's march, who crossed the Tagus from Spanish Estremadura, which naturally led General Hill's division to cross also, and advance in a parallel line to defend that part of the frontier of Portugal between the Tagus and Lord Welling- ton's right. On the 23rd inst. General R. Craufurd's Divi- sion was severely engaged in front of the Coa, and having to contend with very superior numbers, was obliged to retire behind that river. His loss amounts to 250 and 23 officers.
* Sidney's Life of Lord Hill, pp. 134, 135.
138 WITH- THE SECOND DIVISION. [Cn. X.
" This climate is very changeable, as well as that of Sloane-street. The first three marches several men died on the road from the excessive heat, but these last two nights we have been made rather uncomfortable by in- cessant rains and cold, sharp winds. The officers do not suffer much from these changes, as they have tents, but the men have no kind of shelter from rain.
" One year since I have seen you ! Time seems to have taken huge strides; and the events of the first part of 1809 are so fresh in my memory that the intermediate occurrences are forgotten. It is thus we get old without perceiving the advance of Time, and but for our grey hairs might dispute his claim. — Most affectionately yours,
"J. COLBORNE."
" Camp near Atalaya,
" 28th July.
" My dear Alethea, — We have now a short halt, and as one does not know when there will be another, I will acquaint you with our proceedings.
" I thank you for your letters, and if you knew the pleasure I experience at seeing your hand you would write every post. Blots I always admired, as I think I once told you; they are certain indications of sincerity and first thoughts. Therefore, recollect, the more, the better.
" I am now generally on my horse the whole day, but nothing shall prevent me from sending you a few lines.
" General Reynier, who commanded a corps of French to the south of the Tagus, suddenly passed to the north side, which obliged us to follow his example, and we are now not far distant from him, but doubtful by what route he intends to enter Portugal. General Robert Craufurd was attacked on the 23rd inst Two regiments bore the prin- cipal attack, 43rd and 95th Regiments. They behaved very well, and drove back the enemy three times. General Craufurd's position being too far advanced, [he] retired behind the Coa in the night.
i8io.] IN COMMAND OF A BRIGADE. 139
" I am so fortunate (or unfortunate) as to command a brigade at present. Such a thing will probably not come in my way again for many years. Thus, if we are to be engaged, it would be better, perhaps, for me that the attack should take place immediately. Not that I am so selfish or unfeeling as to wish the experiment tried without an object, or on my own account The less fighting we have now, the more effectually we shall be able to oppose the enemy if forced to act on the defensive.
" Let me hear from you constantly, my dear Alethea, and believe me, your affectionate brother,
" J. C."
From the beginning of August, Hill occupied a strong position at Sarzedas, near Castello Branco, with Reynier in his front at Zarza la Mayor. Col- borne was warned to be on his guard, as the French might attack him any day. So he had the troops out daily to practise them in different manoeuvres, that they might never be taken unawares. At night he used to patrol, and he was always on the qui vive; so much so, that a colonel in his brigade, not liking the system, and thinking it would be worse when the enemy did come, made his appearance one day with his head tied up on the score of ill- ness, and, to the amusement of his officers, got leave to go home.
Wellington, meanwhile, was watching Massena, who was prosecuting the siege of Almeida, and it was expected that, when Almeida had fallen, Mas- sena would try to redeem his promise of invading Portugal and driving the English into the sea, and that Reynier would be required to join him. By the beginning of September Almeida was destroyed by the blowing up of its magazine, and consequently
140 WITH THE SECOND DIVISION. [Cn. X.
surrendered, and on the i2th Hill perceived that Reynier was marching northwards, and wrote that he was himself prepared to cross the Zezere. On the 20th, by .Wellington's orders, Hill was at Espinhal, and on the 2ist at Foz d'Aronce. Lord Wellington, falling back, took his stand on the Sierra Busaco, prepared, from that stronghold, to defy Massena, the " spoilt child of victory," with Reynier and Ney and nearly 70,000 of Napoleon's conquering troops.
" The battle of Busaco," Colborne said, in later years, " was gained solely in consequence of Hill's precise attention to Wellington's orders, for which he was always remarkable, so much so, that the Duke once remarked to me, ' The best of Hill is that I always know where to find him.' On this occasion he had desired Hill, if he saw the French making a move, immediately to march and join him, with other directions how to proceed should such and such things occur. General Stewart remarked to me, c A very pleasant situation Hill's is. He has been given the choice of acting in eleven different situations.' I was standing with Sir Rowland on the roof of a house, when we saw the Portuguese outposts driven in, and at once concluded that Reynier had crossed the Tagus. Sir Rowland gave orders for the army to march that very day, and for five days we and Reynier were marching in parallel columns about 50 miles apart. If we had not reached Busaco in time, Wellington's position would have been untenable, and he could not have fought the battle."
On the 26th September Hill moved across the
i8io.] BATTLE OF BUSACO. 141
Mondego and led his troops up the steep mountain of Busaco, and quickly disposed them on the right of Wellington's army. At the foot of the position were 25,000 Portuguese — about the same number as the troops of Wellington and Hill behind them. At dawn on the 27th the attack began. Massena sent his troops up the heights and, ignorant of the presence of Hill's and Leith's forces, tried to turn Wellington's right. " To the surprise of the French, the forces under these officers suddenly emerged from their previous concealment and halted at the spot whence the brave 74th had just driven back a column of the enemy." But the French made no second venture, and Hill's division, though it had rendered essential service, was not engaged.5*
" Camp near St. Miguel,
" 2gth September, 1810.
" My dear Alethea, — On the 2/th inst the French attacked our line on the heights of Vusacos [Busaco] early in the morning. It was a fine sight — I say sight, for our division was not engaged. The enemy was permitted to ascend almost to the top of the hill where our line was posted, but was driven back in every part with great loss. Massena commanded ; his killed and wounded amount to 3,000. This action has very much changed the appear- ance of affairs in Portugal. The Portuguese troops have established their character with the exception of one regi- ment of Militia. They behaved in a most gallant manner, and full as well as the British. We expected to be at- tacked again on the 28th, but we now find the enemy quitted his position on the night after the action, and is supposed to have moved to our left, or towards Oporto.
* Sidney's Life of Lord Hill, pp. 140—143.
142 WITH THE SECOND DIVISION. [Cn. X.
I still command the brigade, but I am afraid a senior officer will arrive before we are engaged. — Most affection- ately yours,
"J. C."
The supposition mentioned by Colborne, that Massena had moved towards Oporto, caused Wellington to withdraw from the Sierra de Busaco, while General Hill, crossing the Mondego, marched on San Miguel, where he endeavoured to watch the French movements. Thence he marched by Santarem to Alhandra, four leagues from Lisbon, which he reached on 8th October. The retreat of the British forces before Massena's advance caused indescribable misery to the inhabitants of the country now abandoned. They were all ordered, on pain of death, to leave their houses, and destroy all the property they could not transport. The appalling scenes which marked this flight of a whole people remained in the memory of all soldiers who wit- nessed them. When Sir Harry Smith, in February, 1848, met the Boers of Natal trekking over the Drakensberg with Pretorius, he stated in his des- patch to the Colonial Secretary that he had seen nothing to resemble it except at the time of Massena's invasion of Portugal.
This retreat proved the rare foresight of the British commander, who silently, since the preceding winter, had been constructing in front of Lisbon the impregnable lines of Torres Vedras from the Tagus to the sea. Within those lines the British army stood secure, waiting for the moment when Massena, foiled of his aim, should be forced, by want of provisions, to withdraw his host.
LINES OF TORRES VEDRAS.
143
Colborne, in an article written in later years, spoke in glowing terms of the generalship shown by Lord Wellington in 1810:
" Between the months of February and August, 1 8 10, the affairs of the Peninsula appeared almost hopeless. Andalusia had quietly submitted. The last large army of the Spaniards had been dispersed. Seville was occupied; the Isla de Leon menaced by a considerable corps. A few moveable columns maintained easily the communications of the French with Madrid. Several corps of Spaniards were actually in the service of the intrusive king. Massena had taken Ciudad Rodrigo, was besieging Almeida, and preparing to march on Lisbon through Beira with an army of about 70,000. Lord Wellington manoeuvred in Beira and in the Alemtejo with an army of about 50,000 English and Portuguese. He had to contend against a Ministry frightened at the risk of exposing a British army, and while he, unmoved by their fears, was carrying into execution one of the most scientific campaigns of those days, the British Ministers were thinking of preparations for embarking the troops, and, we believe, did send out an engineer officer to make a report as to the facilities of embarking. The responsibility of repelling the invasion rested on the shoulders of Lord Wellington. He had also to con- tend against another faction in the Portuguese Government that imagined he was withdrawing. As soon as it became known that his intention was to retire ultimately on Lisbon, the Bishop of Oporto drew up a strong remonstrance, in which he threatened that the Portuguese troops should be
144 WITH THE SECOND DIVISION. [Cn. X.
withdrawn from Lord Wellington's command if he did not defend the frontier. And it is a curious fact that this violent remonstrance arrived at Rio Janeiro in the same month that Lord Wellington's despatches were received by King John, telling of the retreat of Massena from the lines. If the corre- spondence of Lord Wellington, Lord Hill, and the detached generals with the Ministry is ever pub- lished, those are the documents by which Lord Wellington's genius and foresight will be judged. We believe that there never was an invading army so ably managed, or whose movements appeared to be made more subordinate to the inferior force opposed to it, than that of Massena by the British commander."
During the late autumn of 1810 Colborne was stationed just outside the lines," at their right extremity, where he occupied the town of Alhandra, on the bank of the Tagus, and the advanced posts near Villa Franca. It was a post of the most arduous responsibility and labour, but for that reason it had been committed to him. General Beresford, on joining the army, had said to Wellington, " I recom- mend you to employ Colborne ; he is equal to any- thing." For weeks the picquets were attacked every day, and Colborne never took off his spurs. The first time he did so, through sleeping near the Tagus, he caught the ague. At nine o'clock he would take a hasty breakfast, that being the hour at which there was least likelihood of an attack. He scarcely ever had a time of greater excitement and more work, but he was happy, though officers and men con- stantly prophesied that he would suffer for it after-
iSio.] AT ALHANDRA. 145
wards. Now it was that his eye became so practised that he astonished his friends by the distance at which he could discern objects.
Colborne told the following stories of this time. The first illustrates the relations of French and English to one another during the war:
"At Alhandra some of my brigade were drinking in a wine-house with some French soldiers. They took one of them prisoner, and brought him to me. I said, however, ' This will never do, to take a man prisoner v/hen you were quite friendly with him before, in the wine-house.' So I sent him back to General Reynier's Division under charge of an officer of my regiment. The officer told me that when he was delivered up to the French general, the latter gave him playfully two or three slaps with his glove, saying, ' You silly fellow, to allow yourself to be taken prisoner in that manner.'
" Officers at that time were encouraged to enter the Portuguese service. A step in advance of their present rank was held out as an inducement, and in the Portuguese service they often rose very rapidly. Ashworth entered the Portuguese service as a cap- tain, and very soon had the command of a brigade. This brigade was attached to our army, and soon came to serve with General Hill's division, to which Ashworth's own regiment was attached, so that, being a brigadier-general, he had to post the picquets and give orders to his former commanding officer, who was very angry, saying, * What, do you really suppose I am going to receive orders from you, who were one of my captains a few months ago ? ' * Oh,' said Ashworth, * I've nothing to do with that ; you
146 WITH THE SECOND DIVISION. [Cn. X.
must arrange that with General Hill. These are my orders.' "
" Alhandra,
"gth November, 1810.
" My dear Alethea, — It gives me great pleasure to see your handwriting some four or five months after the date of your letters. They find their way at last, as you ob- serve, after a long march. I wish you would write always by the Packet, by which means I should have the pleasure of receiving your letters in six or seven days from Sloane-street, now we are so near Lisbon. By the last post we had the London papers of the 2/th October at the army on the 5th of November.
" I really have been very actively employed since my arrival in this part of Portugal, and am not often off my horse, as I command a post outside the lines — the town of Alhandra, where part of my brigade is stationed, and [which it is] destined to defend. The unfortunate inhabitants have all left their houses, and their furniture, poor people, is converted into barriers, &c. How should you like to see your piano, writing tables, chairs and trunks heaped together at the south end of Sloane-street to impede the enemy's march? I have never seen so much distress and misery experienced by the mass of the people as in the late flight of the inhabitants towards the capital Not a person remained at his home, whole towns and villages decamped, taking with them only what a cart could con- vey, and leaving the rest of their property to be pillaged by the armies of friends and enemies. We have been marching constantly since June, so you must make some allowance for my irregular correspondence.
" The French, instead of entering Portugal with 100,000 men, and sending a force by the Alemtejo, have had the folly to undertake the difficult task of marching to Lisbon with about 60,000, persuaded that we were to fight a battle and embark. With this idea Massena followed us close, but on viewing our position on a chain of high hills that
1 8 io.] AT ALHANDRA. 147
run from the Tagus to the sea, about five leagues from Lisbon, he halted, and has now remained opposite to us a month, without undertaking anything of importance. Various are the opinions about his future operations and whether he will be obliged to retire for want of provisions. I am inclined to think that he will endeavour to maintain himself until his reinforcements arrive, or that he will not fall back farther than the River Zezere, a formidable obstacle in the winter to an enemy invading or pursued. But I see no difficulty he will find in retiring, should he be allowed to establish a bridge of boats, about which he is supposed to be now employed.
" We have a very large force, but so composed that we could not well venture from our heights to attack — Portu- guese, Spaniards, English, Germans, &c., militia, volunteers and ordinanzos. With this medley we shall remain, I sup- pose, in our forts and works which cover the hills, and leave the rest to Fortune and Massena's evil genius. — Your most affectionate brother.
" Remember, my letters are sacred, and must not be repeated."
( 148 )
CHAPTER XL
CAMPAIGN OF 1811. CAMPO MAYOR AND ALBUHERA.
A WEEK after this letter was written, on i6th November, Massena retired to Santarem, and a day later Hill's Division crossed the Tagus by a pon- toon bridge, and followed the enemy to Chamusca, where Colborne's Brigade took up its quarters till the following spring, Colborne having charge of the posts on the Tagus, at its confluence with the Zezere. Hill falling ill, the command of the divi- sion was held during December by Sir William Stewart, Marshal Beresford being appointed to relieve him about ist January, 1811.
" Just before the retreat of the French, when we were on one side of the Tagus and they on the other, the most amusing conversations used to be held between groups of officers of the two armies. There was a Captain Campbell, of the 42nd, who was a funny fellow, and used to make all sorts of jokes about their retreat, and end up by telling them that they had been out all night trying to get pro- visions. They used to ask us all sorts of questions. I had had a bridge put up across a rivulet near, which looked very pretty, and they asked what it was for.
i8n.] MASSENA'S RETREAT. 149
4 Cest pour une modele] Campbell said. They asked, ' Who is that officer always riding about? ' * Why, he is commanding the brigade.' ' What regiment does he belong to ? ' ' The colonel of the 66th/ ' That is very odd ; our 66th is here. You have it opposite to you/
' The bridge I had just had made. A rivulet came through our encampment, and I had some companies on one side and some on the other. It happened that there was a tree growing just in the middle of the stream ; so I had four trees cut down and cut through the middle, and they were then placed so as to rest on the tree in the stream. They formed a perfect arch, and looked very pretty. When Marshal Beresford came round I invited him to ride over with his staff. He was afraid to go at first. However, I showed him the way, and he was so pleased that when he went back he desired all the officers along the line to make a bridge in their divi- sions. Soon after, when I rode down, to my great amusement, I found them all very busy trying to fix a tree in the middle of the stream, not knowing that I had found one growing there."
Napier writes (Book XL, chap, x.) : " (Beresford) erected batteries opposite the mouth of the Zezere. But against the advice of the engineers, he placed them at too great distance from the river, and in other respects unsuitable, and offering nothing threatening to the enemy; for the French craft dropped down frequently towards Santarem without hindrance until Colonel Colborne, of the 66th Regi- ment, moored a guard-boat close to the mouth of the Zezere, disposing fires in such a manner on the banks
T50 WITH THE SECOND DIVISION. [Cn. XI.
of the Tagus that nothing could pass without being observed."
On the 6th March Massena quitted Santarem, and retreated up the valley of the Mondego towards Ciudad Rodrigo, the chief part of the 2nd Division, under Sir William Stewart, following him up as far as Thomar, and annoying his rear. From Thomar the division was ordered to return to the left bank of the Tagus to relieve Badajos, which was hard pressed. However, on i3th March Badajos had fallen, and Campo Mayor was being besieged by Mortier. Beresford's instructions were now to relieve Campo Mayor and to besiege Olivenca and Badajos. Campo Mayor surrendered on 2ist March, but the Marshal, being within two marches of it, judged that he might surprise the besieging corps, and with this view, put his troops in motion on the 23rd. In the morning of the 25th his advanced guard of cavalry, supported by a detachment of infantry under Colonel Colborne, came suddenly upon Campo Mayor, just as Latour Mau- bourg (who had been left by Mortier to dismantle the works) was marching out in confusion with 880 cavalry, three battalions of infantry, some horse artillery, and the battering train of 13 guns. The allies pursued him. Colonel Colborne was on the right, and at a considerable distance from the enemy, but Colonel Head, with the I3th Light Dragoons, was on the left, close to them, and supported by Colonel Otway with two squadrons of the 7th Portu- guese. The French halted with their infantry in square and their cavalry formed in their front and rear. Colonel Head was directed to attack with
i8ii.] AFFAIR OF CAMPO MAYOR. 151
the two squadrons of the i3th, amounting to 203 officers and soldiers, and he led them forward with the most distinguished gallantry. A regiment of French hussars advanced to meet the I3th. Several men were overthrown by the shock. The com- batants pierced through on both sides, and facing about, charged each other again with the most heroic bravery. After a sharp sword-conflict the hussars who had not been cut down fled. A French squadron, formed on the enemy's right, wheeled inward and attacked the British left, but the I3th overthrew them after a short contest. The French continued their flight. The I3th followed, un- deterred by the fire of the French infantry. They galloped forward, cut down the French gunners, and, believing the other brigades would easily dis- pose of the French troops thus passed, they con- tinued the pursuit. For some time the French Dragoons resisted, but their formation soon became so completely broken that they surrendered as soon as they were overtaken. The pursuit was continued at a rapid rate, the object being to gain the front and capture the whole, as well as the enormous quantity of baggage on the road. But the I3th were not aware of what was taking place in their rear. The French infantry remained formed in square, with the British heavy cavalry in their front. The heavies were ordered to advance, and then suddenly halted, as Marshal Beresford, who was himself with the main body of infantry in the rear, had been informed that the I3th had been cut off, and the loss of one regiment appeared a serious disaster. He said he would wait for the infantry,
152 WITH THE SECOND DIVISION. [Cn. XI.
though the 66th and some light infantry were up, and the great body of the infantry were not two miles behind.
The French infantry, thus finding themselves unmolested, retired steadily, recovered their artillery, and effected their retreat. Meanwhile the I3th and some Portuguese squadrons commanded by Colonel Otway, who formed as a support during the attack, were pursuing the French troopers at a rapid pace. On arriving at the bridge of Badajos they were fired upon by the guns of that fortress. The regiment then halted, and retired to secure the prisoners and captured artillery and baggage. Some of the French drivers, refusing to surrender, were sabred, and the mules were mounted by men of the 1 3th. The retreat was continued several miles, the men in high spirits at their wonderful success. At length they were met by the retiring French infantry and by all the beaten cavalry which could find refuge with it. For a few exhausted dragoons to have engaged that body of troops would have been madness, and the i3th were forced to abandon their captures and make a detour to the right to join the army.*
Colborne told the story himself much after this fashion :
" From my position I could plainly see the French evacuate the town, and I saw an admirable operation of the i3th Light Dragoons, who passed through the French cavalry and dispersed them, and if they had been supported by the heavy cavalry,
* The above account is compiled from the accounts of the affair given by Napier, by Burgoyne (Wrottesley's£*/r of Sir J. Burgoynel p. 127), and by Cannon, Hist. Record of i$th Dragoons.
i8ii.] AFFAIR OF CAMPO MAYOR. 153
a most excellent coup de main would have been achieved, and the whole French force might have been made prisoners. But just at the moment General Lumley, who commanded the heavy cavalry, to my great mortification, sent me a mes- sage by his aide-de-camp that the infantry must halt, as it was useless in face of the superior strength of the enemy to continue the engagement. 6 The whole of the I3th,' it was added, ' are taken/
" I told the aide-de-camp that I had seen the con- trary with my own eyes, and I should do no such thing. The aide-de-camp said, ' Shall I take the general this message ? ' to which I replied, ' Yes, he thinks the i3th are taken, but there they are.'
" However, through this error, the heavy cavalry were halted, and the whole operation failed. I was so indignant that I expressed myself very warmly and General Stewart demanded an explanation, thinking my remarks applied to him. I would not retract, but would only say, * Whose ever fault it was, a most brilliant coup de main has failed/ General Stewart, who till then had been one of my kindest friends, and who was a most amiable man, only said, ' Well, then, in future, Colonel Colborne, I shall only address you in the most official manner/ and thenceforth he always addressed me as * Dear Sir,' instead of ' Dear Colonel/*
" On the way home I heard a French soldier, one of the few prisoners we had taken, offer a ring to one of our men who was guarding him, in order to
* Sir Harry Smith writes in his Autobiography (Vol. I., p. 170): " I have often heard Colonel Colborne (Lord Seaton) affirm that if he were asked to name the bravest man he had ever seen (qnd no one was a better judge) he should name Sir William Stewart."
154 WITH THE SECOND DIVISION. [Cn. XI.
secure his good offices. It was very absurd to see the man's wish to accept it, contending with his fear that it was rather a shabby thing to do. ' Ah, now, I don't like to take it from you. I dare say it was your sweetheart gave it you.5 At the same time, he took it."
Napier thinks that after thus recovering Campo Mayor, Beresford, by marching on Merida, might have brought about the fall of Badajos. He neglected this opportunity, and put his fatigued troops into quarters round Elvas.
" Elvas,
"30th March, 1811.
" My dear Alethea, — You may be assured that when I am seriously ill I shall let you know in due time. I had an intermittent fever in December and January, but with the aid of a powerful ally called bark, I made a hard battle with the enemy, and fairly fought off my illness by being my own physician.
" The brigade I command was posted opposite the mouth of the Tagus, where the French had collected 60 or 70 boats. It was a very interesting part until Massena retreated. As I was much occupied there, it most probably was the cause of my recovery. We only followed the French as far as Tomar, and then returned to the south of the Tagus, under the command of Marshal Beresford. The army under Soult and Mortier having taken Badajos [i3th March] and Campo Mayor [2ist March], we pro- ceeded immediately towards the latter place with 20,000 men. The French, who did not expect us, were nearly sur- prised in Campo Mayor, and we had a grand chace after them for two leagues. Their force amounted to goo cavalry and about 1,000 infantry. I had not the smallest doubt but that we should have taken them all, but to our great mortification they reached Badajos owing to a glaring error on our part.
i8u.] IN QUARTERS NEAR ELY AS. 155
" We are now about to cross the Guadiana, and if things be tolerably managed a great change may be produced in the affairs of Spain. My friend General Graham has gained great credit in the affair near Cadiz,* although the result of the action was of no importance.
" What a narrow escape I have had of making £"20,000 in a few hours! I allude to General Abercrombie's ex- pedition.t Had I gone with him I should have been at least £"20,000 richer. I think I could have disposed of that sum admirably, but, as we have all the honour here, and cannot look into futurity, I bear my loss with my usual philosophy.
" It will now be a long time before I return to England ; therefore I mean to dispose of my poor Calabrian,J or shall I give him to Mrs. Bunbury ? I have a great idea of offer- ing him to that lady, as she seemed very fond of him in Sicily.§ I shall take your advice on that subject. Tell me in your next what I shall do with him.
" There is another lieutenant-colonel appointed to the 66th. He has applied to come out to this country, but I understand he has been refused. This secures me from the East Indies for some time. — Your most affectionate brother,
"J. C."
Beresford halted at Elvas till he could procure the means of crossing the Guadiana at Jerumenha. On the 7th April all his troops had crossed. On the nth Beresford took post at Albuhera, after leaving Cole to take Olivenga, which surrendered on the
* Battle of Barrosa, 5th March.
f General Sir John Abercromby, Commander in Chief at Bombay, had just effected the conquest of Mauritius. He was the second son of Sir Ralph, and had himself served at the Helder (1799) and in Egypt (1801).
* See p. 122. Apparently Antonio had been left in England.
§ Louisa Emilia, daughter of General the Hon. H. E. Fox, under whom Colborne served in Sicily, married Colonel Bunbury, afterwards Sir H. E, Bunbury, in 1807. She died in 1828.
!56 WITH THE SECOND DIVISION. [Cn. XL
1 5th. The whole army was then concentrated about Zafra, ready to undertake the siege of Badajos, which was invested on 5th May. Beresford's head- quarters were now at Almendralejo.
On 2nd May, as Napier writes, " Colonel John Colborne was detached with a brigade of the 2nd Division, two Spanish guns, and two squadrons of cavalry to curb the French inroads, and to raise the confidence of the people.5* Colborne, a man of singular talent for war, by rapid marches and sudden changes of direction, in concert with Villamur, created great confusion amongst the enemy's parties. He intercepted several convoys, and obliged the French troops to quit Fuente Ovejuna, La Granja, Azuaga, and most of the other frontier towns, and he imposed upon Latour Maubourg with so much address that the latter, imagining a great force was at hand, abandoned Guadalcanal also, and fell back to Constantino.
" Having cleared the country on that side Col- borne attempted to surprise the fortified post of Benalcazar, and by a hardy attempt was like to have carried it; for, riding on to the drawbridge with a few officers, in the grey of the morning, he sum- moned the commandant to surrender, as the only means of saving himself from the Spanish army which was close at hand and would give no quarter. The French officer, amazed at the appearance of
* In the instructions given to Colborne on 2Qth April by Colonel D'Urban, it is stated : '"' The object of this movement is to check the inroads of the enemy's parties of pillage, to give confidence to the people of Estremadura, and to cover the collection of our own supplies, while it will announce in Andalusia the neighbourhood of a British force by showing troops upon the frontier."
i8u.] COLBORNE'S DETACHED FORCE. 157
the party, was yet too resolute to yield, and Col- borne, quick to perceive the attempt had failed, galloped off under a few straggling shots. After this, taking to the mountains, he rejoined the army without any loss."* He had marched 250 miles in ii days.f
The following letter was written early in the course of these operations :
" Bivouac near Magilla.
" Dear Sir, — We marched from Llera yesterday evening ill consequence of having heard that the enemy had made a requisition for bread and forage at Magilla, and we arrived in time to secure a part of the provisions which had been ordered for him. The magistrates seem very glad to see ust and I think we shall have no difficulty in procuring provisions.
" I find the enemy has about 3,000 infantry at Guadal- canal, 300 cavalry at Azuaga, and 200 infantry at Fuente Ovejuna ; the remainder of his force is at Cazalla and Constantino, amounting in the whole (including- the troops, at Guadalcanal, &c.) to about 5,000, 800 of which is cavalry. I intend moving to Granja this evening. Should I deviate from the original route by marching from Granja towards Fuente Ovejuna (the direct road to Cordova), it is very probable the enemy will retire from Guadalcanal to Cazalla. I shall be guided by the intelligence I receive at Granja, and will inform you if I make any change in your route. It appears the French have been reinforced from Cordova with about 1,000 infantry since they retired from Badajos. — Your faithful servant,
" J. COLBORNE,
" Lt-Colonel.
" To Col. D'Urban."
* Napier, Bk. XII., chnp. vi. f Groves, The 66fh Regiment, p. 50.
158 WITH THE SECOND DIVISION. [Cn. XI.
On his return to the army on i4th May, Colborne found it in a new situation. In consequence of the news that Soult had marched from Seville and effected a junction with Latour Maubourg, Beresford had raised the siege of Badajos, and was preparing to receive battle on the heights of Albuhera.
Beresford's force consisted of about 32,000 men, of whom only 7,000 were British. Colborne's bri- gade was posted on the left of the line near the village of Albuhera, the Spanish and Portuguese held the right.
Soult arrived on the evening of I5th May, and perceiving that Beresford had neglected to occupy a wooded range of hills on the right of his position, posted 15,000 men and 30 guns there. Of the presence of this force Beresford remained com- pletely ignorant. The French advanced on the position on the morning of the 1 6th, Godinot making a feint of attacking the village, while Soult led a heavy column of infantry supported by artillery against the Spaniards on the right. He soon drove them from the heights and began to deploy his force along the position. Colborne's brigade was hurried up to check this movement, and had almost suc- ceeded in driving the French infantry back, when a strong force of Polish lancers and chasseurs, which had got round the right of the line unperceived, charged the brigade in rear and threw it into con- fusion. " Our men," wrote Colonel Clarke of the 66th, " now ran into groups of six or eight to do as best they could. The officers snatched up muskets and joined them, determined to sell their lives dearly. Quarter was not asked, and rarely given."
i8xi.] BATTLE OF ALBUHERA. 159
In this melee Colborne's brigade suffered dread- fully—the "Buffs," 48th and 66th being nearly annihilated. At length Brigadier Lumley, seeing the desperate state of affairs from the plain below, sent four squadrons of heavy cavalry against the lan- cers, and at the same time the 29th Foot, Hoghton's Brigade and some artillery came up to the assist- ance of their well-nigh vanquished comrades. The fight was now continued with redoubled fury and awful carnage. Marshal Beresford, in spite of all his efforts, could not get the Spaniards to advance, the ammunition began to fail, and another French column was established in advance upon the right flank. Beresford saw nothing for it but to give the order for retreat. But at this critical moment Colonel Henry Hardinge, entirely on his own responsibility, rode off to the 4th Division, which had just come up from Badajos, and induced its leader, Lowry Cole, to advance, supported by Colonel Abercromby with the 3rd Brigade of the 2nd Division. Cole mounted the hill, drove off the lancers, recaptured the guns and dashed up to the right of Hoghton's Brigade, just as Abercromby passed to the front on its left. The appearance of this " astonishing infantry " turned the fortune of the day, and the mighty mass of Frenchmen, in Napier's words, u went headlong down the steep." " Eighteen hundred unwounded men, the remnant of 6,000 unconquerable British soldiers, stood triumphant on the fatal hill."*
* Harry Smith, writing to Colborne from the Cape in 1832, speaks of " Those glorious days, so nobly kept alive in the gigantic language of our old comrade, Bill Napier, ' stood triumphant on the fatal hill.' "
160 WITH THE SECOND DIVISION. [Cn. XI.
After the battle of Albuhera the 3rd, 2 9th, 3ist, 48th, 57th and 66th Regiments were so reduced in numbers that they were formed into a Provisional Battalion.*
To the Rev. Duke Yonge.
11 1 8th May, 1811.
" My dear Duke, — Since April the brigade I commanded has been in continual movement During the siege of Badajos I was sent into the Sierra Morena as a moveable column to attract the enemy's attention, and we performed a march of about 260 miles in a very short time. Marshal Soult was collecting his force at Seville, and on the I5th his advanced guard arrived at St Martha, three leagues from our position. Marshal Beresford was obliged to retire from his lines before Badajos and concentrate his force. The Spaniards, under Blake and Balesteros, joined our army on the night of the I5th, and we occupied a posi- tion near Albuera. Soult began his attack at 8 a.m., and having menaced the village of Albuera, I was ordered into it, but as soon as I had marched there, the enemy com- menced his attack on the right, and was in the act of turn- ing it Our brigade was then ordered to occupy the ground where the Spaniards should have been, and we were brought up under very disadvantageous circum- stances, and obliged to deploy under the enemy's fire. The regiments were ordered to charge before the deployment was complete, and without support ; in the act of charging two very heavy columns, a regiment of Polish cavalry passed by our right, which was unprotected, and having gained our rear, the three right-hand regiments were almost destroyed. The Spaniards on our left behaved very well, but, as we had not any support, the few who were not killed or wounded were taken prisoners. The 4th Division came up and drove the enemy [off ?], supported by
* The above account of Albuhera is condensed from Groves, The 66th Regiment, pp. 50 — 56.
i8n.] BATTLE OF ALBUHERA. l6l
the 2nd and 3rd brigades of the division. Soult retreated about 2 p.m. Our loss has been immense, nearly 6,000, the greater part British. The enemy retreated to Almen- dralejo last night, and I believe we are to pursue him immediately. This has been a most unfortunate affair for me, although I had nothing to do with the arrangement, but merely obeyed the orders of General Stewart. Yet, it being my first trial, and having had so considerable a command, it is truly unfortunate for your brother. I did not receive any injury personally, although in the hands of the Poles some minutes. Poor Colonel Duckworth was killed leading on the 48th ; he received three shots at the same time. His horse was wounded. Pray communicate this sad intelligence to Mrs. Duckworth. I was very inti- mate with him. The poor fellow had been long sighing to revisit his home. You can easily conceive what a stroke this has been on me, and yet if Bonaparte had been in my place nothing could have saved the three battalions. The enemy had 4,000 cavalry and 20,000 infantry. — Yours sincerely,
"J. COLBORNE."
Colborne's conduct at Albuhera received the following commendation from his superior officer :
" The conduct of the 1st Brigade, under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel Colborne, was very gallant. Although the loss in prisoners and in colours has fallen on that part of the division, you are probably aware, Sir, that the 1st Brigade was suddenly attacked in flank and rear by a body of the enemy's cavalry, while it was engaged in the almost desperate effort of charging the whole attacking force of the enemy. The form of the hill up which that brigade was so ably led to the charge by its commander, and the obscurity occasioned by the smoke of musquetry and a heavy squall of rain prevented the enemy's cavalry from being either seen or sufficiently early resisted.
1 62 WITH THE SECOND DIVISION. [Cn. XI.
" The colours of the 2nd Battalion of the 48th and 66th Regiments were unfortunately lost on this occasion, but they were not so lost until the officers who bore them were killed. . . .
"W. STEWART,
" M.-General.
" H.E. Marshal Sir W. Beresford, " I ;th May."
CHAPTER XII.
l8ll-l8l2. WlTH THE 52ND IN THE LlGHT
DIVISION. ClUDAD RODRIGO. TERRIBLE WOUND. RETURN TO ENGLAND, AND MARRIAGE (1813).
MEANWHILE, on the i8th July Colborne had left the 66th Regiment and become lieutenant-colonel of the 52nd. It was no slight acknowledgment of his military qualities that he was thus appointed to a regiment which had been trained to light infantry service by Sir John Moore, and now, with the 2nd Battalion 95th Regiment (Rifles) and one regiment of Portuguese Cagadores, formed part of the 2nd Brigade of Craufurd's famous Light Division.
That the appointment was specially gratifying to Colborne is shown by the following letter of Sir H. Torrens, dated " Horse Guards, 6th August, 1811"—
" I have derived great satisfaction ... to find that I had anticipated your wishes by having submitted your name to the Commander-in-Chief for an exchange into the 52nd. I thought I could not be far wrong in judging of your anxiety to get the command of a corps in which your much-lamented friend and general took such pride, and the discipline and distinguished character of which he so permanently established by his peculiar zeal and mili- tary talents."
G 2
164 WITH THE LIGHT DIVISION. [Cn. XII.
On the 5th May preceding the 52nd had taken part in the battle of Fuentes de Onoro. In con- nexion with this battle Colborne told the following story— " Colonel Mainwaring, of the 5ist, was placed in a position in which he thought he was sure to be surrounded by the French. So he called his officers and said, ' We are sure of being taken or killed ; therefore, we'll burn the colours/ Accordingly, they brought the colours and burnt them with all funeral pomp and buried the ashes, or kept them, I believe. It so happened that the French never came near them. Lord Wellington was exceedingly angry when he heard of it, as he knew well enough where he had placed the regiment. So he ordered Mainwaring under arrest and tried him by court- martial. An old colonel, who undertook his defence, said, ' I believe it was something to do with religious principles! ' Oh,' said Lord Wellington, * if it was a matter of religious principles, I have nothing more to do with it. You may take him out of arrest ; but send him to Lisbon/ So he went to Lisbon, and was never allowed to command his regiment again ; he was sent home."
The 2nd Brigade of the Light Division was commanded in the summer of 1811 by Major- General Drummond, and after his death in the autumn, by Major-General Vandeleur. With these generals, as major of brigade, was Harry Smith, a born soldier like Colborne himself, and one who quickly recognized in Colborne a leader after his own heart. And though in temperament the two were widely different, Smith ardent, effusive and romantic, Colborne somewhat self-restrained and
i8u.] INVALIDED HOME. 165
reserved, a mutual attachment grew up between them which lasted so long as both lived.
At the moment when Colborne was appointed to the Light Division, of which he was to be one of the prime heroes, it was beginning a long march north- wards from Monte Reguengo, near Campo Mayor, to the banks of the Agueda. After being cantoned for five weeks at Saugo, on 26th September the 52nd joined Wellington's army at Guinaldo. Hence the army retired without a battle, the Light Division forming the rearguard. After some harassing marches, the army went into cantonments on ist October.
During part of the autumn Colborne had been obliged to be in England owing to a severe attack of ague. According to the diary of Miss Yonge, his future wife, he arrived in England about 26th August. He went down from London on i6th September to his brother-in-law's house at Antony, where Miss Yonge was staying. On the 7th October the party at Antony moved to Puslinch, and on the loth Colborne left for Fal- mouth to return to the Peninsula. From this time Miss Yonge corresponded with him, and there is no doubt that he had asked her to be his wife. He sailed on 27th October, and reached Lisbon on the 1 3th November.
The 52nd were at Zamora from the i7th October to the I4th December, when tKey changed their quarters to Las Agallios, where the men were employed till the 5th or 6th January in making fascines and gabions for the siege of Ciudad Rodrigo. Before any progress, however, could be
1 66 WITH THE LIGHT DIVISION. [Cn. XII.
made with the siege, it was necessary to capture the outlying fort of San Francisco. This operation was entrusted to Lieutenant-Colonel Colborne, and the judgment and skill he showed in effecting it more than justified the selection. It is referred to by Colborne himself as showing that " success in assaults can only be expected from high discipline and order, and not from bayonets and forlorn hopes without a fire on the defences." He gave the following account of it in a letter to Captain Moor- som* (to be used in Moorsom's History of the $2nd Regiment), dated "Dublin, 26th April, 1859."
" The Light Division marched from El Bodon, or near it, early on the 8th and reached the ground in front of the Upper Teson about noon. The detachments intended for the assault of the redoubt were not volunteers ; they were companies commanded by the senior captains of each battalion ; two from the 43rd, four from the 52nd Regiment, two from the 95th, and one from each of the Portuguese battalions.t Four companies were selected from the advanced guard to occupy the crest of the glacis and open fire, while the party with the ladders, in charge of Captain Thompson, of the Engineers, in the rear of these companies could be brought up and be assisted in placing the ladders for the assault. In the rear of the whole the companies destined for the actual escalade followed. In this order we started and advanced,
* Communicated to me by Lieutenant-Colonel Mockler- Ferryman.
f Sir Harry Smith writes in his Autobiography (I., p. 55) : " When the detachments of the Light Division brigades were parading, my brigade was to furnish 400 men. I understood four companies, and when Colonel Colborne was counting them he said, ' There are not the complement of men.' I said, ' I am sorry if I have mistaken.' ' Oh, never mind, run and bring another company.' I mention this to show what a cool, noble fellow he is. Many an officer would have stormed like fury. He only thought of storming Fort San Francisco, which he carried in a glorious manner."
i8i2.] CAPTURE OF FORT SAN FRANCISCO. 167
after a caution had been given by me in respect to silence, and each captain had been instructed precisely where he was to post his company and how he was to proceed on arriving near the redoubt. An officer of the 95th and two sergeants had been stationed before dark on the brow of the hill to mark the angle of the redoubt covering the steeple of the church in Ciudad Rodrigo. When we reached the point marked by the officer of the 95th, I dismounted and again called out the four captains of the advanced guard and ordered the front company to occupy the front face and the 2nd the right, &c. Captain Mulcaster, of the Engineers, suggested that it would be better to wait for the light ladders which were coming up. I, however, thought that no time should be lost, and pro- ceeded with the very heavy ladders which had been made during the day. When about fifty yards from the redoubt I gave the word ' double-quick.' This movement and the rattling of canteens alarmed the garrison ; but the defenders had only time to fire one round from their guns before each company had taken its post on the crest of the glacis and opened fire. All this was effected without the least confusion, and not a man was seen in the redoubt after the fire had commenced. The party with the ladders soon arrived and placed them in the ditch against the palisades, so that they were ready when Captain Mein, of the 52nd, came up with the escalading companies. They got into the ditch by descending on the ladders and then placing them against the fraises. The only fire from which the assailants suffered was from shells and grenades thrown over from the rampart. During these proceedings Gurwood, of the 52nd, came from the gorge and mentioned that a company could get in by the gorge with ladders. I desired him to take any he could find. Thompson, of the Engineers, had no opportunity of being of use ; the whole arrangements were executed by the exertions of captains of companies, and the order preserved by them. We entered the redoubt by the ladders safely; no resistance or opposition was made.
1 68 WITH THE LIGHT DIVISION. [Cn. XII.
The company at the gorge had tossed open the gate, or it had been opened by some of the defenders endeavour- ing to escape. Captain Mein, I believe, was wounded from a shot from one of our own companies as he was mounting on the rampart. Most of the defenders had fled to the guard-house. Not one man was killed or wounded after we entered the redoubt* The garrison of Ciudad Rodrigo opened a heavy fire on the redoubt immediately we had taken possession of it. The force under my command was collected outside and marched down to the rivulet at the bottom of the glacis of the Place and covered the working parties opening the first parallel till moonlight. Had the redoubt not been taken, five days would have been required to attack it regularly. The governor had been in the redoubt half an hour before we attacked it. The investment, in fact, had been com- pleted some days before the 8th by the guerilla cavalry. The Light Division returned to El Bodon about 12 on the Qth, relieved by another division."
Moorsom thus comments on the story of this brilliant achievement :
" The remarkable success of this assault was probably due to the following points: — The clear conception and explanation of the plan of attack, so that each individual in charge knew what he had to do ; the high discipline and order in which the plan was carried out under the eye of the officer commanding the party ; and the care taken to cover the redoubt with a sheet of fire while the escalade
* Wellington stated in his despatch: "Two captains and forty- seven men were made prisoners : the remainder of the garrison being put to the sword in the storm.11 The latter statement Colborne always warmly repudiated. " I think a great many escaped before we entered, but all who were there took refuge under the guns, and were taken prisoners." When the fort was taken, Colborne says that his orderly-sergeant MacCurrie said, in tones of deep feeling, " Thank God, that's over."
i8i2.] CAPTURE OF FORT SAN FRANCISCO. 169
was being made, rather than trusting to the rush of a few bayonets against many defenders."*
A reported conversation of Colborne's gives a few additional details :
" It was pitch dark that night, and the firing went on so long that the rest of the army thought we should not take the fort, and were very anxious about it. We were firing into the fort from the glacis across the ditch, but our men could not be seen. The only danger was of our firing on each other. The firing was so steady and continuous that I could not see any sign of the enemy on the ramparts, though I could see into the fort most distinctly."
Colborne thus reported on his achievement :
" El Bodon,
"9th January, 1812.
" Sir, — I have the honour to report to you the proceed- ings of the detachment of the Light Division ordered to attack an advanced work before Ciudad Rodrigo. The four companies conducted by Major Gibbs approached it so rapidly that the enemy had but little time to annoy them by his fire. Captain Cramp ton, of the 95th Regi- ment, first formed up his company on the crest of the glacis, and was followed by the divisions under the com- mand of Captain Merry, of the 52nd, and Captain Travers and Lieutenant McNamara, of the 95th, who silenced the enemy's fire whilst Captain Duffey, of the 43rd Regiment, and Captain Mein, of the 5 2nd, with their companies, and Lieutenant Woodgate, of the 52nd, who had charge of the ladders, leaped into the ditch and escaladed the work. Two officers and 47 rank and file of the enemy were made prisoners by the activity of Major Gibbs, who moved round to the gate and prevented them from making their
* Moorsom's Historical Record of the $2nd Regiment, pp. 150—153.
170 WITH THE LIGHT DIVISION. [Cn. XII.
escape. I beg leave to mention that the intrepidity and exertions of Captain Mein and Lieutenant Woodgate could not be exceeded, both of whom were wounded, the latter severely. Lieutenant Bankesley, of the 95th, I am sorry to add, has also received a very severe wound. — I have the honour to be, Sir, your most obedient humble servant,
"J. COLBORNE,
" Lt-Colonel, 52nd Light Infantry. " To M.-General Craufurd,
" Commanding Light Division."
Colborne received great praise for the skill with which he captured the redoubt of San Francisco. Wellington wrote : " I cannot sufficiently applaud the conduct of Lieutenant-Colonel Colborne and of the detachment under his command upon this occasion," and George Napier writes : " The colonel formed his party and gave his orders so explicitly, and so clearly made every officer understand what he was to do, that no mistake could possibly be made. The consequence was that in twenty minutes from the time he moved to the attack the fort was stormed and carried. The watchword of * England and St. George ' was heard shouted loud and strong and re-echoed by the division which was under arms."*
As Colborne told the tale afterwards : " Lord Wellington, Colonel Barnard, of the 95th, and General Craufurd were most anxiously awaiting the event. When they heard the cheer, Barnard, unable to restrain his emotion, threw himself on the ground in the vehemence of his delight — so that General Craufurd, who was at a little distance and did not see who it was, exclaimed, 'What's that drunken
* Early Life of Sir G. N., p. 209.
i8i2.] STORM OF CIUDAD RODRIGO. 171
man doing ? J Craufurd was a man who seldom expressed approval, but on this occasion he said, ' Colonel Colborne seems to be a steady officer.1
"As soon as the fort fell I despatched a soldier to Lord Wellington, who had been looking on all the time. This soldier ran up to him in great excitement and said, * IVe taken the fort, Sir/ Wellington replied, ' Oh, you've taken the fort, have you? Well, I'm glad to hear it/ and got up and rode away.
"After such great anxiety it was most delightful to go and wrap myself in my cloak, and I seldom remember having had such a sound and delightful sleep."
The siege of Ciudad Rodrigo was now busily prosecuted, and on the igth January, two breaches being reported practicable, the assault was made. The forlorn hope was led by Lieutenant Gurwood, 52nd, with 25 volunteers; the storming party which followed by Major George Napier, 52nd.
Colborne himself headed his regiment in the assault. The ascent was extremely sharp and con- tracted, and when two-thirds of the lesser breach had been reached the struggle became so violent in the narrowest part that the men paused, and every musket in the crowd was snapped under the instinct of self-defence, though not one was loaded. Colonel Colborne, however, pressed on with his 52nd, and though wounded in the shoulder by a musket ball, led the men on. Napier, though struck down by grape-shot, called to the troops to trust to their bayonets. The officers thereupon sprang to the front and the ascent was won.
172 WITH THE LIGHT DIVISION. [Cn. XII.
The assault was successful at the cost of many valuable lives, including that of the brilliant leader of the Light Division, General Robert Craufurd, while among those severely wounded were Colborne and George Napier. An officer of the 52nd, writing home two days after the assault, expressed the feelings which these misfortunes had called forth: " We have, as a division, sustained a very heavy loss in General Craufurd, who is not expected to recover from his wounds ; but, as a regiment, a much more severe one, though we heartily trust it is only tem- porary, in Colonel Colborne, who, though he has only commanded us a few months, has gained the hearts of every officer and soldier in the regiment."*
Colborne was thus mentioned in Lord Welling- ton's despatch : " I have already reported my sense of the conduct of Major-General Craufurd and of Lieutenant-Colonel Colborne and of the troops of the Light Division in the storming of the redoubt of St. Francisco on the evening of the 8th instant. The conduct of these troops was equally distinguished throughout the siege, and in the storm nothing could withstand the gallantry with which these brave officers and troops advanced and accomplished the difficult operation allotted to them, notwithstanding all their leaders had fallen."
Colborne referred in conversation to the storming of Ciudad Rodrigo as follows :
"When Lord Wellington summoned Ciudad Rodrigo he said, ' fai Vhonneur de vous sommer? They said afterwards it was useless his having sum-
* Letter of Captain J. F. Ewart given in the A&rd and $2nd Light Infantry Chronicle, 1893, p. 121.
i8i2.] GENERAL ROBERT CRAUFURD. 173
moned them, because Napoleon's orders forbade them to surrender until they had been attacked three times. Before the storming the fire was kept up till the last ten minutes — till after dark. I recollect hearing Robert Craufurd's voice squeaking out, ' Move on, will you, 95th? or we will get some who will/ The Rifles had made a sort of stop. Craufurd was wounded soon after and died the next morning. I remember he sent to ask after me.
" Craufurd was a fine fellow, though very stern and tyrannical, but after all, that was the way he got his division into such fine order. He was the terror of all Commissaries ; I really believe he was nearly the death of one. He always got provisions how- ever ; that was something. A Commissary told me that Craufurd once desired him to keep a journal after the manner of a log-book, that he might see how and where he spent every half-hour of his time ! He was the first man who introduced a proper manner of marching. ' Sit down in it, Sir, sit down in it/ he used to call out if he saw a soldier stepping across a puddle. That was the way he got them to march so beautifully. Although he was so tyrannical, once on his return to the division after a period of absence the soldiers cheered him, which said a good deal for him. He took some church plate once, however. The people said they would not give him any provisions ; so he said, ' Very well, then, I'll take the church plate ' ; which he did.
" I always think of a remark made to Barclay (lieutenant-colonel of the 52nd) by Beckwith, who commanded another brigade in the Light Division.
174 WITH THE LIGHT DIVISION. [Cn. XII.
We were near Talavera, and provisions were often very scarce. Craufurd, who commanded the Light Division, was the most unpopular fellow that ever was, but he was very clever, and he always managed to get his dinner supplied when no one else could get one. One day Craufurd sent Barclay a bottle of very good cherry brandy — a great luxury in those days when water was far more common than brandy. So as Barclay was drawing the cork before us all, Beckwith said, 'What, Barclay, do you drink any- thing from such a fellow as that ? } So Barclay filled his glass, and as he was tossing it off, said, ' Don't I, indeed? Here's damnation to him! '
'* There was a great drop into the town after we got into the breach. There was one place I thought I could have got in at. I wanted very much to have tried with the 52nd. I used to examine it every morning with my spy-glass. I dare say I should have got a proper good Ticking if I had, for I heard afterwards there was no way of getting down."
" Colonel Colborne," writes Harry Smith in his Autobiography, "received an awful wound, but he never quitted his regiment until the city was perfectly ours and his regiment all collected."
Some idea of Colborne's sufferings from this time onwards, and of his bitter disappointment at the check to his career caused by his wound may be gathered from his own account, as reported by his daughters :
'' The worst wound I ever had I received at Ciudad Rodrigo. A bullet from the walls hit my right shoulder and passed some way down my arm. This was about 20 minutes, I suppose, after the
i8i2.] COLBORNE'S WOUND. 175
attack had begun. I was knocked down by the wound at the moment, but I was able to go into the town. I had another wound in my leg at the same time, but the first was so bad that I did not think of that. I was taken the next day to a convent, and three weeks after I was carried on 20 men's shoulders to Coimbra, in Portugal. That journey in the open air was perhaps a good thing for me, though it took a week and gave me a great deal of pain at the time. I always had an appetite and could eat. The sur- geon said, ' I think you must do well, you always have such an appetite.' A part of the gold wire of my epaulette was carried into the wound, and for long after, whenever I moved, this wire gave me the greatest torture. I could not lie on my side on the left shoulder, as it hurt the other to be raised, and it was dreadful pain to lie on my back, the bones in my back being quite sore. They were obliged to raise my bed off the ground on one side to give me ease.
:< The day after the wound a surgeon came and cut the wound across and across, probing for the ball. When the ball was taken out, 1 5 months after, it did not hurt me so much. I was so accustomed to be probed in every direction, it did not seem much. In spite of the probing they could not find the ball, and then inflammation came on and the arm swelled, and they could do nothing.
" Lord Wellington's surgeon came down to see me and told me that I should have a stiff arm. A great many of them wanted to take it out of its socket. One saved me. He said, ' He has been knocked about enough. Let him take his chance.'
" I recollect a physician coming to see me at
176 AT COIMBRA. [Cn. XII.
Coimbra and saying, ' Now I will tell you one thing. These surgeons know nothing of medicine ; they are only surgeons, so you must not mind them. They as nearly as possible killed me. I had a wound, and fortunately recovered from delirium in time to see all the stuff they were going to give me to drink. So I threw it all away or they would have killed me.' (He told me all this with the door shut.) ' But if you don't mind them, but attend to what / tell you, you will recover. First take a raw egg every day about one o'clock, beat up with one tea- spoonful of brandy, and nine, mind, nine, of water ; that's to strengthen you and give you an appetite. Then never take anything acid. These surgeons would give you acids, but vinegar has some relation to the bone and would hurt it.' He gave me many more directions and the reasons for them.
" I stayed several months in Coimbra,* and by the end of that time all the bits of wire were taken out. In June I went home.f [He arrived in England
* During these months Badajos was stormed (6th April). Of this assault Colborne told the following story : " Sir Andrew Barnard, who commanded the division, left particular orders with Colonel Elder, commanding a regiment of Portuguese Ca9adores, to remain in reserve, as, knowing his impetuous character and eagerness to be foremost, he feared he might advance too soon. He himself advanced with the rest of his division to the trenches. Here the greatest confusion prevailed, owing to their being too much crowded, but very soon Colonel Elder, hearing the firing, came dashing into the trenches, adding still more to the confusion. When Barnard saw him he exclaimed loudly against his impetuosity. ' Ah, Colonel Elder, Colonel Elder, for your own glory you would throw away the whole British army.' "
•}• From Coimbra to Lisbon (where he was obliged to remain some time longer before he was fit to sail) he travelled with his fellow- sufferer George Napier, who thus writes : " About three weeks from the loss of my arm I commenced my journey towards Lisbon. In a few days I arrived at Coimbra, where I found my friend Colonel Colborne in bed, suffering dreadful pain from his wound. Here we stayed some
i8ia.] COLBORNE'S WOUND. 177
June 4th.] I was obliged to go ; I was fit for nothing. I had nowhere to stay and I wanted change of air. I was so nervous that I used to be obliged to say, ' Give me a glass of wine, I am going to cry/ I could not help crying continually. Once I felt it coming on as I was being carried across a stream in my journey and a good many soldiers were looking on, but I was so ashamed of their seeing me and thinking I was crying because I was hurt, that that, I think, prevented me. How delightful it is to hear a voice that you know! I recollect so well when I was lying sick and in such pain hearing the voice of a very old friend of mine — Pierrepont — ' Well, Col- borne, so here you are, you poor old fellow ! ' He was killed soon after."
The following letters were received by Colonel Colborne's family after his wound. Those from Colborne himself were now written with the left hand.
" Coimbra.
" My dear Delia, — I am sorry to tell you that my wound has turned out badly — the bone is fractured very high up, and in this state I was moved 30 leagues in a waggon on a very bad road.
" Remember me to Duke and Delia and little Jack — Believe me, your affectionate brother,
(Signed) " J. COLBORNE.
" Mrs. Duke Yonge,
"Antony, Plymouth Dock, " Devon, England"
time till Colborne was able to travel by easy stages to Lisbon. When we arrived there he was so ill and weak that it was impossible he could undergo the fatigue of the voyage." Napier therefore embarked alone. Early Military Life of Sir G. T. Napier, pp. 230, 331.
178 AT COIMBRA. [Cn. XII.
" Coimbra,
"23rd February, 1812.
" My dear Duke, — I arrived at this place on the 2Oth inst My wound has turned out very badly. One ball has not yet been extracted, nor have I had one hour's natural sleep since the night I was wounded. I do not write this as a complaint, as soldiers must be prepared for pain, but as an excuse for not writing. I have now to look forward to a stiff joint. . . . Yours sincerely,
"J. COLBORNE. " Rev. Duke Yonge,
" Antony, Plymouth Dock, " Devon, England.11
" Cuimbra,
"20th March, 1812.
" Sir, — I have thain the liberty of wrighting thouse few lines to you to informe you that my marster the Colonl was wounded one the 1 9 of Jany, at the sege of Rotherrick, and I should a wrote to a let you noed before, but I did expect he ould abeen in England before this time, but owing to take such a long march before he was able, caused him to remain a Cuimbra, but I am happy to say he is duing well at present : his wound was very danger- ish, and the ball cannot be found, but I hope you will not make yourself any ways uneasey about it, for he is duing very well : when the Colonl was wounded I should a wrote the next day, but Lord Willinton sent Lord March to the Colonl, and the Colonl wrote a few lines in is bed, and I was so trobled that I did not no what to doe. I am happy to informe you the Colonl has a good apptite, and walks about : and I hope be the blessing of God, he will be. soon able to oundertake is jouney to England: and likewise I have the happness to informe you, that Lord Wellington has sent the best surgon to him can be
i8i2.] RETURN TO ENGLAND. 179
found in the country, to atuend him and no outher : the surgon expect the ball will be out every day, and then he will be able for his duty in six mounths again : the genneral docter will riot alow him to be moved one any a count, tell such time he is able for any thing and the bone is perfectley sound ; the bone has been nitten three weeks.
" Sir, I hope you will give my best respects to all the famuley, and I hope the have all well. I wrote to John Blackworth the second day after I landed in Lisborne, but I reseved no answer : my best respects to all my felow servants, and very happy to informe how well my marster is douing. I should be very happy to hear from you all. — Sir, I remains your most humble,
"ANTONEY DE BANE.
" The Reverend Duke of Young, " Anthony, near Tor Point,
" Devonshire, England."
The writer of the above letter was no doubt the Calabrian servant Antonio, of whom we have heard before. He seems to have been despatched to Lisbon just before his master's disablement.
" Coimbra,
"23rd March.
" My dear Alethea, — Your brother is still in bed, after being wounded more than six weeks. I was moved too soon, and now it is found that the bone is fractured close to the joint. When I shall be fit to join, God knows. — Believe me, your most affectionate brother,
"J. COLBORNE."
Though Colborne was able to return to England in June, for ten months after receiving his wound he lay on his back, and the ball was not extracted
180 IN ENGLAND. [Cn. XII.
until April, 1813. The following letter gives this
happy news :
" Antony,
"25th April.
" My dear Fanny, — You may now congratulate me on having lost a companion with whose company I have long been oppressed.
" I went to the Military Hospital at Plymouth on Satur- day, determined to submit to any operation that might facilitate the extracting the ball. After much pain and many trials the black gentleman was pulled out by the forceps without an incision. I look forward to my re- covery now with delight, and hope I may bid adieu to pain and mutilation. . . . Your most affectionate,
" J. COLBORNE. " Miss Bargus,
"118, Sloane-street, Chelsea, " London."
Sir Harry Smith writes* : " The pain Colborne suffered in the extraction of the ball was more even than his iron heart could bear. He used to lay his watch on the table and allow the surgeons five minutes' exertions at a time, and they were three or four days before they wrenched the bone from its ossified bed. ... Of course the shoulder- joint was anchylosed, but he had free use of the arm below the elbow."
Colborne said in conversation : "It was my right shoulder. Do you not see the difference? I can move this arm quite round, and I can only do so with this one. The head of the bone was carried away; you see this shoulder is round and perfect and this one is falling away.
* I, P- 59-
i8o
v'es this
without
ry now with delight, and hope 1 ; and mutilation. ...
Bargus,
street, " Londoa"
ihe bone from
. . Of course the shouller- joint sed, but he had free use of the ar n below elbow."
•Iborne said in conversation: "It was r.iy right
r. Do you not see the difference? I can
quite round, and I can > so
The bead of the bone was carried
is round and perfect
, Jf^ ffoM
xrrne,
1813.3 COLBORNE'S MARRIAGE. 181
" I was away from the army a year and six months, which was a great mortification to me. I dare say I should have got some wound somewhere else, but it was a terrible spoke in my wheel."
That he had not been quite forgotten, however, during his absence from the seat of war is shown by the following communication from Lord Wellington, received at this time :
" Freneda,
" 1 5th March, 1813.
" H.R.H. the Prince Regent of Portugal has been pleased to appoint you a Knight of the Order of the Tower and the Sword."
But the gratification which such news brought was quickly drowned in a deeper joy.
Since October, 1811, Colborne had been engaged to Miss Elizabeth Yonge, of Puslinch. On the 25th March, 1813, his half-sister, Alethea Bargus, had been married in London by her guardian, Dr. God- dard, to Miss Yonge's brother, the Reverend John Yonge; and now that he had recovered from his wound Colborne saw the fulfilment of his own hopes. From his wife's diary we learn that on 2nd June he joined her at Flaxley, near Gloucester, the residence of her connexion, Mr. Crawley, and on the 2 1 st — the day of the battle of Vittoria — they were there married. They stayed in London till 6th July, went to Puslinch on the 8th, and to Antony on the loth, and parted on the I2th. " Colonel Colborne," writes his wife on that day, " sailed in the ' Sparrow- hawk ' for St. Andero. I returned to Puslinch."
( 182 )
CHAPTER XIII.
CAMPAIGN OF 1813. RETURN TO THE LIGHT DIVISION. THE HEIGHTS OF VERA AND NIVELLE.
"!N July, 1813, I went out again. I embarked quietly at Plymouth in a small corvette by per- mission of the admiral, and we ran up the Bay of Biscay in three days. The siege of San Sebastian was going on, but I knew nothing of it, and did not know where the army was. I thought I should have to go to Corunna, and from there make a long inland journey. However, as we got near the coast of Spain the captain thought he perceived guns and firing around San Sebastian, and when we got glasses to assist our sight he proved to have been correct. So I was landed close at hand and walked a mile and a half to General Graham's tent. Then I called on Lord Wellington. He said he was glad to see me again, but I looked rather thin and pale. Then I went to dine with Sir George Murray, who said, ' Well, you had better join your regiment directly ; you have been given the position on that hill to protect the army. Soult has been collecting his army, and he could attack us from there/ I went up to a very high point to see the first attack on San Sebastian [25th July]. So in about four days from leaving England I found myself in active service again."
1813.] SIEGE OF SAN SEBASTIAN. 183
At the moment when Colborne resumed the command of the 52nd [2Oth July] the Light Division was commanded by Baron Alten, and its 2nd Brigade, consisting of the 52nd, the 2nd Bat- talion 95th Rifles and a regiment of Portuguese Cagadores, by Major-General Skerrett. The regi- ment was posted at Lesaca. The assault made on San Sebastian on 25th July having been unsuccessful, the siege was still prosecuted, as was that of Pamplona simultaneously.
Meanwhile Soult, at the head of the French army, made an effort to penetrate the pass of Roncesvalles, relieve Pamplona, and if he succeeded, San Sebastian also. Wellington was obliged to send a great part of his army to cover Pamplona and tem- porarily suspend the siege of San Sebastian, and the Light Division was kept moving between the two places. When Soult had been repulsed at the battles of the Pyrenees, 27th and 28th July, the Light Division was pushed forward. Soult fell back behind the line of the Bidassoa and the Light Division countermarched, and arriving on ist August at Sumbilla, reoccupied Vera on the 2nd. The siege of San Sebastian was now vigorously resumed.
" One morning during the siege of San Sebastian," said Colborne, " Colonel Upton, of the Guards, was waiting with some friends in his tent for breakfast, when his servant rushed in, exclaiming, ' The French are marching on the Guards ! ' ' And a pretty good thrashing they'll get ; bring breakfast/ Upton replied, and coolly ate his breakfast before he would go to his regiment."
184 WITH THE LIGHT DIVISION. [Cn. XIII.
On the Qth San Sebastian surrendered, and Pam- plona followed on 2Qth October.
In the early morning of ist September the French, owing to Skerrett's want of precaution, crossed the bridge of Vera in spite of the valiant resistance offered by Captain Cadoux, 95th, and his company of Riflemen. Colborne said, " I remember one night I was sitting on a camp stool with another officer, Mein, who was asleep — I was nodding myself — when we heard the French huzza. It was about three o'clock in the morning, and they had just succeeded, to my great mortification, in crossing the. bridge owing to the Rifles being surprised. Mein started up with a leap of several yards, drew his sword, and rushed off half awake, though we had heard nothing but the huzza. We were obliged to send three or four men after him, and it was five minutes before he came back."
Major-General Skerrett having had to go home on sick leave, Colonel Colborne now came into temporary command of the 2nd Brigade of the Light Division, to whose officers the substitution of Colborne for Skerrett gave the greatest satisfaction.
Sir Harry Smith writes in his Autobiography:*
" Our brigade was now commanded by Colonel Colborne, in whom we all had the most implicit con- fidence. I looked up to him as a man whose regard I hoped to deserve, and by whose knowledge and experience I desired to profit, t He had more know-
* I., P. 130-
•f* In a letter written from the Cape on 2nd March, 1832, Harry Smith called him " the master in the art of outposts, under whom I learned more in six months than in all the rest of my shooting put together."
1813.] IN COMMAND OF SECOND BRIGADE. 185
ledge of ground, better understood the posting of picquets, consequently required fewer men on duty (he always strengthened every post by throwing obstacles — trees, stones, carts, &c. — on the road, to prevent a rush at night), knew better what the enemy were going to do, and more quickly antici- pated his design than any officer ; with that coolness and animation under fire, no matter how hot, which marks a good huntsman when he finds his fox in his best country."
Harry Smith continues : " The French were now erecting works upon a position by nature strong as one could well devise for the purpose of defending the Pass of Vera, and every day Colonel Colborne and I took rides to look at them, with the pleasant reflexion that, the stronger the works were, the greater the difficulty we should have in turning them out — an achievement we well knew in store for us."
The attack on the fortified position of Vera took place on 7th October. On the evening before Col- borne had performed a very adventurous feat in order to examine the dispositions of the French. It was necessary to send a letter to the French posts, and he offered to carry it himself. ' The sentry at the first post challenged me, but I disregarded this and rode some way down the lines, holding out with the letter my handkerchief as a flag of truce, and I had time to look round well and ascertain all I wanted before a French officer appeared. Having delivered my message, as you may imagine, I set spurs to my horse and soon reached our lines, where all the 52nd officers were eagerly awaiting the result of my adventure. Before I quitted the French lines
1 86 WITH THE LIGHT DIVISION. [Cn. XIII.
I heard the officer upbraiding the sentry for his stupidity in allowing an English officer to pass."
Colborne gives the following account of the great attack on Vera :
" At Vera there were two fortresses on an immensely steep hill, one above the other. Below the lower one the hill divided into three tongues. I arranged that the Rifles and Cagadores should go first up the hills on the right and left as skirmishers, and the 52nd, which was to attack, up the hill in the centre. I managed the attack in this manner. I did not allow the picquets to be relieved in the usual manner at daybreak, but ordered them to march on and the columns to support them, so that they were actually in the town of Vera before the French had any suspicion that an attack was intended.
" The Rifles being the first to attack the fort, the French mistook them for Portuguese Cagadores, and rushing out of the redoubt drove them back, so they all came tumbling on the 52nd. The French were excessively astonished when they saw the red-coats behind the Rifles. The adjutant of the 52nd was surprised to find we were so near the fort. ' Why, Sir, we are close to the fort/ * To be sure we are/ I said, 'and now we must charge/ I then led the 52nd on to a most successful charge, to the admira- tion of Lord Wellington and others who were watching from another hill. At this moment Sir James Kempt, who was leading the ist Brigade of the Light Division to a simultaneous attack on the right of the town of Vera, a mile or two off, sent to
1813.] HEIGHTS OF VERA. 187
General Alten to know if the 52nd could not render him some assistance. ' Colonel Colborne give him some assistance ! ' he said. ' If he could see the hill Colborne's Brigade is on, he'd see that Colborne has quite enough to do himself/ The French, thrown into confusion by this tremendous charge, retreated
to the next fort. Colonel now came up with
the reserve and said rather sneeringly, * They're all talking of your charge, as they call it/ * Why, you can't have seen it/ said I. ' Call it a charge, indeed. It was a most wonderful charge/
" By a second charge as fine as the first the French were driven from the second fort in great confusion.
"After this, leaving my column, I rode on alone with the present Sir Harry Smith into France. I was separated from the column a great distance, when to my dismay I saw a body of 400 French passing along a ravine below me. The only way was to put a good face on the matter. So I went up to them, desiring them to surrender. The officer, thinking, of course, the column was behind me, surrendered his sword, saying theatrically, ' ]e vous rends ceite epee qui a bien fait son devoir!' The 400 followed his example. In inward trepidation I despatched Harry Smith to bring up the column as quick as possible while I kept the French officer in play, and it fortunately arrived before the French had discovered their error. I desired my servant MacCurrie* to take the officers' swords to the
* According to Sir Harry Smith's account, corroborated by Moorsom, p. 207, the following story should be told of Lieutenant Cargill, 52nd.
1 88 WITH THE LIGHT DIVISION. [Cn. XIIL
camp. On his way he met Lord Wellington, * Where did you get all those swords from ? ' said he to MacCurrie. * Colonel Colborne has just taken them from 400 prisoners he made as we were going into France.' * And how do you know you were so- near France ? ' * Because I saw all the men were coming back with pigs they had caught/ he answered, not considering the scrape he would have got me in had it been true, for allowing my men to plunder.* However, it was quite false; not one of the men had even seen a pig.
" In the meantime, Sir Lowry Cole, who was behind with his division in reserve, sent to ask how much further I intended to go, ' for I don't intend to go any further.' ' Oh, I have gone quite far enough,' said I.
:c That evening I overheard one of the 52nd soldiers propose a toast, * The colonel's health, and d — the man who gets a shot into him.' '
Sir Harry Smith tells in greater detail the story of Colborne's capture of the 400 French in the ravine, and concludes, " I never witnessed such presence of mind as Colborne evinced on this occasion."!
He also tells of a kind effort made by Colborne to procure him his majority after the action, and the mortification Colborne felt when his request was
* Colborne used to tell another story which turns on Wellington's prohibition of plundering. " I remember once in Spain, just after an order against plundering had been given out, Lord Wellington met a soldier with a quantity of honey which he had just taken ; so he called out * Hollo, where did you get that, Sir ? ' The fellow, not knowing at all who he was, answered * Oh, just over there ; there are plenty more hives,' thinking he wanted to get some himself."
f Autobiography of Sir H. Smith, I., pp. 134 — 136.
1813.3 HEIGHTS OF VERA. 189
first granted and then found impracticable, con- sidering the claims of senior officers.
ColborneJs conduct in connexion with the capture of the heights of Vera was thus mentioned by Lord ^Wellington :
" Colonel Colborne, of the 52nd Regiment, who commanded Major-General Skerrett's Brigade in the absence of the major-general on account of his health, attacked the enemy's right in a camp which they had strongly entrenched. The 52nd Regiment, under the command of Major Mayne [Mein], charged in a most gallant style and carried the entrenchment with the bayonet. The ist and 3rd Cagadores and the 2nd Battalion 95th Regiment, as well as the 52nd Regiment, distinguished them- selves in this attack. Major-General Kempt' s Bri- gade attacked by the Puerto, where the opposition was not so severe; and Major-General Charles Alten has reported his sense of the judgment dis- played, both by the major-general and by Colonel Colborne, in these attacks."*
The Light Division in a few days was pushed forward to a position facing the hill called La Petite Rhune. The enemy's position extended from St. Jean de Luz on his right to Nivelle on his left, his centre La Petite Rhune and the heights beyond it. Sir Harry Smith writes : " The enemy, not con- sidering this ground strong enough, turned to it with a vigour I have rarely witnessed to fortify it by every means art could devise. Every day before the posi- tion was attacked, Colonel Colborne and I went to look at their progress. Lord Wellington himself
* Despatches, XL, p. 177.
190 n v/7/ TIIK Lic.nr DIVISION. [CH. xin.
WWlld come to our outpost and continu* ualking thc« a loiit^- tune. One day h« I unusually
I !«• turns to ( 'olborne, I h< N h-llows think ili'-in ..-K. , invulnerable, hut I will beat them cut, aii.l with great ease/ 1 hat we shall beat them,' says Colborne, 'when your lordship attacks, 1 have
doubt, but for the ease ' * Ah, Colborn* ,
uiili \our local knowledge only, you are pericctly
I 1 appears difficult, but the enemy have men toman the works and lines they oe. npjrJ (Lord Wellington then composed and dictated to Sir George Murray the plan of attack lor the whole army.) ' Now, Alten, if during the night previous to the attack the Light Division could be formed on this very ground so as to rush at La Petite Rhune just as day dawned, it would be of vast importance and save great loss, and by thus precipitating your selves on the right of the works of La Petite Rhune you would certainly carry them.1 This Petite Rhim- was well occupied both by men and works, and a tough affair was in prospect. General Alten s
4 1 "dink" I can, my lord/ Kempt says, 'My brigade has a road. There can be no difficulty, my lord.' Colborne says, ' For me there is no road, but Smith and I both know every bush and every stone. We have studied what we have daily expected, and m the darkest night we can lead the brigade to this very spot. Depend on me, my loid,'
( 'olhoi
" As we started for our position before the gn the important day [ Hattlc of Nivelle, loth Nov her], the night was very dark. We had no road and positively nothing to guide us but knowing the
,8,3.] A NIGHT MARCH. 101
bushes and stones over a mountain ridge. ( 'ol stayed near the brigade ;md :,< -ni ju<- on from :.poi to spot whieh we both knew, when he would come up to me and satisfy himself that 1 was right. I then went on again. In this manner we crept up to our advanced picquel within a hundred and filly yards of the enemy. We afterwards found Kempt's brigade close to our right, equally successfully posted."
Colborne said himself, " By taking my brigade i he- way I did I saved them an immense five hour,' march. Sir J. Kempt's brigade, who had toiled round by the regular road, were thoroughly fatigued and worn out. However, I had a desperate Jn^hi on the road. An aide-de-camp came suddenly galloping up in the darkness, 'Captain So-an* is leading his company right into the French line/ It was the case. This officer had unfortunately mistaken the way the troops in front were marching, and in a few minutes more would have gone straight into the French position. It had been a very hazardous proceeding on my part, and its success depended on the utmost caution — my short way lay so near the French camp. I galloped immediately in great alarm to the straying captain and succeeded in putting him on the right tnv
Harry Smith tells of another alarming incident which occurred as they were resting before the attack. "About an hour before daylight, by some accident, a soldier's musket went off. It was a most anxious moment, for we thought the enemy had discoverer I us, and if they had not, such shots might be repeated, and they would ; but most fortunately
WITH THE LIGHT DIVISION. [Cn. XIII.
all was still. I never saw Colborne so excited as he was for the moment."
At daybreak the signal was given to attack. Colborne had arranged that in his column the attack should be made by the 52nd, supported by the Cagadores. Colonel Snodgrass, who com- manded the latter regiment, came to him and said, " I wish, Sir, you would alter your dispositions, for if the 52nd were to give way, I think the Cac, adores will give way, too ; but if they lead the attack, with the 52nd behind, it will be of no consequence if they give way or not." " Oh, no," said Colborne, " it is too late to alter my arrangements, and make your- self quite easy; the 52nd will not give way." And so it proved.
At the appointed moment the 52nd "hastened straight down the slope in its front, but as soon as it had crossed the rocky watercourse at the bottom brought up its right shoulders and pushed rapidly on in a line nearly parallel to the watercourse on its left and to the French works about 500 yards off on its right. The enemy either, in the darkness of the mountain shadows, did not see, or perceiving, had not the presence of mind to check this bold flank movement of Colonel Colborne's own devising. The 52nd gained the line of the extreme flank of the French works, brought up its left shoulders, scrambled up the rocky slope and stood in rear of the enemy's right on the plateau of the Petite Rhune.*
* Sir Harry Smith writes : " As soon as the 2nd Battalion 95th, succeeded in putting back the enemy, Colonel Colborne, at the head of the 52nd, with an eye like a hawk's, saw the moment had arrived, and he gave the word ' Forward.' One rush put us in possession of the redoubt ... on the edge of the ravine." Autobiography, I., PP- 132, 133.
x8i3.] BATTLE OF NIVELLE. 193
" At this point a scene of extraordinary magnificence burst upon the view. The sun was just springing in full glory above the horizon and lighting up the boundless plains of the south of France. The Pyrenees stretched away to the eastward in an abrupt series of enormous sloping walls, and the long lines of white wreathing smoke near their bases showed the simultaneous advance of the whole allied army. In the foreground to the right the ist Brigade of the Light Division had done its work, and was rapidly pouring over the entrenchments. The French defenders of the last of their Pyrenean summits were rushing into the huge round punch- bowl which is bounded by the eastern and western spurs of La Petite Rhune. After some attempt at pursuit the 52nd collected on the right rear of the now abandoned French redoubts. The line of the French main position, commencing upon a com- paratively low range of hills, was in front of the regiment, with an intervening rocky watercourse, which it would seem was deemed impassable by our enemies. The 52nd moved by threes to the small open ravine and wood in their front under a smart fire of artillery from the ridge which was next to be assailed. In front of this wood the watercourse was crossed by a small and narrow stone bridge, on the opposite side of which was a road running close and parallel to the watercourse with a sheltered bank towards the enemy. The officers and men of the 52nd crept by twos and threes to the edge of the wood and then dashing over a hundred yards of open ground passed the bridge and formed behind the bank, which was not more than eighty yards
H
194 WITH THE LIGHT DIVISION. [Cn. XIII.
from the enemy's entrenchments. The signal was then given, the rough line sprang up the bank, and the enemy gave way with so much precipitation as to abandon, almost without firing a shot, the works on the right of the advanced ridge, no doubt under the apprehension that their retreat would be cut off if they remained to defend them."*
So far, two great successes had been obtained with little loss. But the 52nd had worse to undergo. On the most prominent summit of the ridge, 800 yards further (the enemy's main position), a star- redoubt still held out unsupported.
Major Charles Beckwith, Acting-Quartermaster- General of the Light Division, now rode up to Colonel Colborne with what was taken by him to be an order to attack this last fort with the 52nd. It was afterwards stated that no such order had been issued. Colonel Colborne accepted the task as practicable, believing that, as the French seemed to be retiring, the holders of the redoubt would not defend it. On the contrary, they stood firm. The 52nd suffered so fearfully as they moved up the slopes to attack, that they recoiled and took shelter in a little ravine. After letting them take breath for a while Colonel Colborne could not refrain from a second attempt. It was once more a failure. But again Colborne's cool audacity saved the situation. " There was I," said Colborne, " on the top of this hill heading the 52nd, and exposed to a most murderous fire, the balls and shells falling like hail- stones. I saw Harry Smith fall with his horse on
* Colonel Gawler, quoted by Moorsom, pp. 211, &c.
1813.] CAPTURE OF THE STAR REDOUBT. 195
him, and thought he was killed. My aide-de-camp, Captain Fane, dismounted and entreated me to do the same. ' Pray get off, Sir, pray get off.'
" I was never in such peril in my whole life, but thinking the boldest plan was the best, I waved my handkerchief and called out loudly to the French leader on the other side of the wall, * What nonsense this is, attempting to hold out! You see you are surrounded on every side. There are the Spaniards on the left ; you had better surrender at once ! ' [Frenchmen had a horror of falling into the hands of Spaniards.] The French officer thought I was addressing his men and inciting them to surrender, which would have been very improper, and I ought not to have spoken so loud, but the danger was imminent and the moment critical — that the French should surrender was our only chance of escape. The French officer exclaimed, * Vous farlez a mes hommeSy je prevois un desastrej meaning that I and my regiment would be destroyed. However, I replied, ' That is all nonsense ; you must surrender/ On this, the Frenchman appeared to hesitate, and finally asked me into the fort to arrange matters. There, with his pen in his hand, he pretended to be thinking of terms, but on my again repeating that it was nonsense, he surrendered at once with his regiment, the 88th."
The 52nd stood formed in a double line and gave the brave Frenchmen the satisfaction of marching out with all the honours of war.
" Next morning," said Colborne, " the returns from the 52nd were 200 killed and wounded. * How is that possible ? } I said to the adjutant. ' I see here
H 2
196 WITH THE LIGHT DIVISION. [Cn. XIII.
before me the very men returned as wounded/ However, on examination the numbers turned out to be correct, but a hundred men who had only flesh wounds had refused to go to the rear, and had gone to their duty as usual."
[Cn. XIII.
as wounded/
>ers turned out
id only flesh
ad gone
( 197 )
CHAPTER XIV.
CAMPAIGN OF 1814. ORTHES AND TOULOUSE. END OF THE WAR. WITH THE PRINCE OF ORANGE AT
BRUSSELS.
THE day after the battle of Nivelle the 2nd Brigade encamped near Arbonne, and on the igth November went into quarters in the village. On the 24th it was moved to the chateau of Casteleur, near Arcangues. On the loth December the enemy drove back the picquets, occupied the range of hills at Casteleur, and made a most desperate attack on the Light Division's post at Arcangues.
' This was nearer a surprise," writes Sir Harry Smith, " than anything we had ever experienced."
But Colborne, as usual, was prepared.
He gave this account of the manner in which he perceived the coming attack : " As I was standing, in the grey of the morning, by a picquet about a mile or more from the main body, looking at the opposite hill, I thought I saw flashes of fire-arms, and said to Harry Smith, * Those must be some men discharging their pieces/ Then, to my surprise, I thought I perceived a large body of French advancing at some distance. We looked through
198 WITH THE LIGHT DIVISION. [Cn. XIV.
our glasses and soon discovered it was the whole French army in movement. While I was con- sidering what was to be done, Smith impatiently exclaimed, f Come, something must be done ; what are you going to do ? ' for he was always in a state of uneasiness about any sudden attack, on account of his wife, who followed the army. I merely replied, ' I must think a little, first,5 and in a few minutes gave directions about bringing up the 52nd, &c. As I sat on horseback by the side of a house, reflecting on what dispositions to make, I had my cap shot through. The officers standing near remarked, ' What a narrow escape ! ' The French continued these attacks for two days. At last, as I was patrolling in great anxiety, I thought I heard sounds indicating a retreat. I saw a shadow thrown back- wards on a wall near a French watch-fire, and I heard a French officer say, ' Retirez-vous a gauche de rennemi.' And after watching carefully for some time, I found, to my delight, that they were really gone."
On the 1 3th December Soult was repulsed by General Hill at St. Pierre, near Bayonne. With regard to this engagement Colborne remarked : " Wellington committed a great error. Hill's Division was quite isolated. Soult passed the bridge and attacked it with his whole army, yet such was the goodness of the British troops, he was repulsed. Soult said himself afterwards, ' Well, if one division of your troops can stand against seventy or eighty thousand of ours, there's no more to be said ; but it is an error/ Another French officer said to me, * Were not those troops of ours
1813-4.] THE EVE OF ORTHES. 199
fine men? Yet your little hump-backed soldiers repulsed them.' Soult's were extremely fine men.
" Lord Wellington had ridden up towards the end of the action, and saw it out. Hill, of course, wrote a despatch giving an account of the affair, and sent it to Lord Wellington, expecting to see it published in the Gazette. Much to his disappointment, how- ever, Wellington only used it to compile his own despatch, in which he made very little mention of Hill's affair."
When the enemy retired towards Bayonne the 2nd Brigade Light Division returned to its quar- ters about Casteleur. Here it stayed till the 4th January, 1814. From the 8th January to the i6th February it was in cantonments at Sala. On 25th February, after some days' marching, the Light Division arrived close to Orthes.
"On the day before the battle of Orthes," Colborne said, " I' remember seeing Lord Wellington in a little white cloak, sitting on a stone, writing. Charles Beckwith, who was standing near me, said, ' Do you see that old White Friar sitting there ? I wonder how many men he is marking off to be sent into the next world.' A part of the army was on one side of the river and a part on the other, and I suppose he was writing his orders to them.
' The night before the battle Napier and I took up our quarters in a mill, a nice clean place. The miller's wife was a great talker, and made almost as much noise as her mill, and both she and her hus- band were delighted to have us there, thinking we should protect their house."
At daybreak on the 2;th the Light Division,
200 WITH THE LIGHT DIVISION. [Cn. XIV.
weakened by the temporary absence of the 43rd and ist Battalion 95th, crossed the Gave de Pau. The ist Battalion 95th had been transferred a month before to the 2nd Brigade and the 2nd Battalion to the ist Brigade, and the 2nd Brigade (52nd Regi- ment, ist Battalion 95th and Cagadores) was now commanded by Colonel Barnard. Colborne, who had hitherto commanded it during the illness of Major- General Skerrett, now returned to the command of the 52nd.
"We saw the enemy," writes Sir Harry Smith,* " very strongly posted both as regards the elevation and the nature of the ground, which was intersected by large banks and ditches, while the fences of the fields were most admirably calculated for vigorous defence." The 3rd, 4th and 7th Divisions having crossed the river on the preceding day, the Light Division now formed up on the left of the army. The 4th and 7th Divisions attacked the enemy's right, the 3rd and 6th attacked the centre of the position, and the 2nd Brigade Light Division was in reserve on a spur of the main ridge of St. Boes. The ist Brigade Light Division were some miles in the rear near St. Jean de Luz.
The attack on the right did not succeed, and Cole's leading regiments, after partially gaining the village of St. Boes, were again driven back. Neither was the centre making any progress, and a portion of the 3rd Division had been repulsed down the hill when the 2nd Brigade Light Division, which up to this point had been little engaged, was ordered to attack the left flank of the heights occupied by
* I., P. 163.
1814.] BATTLE OF ORTHES. 2O1
the enemy's right. The 95th remained on the knoll in support, the Portuguese Cagadores had been thrown out to the left and had been driven back, when the 52nd Regiment, under Colborne, rode along in column of threes to the front.
But here Colborne must tell his own tale.
" Sir James Kempt and I were standing together, he near his brigade, I with the 52nd. General Alten came riding over and said, * Now, Colborne, you go on and attack/ much to the mortification of Sir James, who had not been employed once during the day. He exclaimed, * And I, General? am not I to go on ? ' and then aside to me, ' Confound the old fellow ! God forgive me ! '
" Lord Wellington was standing dismounted on a knoll with Lord Fitzroy Somerset. When I rode below him he called out, ' Hollo, Colborne, ride on and see if artillery can pass there.' (The marsh was generally impassable.)
" I rode on, and galloped back as fast as I could and said, ' Yes, anything can pass.' ' Well then, make haste, take your regiment on and deploy into the plain. I leave it to your disposition.'
" So we continued to move in column from the Roman Camp up the road to St. Does till we arrived at the ridge, where we met Sir Lowry Cole coming back with his division and anxiously looking out for support. He was much excited and said, 'Well, Colborne, what's to be done? Here we are, all coming back as fast as we can.' I was rather pro- voked, and said, * Have patience, and we shall see what's to be done.' At that moment a cannon-ball fell close to me, and my poor little nag started and
202 WITH THE LIGHT DIVISION. [Cn. XIV.
reared at a fine rate, being hit all over the body by the stones which had been thrown up.
:e Then I saw Picton's Division scattering to the left. The adjutant came up and asked, ' What are we to do ? ' I said, ' Deploy into the low ground as fast as you can.' They did it beautifully. When all the rest were in confusion the 52nd marched down as evenly and regularly as if on parade, accelerating their march as they approached the hill occupied by the right of General Foy's Division. The French were keeping up a heavy fire, but fortunately the balls all passed over our heads. I rode to the top of the hill and waved my cap, and though the men were over their knees in the marsh they trotted up in the finest order. As soon as they got to the top of the hill I ordered them to halt and open fire. I remember my major, George Napier, coming up to me about ten minutes later with a face of great concern, and saying, ' Poor March (the present Duke of Richmond) is wounded ! ' ' Well/ I said, ' I can't help it. Have him carried off.' We were soon supported by the other divisions and the French were dispersed. Lord Fitzroy Somerset, who came with an order from Lord Wellington that we should not on any account advance further, and remain in line, rode up to me at the top of the hill and said, ' Well, I think we shall do it now.'
:f The French soon began to retreat, and we moved on to the position which had been occupied by Foy. Lord Wellington and his staff were riding behind and saw it all. He said in his despatch, ' This attack led by the 52nd Regiment dislodged the
i8i4-] BATTLE OF ORTHES. 203
enemy from the heights and gave us the victory.' He could not help saying that."
At the time when Colborne was ordered to advance with the 52nd — for no Bother corps of the Light Division was engaged except the ist Cac^a- dores, which had just previously been repulsed — " the moment," as Napier says, " was most danger- ous." Soult, according to the story, had slapped his thigh, exclaiming, " At last I have him." Cole and Picton had alike failed. Colborne was left to give his own orders — the words to deploy, to advance, to halt and fire came from him alone. To him, " with the active assistance of George Napier and Winterbottom," to him and the 52nd, " soldiers," as ,W. Napier says, " who had never yet met their match in the field," the victory of Orthes was mainly due. Col- borne's attack carried the ridge, and in his own words, " arrested the offensive movement of the French by uniting the operations of the 4th and 3rd Divisions, both of which had been checked or repulsed at the time the 52nd opened fire." " The narrow pass behind St. Boes was opened, and Wellington, seizing the critical moment, thrust the 4th and 7th Divisions, Vivian's cavalry and two battalions of artillery through, and spread a front beyond. The victory was thus secured."^
After the battle of Orthes the 52nd was in canton- ments at Barcelona from the Qth to the iQth March. On the 2Oth it attacked the enemy near Tarbes. During the night of the 2 1 st the enemy retired upon Toulouse.
* Napier, Bk. XXIV., ch. iii.
204 WITH THE LIGHT DIVISION. [Cn. XIV.
On the morning of the loth April the Light Divi- sion crossed the Garonne by a pontoon bridge near Ausonne and the whole army moved forward to the attack. The Light Division approached Toulouse by the Montauban road and subsequently moved to its left to the support of Lieutenant-General Freyre's Spanish corps, which was destined to attack the heights of La Pugade. The Spaniards, having failed in their attacks, fell back in the greatest disorder, but by a forward movement of the 2nd Brigade, Light Division, under Colonel Barnard, the French were checked in their pursuit and the communication over the River Ers was preserved. In the course of the afternoon Cole's and Clinton's Divisions attacked the redoubts of La Pugade on the Calvinet side, while the 52nd and 95th advanced on the opposite side. After a very determined resistance the enemy abandoned all his works about 5 p.m., and the allied army formed upon the heights overlooking the town.*
Colborne thus commented on the battle of Toulouse :
" I remember getting up very early at about 4 in the morning to see the men come over the river on a bridge of boats. It had just before been carried away. There were two French soldiers on the other side, and one rode away and the other stayed to see us.
" When the battle began the Spaniards were sent up a hill to attack the French who were at the top. It was a most difficult thing. I should have been
* Moorsom, pp. 231, 232.
i8i4-] BATTLE OF TOULOUSE. 205
sorry to have had to do it with two Light Divisions, and I remember standing at the bottom, looking at them with wonder and trembling, and then seeing them come running down as hard as they could. The French drove every man away. I had a little wound then, a three-cornered piece out of my left arm, but I ran as hard as I could to the 5 2nd. All the officers, seeing the Spaniards flying, were calling out, ' Stop them ! stop them ! don't let them go ! ' but I called out, ' Yes, yes, let them go and clear our fronts/ So they ran on, and our van was left clear. The next day I was riding near the place when Lord Wellington and his staff passed, and he called out to me, ' Well, Colborne, did you ever see anything like that? Was that like the rout at Ocana ? ' Sol said, ' Oh, I don't know ; they ran to the bridge, I believe.5 * To the bridge, indeed! To the Pyrenees! I dare say they are all back in Spain by this time.' They were not like the Cagadores; they were badly disciplined, and they never ought to have been set to do such a difficult thing. I remember a Frenchman saying to me afterwards, ' I was watching the battle from the roof of a house, and when I saw the Spaniards run I would have given all I was worth to have seen one red-coat on the crest of the hill.' The French people were very anxious then to have the war over.
" When the Spaniards came back Lord Wellington said to Pakenham, * There I am, with nothing between me and the enemy ! ' Paken- ham said, ' Well, I suppose you'll order up the Light Division now/ and he replied, * I'll be hanged if I do/ It was the worst arranged battle that
206 WITH THE LIGHT DIVISION. [Cn. XIV.
could be, nothing but mistakes." (Lord Seaton, giving this account at his dinner table, showed the various positions with wineglasses.) " There was Toulouse, and this is the hill in front which the French had fortified, and Hill's Division was over there and had nothing to do with it; and Picton's made a false attack there, which turned out a real one, and he lost 1,500 men; and then Marshal Beresford had to come round there and across the river, all down the French lines, with the French firing at him, so that he lost a great many men, to resume the attack on the extreme left which the Spaniards had abandoned. So two isolated attacks were made. It was a most extraordinary battle. I think the Duke almost deserved to have been beaten.
"At Toulouse, too, the 52nd and I did great work, but I must not brag of my doings, or I shall be like Sir H. D., who told someone here that ' he had been" greatly distinguished both in the field and in the Cabinet/ and the person to whom he said so went and told everyone else and they all laughed at him finely.
" After the battle was over, at about 6 o'clock in the evening, I was on the hill with the 52nd, stand- ing on the glacis we had taken. There was a redoubt opposite, and I had no idea there was a man there, I thought they had all evacuated it long before, when suddenly bang went a gun just oppo- site, scattering grape-shot all around us. One of the 52nd officers was standing by me, but fortunately none of us was hurt. I then saw that the redoubt was full of soldiers. That, I think, was the last gun fired in the war. Then the French retired into
1814.] END OF THE WAR. 207
the town, and next morning marched out of it, and we entered, and soon after heard of Napoleon's abdication and the proclamation of peace."
The great war, thanks to the tenacity of the Duke of Wellington, was brought to a glorious con- clusion. What Cclborne thought of his great commander is seen in the following words written about 1826 : ^
" They who have observed the Duke of Wellington, and are acquainted with the difficulties he encountered in Portugal and Spain ; who are persuaded of this fact, that he, with a small army under his immediate control, was the chief cause of detaining in Spain and employing during five years from 100,000 to 200,000 French troops, will pronounce that his reputation, high as it is, has not reached near its proper level. When his resource, firm- ness, economical management of his troops, the informa- tion that guided his operations, his foresight in nicely calculating on the presumption of the French commanders, his splendid combinations . . . shall be demonstrated, as well as the gigantic genius and strength he displayed in throwing off that dead weight on military operations, the shackles of the Corps Diplomatique, Europe will not refuse him that celebrity which is his due, and which political intrigues alone could deprive him of."
On the 22nd April the 52nd went into canton- ments at Castel Sarrasin. Sir Harry Smith tells of the obligation he was under at this time to Colonel Colborne, who exerted himself to get him appointed to the expedition going under Major- General Ross to America, and how Colborne rode with him in one day to Toulouse and back to get the matter arranged. " Daylight saw me and dear Colborne full gallop thirty-four miles to breakfast. We were back again
2O8 RETURN TO ENGLAND. [Cn. XIV.
at Castel Sarrasin by four in the afternoon, after a little canter of sixty-eight miles, not regarded as any act of prowess, but just a ride. In those days," he concludes, " there were men."
On the 3rd of June the Light Division set out for Bordeaux, where it arrived on the i4th. On the way (nth June) the two regiments of Portu- guese Ca9adores, which had been associated with it for nearly four years, took their departure for home. "We had a very affecting scene," said Colborne, " when, after the war was over, we parted company with the Ca^adores. The brigade was drawn up in two columns and they marched through. We were really very sorry to part."
On the 4th June Colborne was made brevet- colonel and aide-de-camp to the Prince Regent, receiving at the same time the Peninsular gold cross and three clasps. The 52nd embarked at Pauillac on the 1 7th June and landed at Plymouth on the 27th. On the same day Colborne joined his wife at Puslinch. From there they paid a visit to Antony, and on the 2Oth July left Puslinch for London, where, on the 25th, Colonel Colborne received the appointment of military secretary to the Prince of Orange, then commander of the British forces in the Netherlands, and looked upon for the moment as the destined husband of Princess Char- lotte of Wales. In this capacity Colborne had the practical direction of the force in the Netherlands until Napoleon's return from Elba.
Colborne proceeded to Brussels on 7th August, unaccompanied by his wife, but returned to Devon- shire to fetch her at the end of November. On the
i8i4-5-] HONOURS FOR COLBORNE. 209
4th December they witnessed the " gay wedding " of Lord Fitzroy Somerset to Lady Emily Wellesley, and soon after were disturbed by a report that the 52nd was to go to America, in which case, Colborne informed the Prince of Orange, he would accompany his regiment. This prospect was dispelled, however, by the course of events.
On the 2nd January, after the re-constitution of the Order of the Bath, Colonel Colborne became a K.C.B.
In spite of this succession of honours, however, he seems not to have been fully satisfied with the treatment he received. Late in his life, when Mr. Leeke remarked to him, " I suppose you, Sir, have not passed through your military career without meeting with your mortifications and trials ? " he replied, " No, indeed! In 1814, at the close of the Peninsular War, when they made me a K.C.B., King's aide-de-camp and a full colonel, I was exceedingly annoyed and vexed at their putting two junior lieutenant-colonels over my head in the list of colonels. On my remonstrating on the unfair- ness of this proceeding, they made the excuse that these men were thus favoured because they had brought home despatches. If I had not been a poor man — if I could have afforded it, I would have thrown my commission in their faces. In after years they offered to place me before these men, but I then refused it."*
Colborne had many stories of the Prince of Orange :
* Leeke, II., p. 13.
210 AT BRUSSELS. ^Cn. XIV.
' The Prince went out to Portugal as a volunteer, and that was where he first knew the Duke. He had been at Oxford for some time, and he brought out with him two tutors, one of them a Mr. Johnson. The Duke could not bear Mr. Johnson because he once asked the Duke a mathematical question. The Duke was talking about musk rats, saying they left a taste in bottles of wine. So Johnson said, ' But, Sir, I don't understand how the rats, being so much larger, can possibly get into the necks of the bottles.' The Duke said, ' Oh, I don't know how they get in, but I know they do it.'
" I ventured once at Brussels to give my opinion to the Prince of Orange, and he was rather offended at my differing from him and turned round and said, ' How do you mean, my good sir ? ' It was the only time I think he ever spoke sharply to me. How- ever, a few days later he came to me and said, ' I should just like to look at that memorandum you made the other day.'
" The King of Holland once complained to the Prince of his mixing so much with English officers. He replied, ' Why, you had me brought up among the English and educated like the English, and you can't expect me now to cut all my old friends.'*
" Another time the King said in the presence of the Court, ' Why, you will never be fit to be the King of your own country. You can't even speak your own language. Do you think, if I were to die to-morrow,
* Lady Sarah Napier writes in December, 1814, of the Prince of Orange: " The eldest son . . . will ruin himself in Belgium by his devotion to the English." Life and Letters of Lady Sarah Lennox, II., p. 264.
X8I4-5-] THE PRINCE OF ORANGE. 211
you would be fit to succeed me ? ' The Prince said, * Yes, I do.' He came to me in high spirits after- wards, saying, ' I think I have astonished them all.'
" He was very fond of the Belgians and of being at Brussels: they are a much more lively people than the Dutch.
" Next door to us lived Sir Robert Godden. He was a very good sort of fellow, but had very cold manners. He had an attache named St. George who once came into my room and said indignantly, ' Is it possible I can live with Sir Robert after this?
He called me to-day and said, " Lord is
coming to dine with me, and I must request you will not open your mouth, for we shall be talking of things you know nothing at all about! " I believe St. George did leave him soon after on account of that very speech!
" The Duke of Wellington proposed to the King of Holland a line of fortifications along his frontier, but the King said, ' My idea is to have a fortified town at each end, and then if the enemy enter we can soon drive him out, but how am I to defend so many fortifications ? J The Duke said, ( Oh, we'll always send you over 50,000 pensioners/ ' Oh, no. If the enemy were once to get into those fortified towns we should never get them out again ; we are better without them/ And I partly agreed with him.
" I was very much amused at a conversation that took place in my presence between the Prince of Orange and Mr. Stuart (Lord Stuart de Rothesay). It was just as Bonaparte had returned from Elba, but before war was declared. At my suggestion, half-a-dozen officers had been sent in different direc-
212 AT BRUSSELS. [Cn. XIV.
tions to give intelligence of his advance, and a courier had been stopped and searched and his despatches taken from under his saddle. The Prince had the despatches and sent for Mr. Stuart, the British Ambassador, who, when he came, said, ' You should not have taken them ; war has not been declared. It might be a very serious thing/ ' Oh, then/ said the Prince, ' we will send them back again directly without opening them/ * No/ said Mr. Stuart, ' that's no use. You had better open them now you have them, for if you were to swear you had not opened them after having had them half an hour in your possession, no one in Europe would believe you/ However, they were of no consequence, merely Bonaparte's notifications to the Danish and other courts that he had been once more called to power by the voice of the French nation, &c.
:' The Prince married a sister of the King of Prussia. It was said that the marriage was arranged by the Duchess of Oldenburg. I was sorry when I heard of it, as I knew there was no chance then of his being all but King of England. I believe he has been very unhappy since he lost Belgium.
:* When Bonaparte came back from Elba the Duke of Wellington, then ambassador in Paris, was at Vienna. He was then appointed Com- mander-in-chief (the Prince of Orange not being fit to command an army), and came down from Vienna to Brussels. I had gone back to my regi- ment just before.
" The Government at home had written to me,
i8i5-] THE PRINCE OF ORANGE. 213
begging me to prevent the Prince from engaging in any affair of his own before the combined oper- ations. He could not imagine why, but he found out that Clinton and others had been writing about it. I remember that old Sir Hudson Lowe, who was a great fidget, was very much afraid of some- thing of this sort. The Prince had taken the army before Enghien, and Lowe came to me, saying, * I really think he is trying to bring on a battle before the Duke arrives!'"
CHAPTER XV.
WATERLOO.
THE 52nd Regiment had received orders to sail for America, and had twice put to sea and been frus- trated by contrary winds when the news of Napoleon's escape from Elba and the renewal of the war caused its hasty recall. The regiment sailed from Plymouth on 27th March, 1815 and reached Brussels on 4th April.
William Leeke, who joined the 52nd as an ensign on nth May, tells us that he found it at Lessines. A few days later Sir John Colborne, after sending his wife home from Brussels, joined, and took com- mand of the regiment. Having mentioned that Colborne advised him to provide himself with a horse, Leeke adds : " Sir John Colborne always strongly advocated the importance of infantry officers, when on active service, having riding- horses, and used to say that if, from insufficiency of income they found it difficult to manage this, still they should stint themselves in wine and in everything else in order to keep a horse, if possible. As mounted officers they were more useful under very many circumstances ; they were less tired at the end of a day's march and more ready for any
1815.] NEW CALL TO ARMS. 215
duty which might be required of them; they could be more effective in bringing up stragglers on a long and weary march ; some of them might be usefully employed when extra staff-officers were required. I think on the long march of upwards of 50 miles from Quevres-au-camp to Waterloo all but two of the officers of the 52nd were mounted."*
The 52nd now formed part of Adam's Brigade of Clinton's Division. This division was cantoned in June about Quevres-au-camp.
It must have been late on the i5th June when, as Colborne told the tale, " orders suddenly came for us to move in consequence of Napoleon's advance. Night was coming on, and I observed, ' I'll undertake to say, from my experience, that if you march to-night, considering the circumstances — a strange road, darkness, the expectation of coming in contact with the enemy — you won't go two miles/ And so it turned out. Our division did not march till morning, and before we had gone three miles we came up with stragglers and regiments halted, and passed several divisions in great confusion."
The 52nd halted at midnight near Braine-le- Comte in torrents of rain. At 2 a.m. on the i7th the regiment again fell in and reached Nivelles about 7. After remaining there about four hours it moved off slowly, in company with other troops, towards Waterloo, the pace being due to the weari- ness produced by the previous marching and the fact that, by Colborne's order, each man carried 120 rounds of ball cartridge, 60 rounds of it in the knap-
* Lord Seaton's Regiment at Waterloo, I., p. 7.
2l6 CAMPAIGN OF WATERLOO. [Cn. XV.
sack ; a precaution of which the wisdom was seen in the battle.
Leeke writes : " About midway between Nivelles and Hougomont the 52nd halted for rather more than two hours. I heard Sir John Colborne asking if any of the officers could lend him the cape of a boat cloak as he wished to lie down for a couple of hours and get some sleep. I had a very large boat- cloak with a cape and hood to it. I unhooked the cape and hood and handed them to him. He wore them over his uniform during the whole of the Battle of Waterloo."*
At about half past seven p.m. Adam's Brigade, consisting of the 52nd and ;ist regiments, the 2nd Battalion and part of the 3rd Battalion 95th Regi- ment was posted on the high ground immediately to the eastward of Merbe Braine, its particular place in the position in which the Duke of Wellington intended to fight next day. Here it passed the night. Colborne writes of this night : " I recollect after the long march I was so tired that I threw myself on the ground in my cloak and was sound asleep almost directly. I just heard someone say, * Let him sleep ! let him sleep ! ' I suppose they had been going to wake me about some trifle or other." But according to a story told by Lord Albemarle, Colborne did not spend the whole night thus in the open.
Lord Albemarle tells how he himself (then Ensign Keppel), in the pouring rain of the night of the 1 7th, wearied out with marching, threw himself on
* I, P. 13-
1 8 is.] BEFORE THE BATTLE. 21?
the bare hillside and slept soundly till 2 o'clock, when his servant woke him and led him to a cottage in the hamlet of Merbe Braine. " Here fragments of chairs, tables, window-frames and doors were heaped into the chimney-place. Around the fire so made were three men seated on chairs and drying their clothes. Not a word was spoken, but room was made for me. I followed their example. At day- break my fellow-occupants of the hut resumed their uniforms. With the appearance of one of them I was particularly struck — a fine, soldierlike-looking man, considerably over six feet in height. This was Colonel Sir John Colborne."*
At twenty past eleven on the i8th the ball was opened. The 52nd were now formed in open column on the ground of the bivouac. In common with the rest of Clinton's Division and the Bruns- wick contingent, they were at first kept in reserve in second line nearly on the right of the British army. The farm of Hougomont in front of the extreme right of the British position was occupied by part of Byng's Brigade of Guards and some Nassau troops, and the ridge from thence half-way to the Charleroi Road (the centre of the position) by the rest of Cooke's ist British Division of Guards, viz., Maitland's Brigade and some companies of Byng's Brigade.
As to the battlefield, Colborne said afterwards in conversation :
" Some days before the battle of Waterloo, the
* Fifty Years of my Life (3rd Ed.), p. 139. My attention was kindly drawn to the above story by Field-Marshal Lord Wolseley, who informed me that he had often heard it from Lord Albemarle's lips.
2l8 CAMPAIGN OF WATERLOO. [Cn. XV.
1 4th, I think, the Duke of Wellington was on the field, and fixed on that place as the one on which the battle, he thought, could be fought. He was asked if any entrenchments should be cast up. He said, ' No, of course not ; that would show them where we mean to fight.' At the time, many were of opinion that we should march into France.
" I remember hearing old Picton say just before the battle, ' I never saw a worse position taken up by any army. I have just galloped from left to right.' He went on to talk of the expected Gazette in very high spirits. ' Some friends of mine,5 he said, 1 asked me to write to them, but I said, " Won't the Gazette do for you? " He was killed a few hours after."
It is convenient to insert here one or two more stories which Colborne told late in life in connexion with the battle or with some of its heroes.
" Captain Whinyates* took great pride in his 2nd Rocket Troop, but just before the battle of iWaterloo the Duke thought it would be more advantageous to do away with it and use the horses for guns. Sir George Wood told me that he remon- strated with the Duke, and said, * It will break the young man's heart, Sir, if you do that.' The Duke answered pettishly, ' Confound his heart.' How- ever, a fortnight after he said to Sir G. Wood, ' Well, how is the young man's heart?' ' He bears it remarkably well,' answered Sir G. WTood. ' Then
* Colonel Whinyates tells me that the Duke eventually let the Troop take 800 rockets into action with six 6-pr. guns, and the rockets were used with good effect.
1815.] PICTON AND ANGLESEY. 219
tell him/ said the Duke, ' that it shall not be the worse for him/
" Lord Anglesey was a capital officer. I have had several opportunities of admiring his sagacity and coolness. I remember once before a battle his coming down with the greatest coolness, twist- ing his moustache, and saying, ' The enemy appear small, but I think there are more behind.3 And another time, ' Our lads are ready for the charge, but I think they had better march fonvard first ' — all with the greatest sangfroid imaginable. There could be no comparison between him and Murat, because Murat had always far more troops under his command.
" Old Alava was highly amused once at Brussels at hearing a discussion between Lord Anglesey and Vivian about their dress. Vivian came to consult his master about what dress he should wear at a levee, and they were talking about it just like ladies. ' Oh, we must put on our yellow boots and pelisses/ Old Alava came away laughing, ' Well, I never should have supposed that those two fellows had anything in their heads/ I recollect poor Sir John Moore getting into a scrape once for saying, when asked if the hussars were to wear their pelisses, ' Oh, yes, and their muffs, too/ '
The concluding hours of the battle of Waterloo were the most glorious in Colborne's life. All that he had learnt hitherto, his quickness of eye, his rapidity of judgment, his instant resource, his daring acceptance of responsibility, now contributed their part to defeat Napoleon's last mighty effort, and wrest, for England and her allies, the hard-fought
220 CAMPAIGN OF WATERLOO. [Cn. XV.
victory. We may leave for a moment any discus- sion of the part played in the last scene of Waterloo by other troops. If all that they claim be conceded to them, Colborne's glory is hardly the less.
We will therefore give an account of the part played by Colborne in the battle, based on accounts furnished by himself,* and by Captain W. C. Yonge, of the 52nd,f and by Mr. Leeke, of the 52nd,J who were both connected with him by marriage.
The 52nd moved from its original position near Merbe Braine soon after 3 o'clock, or four hours after the action commenced, and advanced with the other regiments of the brigade to the right centre of the front line. Here the brigade formed squares, taking the place of the Brunswick Light Infantry Battalions, which, in close columns, repeatedly charged by cavalry and pierced through by showers of cannon shot, had suffered severely.
At the moment of the arrival of the brigade nothing could be more disastrous than the appear- ance of this part of the position, the ground so thickly strewed with these poor mangled Bruns- wickers and the long line of British guns, as far as the eye could reach, every one of them silenced, overpowered by the number and greater weight of metal of the French artillery, the gun carriages, many of them, cut to pieces by the shot, and the gunners either killed or driven to seek the shelter of the squares from the cavalry, who careered among them unmolested. Between the great attacks the
* See Appendix II.
j- Memoir of Lord Section's Services, privately printed, 1853. J Lord Seaton's Regiment at Waterloo, 1866.
1 8 is-] THE FIFTY-SECOND IN THE BATTLE. 221
fight still smouldered about the wood and orchard of Hougomont, and, apparently for the support of the troops engaged there, after a halt of about half an hour on the summit of the ridge, the brigade, advancing down the slope of the hill, took post in the plain to the left of the enclosures, the 7ist in battalion square next the wood, the 52nd in squares of wings to their left, and the 95th in echelon further to the left and rear.
Here the brigade remained for an hour or two. Two of the enemy's guns were on a high bank or ridge in front of the 52nd at about 200 yards' distance, though only to be seen by the mounted officers, and these guns and a howitzer fired constantly on the squares. The right and front faces of the 52nd meanwhile opened a fire obliquely on some French Cuirassiers who were making a movement towards the rear of Hougomont, towards the 7ist, behind which regiment the remainder of Clinton's Division was posted. These Cuirassiers continually menaced the 52nd. Leeke says that when they attempted to charge it came as a relief, because at those times the French cannonading stopped.
While the regiment was in squares and being cannonaded an incident occurred which we can give in Colborne's own words : " A shell came close to a corner of a column of the 52nd, followed by a ball which passed exactly over the whole column, who instantly bobbed their heads. * In the excitement
* Capt. Yonge, in hearing the story, interpolated at this point, " Perhaps you did not see the cause of the men's ducking their heads. A sergeant had a ball pass between his legs, cutting a piece out of each of them, and he cried out pretty loud. That had an effect on some who had never been in action before."
222 CAMPAIGN OF WATERLOO. [Cn. XV.
of the moment, more to encourage the men than anything else, I called out, ' For shame ! for shame ! That must be the 2nd Battalion, I am sure/ (They were recruits.) In an instant every man's head went as straight as an arrow.*1 But a report got about that I had addressed myself particularly to a young man named Scott, an officer who had just joined; and at Paris I was asked the question by some officers. I assured them there was no foun- dation for the report. I had observed young Scott behaving particularly well and charging up the hill, seemingly in remarkably good spirits. I said, indeed, that I was sorry I had made the remark at all. This young Scott afterwards left the army and went to Cambridge, where he wrote a very pretty prize poem entitled * The Battle of Waterloo.5
" However, my exhortation to the men had its effect. Soon afterwards Charles Beckwith came riding over to me and said, ' Well, I hope now you are satisfied.' There was a galling fire pouring down on us and the other regiments were rather quaking and the 52nd were standing as firm as possible. Beckwith said, ' What do you think I've just heard Lord Uxbridge say? " I've charged at the head of every cavalry regiment, and they all want spurs" Beckwith was in the Quartermaster- General's department. On his way back, poor fellow, he lost his leg by a cannon-ball — about three-
* One who had heard Lord Seaton tell the story gives the
conclusion thus : " ' Then ' he would say and the narration was
completed by the drawing up of his noble head into its grandest military bearing." Christian Remembrancer, October, 1867.
i8is.] THE FIFTY-SECOND RETIRED. 223
quarters of an hour, I suppose, before the battle was
over."*
The Duke of Wellington now sent orders to Sir John Colborne by Colonel Hervey to withdraw the regiment up the hill. Colborne desired Colonel Hervey to tell the Duke, if the order had been given from the vicinity of the enemy's guns, that the 52nd was protected by the ground in front. Colonel Hervey promised to convey this message.
However, half an hour later, seeing the Nassau Regiment running in disorder out of the wood of Hougomont, and supposing that Hougomont would be abandoned and the flank of the 52nd exposed, Colborne began to retire the regiment through Colonel Gold's guns to the cross-road on the ridge. The 7ist fell back at the same time.
As the regiment was retiring, under a murderous cannonade, with Colborne riding in its rear, a colonel of the French Cuirassiers galloped out of the French ranks, holloaing repeatedly, " Vive le Roi ! " and riding up to Sir John, said, " Ce coquin Napoleon
* Colborne went on to speak of Charles Beckwith and his family as follows : " After that he went to England. Later he became interested in the Vaudois, and he has been among them part of every year since. The Beckwiths have been a great army family. There was a grand- father who was employed in the army with Prince Ferdinand at the time of the battle of Minden, and Prince Ferdinand wrote home that the Commissary General should have been the Commander, and the Commander the Commissary General. I don't know who the Com- mander was. There were several uncles — there was one who took several little paltry islands in the West Indies, and used to say, ' Lord Wellington gallops, but I trot.' I suppose he meant that he would get up to him some time. He was never in the Peninsula. He made a great fortune in the West Indies, and when he died he left it all to Colonel Charles Beckwith, who very nobly, I think, divided it amongst his brothers and sisters. Then there was his brother, General Beckwith, a very funny fellow, who was employed in the Peninsula and who died in the East Indies."
224 CAMPAIGN OF WATERLOO. [Cn. XV.
est la avec les Gardes. Voila Vattaque qui se fait." Colborne looked through his glass at the spot indi- cated by the officer and, it is said, saw Napoleon for the only time in his life. He was in his greatcoat, with his hands behind his back, walking backwards and forwards in front of the position while dense French columns were in full march on the plateau of La Haie Sainte, near the farm.
Meanwhile the 52nd had been halted on the summit of the hill. Colonel Gold's guns in front of them on the cross-road were silent ; there was scarcely any firing except in the rear of La Haie Sainte and on our left centre.
Sir John Colborne's anxious attention was given to a column rapidly advancing, in agreement with the warning of the French colonel, to a point somewhat to the left of the 52nd. He could see no prepar- ations to resist the attack and was alarmed lest the British line should be pierced. The only remedy appeared to be to attack the column in the Hank.
Accordingly — without any orders from his superior officer — he took upon himself the bold measure of advancing the 52nd and wheeling its whole line on its left as a pivot, as if it had been a single company, so as to bring it nearly at right angles to its previous formation and facing directly on the line of march of the attacking columns.
Leeke says : " As we passed over . . . the crest, we plainly saw about 300 or 400 yards from us in the direction of La Belle Alliance. . . two long columns ... of about equal length advancing ... in the direction of Maitland's Brigade of Guards, stationed on our left. The whole number
1815.] COLBORNE' S FLANKING MOVEMENT. 22$
. . . appeared to us to amount to about 10,000 men." (Colborne puts the number at 6,000 or 7,000.) " There was a small interval of apparently not more than twenty paces between the first and second column ; from the left centre of our line we did not at any time see through this interval."5* (Colborne used to say, however, " .We could see daylight between them.")t
The 52nd having been thus placed in two lines nearly parallel with the moving columns of the Imperial Guard, Colborne ordered a strong company to skirmish in front. At this moment Sir Frederick Adam, commanding the brigade, rode up and inquired what Colborne intended to do. He replied, '' To make that column feel our fire." Adam approved, ordered Colborne to move on, and rode off to the 7 ist to order that regiment to follow. The Duke at the same moment had sent Colonel Percy to order the 52nd to advance, but his order had been anticipated by Colborne.
The company of skirmishers having been ordered to advance without any support except from the battalion and to fire into the French column at any distance, the 52nd — formed in two lines of half com- panies— after giving three cheers, followed, passing along the front of Maitland's Brigade of Guards,
* P. 43-
f According to the important memorandum by General Petit in the Morrison Collection, London, the main attack was made by the following troops of the Old Guard, in squares of battalions in Echelon, the right battalion leading — ist Battalion 3rd Grenadiers, 4th Grena- diers, 4th Chasseurs, ist Battalion 3rd Chasseurs, 2nd Battalion 3rd Chasseurs (total about 3,675 men). He says that the 2nd Battalions 2nd Grenadiers and 2nd Chasseurs (total about 1,250 men) were despatched after the main column, but apparently not as part of the same attack.
I
226 CAMPAIGN OF WATERLOO. [Cn. XV.
who were stationary and not firing. Four com- panies of the 2nd Battalion 95th were on the left of the 52nd, the ;ist and the rest of the division a little behind. As soon as the French column felt the fire of the skirmishing party a considerable part of it halted, and, facing to their left towards the 52nd, opened a very sharp fire on the skirmishers and on the battalion.
The 52nd advanced till they found themselves protected by the hill from the fire of the Imperial Guard. The two right-hand companies having been thrown into some disorder, Colborne called a halt to rectify the line. He then ordered the bugles to sound the advance and the whole line charged. '* The Imperial Guard, without waiting for the charge, broke, and rushing in confusion obliquely to the rear, involved in their disorder the other troops in echelon* to their right, suffering immense loss from the running fire of the 52nd at point-blank distance. The 7ist, too, opened fire on the retreat- ing multitude, which to these regiments standing on the higher ground showed, as it crowded the valley towards La Haie Sainte without a vestige of ranks remaining, like the vast wreck of a great army. Never was disorganisation more sudden or com- plete."
Wellington, seeing it, ordered the general advance of the whole line, which, with the arrival of the Prus- sians, effected the victory. But we return to the story of Adam's Brigade.
* So Captain Yonge, meaning" " in echelon to their right and rear.'* But according to Mr. Ropes the front column was to the right.
1815.] ADVANCE OF ADAM'S BRIGADE.
The two regiments and the four companies of the 95th, bringing up their left shoulders still in line, followed the, routed Guard at double-quick.
Suddenly a body of British cavalry (the 23rd Light Dragoons) was seen approaching the left com- pany of the 52nd at full gallop. They were at first mistaken for French and fired upon, but being recognized, they were allowed to pass through. Sir John Colborne's horse was wounded and the mistake led to a brief halt, during which the Duke .of Wellington came up and said, " Go on, go on ! "*
After becoming disengaged from the cavalry the 52nd found that some guns on the right towards La Belle Alliance were firing grape into the front of the regiment and making some gaps in the line. Sir John Colborne was on foot. Both he and Colonel Rowan had had their horses shot, and though they had jumped on the horses of an abandoned French gun and called out to be " cut out," they had had, after all, to dismount and follow the regiment in its rapid advance unmounted. Seeing the effect of the guns, Colborne shouted, " Where are those guns ? They are destroying the regiment." Lieutenant Gawler told him their position and was directed to take the right section and drive them in. He did so, after- wards halting for the regiment, which had now brought its left shoulder rather more forward, to come up.
Sir John Colborne and Colonel Rowan soon
* I follow Siborne and Leeke in putting this incursion of the 23rd Dragoons after the rout of the French column. Colborne, who is followed by Yonge, seems sometimes to put it before : apparently not considering that any rout of the complete character described by Yonge took place till the last body of French were dispersed.
I 2
228 CAMPAIGN OF WATERLOO. [Cn. XV.
found plenty of horses with empty saddles and were once more mounted.
Near the Charleroi road three squares of the Guard* remained formed and fired on the 52nd and 7 1 st, but as soon as these regiments began to ascend the hill the squares ceased firing, faced to the rear as if by word of command, and were soon out of sight — to which movement some, cannon shot passing from the rear over the heads of the two regiments, and giving them the first intimation of the approach of the Prussians, was doubtless, as it is said, an additional inducement.
At 500 or 600 yards beyond La Haie Sainte the 52nd came out on the Charleroi road, having in their rapid advance left behind a confused mass of guns, tumbrils and several hundreds of the enemy who became prisoners.
Sir John ordered the 52nd to " pass the road," and having passed to form line and wheel to the right. The 52nd then moved on in line, keeping their right on the road, and passing La Belle Alliance, were joined by skirmishers belonging to Billow's corps of Prussians, which shortly after that came obliquely from the left. No part of Sir H. Clinton's Division but the 52nd crossed the Charleroi road, the rest having struck to the right towards Rossomme. At nightfall the 52nd halted and were shortly afterwards passed by Billow's Corps in column, going in pursuit of the routed army.
* According'to Houssaye, these consisted of the 2nd Battalions of the 1st Chasseurs, 2nd Grenadiers and 2nd Chasseurs. Petit seems to put only two battalions here, the 2nd Battalions of the ist Chasseurs and 3rd Grenadiers.
1815.] COLBORNE'S MOVEMENT. 22$
Colborne's first care next morning was to send back a strong party of the 52nd to remove the wounded of the regiment, an attention which was not bestowed on those of the army generally, a large portion of them remaining on the field the second day after the battle.
Captain Yonge thus comments on the story which has been told :
" The action which has been related is for several reasons worthy of particular notice. First — the wheeling of a battalion in line, though under such circumstances the only practicable mode of changing front, was altogether unprecedented; just one of those promptings of inspiration that mark the mind of a great general. Executed amid a continual roar of artillery that rendered words of command inaudible, trusting chiefly to the further companies that they would be guided by the touch to their inward flank, it could hardly have been ventured at all but for the previous precaution of the com- manding officer, who, when the order was given by the Duke that all the regiments in the centre should form four deep, rather than loosen his files by that formation, had preferred to double his line by placing one wing closed up in rear of the other; another instance to show how the knowledge of details and constant attention to them are essential in order to enable an officer to apply his men to the best pur- pose. Second. — That owing to the skill with which the movement was made, seizing the very acme of time, never, perhaps, was more signal service done by a body of troops so disproportionate in number to the force attacked; that force being composed
230 CAMPAIGN OF WATERLOO. [Cn. XV.
of the elite of the enemy's army, the most veteran troops in Europe. A line on the flank of a column exhibits in the highest degree the triumph of skill over numbers. The column has only the alternative of flight or destruction. Third. — That this adven- turous movement was undertaken, upon his sole responsibility, by the commanding officer of a single battalion, and that from the first onset of the 52nd, that regiment and the 7ist proceeded to the close of the day without receiving orders from any general officer, whether of brigade or division, the 7ist con- forming to the movements of the 52nd. Fourth. — That the successful charge and immediate pursuit of the broken column carried Adam's Brigade far ahead of the rest of the army, constituting them, as it were, an advanced guard to the main body of the British army."
And Captain Yonge's insistence on the importance of Colborne's bold movement is echoed by General Sir James Shaw-Kennedy, in spite of his adopting Siborne's theory of the two attacks of the Imperial Guard :
" It is perhaps impossible to point out in history any other instance in which so small a force as that with which Colborne acted [at ^Waterloo] had so powerful an influence on the result of a great battle in which the numbers engaged on each side were so large." He adds : " The discipline of the 52nd Regiment was at all times admirable; and Colborne caused the move- ments on this occasion to be made with a precision which ensured coolness, gave security against all attack, and rendered both the firing and the advance
1815.] COLBORNE'S MOVEMENT. 231
in line of the battalion of the most formidable character."*
And in a private letter, dated " Bath, I5th May, 1864," the same eminent writer speaks still more strongly :
" If you wish to know the two most brilliant events of Lord Seaton's life, you must become fully acquainted with how he conducted the 52nd Regiment at the battle of Orthes, and how he commanded and led the regiment in his most brilliant and successful attack on the French Guards at Waterloo. Having read a good deal of military history, I don't think that I impose upon myself a for- midable task when I say that no man can point out to me any instance, either in ancient or modern history, of a single battalion so influencing the result of a great general action as the result of the Battle of Waterloo was in- fluenced by the attack of the 52nd Regiment on the Imperial Guard, of which it defeated first four bat- talions,t and afterwards three other battalions ; and Col- borne did almost all this from his own impulse and on his own responsibility. Napier was a witness of what was done at Orthes ; / of what took place at Waterloo."
Colonel Gawler, who took part in the movement, writes : " The flank attack on the Moyenne Garde was really a most important and hazardous measure, and to the enemy most destructive in its conse- quences. In itself, abstractedly, it was a more brilliant thing than either the storming of the Pass of Vera or the turning of the crisis at Orthes, for both of which Sir John Colborne and the 52nd
* Notes on the Battle of Waterloo (1865), p. 147.
t The writer follows Siborne, who maintains that the leading column of the Imperial Guard was defeated by Maitland's Guards and that Colborne's movement was directed against a second column con- sisting of four battalions.
232 CAMPAIGN OF WATERLOO. [Cn. XV.
Regiment obtained especial credit. I was engaged in all, and speak as an eye-witness."*
Colonel Gawler was the means of publishing! an interesting French testimony to the effect of Col- borne's movement contained in a letter addressed to him by Colonel Brotherton on 2nd August, 1833. Colonel Brotherton states that having met a French officer who had been with the Imperial Guard in the attack he had himself adverted to the singular coincidence of the Imperial Guard encountering our British Guards at such a crisis. " Upon which he [the French officer] observed, without seeming in the least to detract from the merit of the troops which the column had to encounter in its front, who, he said, showed ' tres bonne contenance? that I was wrong ... in supposing the attack was solely repulsed by the troops opposed to it in front ; ' for/ added he, ' nous fumes principal ement repousses par une attaque de flanc tres vive qui nous e eras a? ' We may add the testimony of a young Engineer officer, contained in a letter written two days after the battle. " An attack," he says, " was made by the Imperial Guards and reserve. For some time the combatants were enveloped in the smoke, and the event of the day was in suspense. The column, however, was taken in flank and broken. Assailed on all sides it became a flight."}:
Chesney,§ while giving the Guards a great part
* Unpublished letter to Captain Siborne, May I5th, 1843. f United Service Journal, 1833.
\ Letters of an Officer of the Corps of Royal Engineers (John Sperling), 1872, p. 133.
§ Waterloo Lectures, p. 215.
1815.] COLBORNE'S MOVEMENT. 233
of the credit of repulsing the Imperial Guard, continues :
" Enough remains for that famous regiment, already high in the roll of history, whose splendid flank attack and steady pursuit, with the final over- throw of the intact battalions which it met at the foot of the hill, prove that neither Colborne nor his men were over-praised in the glowing pages of the Peninsular War. The Dutch have assigned much of the credit here to Chasse's Division, which opportunely reinforced the line about the time of the assault, but the proof is undeniable from the testimony of numerous eye-witnesses, that Colborne, keeping steadily in advance of the rest of the Anglo- allied infantry, defeated the only battalions left unbroken of the Guard."*
It was long before the achievement of Adam's Brigade obtained recognition.
The Duke of Wellington's despatch of iQth June said nothing as to the manner in which Napoleon's last attack was defeated. Nothing could be vaguer than its language :
" About seven in the evening . . . the enemy made a desperate effort with cavalry and infantry, supported by the fire of artillery, to force our left centre, near the farm of La Haye Sainte, which, after a severe contest, was defeated ; and having observed that the troops retired from this attack in great confusion ... I ... advanced the whole line of infantry, supported by the cavalry and artillery. The attack succeeded . . . the enemy fled."
Unfortunately, when he came to praise his troops,
* The two battalions of the 1st Grenadiers, according to Petit, were still standing.
234 CAMPAIGN OF WATERLOO. [Cn. XV.
the Duke used words which were capable of mis- interpretation :
" The division of Guards, under Lieutenant-General Cooke, Major-General Maitland and Major-General Byng, set an example which was followed by all."
These words apparently refer to the fact that the first French attack of the day — on Hougomont — was repelled by the Guards, and do not mean that the British Guards defeated the Imperial Guards at the close of the action — Cooke having then left the field.
Yet — though Colborne was too much engaged to know anything about it at the time — the 3rd Battalion of Maitland's Brigade of Guards were undoubtedly engaged, either with the head of the column which Colborne assailed in the flank, with some column in echelon with it to its right, according to Mr. Ropes' theory, or with a body of massed skirmishers, according to Mr. Leeke's. And from this basis of fact, or a misunderstanding of the Duke's words, it was quickly accepted that the attack of the Imperial Guard had been repelled by the British Guards, and by them alone.
Lord Bathurst, Foreign Minister and Minister of War, speaking on the battle in the House of Lords on June 23rd, used these words:
' Towards the close of the day Bonaparte himself, at the head of his Guards, made a desperate charge upon the British Guards, and the British Guards instantly overthrew the French?*
No word of Colborne's wheeling movement, of
* Times, 24th June, 1815.
1 8 15-] THE MOVEMENT IGNORED. 235
the flank fire, of the triumphant charge for 800 yards of Adam's Brigade !
And the Gazette of 29th July contained the announcement :
" His Royal Highness has been pleased to approve of the ist Regiment of Foot Guards being made a regiment of Grenadiers, and styled ' the i st, or Grenadier, Regiment of Foot Guards/ in com- memoration of their having defeated the Grenadiers of the French Imperial Guard upon this memorable
occasion."
Colborne, who believed, rightly or wrongly, that he had had a main hand in deciding the battle, on reading the Duke's despatch and this announcement at Paris, saw, with bitterness, that he had been ignored and the praise which should have come to him and to the 52nd was given to others. Till that time, he says, he had heard nothing of the charge of the Guards.
Even under his sense of wrong, he uttered no complaint. His attitude is well seen in a story told to Lady Montgomery-Moore by Sir Charles Rowan. When the officers of the 52nd were once discussing the battle at Paris, and blaming the Duke, Sir John, overhearing them, said quietly and emphatically, " For shame, gentlemen ! One would think you forgot that the 52nd had ever been in battle before ! " From that day the matter was never mentioned ; it became a point of honour to take it as the Colonel did.
For many years Colborne refrained from reading accounts of the battle of Waterloo. He was a busy man, and he says they roused many painful recollec-
236 CAMPAIGN OF WATERLOO. [Cn. XV.
tions. Perhaps on this account he paid too little attention to the claim of the Guards to have repulsed a column of the Imperial Guard. The memoranda he eventually wrote on the part played by himself and his regiment in the battle (or- rather, by his regi- ment, for he scrupulously kept himself in the background) were inspired by the publication, or intended publication, of three works by other men: — Gawler's Crisis and Close of the Action at Waterloo, Siborne's Waterloo, and Moorsom's History of the $2nd Regiment*
But the strong belief he held throughout that the 52nd, " by stopping the progress of that column, made the great charge of the day," throws into brighter relief the proud self-repression with which he refused to claim that credit for himself which he believed he deserved, and the generosity with which he ever excused the defects in the Duke's despatch, deprecated the attaching of importance to the impressions of subordinate officers, and eulogized the Duke's generalship alike at Waterloo as in the Peninsula. " Never," he writes, " did any com- mander gain a victory more by his personal exer- tions and by his prompt presence at points where the efforts of the enemy had nearly succeeded." " Despatches are written in haste, and it is impossible for a general to do justice to his army." " Every officer being intent on some particular object, with a distinct part to perform, his eye is confined to a small angle."
This was the tone of all Colborne's references to Waterloo.
* See these Memoranda, Appendix II.
I8I5-] COLBORNE'S SELF-SUPPRESSION. 237
Miss Charlotte Yonge writes of him : " I heard him myself only excusing the Duke by saying nobody knew how difficult it is to write a despatch after a battle, and that the Duke was distressed by the sufferings of his wounded staff-officer in the house and room with him. Moreover, that there had been a messenger sent after himself, who had failed to find him as he was looking after his wounded, or probably there would have been no such omission. That entire absence of self- assertion has always seemed to me one of the most striking signs of a really great nature I ever saw. . . . Indeed, I always remember him and Mr. Keble as the two most humble men I ever knew."*
The following letter to Miss Fanny Bargus was written by Colborne immediately after the battle. Its reference to the part played by the 52nd is disappointingly meagre. No doubt Colborne described the battle more fully to his wife, but his letters to her are not preserved, having been burnt, as is said, at the time of the rebellion in Canada.
" Nivelles,
" i gth June, 1815.
" My dear Fanny, — You will be anxious to hear of us after the most severe conflict I have ever witnessed, and I think it will be the most important in the result William Leeke is very well. Our infantry behaved nobly, and the 52nd as usual.
" I have only time to write you these few lines. You will be surprized at the Gazette; we have lost some of our most valuable officers. My kind regards to your mother and Maria. — Your affectionate brother,
" Miss Bargus, " J. COLBORNE.
"118, Sloane-street, Chelsea, London."
* Monthly Packet, 1888, Christmas Number, p. vii.
CHAPTER XVI.
MARCH TO PARIS. A LONG LEAVE. WITH THE
52ND IN ENGLAND. LIEUTENANT-GOVERNORSHIP
OF GUERNSEY, 1821-1828.
SIR F. ADAM having been wounded at Waterloo, Sir John Colborne now commanded the brigade.
On iQth June the 52nd marched from Maison du Roi to Nivelles, where they enjoyed a wash for the first time for three days — on the 2Oth to Binche— on the 2ist they entered France and marched to Bavay, on the 22nd to Le Cateau Cambresis, where they remained till the 25th.
Leeke tells us that at this time his boots were very dilapidated, and Sir John Colborne, noticing it, made him a present of a new pair of his own. Marching by Joucour, Lauchy, Roye, Clermont, they reached La Chapelle on the 3Oth, where Sir John Colborne and other officers were quartered in the Chateau of Marshal Moncey and for the first time for a fortnight undressed and slept in a bed.
On the ist July they first saw Paris, and once more met some French soldiers, some skirmishers having been sent out from St. Denis. Sir John Colborne sent down a party of the /ist, who drove
1815.] MARCH TO PARIS. 239
them off. On the 2nd the 52nd were alone at Argenteuil on the Seine.
On the 3rd July the French, under Davoust, twice attacked the Prussians, but were beaten and pursued almost to the walls of Paris. " On the same day a Convention was signed, and in the afternoon the 52nd crossed the Seine and proceeded to the bridge of Neuilly, which Sir John Colborne had received orders to cross, but from which the French refused to retire. The two front companies of the 52nd were advanced a short distance in front of the column with fixed bayonets. Sir John coolly took out his watch and allowed five minutes to the French commander in which to give up the bridge or have it stormed ; in two or three minutes it was given up. The village of Neuilly was occupied, and the 52nd passed the night in the walled graveyard."*
Lord Seaton gives the following account of this occurrence :
" I had been ordered to take a brigade across the bridge of Neuilly and put them on the other side towards the Bois de Boulogne. Some staff officers, Rowan and others, were standing on the bridge. A French officer on the other side said we should not pass and the staff officers supported him, but I said I should see to that, and went on the bridge, while the column continued to advance. The French officer now began calling out, ' Stop the column ; you cannot and you shall not pass ! ' I really began to have some doubts whether he was not going to blow up the bridge. However, I went on, and the column
* Moorsom, p. 262
240 MARCH TO PARIS. [Cn. XVI.
after me. It was rather a rash thing, but I was determined to go over, as I had my orders to post my brigade on that side. So while the French officer went on vociferating, * Vous ne passerez pas! ' I marched them across and right through the embrasure. On the other side we found a troop of dragoons. Very fine-looking fellows they were, but all rather drunk. Their officer also came up in a tremendous rage and asked, ' Qu'allez-vous faire ? ]Allez-vous a Paris ce soir ? ' and all his dragoons began galloping round us and covering us with dust. However, I marched my men straight on, and posted them and ordered them to lie down, and there we stayed all night, with our sentries and those of the French close together. Then I rode a little further to see the town. I met an old Frenchman, who said to me, ' You had better not go any further, there is a whole body of dragoons round the corner, Us sont si enrages' So, on hearing that, I galloped back as fast as I could. The soldiers were partly in a sort of garden with a wall round it. I remember Charley Rowan saying to me next morning, ' Well, I never spent such a night and did not think of closing my eyes the whole time.'
" I do not know how it was. I suppose the French officer had his orders to keep the bridge and I had mine to cross it. He could not have defended it with his small force, but a little way from us there must have been 80,000 men. They were under Davoust, I think. Napoleon was then on his way to Cherbourg, I suppose."
On the 4th July the French army quitted Paris. The 52nd proceeded to the Bois de Boulogne, where
1815.] ENCAMPED IN PARIS. 241
they stayed till the 7th, when General Adam's Bri- gade (the 52nd, ;ist, 2nd and 3rd Battalions 95th) had the honour of entering Paris. They were the only troops which occupied the city ; the rest of the army remained in the Bois de Boulogne. The brigade was encamped in the Champs Elysees, the 52nd being to the left of the road leading towards the Seine. Two companies and the quarter-guard of the 52nd were close to the garden wall of the Duke of Wellington's house and to the Place Louis Quinze, now the Place de la Concorde, the remainder 100 yards further away.
General Sir Alexander Montgomery-Moore writes that Lord Seaton pointed out to him in Paris in 1857 the spot where his tent stood,* and said the Duke of Wellington came and stood on the little dwarf wall and called out, " Here, Colborne, here are two things for you," handing him the orders of Maria Theresa of Austria and St. George of Russia.t " I took them," remarked Lord Seaton once, " saying, c They do not give me the least pleasure/ but an old colonel who was sitting by me said, * Colborne, it is my belief you care for them just as much as other people/
* He had also a billet in the town. See Leeke, I., p. 158.
f His appointment to the 4th Class of the Order of St. George is dated "Paris, iQth August, 1815," that as Knight of the Order of Maria Theresa, " Paris, 2nd August, 1815." The statutes of the latter order (whose centenary on i8th June, 1857, Colborne, then Lord Seaton, attended at Vienna) are interesting: "All officers of all ranks may be admitted into this order for bravery in action only. It is an order of valour, and neither birth, rank, meritorious or long service, or even wounds are of themselves sufficient qualification. The candidate must describe the action, and prove his part in it, when the Chapter may recommend the Sovereign to appoint him to any class of the order which he may deserve : an ensign might by bravery become at once a Grand Cross of the Order*'
242 IN PARIS. [Cn. XVI.
" When I went to thank Sir George Murray for the orders the latter said, ' Well, I am glad you are pleased, for Colonel Lygon has just been here to return the Cross of the Second Class of the Order of St. Vladimir, as he says it would be degrading to the commanding officer of the Life Guards to wear what every officer of the Russian army is entitled to after two years/ When the Duke heard of this, all he said was, ' Won't Colonel Lygon accept it ? Well then, give it to Colonel Somebody-else, who will.' "
Adam's Brigade remained in the Champs Elysees till the 2nd November.
Lord Seaton said : " I had the superintendence of the British camp, which extended from the Place de la Concorde to the Tuileries, immediately under the Duke of Wellington's quarters. I took the greatest pains to have it kept neat and clean, and succeeded so well that the Duke once took some officers to look at it, and leaning over the wall that divided it off from his house, said, ' This is the sweetest camp I have ever known, and I have known a good many/
"At Paris I used sometimes to have 30 men or so marched out early in the day for about 10 miles as a punishment, but I do not think now that it is a good thing to do."
Mr. Leeke writes : " Sir John Colborne took the 52nd several times to the Champ-de-Mars which, was a very extensive and good exercising ground. There we first practised the half-face movement in column, which I think was taken up from the Prus- sians, and was afterwards found to be a most useful
1815.] JUSTICE AND MERCY. 243
movement. One day we came across the Emperor of Russia and his staff in the Champ-de-Mars, and Sir John very neatly threw the regiment into close column just as the Emperor was arriving in front of the flank company and saluted him with covered arms. As the Emperor was merely riding across the Champ-de-Mars, and as we were only there for drill, the salute with carried arms in close column was the only available method of showing him any attention."
Mr. Leeke also tells a story of a 52nd soldier being condemned to be shot for insubordination towards an officer of another regiment : " I saw an interview between the Duke and Sir John Colborne, which I had reason to believe was connected with this man's execution. The Duke had come into our camp from his garden door, and as Colborne almost immediately joined him I fancy the interview had been arranged before. The Duke, who generally appeared to be a person of a very quiet demeanour, seemed on this occasion to speak with some con- siderable earnestness, and Colborne, who was most anxious, as we all were, that the man's life should be spared, was equally energetic. The conversation did not last more than seven or eight minutes, and I did not learn the result until the order for the execution appeared in orders." Next day, when all was ready for the execution, " an aide-de-camp, the bearer of a reprieve, rode into the square. I think it was an order from the Duke granting the man a pardon, and stating that it was partly in consideration of the high character of the regiment to which he
244 IN PARIS. [Cn. XVI.
belonged that the Duke was induced to take this course."*
The following stories told by Lord Seaton relate to this time :
" Hardinge was attached to Blucher on the march to Paris, and has frequently told me that Blucher used to say every night, 'Well, I shall be sure to get Bonaparte somewhere when we get to Paris ; if so, I shall take him directly to Vincennes and shoot him in the very place he shot d'Enghien.'
" Blucher gave Hardinge Louis XVI 1 1 /s own copy of the Memoirs of Madame de la Roche- jacquelein, which Napoleon had taken with him to read on the campaign, and which had been found in his carriage.
" Once at dinner at Paris the Duke was giving a description of the battle of Waterloo, when Sir F. Adam asked him across the table, * Pray, what would your Grace have done if the French Guards had not been dispersed ? ' ' Oh,' said the Duke, ' I should have retired to the Bois de Soignies and given battle again the next morning/ * But if you could not have done that ? ' said Adam, pressing him. ' It never could have been so bad as that, you know,' said the Duke hastily, and got up and called for coffee, rather ruffled, I think, at the question being put.
" When the Venetian horses were taken down from the Arc du Carrousel I dressed in plain clothes and went into the Place du Carrousel to hear what the people said. They did not seem to mind it at all. They said, ' Ma foi, Us ont beaucoup voyage'
* Leeke, I., pp. 162, 170.
i3i5-] BLUCHER AND NEY. 245
and that sort of thing, but not as if they were angry ; and when the Griffin was taken, they said they were glad to say good-bye to that * grande tete laide' Six or seven thousand of our soldiers were parading about as there had been some fear of a disturbance, but it all passed off very quietly. It was the Austrians who were taking the things away, but as we were the only troops then in Paris we got all the odium, though we were the only people who were to gain nothing.
" I remember hearing a Frenchman say that he had been to the Louvre every day of the year when all the pictures and statuary were there, just to look at two or three at a time.
" It was said that the Duke wished to intercede for Ney with Louis XVIII., but the King guessed his intention and talked to him the whole evening so as to leave him no opportunity. A Royalist said to me, ' If Ney is not executed it will be impossible for us to remain in Paris.' The following story is told of Ney's treason in 1814. It had been announced that Ney would inspect his troops one morning. When he rode to where they were drawn up, he raised his hat and cried, ' Vive VEmpereur! ' His aide-de- camp said, ' You mistake. You mean " Vive le Roi" ' * No mistake, Sir,' he replied, * Vive VEmpereur! '
" On one occasion the Duke de Chartres had been fired at, the ball passing through his carriage, and the assailant was condemned to die. The Duke, when pressed to save the man's life, said to me, ' I will never intercede for an assassin.'
246 IN PARIS. [Cn. XVL
" It seems only a short time since old Lowe came proudly into my tent at Paris and showing me the letter which gave him the offer of going to St. Helena. He said then that he was quite deter- mined not to accept it, but they afterwards made it ,£1,200 a year, and he thought it was too good a thing for a poor man to refuse.
" Sir Hudson Lowe always hesitated in his replies, a thing the Duke of Wellington could not endure. On one occasion the Duke said, ' Where does that road lead to, Sir Hudson?' Sir Hudson began drawing his plans from his pocket before answering. The Duke, putting his hand to his mouth, turned round to an officer with him, saying, ' D — d old fool ! '
Another officer, General , knew the Duke's
ways so well that, whether he was sure of a thing or not, he always answered directly. For instance, if the Duke asked, ' How many rounds of ammunition have we? ' he answered immediately, ' Four hundred and twenty.' On a friend remonstrating, * How could you say that, when you could not possibly know?' he would answer, 'Oh, I knew it must be thereabouts, and if I am wrong I can tell him afterwards.' '
On 2nd November the brigade, now once more commanded by Sir F. Adam, moved from Paris to Versailles, and in the middle of December to St. Germain. Sir John Colborne now obtained a long leave of absence.
Rejoining his wife at Yealmpton on 4th January, 1816, he saw for the first time his child James (afterwards second Lord Seaton), who had been born on the 8th September preceding.
i8i5-8.] A LONG LEAVE. 247
Accompanied by Lady Colborne, her brother James, and the baby, Sir John left England on 23rd June for a long tour on the Continent.
After visiting the chief towns of Holland they passed into Germany, reaching Dresden on 27th July, where they stayed a month, during which all except the baby took lessons in German. At the close, as Mr. James Yonge writes, " Colonel Colborne paid the master double his demand (36 dollars), which affected him almost to the shedding of tears." From the 4th to the 9th September they were at Berlin, whence they proceeded through Dresden and Saxon Switzerland to Vienna, whence Mr. James Yonge returned to England.
Sir John and Lady Colborne, after staying three months at Baden, entered Italy early in February, and proceeded by Venice to Rome, where they stayed from the 26th till the loth March, 1817. On the 1 4th they arrived at Florence, where, on the 22nd April, their second son, Francis, was born. They left Florence on 23rd June and proceeded through the Tyrol into Switzerland, passing the summer at Zurich, from which centre Sir John made a two months' tour alone. Leaving Zurich on i8th October they made their way to Mannheim (8th November) and stayed there till the loth March, 1818, when they moved towards France. Spending the first fortnight of April in Paris, Sir John dined with the Duke of Wellington, General Murray and Sir Andrew Barnard. The party landed at Dover on 1 7th April and reached Yealmpton on the 26th. On the 1 8th May Sir John Colborne left his wife, then about to give birth to a daughter, in order to
248 WITH THE FIFTY-SECOND AT ST. OMER. [Cn. XVI.
rejoin his regiment in France. It was the last year of the occupation, and Colonel Colborne resumed the command of the 52nd at St. Omer.
Leeke tells that Sir John's establishment of horses being incomplete, he bought a horse of Leeke, which, the first day he appeared on parade, bolted and carried him to his quarters a mile and a half away, Sir John having an imperfect command of a horse owing to the results of the wound in his right shoulder received at Ciudad Rodrigo.
In the middle of August the 52nd marched to Valenciennes. On the 23rd October the army was reviewed by the Emperor of Russia, the King of Prussia, &c., and a month later was withdrawn from France. Mr. Leeke quotes from Colonel Hall an account of the surrender of Valenciennes (22nd November ?) to its natural possessors : " The autho- rities wished to embody some of the National Guards to receive over the place, but Colborne would allow no Frenchman in arms until we had quitted it. The regiment marched out and halted on the glacis, leaving the main guard in the Grande Place. When the citadel had been given over to the civil authorities the town was also formally surrendered."
The 52nd Regiment embarked at Calais on the 28th November and landed at Ramsgate next day.
The headquarters of the regiment was now Chester, till in the summer of 1819 it was moved to iWeedon, the military authorities being greatly exercised about the disturbed state of the manu- facturing districts. In the spring of 1820 the regiment moved to Lichfield and in the summer to Hull. Lady Colborne remained in the south, first
1818-25.] LIEUT.-GOVERNOR OF GUERNSEY. 249
at Yealmpton, and from the ;th October, 1819, at Livermead House, Torquay, her husband paying her various visits of several months together. On Christmas Day, 1819, a third son was born to him.
In July, 1821, Sir John and Lady Colborne went to London for the coronation of King George IV., in which Sir John had a place as King's aide-de- camp. During this visit he received the post of Lieutenant-Governor of Guernsey, for which he had expressed a desire.
Sir John and Lady Colborne arrived in Guernsey on ist September and took possession of their new home, Government House. Soon after Sir John's appointment an inhabitant of the island, Mr. George Le Boutillier, framed a project for the reform of the ancient grammar school called Elizabeth College, which was then in a state of decay. He submitted his scheme to the Lieutenant-Governor, and as he himself writes, " the matter could not have been placed in better hands." In October Sir John Colborne took the matter up vigorously, and effected a considerable improvement in the state of the school. But, being still dissatisfied, in December, 1823 he resolved to institute an inquiry. A com- mission was appointed, whose report was in the main accepted by the States, and on the nth October, 1824, the school was reopened with a new head- master, when Sir John Colborne's two sons, James and Francis, were entered first and second on the roll, in recognition of the disinterested activity he had shown.
On the 6th January, 1825, a plan for the regulation of Elizabeth College was transmitted to the States
250 IN GUERNSEY. [Cn. XVI.
by the Bailiff with the following introductory words :
'' The benefit . . . which I anticipate must be attributed solely to Sir John Colborne. It is in this benefit itself that he can -find the only recom- pense, the only praise worthy of him. In all that is proposed, nothing but entire disinterestedness is to be perceived. There is nothing for himself, but everything for the country which he governs ; he is a father who, not knowing the time he may remain among his children, prepares for them the noblest inheritance it is possible for him to leave them."*
The States accordingly determined to erect new buildings for the school, perhaps on a too palatial scale. The foundation stone was laid by Sir John Colborne on iQth October, 1826. The college was finished and opened in 1829, among its scholarships being one of £20, tenable for four years, given by Sir John in perpetuity for the best classical scholar. But ere this Sir John and Lady Colborne had left the island, taking with them the respect and esteem of the whole community.
On the 25th May, 1825, Sir John Colborne had attained to the rank of major-general, and terminated his connexion with the 52nd, whom he had so often led to victory.
Other events of more domestic interest had occurred to him during his stay. Two sons and three daughters (one destined only to live a year) had been born to him in Guernsey, and his all but sister, Miss Fanny Bargus, had been married, on 25th October, 1822, in England, to an old officer of the 52nd,
* Jacob, Annals of Guernsey, p. 363.
1825-7.] COLBORNE AND W. NAPIER. 251
Captain William Crawley Yonge, brother of his own brother-in-law, the Reverend Duke Yonge, a marriage which was to give birth to the well-known writer, Miss Charlotte M. Yonge.
Sir John had been greatly consulted during these years by his old friend Colonel William Napier, then embarking on his History of the Peninsular War. Colborne, like Napier, revered the memory of Sir John Moore as a man and was indignant at the attacks made on his military reputation, and he was ready to assist Napier to the utmost in vindicating the general's character. But the tone of Napier's letters to Colborne^ shows that the historian regarded Colborne not only as a loyal friend of Sir John Moore, but as a man of consummate military judg- ment. And there is other evidence to show that, if a great war had broken out within thirty years of Waterloo, Colborne would have been looked to by soldiers as predestinated for a very high, if not the supreme, command. The country enjoyed peace, but one part of the price it paid for it was that it never became fully aware of the genius and noble character of John Colborne.
In 1827 he had narrowly missed obtaining an appointment of great importance. He says :
" During Canning's Ministry there was a scheme to make different arrangements at the War Office. The office of Commander-in-Chief was to be abolished, Lord Palmerston was to be Minister for War, and I was offered the post of Military Secretary to the Minister, as a position equal to that of Commander-in-Chief in all but the name. I
* See English Historical Review, July, 1903.
252 IN GUERNSEY. [Cn. XVL
doubted at first about accepting it, but Sir James Kempt, whom I consulted, said, ' If you refuse this you will deserve never to have any good fortune again.' I wrote to accept it, but within two days Canning died [8th August, 1827], and the whole plan was changed, and with it, probably, my whole career."*
The following letter from William Moore shows that another friend besides Sir James Kempt had urged Colborne to accept the position :
"123, Mount-street,
"2Qth July, 182;.
" In a conversation I had with Sir H. Torrens yester- day, he mentioned incidentally that you had been offered the situation of D[eputy?] -Secretary-at-War, which you had half declined He seemed to regret this very much, and said, ' There is no man in the army so fit for it, or who would fill it better. It is madness in a man with a rising family to refuse it, and I trust we shall see him yet succeed Taylor.' I trust you will not be offended at my reporting this conversation, which was, as you see, familiar, in order that you may be fully satisfied that, however diffident you may be to succeed Sir Herbert, others entertain great confidence in you. I mentioned this to Anderson ... he is strongly of opinion that you ought to take what is offered Prenez tou jours is the maxim of modern times.
" I am anxious to see the next Edinburgh Review, my uncle having communicated to me in confidence your
* It would seem from the following extract of a letter of Sir William Napier's that it was expected that Lord Goderich, Canning's successor as Premier, would appoint Colborne Military Secretary: " Lord Goderich is to be Premier. If the Duke does not come in, Colborne is to succeed Sir Herbert Taylor : this is excellent." Life of Sir W. Napier, I., p. 370.
•\ The article, of which part was given above (pp. 100-108), seems not to have been published. Other extracts will be found, p. 396.
1827-8.] LIEUT. -GOVERN OR OF UPPER CANADA. 253
intention to vindicate the General.f I hurled away Southey's rascally book in indignation. I am very desirous to see Napier's book. — Yours most sincerely,
"WM. MOORE."
The cause of Colborne's leaving Guernsey was a different one. On the I7th July, 1828, when on a visit to England he was offered the Governorship of Trinidad. He proceeded to London, and having declined Trinidad, accepted the Lieutenant- Governorship of Upper Canada.
The respect and affection which he and Lady Colborne* had acquired during their residence in Guernsey were marked by a presentation of plate made to him by the inhabitants of the island.
* Described by Miss C. M. Yonge as "the brightest, most playful and lively of creatures." Miss Coleridge's Charlotte M, Yonge, p. 20.
CHAPTER XVII.
UPPER CANADA, 1828-1836.
ON the I4th August, 1828, Sir John Colborne was gazetted Lieutenant-Governor of Upper Canada, in succession to Sir Peregrine Maitland. He reached York (now Toronto), his seat of government, on 3rd November, and assumed next day the office which he was to hold till January, 1836, under six Colonial Ministers.
The government of Upper Canada at the time of Sir John Colborne's arrival was causing great dissatisfaction, the popular Assembly being only able to legislate with the assent of a legislative council whose constitution was exclusive, and the executive being in no way responsible to the elected representatives of the people. Immediately before this date an opposition journalist named Collins had been heavily punished for a libel on the Attorney- General, and a judge who had made himself, legitimately or otherwise, a popular hero, had been removed from office. A new Assembly, ardent for reforms, had just been elected.
Colborne's first task was to deal with a petition pressing for Collins' release. He claimed time for consideration, and after three weeks replied by a refusal. The reply was unpopular, but Kingsford
1 828.] POLITICAL STRIFE. 255
excuses it on the ground that, as a newcomer to the colony, Colborne was acting on the advice of his entourage.
On the 8th January the new parliament met, and soon afterwards it also addressed Colborne in favour of the remission of the sentence. The spirit of the soldier breathed in his answer. With all courtesy he regretted that the House should have made an application with which his obligation to support the laws forbade him to comply. For this repeated refusal, though supported by the opinion of the judge who had tried the case, Colborne was burnt in effigy at Hamilton. The House now voted an address to the King, praying for the royal clemency on behalf of Collins. The prayer was granted. Kingsford suggests that it had Colborne's support, and points out that the rest of Colborne's administra- tion was marked by an absence of prosecutions for libel.
The new parliament went, however, beyond the redressing of private wrongs. By 37 votes to i it claimed to be recognised as the responsible adviser of the Crown, and protested against the then advisers of the Lieutenant-Governor. A month later, in reply to a letter of Sir George Murray, the Colonial Secretary, Colborne himself showed his dis- approval of the existing state of things in which the legislative council was the echo of the executive members. He did not, however, venture to advo- cate the view of the House, the view taken by Lord Durham afterwards in that famous report which has been the eirenicon of modern Canada, that the executive should hold office by the will of the
256 UPPER CANADA. [Cn. XVIJ.
popular Assembly. It does not diminish Colborne's other notable qualities if it cannot be claimed for him that he was a bold political innovator. When the Assembly, on its meeting again in January, 1830, reiterated its demands, Colborne was content to reply, " Gentlemen of the House of Assembly, I return you my thanks for your address."
On the 3Oth June, 1829, Sir John and Lady Colborne lost by death their little son John Saumarez, born in Guernsey three years before. The loss was the more afflicting as it occurred when Sir John was away from home. He was a most tender father, but, as his friends knew, he was possessed of a rare Christian fortitude and would never allow the most poignant private sorrow to interfere with his performance of public duty. It is striking to note the almost identical terms in which two of the closest of them, Sir Graham Moore, Sir John's brother, and Sir George Napier, Colborne's comrade in the 52nd, expressed themselves on this point in their letters of condolence. The former wrote, on ist February, 1830: * You have more internal resource than any man I know to submit with resignation to the will of Providence, but I am aware of what you must have suffered " ; Sir George Napier, on i7th June, 1830: " My heart bleeds for you, my dear friend. Was it not that I know your mind to be the strongest man ever possessed, I should dread the effects of this blow, coming on you in the sudden, terrible manner it did." Before these letters were received another son had been born (i4th February, 1830) to take the place of the child that had gone.
1829-30.] UPPER CANADA COLLEGE. 257
The death of George IV. on 26th June, 1830, led to the election of a new parliament less hostile to the established state of things. The change of feeling in the electorate was possibly due to Sir John Colborne's having evinced a more liberal spirit than his predecessor, Sir Peregrine Maitland.
Even where he had differed from the previous Assembly, he had shown moderation and treated its views with respect. He had again, as in Guernsey, shown his zeal for education. Within a few months of his arrival he had founded Upper Canada College, which had been opened in January, 1830, with a select staff of masters. His special object in founding the college is set forth by Bishop Bethune :
" On the subject of the university [King's College] he did not dissent from the justice and expediency of appropriating the endowment by which it was to be maintained ; nor did he appear to desire that the charter should be more open than it was." [The professors were required to sign the 39 Articles, the Bishop was to be visitor and the Archdeacon of York (Toronto) ex-officio president. These provisions were largely disliked in the colony, and were afterwards modified.] " But he differed from many as to the expediency of pressing the immediate establishment of the highest seat of learning; when, as he contended, the means pro- vided for an essential preliminary education were so very unsatisfactory. None of our grammar schools at the time enjoyed a very high reputation ; and he considered that steps should at once be adopted for elevating the standard of education, and so ensuring qualified pupils for the curriculum of a university.
K
258 UPPER CANADA. [Cn. XVII.
This led to the establishment of Upper Canada College; at first, more pointedly to designate its object, called Minor College; and this institution he got into operation in a marvellously short period after its first inception. In one year, indeed, after his arrival in Canada all the arrangements for its practical working were made and the staff of masters on the spot."*
The new Assembly being of a different character to the old one, Colborne had no opening for pressing the question of responsible government, even if he was himself convinced of its desirability. The minority in the House, under the lead of Mr. Mackenzie, still eagerly urged it. In retaliation, the majority declared Mr. Mackenzie, who was a journalist, to be guilty of libel, and on i2th December expelled him from the House. This act, however violent, was one, as Kingsford argues, with which it was impossible for Sir John Colborne to interfere. It created, however, a great sense of the danger which awaited political opposition to the executive. Nine hundred and thirty petitions in the course of the proceedings begged the Lieutenant- Governor to appeal to the constituencies. He replied with characteristic reserve : " Gentlemen, I have received the petition of the inhabitants." Mackenzie was re-elected for his constituency, York, and again expelled on a new charge of libel. He was elected a third time, but the House had already adjourned, after voting an address to the Governor for its own dissolution. A violent party campaign
* Memoir of Bishop Strachan (1870), p. 131.
1830-3.] W. L. MACKENZIE. 259
was entered upon by both sides, after which Mr. Mackenzie sailed for England to gain the support of the home authorities. He stayed there a year and a half, being once more elected for York in his absence. In England he was allowed to present a memoir to the Colonial Secretary, Lord Goderich, who, in consequence of the facts brought before him, wrote a despatch to Sir John Colborne. This was not received till after the new session had opened on 3ist October, 1832, when Mackenzie was once more expelled and once more re-elected. But the Home Government had recognized the justice of some of the grievances which Mackenzie had urged. It condemned the conduct of the Attorney-General and Solicitor-General in supporting the expulsions, and by a despatch of 6th March, 1833, dismissed both from office. The Solicitor-General was, however, soon afterwards reinstated by a new Colonial Secretary, Mr. Stanley.
On Mackenzie's return to Canada he endeavoured to take his seat in the Assembly at the opening of its fourth session on igth October, 1833. He was not allowed to do sOj a new writ was issued and he was elected once more, Mackenzie's electors unanimously passing a resolution calling for an inquiry into the conduct of Sir John Colborne for having interfered with their constitutional rights. However, the House expelled him for the fourth time. In reply to the representations of Mackenzie's friends, the Lieutenant-Governor declared that the decisions of the House of Assembly had not been influenced by the executive, and he suggested that Mr.. Mackenzie should offer some reparation. He
K 2
260 UPPER CANADA. [Cn. XVII.
allowed him to take the oath to himself, after which Mackenzie took his seat in the House. In a debate which ensued Colborne's conduct was violently assailed by the anti-reform paper, the strongest testimony to his rectitude and impartiality.
On the prorogation of the House on 6th March, 1834, the town of York ceased to be, being incor- porated as the city of Toronto. Mr. Mackenzie became the first mayor. But, having resolved to follow the lead of Papineau in Lower Canada, and having published in his paper a letter from Mr. Hume, which spoke of Canada's shortly obtaining "independence and freedom from the baneful domination of the Mother Country," he was defeated at the next municipal election.
Early in 1835 Sir John heard of his appointment to the colonelcy of the 94th Regiment. He now again showed his interest in education by proposing the establishment of a medical college. This proposal, however, was not adopted.
His attachment to the Church of England no doubt made the last act of his administration a pleasant one — the assigning of reserve lands for the endowment of forty-four rectories. He did this with the sanction of his legislative council and in compliance with an injunction of the Colonial Secretary of 1832, but it was the cause of a long controversy, being in contradiction of a vote passed in the Assembly that the reserve lands should be withdrawn from ecclesiastical objects and appro- priated to " purposes of ordinary education and general improvement." Colborne's position is thus put by Bishop Bethune :
1 834-5.] COLBORNE RESIGNS OFFICE. 261
" His favourite idea in regard to the establishment of the Church was to mark out parishes where there was a sufficient population and appropriate to each a suitable endowment in land, assigning to their respective incumbents besides a small stipend in money, derived from the general proceeds of the reserves. In regard to the residue of this property, he was disposed for any compromise that could bring peace to the public mind, without too great a sacrifice of what might be deemed vested interests."*
In the session of 1835 Mr. Mackenzie had moved for a select commission on grievances, the result of which was a report advocating the establishment of an executive government responsible to public opinion. The report, though it only received the sanction of the House on 6th February, 1836, had previously made a considerable impression in England, and Lord Glenelg, Colonial Secretary, determined to replace Sir John Colborne by a new lieutenant-governor authorized to introduce some modifications into the established system. Some weeks, however, before Colborne received his despatch of recall he had himself resigned his office owing to his irritation at the strictures passed on him in a series of despatches by Lord Glenelg. Colborne's letter of resignation contains his defence.
"2nd December, 1835.
" In my despatch of the i6th September I adverted to the state of excitement in which I found the Province in 1828. The subsequent favourable change which took place I attribute chiefly to the course I pursued, to my
* Memoir of Bishop Strachan, p. 131.
262 UPPER CANADA. [Cn. XVII.
unceasing exertion in the essential duties of a governor and zeal in promoting the important interests of the colony. I may mention the establishment of a seminary, which annually confers on the Province the greatest benefits, from the liberal and extensive education which it affords to the sons of the colonists — the improvement of roads and commercial communications in every district, the distributing emigrants in sections of the Province where their influence has already effected a salutary change, the construction of buildings in which the public offices are concentrated and the business of the Province conveniently transacted, instead of their being held in the private residences of heads of departments ; the arrangements which have been so favourably received to secure to the ministers of the six principal religious per- suasions the means of extending religious instruction, and the establishing of schools under the Superintendent of the Indians for the civilization of all the tribes in Upper Canada. In the accomplishing of several of these under- takings, I may observe that I incurred a considerable pecuniary risk. These acts, together with my daily intercourse with persons desirous of an audience and the enlarging the commissions of the peace without respect to the politics of individuals, convinced the inhabitants of the Province that I took a great interest in the pros- perity of the Colony, and produced the most advantageous results. A mischievous and factious Assembly lost the confidence of their constituents, and at the new election a well-composed House was returned, by whose zealous co-operation the prosperity of the country has been rapidly advanced, and the Civil List was permanently settled ; in proposing which measure, Lord Ripon notified to me that if the Civil List could be satisfactorily arranged ' it would be deemed by his Majesty one of the happiest events of his reign/ and when it passed the Legislature my exertions were acknowledged and my conduct in this perplexing affair entirely approved of by the King. The encouragement I have shown to all classes of emigrants,
x835.] COLBORNE'S DEFENCE. 263
and my daily occupation in their interests, I am convinced, increased the flow of emigration to the Province."
Sir John replied to the charge that he had been remiss in his correspondence with the Colonial Office, remarking among other things :
"Since the 1st January, 75 despatches have been written by me, 1,332 letters have been prepared from my notes, and 3,295 petitions have been disposed of by me, many of which passed under my notice several times."
Delays had often been due to the conduct of officers whose services were not altogether at his disposal — the officers who had generally been the cause of the delay had been appointed from home, " I think, without sufficiently reflecting on the difficulties which must arise from their inexperience."
He concludes :
" Judging °f your views from the whole tenor of this despatch, I can arrive only at the conclusion that you are desirous that I should relinquish the government of this Province. Had this been distinctly intimated to me, I assure your lordship that you would have found me quite ready to resign a laborious post without reluctance, which I have consented to retain under the persuasion that my exertions were useful to the Province and advantageous to his Majesty's Government.
" I have now, however, but to request that you will sub- mit to the King my wish to retire from this colony, and to explain to his Majesty that I have been compelled, at this most important crisis of the affairs of Canada, to adopt this course solely and exclusively on account of your des- patch and of the unmerited treatment which I consider I have received from your lordship. In closing this com- munication, I deem it a fit occasion to record my opinion that at no period has there been in the Province a Party attached to the Mother Country so powerful as at the present moment, a Party that is increasing, and cannot fail
264 UPPER CANADA. [Cn. XVII.
to continue to increase, by attending to their interests. If a different feeling should take place among this class, and a serious crisis be not far distant in the Lower Pro- vince, the inclination to separate will be first observed in the conduct of the friends of the Monarchy, and the disas- ter traced to neglect, timid counsels, and the fatal error into which many persons have fallen, of supposing that this Province must eventually become a portion of the United States."
Sir Francis Head, Colborne's successor, arrived unexpectedly in Canada in January, and Sir John Colborne and his family were called upon to leave their home at the shortest possible notice in the height of a Canadian winter. This indignity called forth the sympathy of all classes, and addresses of regret at the recall poured in from all parts of Upper Canada and all classes of the population. The following is only one of several presented by the different Indian tribes of the Province :
" To Major-General Sir John Colborne, K.C.B.
" Our Father, — We, the Chippewa and Potagunasee Indians settled at Coldwater and the narrows of Lake Simcoe, have heard with great sorrow that you are going to quit this country and return to the country of our Great Father across the Great Lake.
" We shall never forget that under your care we have been brought to a greater knowledge of the Christian religion, and we shall always remember, in our prayers to the Great Spirit, to ask for His blessing on you,
" Not satisfied with giving us this great good, you have also given us land to cultivate, on which you have built us mills. You have given us houses to shelter us, and have provided us with oxen and cows and all things necessary for cultivating our farms, so that, instead of being in the poor, and often starving, condition in which you found us, we are now well clothed and have abundance of food.
1836.] AN ADDRESS OF FAREWELL. 265
" You have also built schools, and sent us masters to teach our children to read and write.
" Although we have sometimes neglected these good things, and have not been so attentive to your wishes as we now feel that we ought to have been, we know that you have always overlooked this neglect as a father would that of a child, and we have at length become convinced of doing all things that you have told us.
" And now that you are leaving us and are going to see our Great Father, the King, we ask of you to speak kindly of us to him. Say that we are thankful for being placed under his care, that we hope that we and our children for ever may remain dutiful and obedient to him, our Great English Father, and that we promise to do all things that he may wish.
" We would ask him to continue to us the kindness he has always shown towards his Red Children, and we ask, in the name of our brethren further west and north of us, who are now destitute of the good things you have given us, and are more miserable than we even were, that our Great Father would extend his strong arm and provide them, as he has done us, with the means of becoming like his White Children, that they may worship the same God, learn the same language, and have the same means of obtaining food that is known to our Great Father and his White Children.
" We shake you firmly by the hand. We pray that your voyage across the Great Salt Lake may be a prosperous one, and that you and your family may always live happy.
JOHN AISINCE, JOHN JONES, YELLOW HEAD, BIG SHILLING, NAINEKISHKUNG, KATEKEQUA, NAISHKAIOSAY.
" Coldwater,
"3rd February, 1836."
(A mark
of an animal,
&c.,
attached to each name.)
266 UPPER CANADA. [Cn. XVII.
Kingsford thus sums up the history of Colborne's administration of Upper Canada:
" Colborne left behind him no memories of prosecution for libel or of the slightest instance of individual wrong. His duty was to administer the government according to his instructions. For the greater part of the time he laboured under the disadvantage of having his principal law officer in Mr. Boulton. ... On the opposition side, Mackenzie's unceasing agitation and his restless- ness gave a direction to legislative life which led only to disquiet and confusion. . . .
:< When Sir John Colborne left Toronto [26th January, 1836] he received the highest marks of public esteem and respect. He was accompanied for a few miles by a vast concourse of people who vied with each other in testifying the sense they entertained of his amiable character and high moral worth. Upwards of 200 sleighs were present, headed by those of the mayor and corporation. Several parties were on horseback with a large con- course of persons on foot. They passed some distance beyond the turnpike when they drew up on each side of the road, leaving an open space for the Lieutenant-Governor to pass through. He advanced very slowly, and everyone uncovered as he passed between the lines.
" Never before did we witness so much feeling with so little show," adds the record. " Both Sir John and Lady Colborne were visibly affected ; equally so the spectators, many of whom were moved to tears as they gazed for the last time on those they held in such respect and regard."*
* Kingsford, X., pp. 338, 339.
1836.] COLBORNE'S GOVERNMENT. 267
Mr. Walter Henry, who, though then surgeon to Sir John Colborne's old regiment, the 66th, first met him in Upper Canada in 1833, speaks of him in equally high terms :
" His attention to public business, the devotion of his whole time and all his powers to the improvement of Upper Canada, his exertions in encouraging emigration and assisting and locating emigrants, were so conspicuous and unremitting that they could not be denied by his most virulent political enemies. His affability, hospitality and private virtues, and the wide-spreading charity of his excellent wife, though devoid of all ostentation, were necessarily well known in a small society like that of Toronto, and the estimation in which he was held in the Province was signally demonstrated by the universal tribute of respect paid to him all along the road when leaving his government. In fact, his journey, con- trary, I believe, to his own wish, had more the character of a triumphal procession than the quiet progress of a displaced governor. . . . When we first dined at Government House we were struck by the strong resemblance he bore to the Duke of Wellington, and there is also a great similarity in mind and disposition as well as the lineaments of the face. In one particular they appear to harmonize perfectly — namely, great simplicity of character and an utter dislike of show and ostentation. I believe there never was a soldier of more perfect moral character than Sir John Colborne. He is truly sans peur et sans reproche"*
* Events of a Military Life, II., pp. 214, 215.
268 UPPER CANADA. [Cn. XVII.
Some idea of the high moral and intellectual standard which Colborne ever set before himself and others may be gained from the following paper which he wrote in December, 1835 :
" Memoranda for James, on leaving Toronto.
" I must commence my memoranda by intreating you never to let a morning pass, nor a night, without prayer and reading some parts of the Old or New Testament Not slothful in business, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord. This, condensed well, has much in it, and will lead to the study of Christ and study of yourself, which is the wisest preparative for all that may happen to us.
" Recollect, that as you have chosen your profession, you must endeavour to acquire a perfect knowledge of every part of it, beginning with the minute details. The first elements of the drill, company's drill, and the manoeu- vres as explained in the King's regulations ; and all the financial orders and the mode of conducting the interior ceconomy of a regiment are easily comprehended and learnt You should endeavour to make yourself also a good engineer and artillerist, and also fit for the Quarter- master-General's department All this you can readily accomplish (by proceeding gradually) with your know- ledge of mathematics.
" Classics.
" Having proceeded lately so far in Greek literature, 1 should recommend your not relaxing in your efforts to obtain a critical knowledge of the Greek language. Go on with Herodotus, Demosthenes, and the plays of So- phocles, &c., and do not neglect the Latin historians and poets till you have studied them all patiently. Keep a journal of what you read.
" Mathematics.
"Pursue some regular course, and fix immediately on some science for your favourite one, which will bring into exercise what you have acquired. Drawing is an art
1 835.] PATERNAL ADVICE. 269
which you should also cultivate ; ' the universal neglect of which forms one of the most singular defects in scientific education.' It is indispensable in any branch of natural history, and in any practical science it is difficult to pro- ceed without it. Military drawing is absolutely necessary.
" I should recommend you to improve your style by double translations. Study Murray's Grammar diligently, Blair s Lecture, James on Rhetoric. Get well acquainted with English history and with all war historians. Devote a certain time to the reading of periodicals, the best articles in the Quarterly Review, Edinburgh and Blackwood.
" A knowledge of the French language is not only necessary for every gentleman, but an officer cannot even be sent to an outpost without it.
" Keep your accounts regularly, and balance them every week or month. You must enter every item for which you incur expense. Never run in debt
" You may draw on me for £80 per annum from the time you join your regiment, drawing it quarterly or half- yearly, as you may require it. Should you require more I shall be glad to assist you.
" The Paymaster will inform you in what manner the officers generally draw their pay.
" Write to us often, at least once a week."
A sentence at the end of the letter receives an interesting illustration from the following letter addressed to Colborne by Sir George Napier, dated " Casa Galletti, Pisa, 2ist September, 1833":
" I have told [my sons] I never will refuse their applica- tion when they make one for a little money, and as long as they make me their confidant in everything, and write at once to me whatever scrape they may get into, I shall do everything in my power to relieve them. I know you will approve of this, because I recollect how angry you
were with a friend for protesting poor H 's bill, and
you told me at the time, whenever I had sons, never to do
270 UPPER CANADA. [Cn. XVII.
such a thing, or I should run the risk of losing their affec- tions by being the cause of their disgrace in having a bill returned upon their hands, besides the very great chance of a high-spirited young man's feelings being so completely overset by it that he would become reckless of his con- duct, and plunge at once into dissipation and dishonour. I have never from that hour, my dear Colborne, forgot all you said, nor how extremely vexed and angry you were about the whole circumstances, and your letter to Mr. M., which you read to me. By it I have been guided in my conduct to my sons, and I trust ever shall be, for your opinion and advice will ever be a law to me upon such matters, looking upon you, as I do, with the strongest affection of a brother and the respect for your character of a son. Would to God it was my lot to be nearer to you, that I might enjoy the society of the dearest friend I have on earth ! "
Sir John passed from Upper Canada to Montreal, where he arrived on ist February. At Montreal, as at every point on his route, he was welcomed with the warmest acclamations of the British population. He stayed there till the igth May, when he proceeded to New York in order to embark for England.
CHAPTER XVIII.
COMMANDER OE THE FORCES IN UPPER AND LOWER CANADA, 1836. REBELLION OF 1837.
SIR JOHN COLBORNE was on the point of sailing for England when he received a despatch from Lord Glenelg, dated I4th April, in reply to his of the 2nd December. While maintaining his position that Sir John Colborne had been remiss in supplying him with information, Lord Glenelg disowned any desire to impeach his character:
" It is satisfactory to me to recollect that I have not preferred any charge by which your character as a man of honour and integrity, or your uprightness in the fulfilment of your high trust, or even the habitual discretion with which it was discharged could in the least degree be im- pugned or brought into question."
He concluded his despatch by offering Sir John Colborne the command of the forces in Upper and Lower Canada. He added :
" There is no officer to whom his Majesty would commit that important service with more entire satisfaction. Whether you avail yourself or not of his Majesty's gracious intentions, it may perhaps be not displeasing to you to receive as it is to me very grateful to make this proposal. A copy of this letter will be transmitted to Sir F. Head, to be recorded among the archives of his Govern-
272 LOWER CANADA. [Cur. XVIII.
ment, and it will there remain as a proof that his Majesty's confidence in your zeal for the public service, and in the wisdom and firmness with which you would act in any emergency, are unshaken and undiminished."
Colborne frankly accepted the appointment offered him, though by no means eager to remain longer in Canada. In a letter to his sister, Mrs. Duke Yonge, dated " New York, 3oth May," he says :
" You cannot imagine how much I am grieved and disappointed at my contemplated return to Canada. I had set my heart on seeing you all very soon, and on walking from Tor Point to Antony with my old legs as stout as in olden times. . . . Elizabeth is quite well, but as disappointed as I am at this countermarch we are about to make."
Writing two days earlier to Sir H. Taylor, Colborne thus refers to what had passed :
*'* Lord Glenelg has certainly entered fairly into my case, and I must confess, has said as much to put me in good humour in reference to our correspondence as a Minister of the Crown would acknowledge after the strong terms used in some of my despatches."
But he animadverted on the discourteous manner in which he had been superseded:
" If Lord Glenelg supposed that the hasty and indelicate manner in which my successor was to assume the govern- ment would gratify any respectable person in the colony, he was much deceived. The most furious Radicals con- demned the summary proceeding, and with reference to my acknowledged laborious life of seven years, called the Ministers a ' heartless set' I had scarcely received a letter from Lord Glenelg, stating that I was to be speedily relieved, when I heard that my successor, not only had been appointed, but that he was within forty miles of
1836.] COMMANDER OF THE FORCES. 273
Toronto. It was generally known, I suppose, at home that I had a large family, and that a Canadian winter is not a pleasant season to move or to pass the Atlantic, and that almost every Governor would require a few weeks' notice to prepare for his departure, and that my sudden removal, with the thermometer 27° below zero, could not but have the worst effect in a political sense. I was much amused and gratified by hearing the conversation of one of the most violent of my political opponents when he saw an address to me on my departure placed in a public room for signatures. This gentleman said, on looking over the address, ' I'll sign with great pleasure, for although I am not one of his admirers, and have no reason to be satisfied with his conduct, I will declare that if this Province had been his own estate, Sir John Colborne could not have taken more care of it'
" In passing over Lake Champlain and descending the Hudson last week I felt myself free from all kind of care, and delighted with everything I saw and anticipated on my route homewards, and with this notion, that I had shaken off a great weight, no schoolboy could have en- joyed himself more than I did on finding myself, for the first time in my life, liberated, and completely out of har- ness. I should at once have declined the appointment offered me, had I consulted my own inclinations. . . . But there are some circumstances which have determined me to accept the command which has been offered to me with apparent sincerity, and accompanied with many ex- pressions and terms which are honourable to Lord Glenelg. and undoubtedly ought to be gratifying to me. I have also, I am sure, to thank his Majesty chiefly for the arrangements which have been projected in my favour.
" I may be useful at this important crisis, for Ministers must tack about, and many think that the Constitutional- ists will in several instances be guided by my advice. . . .
" I received Sir F. Head, of course, in a way that gave him every reason to be satisfied, and furnished him with such an outline of the carte du 'pays as I judged
274 LOWER CANADA. [Cn. XVIII.
would be of service to him in mounting his North American steed."
After visiting Washington and other cities of the United States Colborne reached Montreal on 3Oth June, and next day assumed the command.
As Kingsford writes : " Sir John Colborne was at that time 60 [really 58] years of age, in the height of his reputation. His presence gave confidence to the British population determined to sustain the constitution and to resist the violence of the partisans of the Assembly [of Lower Canada], daily increasing in virulence. It was equally welcome to those French-Canadians who disapproved the refusal by Mr. Papineau of all compromise, and driven to the choice of sustaining his pretensions or siding with the Government, declared themselves supporters of British connexion. It is no exaggeration to say that the moral influence of the presence of Sir John Colborne was equal to that of the arrival of 10,000 disciplined troops, and it will be seen that his senti- ments of mercy and conciliation were fully equal to his courage and conduct in the field. . . . The epitaph of his career in Canada is written in the acts he performed."*
Sir H. Taylor, in a letter from Windsor Castle of 25th October, 1836, bearing the Royal sign manual, conveyed to Sir John Colborne by the King's command the insignia of the Grand Cross of the Guelphic Order. In a private letter of the same time he stated that the King " has uniformly supported you, and manifested his favourable
* Kingsford, X., pp. 3, 4.
1836.] THE G. C. H. 275
opinions and approbation of your conduct." He added :
" I have always agreed with you in condemning the sacrifice of those who are placed in high and responsible situations abroad, and who discharge their duty honestly, zealously and correctly, to popular clamour, prejudice and the encouragement which both receive from a certain party at home. . . . You stand in a proud situation, and I suspect that you do not regret a change which has relieved you from the necessity of engaging in endless controversy, and has again returned your duties to that of a profession which is happily free from the tracasseries which attach to civil employ. . . . Before your letter reached me I had received one from Sir Francis Head, in which he men- tioned, in terms of the warmest acknowledgment, the kind and liberal manner in which you received and acted towards him. I read your letter to the King, and I showed it to our friend, Lord Fitzroy Somerset, but it was not com- municated to any other person."
Lady Colborne, in communicating the above to her brother, Mr. John Yonge, of Puslinch, spoke of the general pleasure with which Sir John's assumption of the command was received in Canada, and added:
" The letters gratify him as much or more than the order itself. I cannot but deeply share his gratification, because I know the spirit in which these distinctions are received ; they do not puff up with worldly pride, but are received with humility and gratitude as honourable testimony of the King's approval of his having always strived to do his duty. . . .
"... Sir John is so well, and never now takes the slightest cold, and I am sure for two years before he was always appearing to have one ; he was renewing it every week at least. He has gained very much in appearance. Indeed, he is as well as it is possible to be, except a little
276 LOWER CANADA. [Cn. XVIII.
expectoration almost without cough, and a feeling of weak- ness in the chest if he talks much or is harassed at all in mind"
Colborne became Commander of the Forces at a critical period in the history of Canada. The constitutional strife which we have seen going on in Upper Canada had raged still more violently in the Lower Province, where three-quarters of the popu- lation were of French origin, and the conciliatory policy pursued by the Governor-General, Lord Gosford, had been utterly ineffectual. Since October, 1832, the Assembly had refused to vote any provision for the expenses of the administration, and by April, 1837, tne sum °f ,£142,160 145. 6d. was due. The reforming party, under the leader- ship of Mr. Papineau, a French-Canadian of extraordinary personal ascendency, clamoured for an elective legislative council, while the more hot- headed members, Papineau included, secretly desired a Canadian Republic in place of British con- nexion. The British House of Commons decided in April, 1837, that it was inexpedient to make the legislative council an elective and responsible body, although its constitution might be improved. It also passed the following " 8th Resolution " : " That for paying the arrears due for the charges for the administration and the civil service, the Governor- General be empowered to issue from the revenues in the hands of the Receiver-General the sums necessary for the payment of the before-mentioned sum of ,£142,160 145. 6d."
In consequence of the policy adopted by the House of Commons violent meetings were held in
1837.] ACTION OF THE HOME GOVERNMENT. 277
Canada to protest against the right of the Parliament of England to legislate for the internal affairs of the colony. These demonstrations were met by counter-demonstrations of the British minority, who saw in the proposal to make the legislative council elective the threatened extinction of their political existence.
Colborne expressed his views in the following letters to his brother-in-law, the Reverend John Yonge :
" Quebec,
"22nd May, 1837.
" I have almost determined to return to England next summer if affairs in the Province will admit of my giving up my command consistently. Ministers have brought forward a most arbitrary measure under the plea of neces- sity, and thus strengthened the case of the Radical faction without diminishing their power of embarrassing the general and local government. ... I have no doubt that the Province will be in a perpetual state of excite- ment if the eighth resolution of Lord J. Russell's should be carried without other measures to aid the local govern- ment.
" I mean to sound my friends at home as to the pro- bability of my being able to obtain the government of the Ionian Islands. If I should be employed in another climate it will be much better for me to get to my new station next year than to remain in Canada till I am quite an old gentleman."
Writing a few weeks later, " Quebec, 5th June," he says that he thinks embarrassments are becoming greater as the measures of government are developed :
" The eighth resolution, of seizing money which does not belong to us, must produce further coercion on the
278 LOWER CANADA. [Cn. XVIII.
part of Ministers. At least, if Papineau retains his influence, . . . Lower Canada will, in fact, have no legislature. I have received instructions to send for a reinforcement from Nova Scotia, should it be found neces- sary to place our grand army in position. This proves a little suspicion at home that resistance may be offered on the part of the oppressed. I, however, have not the least apprehension of that sort, but I think that the party will continue to agitate, and will be quite satisfied to keep the question of oppression, and the necessity of a change in the constitution, alive from session to session, for the benefit of Mr. Roebuck* and his men. We have our head- quarters here for a few weeks, and make a very pretty display with three regiments and the corps of artillery on the Plains of Abraham on our field days. I believe this exercise has done the regiments some good, and created a sufficient military excitement to prevent us all from living the lives of country gentlemen."
" Quebec,
"i 3th July, 1837.
" My dear Yonge, — In case you should be alarmed at the newspaper reports of our proceedings in this Pro- vince during the progress of the Coercion Bill, I desired Elizabeth to state the actual position of affairs. You may remain quite assured that all the uproar will go off in the steam of the House of Assembly. Mr. Papineau has been lately, with some of his adherents, on a tour of agitation, more with a view of preparing the inhabitants for the next general election than with any expectation that the people would stir for him beyond giving their votes. In some counties the meetings were got up with banners and the resolutions agreed to were of a very seditious char- acter, but I am persuaded the whole proceedings are intended for Mr. Roebuck and Mr. Hume, and that they will produce little effect here. Lord Gosford has sent for
* Mr. Roebuck was a paid agent of the reforming paper in Canada.
1837.] THE REVOLUTIONISTS. 279
a regiment from Halifax in great haste ; a measure which will cause unnecessary alarm, and probably give some advantage to the Radicals. We have quite enough force in the Province for any duty which the military will have to perform. At the general election there may be a dis- turbance at Montreal, where the parties are much excited, but beyond an election riot no act of resistance to the civil power need be apprehended. . . .
" The Parliament of the Province is to meet next month. The resolutions are to be notified, and if the House of Assembly does not behave like good boys and vote the supplies, then the arbitrary Imperial Act is to go into operation. This timidity on the part of the Home Govern- ment is quite absurd, and will only give the House of Assembly another opportunity of abusing the Government and rejecting their offers.
" Lord Gosford and myself are not likely to agree. We have already had some skirmishing.
" \Ve go to Sorel on Monday next. — Yours very sincerely,
"J. COLBORNE."
The reform party now adopted the plan of refusing to buy British manufactures and even to resort to British judges, and in the session of August, 1837, persisted in their refusal of supplies. On the 26th August the Assembly of Lower Canada was dissolved. It never met again.
Later in the autumn a republican association, called " Les fits de liberte" was founded, and issued a bold manifesto.
Kingsford* quotes a letter written by Sir John Colborne on 6th October, at Sorel, whither he had moved from Quebec to be near the scene of any active movement. After describing the disloyal
*X.,p.3i.
280 LOWER CANADA. [Cn. XVIII.
scenes which were being enacted on all sides, it concludes :
" The game which Mr. Papineau is playing cannot be mistaken, and we must be prepared to expect that if 400 or 500 persons be allowed to parade the streets of Mon- treal at night, singing revolutionary songs, the excited parties will come into collision."
Nor was he content with words. " At once assuming a heavy responsibility he directed the fortifications of Quebec to be repaired and thoroughly armed, ordered horses to be purchased for the artillery, magazines of provisions and ammunition to be established, barracks to be built, and new corps of loyal men to be raised. He sent for troops from Upper Canada and New Brunswick, and concentrated the small force he had in hand at Montreal as the chief -point d'appui of his operations."*
Lord Gosford continued to temporize and declined the repeated offer of a royalist rifle corps, but the British and Irish saw more clearly the necessity for action and founded a powerful society called the " Doric Club." On the 6th November this club and the " Sons of Liberty " came into collision at Montreal, the victory remaining with the loyalists, who then wrecked the office of a revolutionary newspaper.
Mr. W. Henry writes that at this time he was on a professional visit to the family of Sir John Colborne at Sorel, and for several days that he remained hourly reports of a general insurrection about to break out were brought. " Nelson at this
* W. Henry, II., p. 280.
1837.] A RIOT. 281
time was fortifying his house at St. Denis. We had constant intelligence of his proceedings as well as what was going on in other quarters, and Sir John only awaited his staff coming up from Quebec to move to Montreal. When the despatch was brought containing the news of the riot, he came into the drawing-room with the letter in his hand, exclaiming, 1 Well, thank God there's no bloodshed, though the fight's begun. I must be off by to-night's boat.' '
On the 9th November Sir John Colborne estab- lished himself at Montreal, and from that date, owing to his influence on affairs, more energy was shown by the executive. On the I4th November Lord Gosford asked the Home Government to relieve him of his office.
The following letter from Lady Colborne describes the situation at this moment :
" Montreal,
" 1 3th November, [183;].
" The whole country certainly has, to the surprise of everyone, apparently changed its nature in the short space of the last fortnight, and become interested in a revolution, by the chief agitators having promised them to do away with the signorial rights and give them the deeds of their lands and abolish tithes. The Quebec district at present remains quiet, but the whole of that of Montreal and all the counties on the Richelieu, TAcadie, &c, are so far in a state of revolt, that parties of 200 and 300 go about intimidating the loyal inhabitants and obliging them to give up their offices and join them. One poor magistrate or other officer was even put into a well and soused before he would, but at length, to save his life, did so. Their ultimate object, as it was decidedly believed by those who fear more than they understand, was to unite, and in great force, as far as numbers go, to attempt to do
282 LOWER CANADA. [Cn. XVIII.
great things. Undoubtedly the supineness of Lord Gos- ford in putting a stop, whilst he had it in his power, to treasonable practices, which have been going on for months, has given them unbounded encouragement, but he has latterly been roused and frightened into a late com- pliance with good advice, and Sir John has in the last month worked so hard to be prepared in every way, that he has altogether not the slightest fear of anything occurring through the winter beyond petty annoyances and burnings, &c, in the country. An affray took place in this town about a week before we arrived, between the ' Sons of Liberty/ as they style themselves, and ' The Doric Club ' which is a band of a number of the loyal members who have for some time been organizing among themselves to act for defence on any emergency. The ' Sons of Liberty ' met in defiance of a proclamation issued that morning from Government, and therefore the Dorics turned out too. Hard blows passed, but happily not a life was lost, and the Sons were glad to retreat in quick time when the military were all out and ready to com- mence. Papineau took care to keep within his house but got all his windows broken, and they destroyed also the Radical press of the Vindicator. Since then everything has been perfectly quiet, and I firmly believe the whole party little expected such vigorous exertions in the military way as they now see Sir John has made, and is making, and begin to tremble and wish to retrograde a little.
" It does, indeed, seem providential that not a week more passed before Sir John became so fully aware of the rapidity with which disaffection was proceeding, and as astonishing, the rapidity with which every vulnerable point has been strengthened, and he seems now to want nothing to be perfectly comfortable but the arrival of the regiments he sent off express for to Sir Colin Campbell, and which he hopes may arrive in a week. This, by strengthening Montreal, will enable him to give more assistance to the country, which he will not do at the slightest risk to Montreal, that being the main point.
IS37-] THE EVE OF AN OUTBREAK. 283
" They are beginning to quarrel a little with Papineau, and to threaten to place our neighbour, Dr. Nelson, about 2O miles from Sorel, at their head. Arrests at length are to be made, most reluctantly extracted from Lord Gos- ford, and it is to be hoped a few of the leading characters will soon be safe in custody, which some think will go very far towards crushing the whole thing. The Attorney- General has been loudly called out on for not properly exerting himself, but he says he cannot act as Lieutenant- Governor, and that he does all the Governor will com- mission him to do. ... Every public officer seems fearful of going the length he ought from fear of not being supported by the local government and probably given over to the tender mercies of a Canadian jury for their pains.
" Sir John, however, seems to put life (I should only write this to you) into them all, and the effect of his pre- sence here shows itself visibly. He had everything pre- pared to support the civil power on Sunday last if the same drilling of hundreds took place which had gone on for many previous ones, but not a man appeared.
" Sir John has brought all the military from Upper Canada, and Sir F. Head is glad to let them go, and thinks the effect will be good, to show how quiet that Province is. Then Sir John has enlisted all the pensioners settled in the Province. You would laugh to see how happy the old boys seem to be in the return to their old trade. Fifty offered to-day alone, and one from the 52nd said, ' The last battle he fought was under Sir John, and he hoped the next would be.' He has stirred up Lord Gos- ford to arm the Constitutionalists, and he has already nearly ready 100 sleighs, each carrying 15 men, because the Canadians boast how much better they can travel in the winter than soldiers, and snow-shoes have been made for all the troops. Sir John's object has been, and he thinks he has, or shall have, quite effected it, to be so thoroughly prepared for anything they can think of, that people shall not only be perfectly secure, but feel themselves to be so.
284 LOWER CANADA. [Cn. XVIIL
" Francis is put in orders as aide-de-camp, and will join us immediately. He has now been in the army more than a year. He will have much to do in the writing way, and Sir John says he will have plenty for James, too. As his regiment [the 24th] is arrived to-day at Montreal, he can still be acting with it.
" Sir John and I came here on the loth. I flatter myself that no housemaids could have worked harder than Cor- delia and I have since we came. Now all is ready, and I trust we shall all be together again to-morrow. It is no joke having to move all our furniture from Quebec and Sorel, but our house is very comfortable.
" My mother would have enjoyed our trip on the river. It was our first day's snow, and all looked dismal at leav- ing pretty, happy Sorel, with all the party in it. Just after we sailed I complained of the fire being so bad and the cabin so cold, when I was told the captain would not allow more, because there was so much gunpowder on board, and close to the ladies' cabin. Of course I was well satisfied to remain cold.
" I feel certain that by the time this reaches you all will be better. A most respectable man from one of the news- papers told Sir John this morning that, violent as things were, a little determination such as was now going on would quickly bring them to their senses. They are a peaceable and quiet race, and have literally been coaxed into this state.
" So little had warfare been expected in this Province that Sir John, when first we came from Upper Canada, found all military concerns were out of order, and now finds the advantage of all that he then did, anticipating that things in time would come to this pass if such a course of policy continued to be pursued by the Home Govern- ment. When last spring they came to try to shut the Quebec gates, which had not been closed for years, they would not move, and it cost nearly £100 to make them do so.
" Sir John wrote to Lord Gosford and told him, if he did
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1837.] MILITARY MEASURES. 285
not do so and so, the Province would be lest to England. He took it well, and is so frightened that he does now seem inclined to follow advice. Of course this to yourselves."
Various officers of militia having been intimidated into resigning their commissions, Colborne issued an order on i6th November that these resignations were void, and that such officers should be still con- sidered as holding their commissions. Colborne's influence was felt throughout the Province and the spirits of the loyal rose higher.
Warrants had been issued on the i6th for the arrest of the principal leaders of the movement of sedition, but two of them, Damaray and Davignon, after being arrested were forcibly rescued and the revolutionary party gained new courage.
It now became known to the authorities that large numbers of the neighbouring habitants were collected at Saint Denis and at Saint Charles, beyond the Richelieu Riven It was determined that Colonel Wetherall should advance by Ch^mbly, and that Colonel Gore, leaving Sorel, should first proceed to St. Denis, and after having dispersed the assemblage there, join Wetherall at St. Charles, six miles to the south. At St. Denis Gore failed in his attack on a house occupied by insurgents under Dr. Nelson, and retired without success to Sorel.
Papineau, who had been with Nelson the day before, on the news of Gore's approach, fled to the United States. At St. Denis, on the 23rd, Lieutenant Weir, 32nd, who had been sent with despatches, was captured on his return and after- wards killed. Colonel Wetherall successfully attacked the rebels in an entrenched position at St.
286 LOWER CANADA. [Cn. XVIII.
Charles on the 25th, and with the fall of St. Denis, on ist December, the rebellion in the Richelieu counties terminated.
From Lady Colborne. " Montreal,
"29th November, 1837.
" Assure yourselves that Montreal is and will be safe. Had it been left as unquestionably it would have been but for Sir John's foresight and firmness and energy, there is no knowing what might not have happened.
" The chiefs of all this desperate mischief, as Papineau, Wolford Nelson and their ' General ' Brown, to about the number of seven, after escaping the writs of arrest out against them, collected and entrenched themselves in the villages of St. Denis, 16 miles from poor dear Sorel, and St. Charles, 9 miles further on the same road ; collected a very large force of armed men, and actively made that whole line of country on the Richelieu in a complete state of open revolt Sir John determined to aid the magistrates in seizing them, and secretly arranged everything for an attack — part of the 24th and 66th Regiments, with one gun, all under the command of Colonel Gore, to march by Sorel, and the Royal Regiment under Colonel Wetherall, and two guns, round by Chambly. Colonel Gore was to attack St. Denis, which would, it was thought, not detain him an hour, take the arms believed to be hoarded there, and join Colonel Wetherall at St. Charles, the stronghold, a? they thought, of the rebels. Oh, such a night as the 22nd proved! Most tremendous rain, &c. It was im- possible for us to sleep and know what was going on. Colonel Gore arrived at St. Denis the next morning, after such a march as had exhausted his men, and to their surprise, instead of being able to knock down the house in five minutes, they stood an action of two and a half hours, and then were obliged to retreat with the loss of their gun, 8 killed and 8 wounded, including a Captain Markham, of the 32nd, who received four balls. When he found they were about to retire, he contrived not to be
1837-] ST. DENIS AND ST. CHARLES. 287
left, and an officer and sergeant most nobly dashed into the house where he was, under a heavy fire, and dragged him out Poor man, he received another wound as they took him away, and so did the sergeant.
" The report of all this reached us long before anything official, and you cannot imagine the anxiety, knowing them all, and the fear they might not get back safe. I shall never forget the relief of hearing on Friday night Colonel Gore's voice on our stairs, and to hear that they were all safe.
" Then came the dreadful anxiety for poor Colonel Wetherall, who might have shared the same fate ; but happily, he prudently thought, the weather being so dreadful, it would be useless to attack with exhausted men — waited — and through having heard of Colonel Gore's repulse, was a little doubtful about doing it without a chance of his assistance — did attack, and completely routed the place, and the good that it is believed to have done is immense in opening the eyes of the poor, deluded people, who are led on, they know not to what, by a few ambitious, wicked chiefs, who leave them the instant things go badly. They all took refuge in St. Denis the moment St. Charles was attacked, except one, the proprietor of one of the most Radical papers, who was killed, and 120 besides. Only two of the Royal Regiment were killed.
" A most melancholy occurrence took place in the cap- ture, by treachery, of a young officer of the 32nd, Mr. Weir, and there is, I fear, no doubt now that he has since been killed for trying to make his escape.
" Colonel Wetherall will return to-morrow. Everyone is enthusiastic and overjoyed at his success. Another and stronger expedition is going off to-morrow, I believe against St. Denis. If successful, the whole line of country is reclaimed, aad our communication with the States for provisions, post, &c."
"[? ist December.] " You will rejoice to hear that things appear to go well.
288 LOWER CANADA. [Cn. XVIII.
The expressions of loyalty are thickening on most sides, and the demands for arms for volunteer corps, &c., are highly satisfactory to Sir John. So are his accounts of the expedition sent a second time against St. Denis in stronger force. An express arrived about an hour since saying Colonel Gore had taken possession of it, burnt all the houses that opposed him the former time, was just going to destroy all Nelson's property, had recovered the gun they lost before and their wounded soldiers. They also sent here two principal traitors, though, alas! not Papineau, Nelson or Brown. They fled on the approach of the troops. Papineau told the inhabitants he should go to the States, and promised them to return soon with an army of 10,000 men, and they believe it, I dare say.
" Sir John says he hopes to have the country quiet in a month ; they are all so cowed by what has passed. What would you have felt at the sight that passed before our house on Tuesday last : the victorious regiment (Royals) on its return from St Charles with the cavalry, &c, bring- ing their spoils with them, a high pole with the cap of liberty, a placard or standard dedicated to Papineau, two guns and 32 prisoners?
" The victors looked sadly worn with their hard three days' work and the fate of poor Mr. Weir, of the 32nd, who has certainly been murdered since they took him, but they were most enthusiastically received here.
" Two poor women were standing close to our gate when all the cheering was going on. One presently saw the soldier she was looking for, who just stepped aside and shook both her hands. The other seemed to eye every- one with intense anxiety, but all passed on without her finding him ; she then threw her apron over her head and went off, as it seemed, in despair. Poor things, what misery there is in the country, and what have not rebel chiefs to answer for!
" Do not allow yourself to be uneasy about us personally. I am quite convinced that Montreal this winter is as safe as Yealmpton.
1837.] RISING AT ST. EUSTACHE. 289
" One soldier took General Brown's coat with two epaulettes. One of our servants knew him well when he kept a store in Montreal. He is an American. Wolford Nelson is a doctor, and often used to come to Sorel village.
" Many things occur to make one laugh. Just now our washerwoman came to hope we would not be angry if she lost our clothes, for ' if the town was attacked she was sure she should be too frightened and hurried to pick them all up/ and she had slept in her clothes and burnt a light for two nights to be as ready as she could. All the poor people are in a state of horrible alarm, for they think that if such preparations are necessary they cannot be safe, instead of feeling safe in consequence. A servant who came to offer the day after I came here and was to call in two or three days for her answer, only came to-day and said she had never left her room, she was so afraid of going into the streets.
" We are all well, Sir John bearing all fatigue, &c., better than I expected."
But the news of Gore's repulse at St. Denis had a result in an insurrection in St. Eustache, a village in the county of the Two Mountains. This move- ment was headed by a Swiss named Girod and a Dr. Chenier, who on ist December seized the convent and established themselves there with a three-pounder gun. On the I3th December Sir John Colborne in person marched from Montreal to attack the stronghold. He had delayed his departure till he could take the field with a force prepared to meet the formidable numbers of desperate men who he had been led to believe were in arms. The real numbers of the rebels were about 800, while Sir John Colborne's force of 2,000 men, with artillery, was equal to meeting twenty times as many. On the I4th the troops crossed the
L
290 LOWER CANADA. [Cn. XVIII.
River of a Thousand Islands and entered the village of St. Eustache, where the insurgents under Chenier occupied the church, the convent, the presbytery, and an adjacent house. .When the attack com- menced only about 250 insurgents had stayed to receive it. Girod had himself fled. In an hour the insurgents were driven from their position, some seventy of them, including Chenier, being killed, and the village was in flames.
The British troops next morning marched against St. Benoit. Before they started Sir John Colborne had sent a message demanding that the arms of the insurgents there should be given up, and threatening that, if a single shot were fired from the village, it would be abandoned to fire and pillage. No opposition was encountered, but owing to the rage of the loyal population the village was set on fire and for the most part consumed, in spite of all efforts to save it.
On 1 6th December the column returned to Montreal, where — as on its march — it was received with great enthusiasm. The British authorities did not relax their measures of defence and Montreal became a large camp. But the strength of the rebels had been exaggerated. They had formed but an insignificant part of the French-Canadian population, and their effort was now at an end.
Hardly so much was known when Lady Colborne wrote the following letter after the return from St. Benoit:
" Montreal,
" 1 8th December.
" How happy it will make you, my dearest mother,
1 837.] BURNING OF ST. BENOIT. 291
to hear that my dear husband and Francis and all are returned, not only safe and sound, but the former, I really think, better both in health and spirits than when he set off, He had been so completely shut up, and so over- whelmed with writing, talking and thinking, that the being so long in the open air with such a change of employment, and the relief it is to him to feel that the revolt is almost entirely put down, and the prosperous way things are now going on in the Upper Province, seems quite to have cured cough and anything, and I shall only now have to fatten him a little. It was quite astonishing, no, not astonishing, but lamentable to me, to find how much flesh he had lost since we left the happy, and as we then felt, quiet, Sorel.
" He returned with his staff on Saturday, having gone with the whole force on from St. Eustache to the Grand Brule or St. Bennet, where they were received by the whole of the inhabitants who remained in the place (numbers, with the chief, having fled to St. Scolastique) with white flags and their arms on the ground, as well as on their knees. They stayed there Friday night, the staff with Sir John in the house of the chief, first taking good care to see that they had not filled their cellar with gun- powder. The houses of the principal rebels were ordered to be fired in the morning, but happily, as everyone thinks (for Sir John would not order it), partly by accident, and partly by indignation of the volunteers, the whole was in a blaze so rapidly, the wind being- high, that they had some difficulty in escaping — the smoke so thick and the fires bursting out on every side, they were afraid they should not get their horses on, and they could not go back.
" Part of the forces returned yesterday with 1 20 prisoners ; the remainder proceeded on to St. Scolastique, where 1,000 collected with white flags and 'vehement cheering for the Queen.' I suppose it shared the same fate as St. Bennet
" Poor Sir John ! I cannot fancy anyone placed in a more difficult, arduous and responsible situation. What a
L 2
292 . LOWER CANADA. [Cn. XVIII
blessing it is to feel that he is a true Christian and will act according to his conscience without attending to the violence of parties. However he may be blamecTat present by those whose revenge, I do think, would almost lead them, in their present excited state, to torture every prisoner to death, all will acknowledge in the end that his judgment, as it has always proved, is best. Martial law puts everything in his power, and I do believe everyone almost was hoping to see the place deluged with the blood of the wretched criminals. Not one has yet been sacri- ficed. All of whom it could be at all proved they had been forced to take up arms have been liberated, and after the affair is quite over the State prisoners will have a fair trial by law.
" The petitions from mothers, wives, &c., are heart- rending. I have had while writing to read and have a good cry over a letter from the mother of Bouchette, who was taken at the affair of Missisquoi, and for whom a reward of £500 was offered Wolford Nelson was reported to be dead yesterday, but he had only taken an immense dose of opium, and is recovered again.
" Poor Francis, in carrying messages as aide-de-camp, had many shots levelled at him. All seemed quiet, and they could hardly tell what houses, &c., were guarded. A Congreve rocket intended for the town wavered in the air over their heads and then fell close to Sir John and the whole staff. Had it burst, as it ought to have done, it must have killed 10 or 12. These things are not to be talked of, you know, for in military affairs they are for ever happening.*
* The rocket is treated from the humorous side by Sir Daniel Lysons, who was present : " A rather amusing incident happened during the fight. I happened to ride up from the ice to report to the General that all the troops were safe over, just as he ordered the Rocket Troop to come into action and fire into the church a heavy rocket, a venerable survivor of the Peninsular War. The Ordnance Department imagined, I believe, that rockets would improve like port wine by keeping: the result was that when it was fired, instead of rising, it fell, and not clearing a wooden fence in front of the troop,
1837.] RETURN TO MONTREAL. 293
" They had delightful weather the whole time, for though very cold, it was bright and beautiful, and moonlight Now it is heavy snow. They were rather alarmed by the ice when the immense weight was on it — one waggon and four horses lost It was half a mile wide where they crossed, and it bent under them, and it was reported that the rebels had cut the sides. It was silly for their own defence that they did not.
" Johnny has just rushed into the room to show me a large white flag with a large black eagle painted on it, and an inscription, ' Free as air/ which a sergeant has brought him home. ' He says he seized it in battle, mama, for me.'
" Four companies of the 24th were all the regular troops we had in Montreal. Sir John has armed 9,000 volunteers in the Province since we first came to Montreal.
" Since I finished my letter, Girod, the leader of St. Eustache, for whom £500 was offered, has shot himself. He was in a wood and saw no chance of escape. Scott, another £500 offered for, has just been taken in Montreal. In Chenier's pocket, after he was killed, was found a plan for attacking the bridge at St. Martin's over which they passed. Sir John had defended it for some days."
broke its long tail short off. The huge head went whirling and twirling, whizzing and fizzing, all over a ploughed field in the most frightful manner. There was a general stampede— Headquarter Staff, Rocket Troop, and all, took flight." Early Reminiscences (1896), p. 88.
( 294 )
CHAPTER XIX.
CANADA, 1838-1839. REBELLION OF 1838. SIR JOHN COLBORNE GOVERNOR-GENERAL.
ON 1 3th January, 1838, it was known in Quebec that Lord Gosford's resignation had been accepted. On the 20th February he gave over his authority to Sir John Colborne as administrator.
Kingsford writes of Lord Gosford : " There are few governors-general with less claim to respect. . . . He had, moreover, the misfortune to act with a weak doctrinaire Colonial Secretary, Lord Glenelg, who had formed theories of government entirely irreconcilable with the circumstances of the situation. Fortunately, as a deus ex machina, Sir John Colborne stepped upon the scene with the courage to act upon his convictions and the capacity to penetrate fact and circumstance. He judged the situation correctly, and was deterred by no timid sense of responsibility in the performance of his duty. He saw that vigour alone could save the province from the anarchy that was threatening it ; he met the crisis in a brave spirit, with unfaltering purpose, and he was equally actuated by mercy; for, to the honour of the British Government, there was not a single death-penalty paid, even by the most active in the rebellion of 1837, when it was believed that the danger was past."*
* X., p. 104.
1838.] ARRIVAL OF LORD DURHAM. 295
At the end of January, 1838, Lord John Russell informed the House of Commons that the Ministry had decided to suspend the constitution of Lower Canada and to send out Lord Durham as special commissioner, with authority, in concert with five of his council, to pass the necessary ordinances. He would further be instructed to summon three mem- bers of the legislative council and ten of the House of Assembly of each Province to confer on the future government of the Province. Lord Durham left England on 24th April.
The Act suspending the constitution reached Lower Canada in February and was proclaimed on 20th March. On the 5th April Sir John Colborne published the names of the special council. On the 1 2th April he directed the militia to be disembodied, and on the 27th he declared the reign of martial law to be at an end. On the 2 9th May Lord Durham landed at Quebec "and assumed his authority.
In spite of a hauteur which made him rather unpopular in some official and social circles, with the great mass of the population he gained at once the respect due to his energy and marked statesman- like qualities. Having appointed a council of his own, of which only one member was a Canadian, he proceeded at once to institute a searching inquiry into the grievances of the country.* The result appeared the following January in that famous
* Lord Durham had Colborne's support in these measures. Colborne wrote on 3Oth June : " With respect to my own communica- tions with his lordship, and to the conversations which I have had with him, they have been entirely satisfactory, and I concur with him in all his views which he has made known to me." Kingsford, X., p. 124.
296 LOWER CANADA. [Cn. XIX.
Report which, by recommending a representative system of government, safeguarded by the union of Upper and Lower Canada, terminated a long period of strife and opened an era of prosperity and content in the colony.
On the 5th June Sir John Colborne arrived at Montreal from Quebec and proceeded on a military tour of inspection to Upper Canada. Everywhere in his old Province he was received with addresses of congratulation. On his departure he was escorted to his steamboat by the whole population. On his return to Montreal (i5th June) the inhabitants presented another address.
Major Richardson writes pleasantly of some meetings with Sir John Colborne about this time :
" Sir John was a frank and courteous old soldier, with an erect and military carriage and an unpre- tendingness that is by no means common to men conscious of being high in the public favour. I was particularly struck with the general expression of his strongly-marked countenance, which greatly resembles that of his Grace the Duke of Wellington. In figure, however, he is much taller. . . .
" Shortly after the arrival of Sir John Colborne in Quebec, and before the departure of Lord Durham for Upper Canada, a review of the troops in garrison, consisting chiefly of the Guards, then recently arrived in the country, took place on the Plains of Abraham. Sir John with a very brilliant staff was present on the ground when I rode up, and it occurred to me that he was viewing with deep admiration the fine body of men drawn up in line whom it had never before been his fortune to have submitted to his
1838.] A REVIEW OF THE TROOPS.
inspection." . . . Major Richardson goes on to relate that, when the review was over, Sir John, riding off the field in advance of the troops, observed him watching them defile into the road. " He immediately left the main body of his staff, and trotting his horse up to me, asked, with an exultation in his manner I had never previously remarked, whether I had ever seen a more splendid body of men or troops who went through their evolutions in a more steady and masterly manner. ... I confess I was at the time somewhat surprised that so old and distinguished a soldier as Sir John Colborne should have asked the opinion of one whom it was a good deal the fashion at that period to affect to slight, but ... I was at no loss to comprehend the delicate compliment which had been paid to me,, or the warm and soldierlike feeling which had drawn it forth. Although the delivery of Sir John was at all times quick and impetuous, his manner, while kind, was reserved ; and therefore the departure on this occasion from his habit conveyed to the troops . . . one of the highest tributes of praise that could have been rendered."*
On the 7th July Lord Durham left Quebec for Montreal and Western Canada. He was joined at Queenston on the i3th by Sir John Colborne, and at Niagara met the Lieutenant-Governor of the Upper Province, Sir George Arthur. After visiting Buffalo Lord Durham and Colborne returned to Niagara, where they held a review of the troops (a squadron of the King's Dragoon Guards, a battery
* Eight Years in Canada (1847), PP- 3^> 40.
298 LOWER CANADA. [Cn. XIX.
of artillery, the 43rd Regiment and a detachment of the 24th) to demonstrate to the hostile party in the United States that the Canadian bank of the river was strongly garrisoned.
After Lord Durham's arrival Sir John Colborne saw an opportunity of resigning his command at a moment of tranquillity.
Sir John's resignation became known in England, where it was attributed to the offence he had taken at some insolent treatment on the part of Lord Durham. This his brother-in-law, Mr. John Yonge, contradicted in various papers.
Lady Colborne wrote on I4th September from Sorel :
" Sir John is generally of opinion that it is much better to let the papers fight out their opinions as they please, and that all will in time find its level. Nor does he wish to have too positively asserted the exact causes of his giving up his command. . . . He by no means desires it should in future be thought he placed full confidence in the future under Lord Durham's administration. He only, as far as it went, and up to the -period of his approving his measures, gave him his hearty concurrence and assistance, but he very soon thought him a person who might bring on the greatest difficulties. But I am happy to tell you he is much obliged for what you did both as to motive and real use.
" He is very glad the extracts [from Sir John's letters] were all before the arrival of Lord Durham.
" If Lord Durham does not stop in time, everything must go wrong — discontent and disgust is gaining ground rapidly. The danger is that, if another revolt took place, so disgusted are the loyal that their exertions would be very difficult to be roused in the same way. The excite- ment occasioned by the getting off of the murderers of Mr.
1838.] NOT ALLOWED TO RESIGN. 299
Weir and Chartrand is immense. Only fancy the im- pudence of the jury, not content with giving, according to form, their verdicts by their foreman, but each roaring out, and then the immense crowd in the town to rejoice on their leaving the prison, and then both jury and prisoners going together and enjoying a public dinner.
" It is said that Lord Durham is becoming more and more disgusted and annoyed with everything, and wishes he had never come. The Attorney-General says, ' Depend on it, his talent is much over-rated. If they would but have left Sir John, all would have gone well, but it is not yet irretrievable, if they would but see it and replace him.' I hope this will never be, and so does Sir John, I am sure. Sir John went yesterday to Montreal to have his favourite review of the troops. I have taken a sergeant into the house at night. Sir John offered me a bugler in case I wanted the whole regiment
" Lord Durham is constantly laid up for days together, and Mr. Buller as bad."
In spite of his resignation of his command Sir John Colborne was destined to stay in Canada for some time longer. Lord Glenelg, writing on the 7th July, gave him reason to expect that his wish would be speedily met, but on the i8th August he expressed to him Her Majesty's desire that he would consent to continue at his post on account of the " inconvenience, and even injury," to which great national interests might be exposed by his retire- ment at that time. He added in a private letter that he and his colleagues looked with alarm at any transfer of the command to other hands at that crisis. " In addition to your well-known military qualifica- tions you enjoy the confidence of all persons in the Provinces to a degree to which it is clear no other could attain. I need not explain to you how much
300 LOWER CANADA. [Cn. XIX.
you enjoy that of the Government." Lord Glenelg's appeal was supported by letters from Lord Hill and Lord Fitzroy Somerset, and Sir John Colborne, with characteristic patriotism, consented to stay.
On the 28th September Lord Durham resigned his office, piqued at the refusal of the home Govern- ment to support an ordinance by which he had banished to Bermuda eight leaders in the late rebellion. The British population was thrown into consternation at the threatened loss of the statesman who seemed born to be the saviour of the country and the seeming indifference of the home Govern- ment to their interests, and the malcontents were emboldened to new efforts.
Lady Colborne wrote about I4th October:
" Sir John goes to Quebec to-night at Lord Durham's request, who leaves it on the 2/th to go through the States and meet our dear ' Inconstant ' on the Delaware River. He tells me, in answer to my inquiry what I shall say to you, ' Oh, tell him we are in a shocking mess here, and that all Lord Durham's fine statement of the peace and heavenly tranquillity which his lordship had been the means of bringing about, and the sort of thing he sets forth is all, so far, humbug, that nothing can restore it until it is finally settled at home how Canada is to be permanently governed/ Lord Durham will make a great effort to turn out the Ministry. I sent you his proclama- tion two days since. Severe remarks are made on it by some, particularly the expressions about the House of Lords.
" We shall go instantly to Montreal when he is clear off and happily have the house, furniture, &c, he was to have occupied, but we would rather have had the berths he has taken from us in the ' Inconstant/
1838.] LORD DURHAM GOES HOME. 301
"We have had Francis' Colonel, Lord Charles Welles- ley, staying two days with us, and like him very much. Quite a plain, charming kind of open character ; much more the sort of person you would say must be a sailor than a soldier and the Duke of Wellington's son. I quite enjoy the example he sets to all young men. He came here even without a servant (not that he intended staying), and even bringing on shore his little portmanteau himself, and saddling his little pony. He was taken prisoner by the patrol the first night he joined, and when he said he was an officer of the I5th, the guard of the I5th, of course, denied it, never having seen him ; so he was sent to the guard-house. He says Sir John is so ridiculously like the Duke, he could at first hardly help laughing, and thought his father was talking to him.
" Sir George Arthur and Mr. Hagerman have spent two days with us. He went to tell Lord Durham he would resign rather than carry his general amnesty into effect in Upper Canada ; so Lord D. has come into his views, and they are to go to Botany Bay — no deaths — 25, I believe. We like him much."
In the middle of October the signs of new disturb- ances were so evident that Sir John Colborne was entrusted with the duty of defending the Province. He called out the volunteers and took steps to defend the frontier. On Lord Durham's departure for England, on ist November, Colborne was once more administrator of the government. A revo- lutionary movement at once began in the counties on the Richelieu River, where, at different spots, large bodies of disaffected habitants assembled with the expectation of being joined by sympathisers from the United States. In an affray between the insurgents and a body of Indians on the 3rd the attempt of the former to seize arms and ammunition
302 LOWER CANADA. [Cn. XIX.
in Caughnawaga was frustrated and 70 of them taken as prisoners to Montreal. On the 4th a panic raged at Montreal, a rising having taken place in the district of the city south of the St. Lawrence.
Sir John Colborne, who was at Sorel, on hearing of the rising on the Richelieu, left on the 3rd for Montreal, where he at once assembled his council and proclaimed martial law.
From Lady Colborne.
" Montreal,
" 6th November.
" So thankful to be arrived here only so exactly in time. Sir John is, thank God, so well, and in good spirits. Oh> if his finger did but ache now, what should we do? 1 trust the vigorous measures so rapidly effected will frighten them from more formidable attempts. I think Lord Durham must now be pretty well convinced that he had not effected all he fancied of Elysian peace and quiet- ness. I am not frightened ; nothing great can be effected, and I am used to -petty horrors. We are all well and all together, safe arrived from Sorel. The cottage had been strongly guarded ; still there was danger, though Sir John was not aware of it."
Four thousand insurgents had assembled at Napierville, 15 miles from the United States boundary, where, on the 4th, Robert Nelson had been proclaimed President of the Canadian Republic. On the 6th they marched into the United States, but not being joined by new adherents, as they had hoped to be, recrossed the frontier on the 7th, when they were attacked by a British force and routed, leaving n dead on the ground.
1838.] THE SECOND REBELLION. 303
Nelson, who had stayed at Napierville, left on the 8th with about 1,000 men and attacked a small British force in a Methodist church at Odelltown. After meeting with a determined resistance the rebels retired, leaving 50 dead.
On the 7th and 8th a column left Montreal under Lieutenant-General Macdonell. It consisted of some squadrons of the King's Dragoon Guards and 7th Hussars, the Grenadier Guards, the i5th, 24th, 1 7th and 73rd Regiments, and two batteries of artillery. On reaching Napierville Macdonell found the insurgents had left en masse. He dis- persed some gatherings at St. Edouard and St. Remi, a little to the west.
An insurgent camp which had been formed near Boucherville, under one Mailhot, broke up on the advance of the 66th Regiment.
Another party of insurgents was dispersed at Beauharnois on the loth by a detachment of the Napierville force under Colonel Carmichael. This was the last act in the revolt in Lower Canada, which collapsed after lasting one week.
Sir John Colborne, on crossing from La Prairie, was received with enthusiasm at Montreal on the I4th, and on the i7th announced that quiet had been re-established. Unfortunately much property had been destroyed owing to the exasperation of the volunteers against the habitants.
From Lady Colborne. " Montreal,
" i;th November, 1838.
" I have found it impossible to write to anyone during the last (almost a) fortnight now of excitement, which, from
304 LOWER CANADA. [Cn. XIX.
various causes, has been to me greater than I think I ever passed ; though thank God not of such great alarm of actual danger as I sometimes felt last winter. I suppose I am more hardened to warfare, for certainly there can be no reasonable doubt that the state of affairs has been infinitely more perilous, and every day proves how much more extensive, much more secret, much more deeply laid, all the plans of the enemy have now been.
" I was surprised to find that in different affairs at least 10,000 men at arms have already been conquered and dis- persed. La Colle, Beauharnois, Napierville, Odelltown, Boucherville and all the country round quieted, but actually that number in arms, without counting the abominable 800 Yankees at Prescott [Upper Canada], who this morning we learn have cost us more lives than all the rest put together, and sadly distressing it is to Sir John, of course, that he was obliged to draw the force from that neighbourhood before it was attacked. Such a reinforce- ment, however, went immediately that not one, it is to be hoped, can escape from the mill where they have now stationed themselves, and from which nothing but heavy artillery can dislodge them.
" Sir John, with all the force he could take with safety to Montreal, was absent from Thursday [8th] to Tuesday [13th], and the fatigue, &c., all went through from the horrible state of the roads, the weather, &c., was very great, but the troops have borne it famously, and Sir John, they all say, seemed to stand it better than almost anyone. He was, however, very glad to lie down when he came home, and I flattered myself he would have some days, at least, of comparative rest, when in less than an hour James comes in, ' Well, Sir, your campaigns are not over so soon as you think ; 800 Americans have landed, and Colonel Gore and Colonel Wetherall are downstairs with the despatches, waiting to see you.' It proved, indeed, an anxious time, and I have seldom seen him so anxious, so thoughtful, so sleepless, till the day before yesterday, when an account came, ' Hard fighting, but I
1838.] THE SECOND REBELLION. 305
think we shall beat them.' As Sir John knew that almost immediately after the troops he instantly dispatched would have arrived, he has been tolerably comfortable. Before, his fear was that they must be coming over in much greater numbers, and, in so disaffected a part of the country, might get a kind of stand. We have lost, I am sorry to say, 45 killed and wounded, two officers killed — the loss much greater on the other side. It is very dreadful to rejoice at such things as we are obliged to now, and I am constantly obliged to recollect what horrors they intended for us when I hear of the misery occasioned by the march of the troops through the rebels' land, and to confine my pity to the poor women and children who fly to the woods and return only to find all destroyed, for it is impossible to prevent it, or to keep proper discipline, except with the regular troops. ' Ordered expressly by Sir John Colborne not to be burnt,' they say is to be seen written in white chalk in all directions, but it is useless. The volunteers w ill revenge themselves in a degree ; but not more, Sir John says, than must be expected, and with nothing of the cruelty that was openly intended, had they been the victors. Major Phillpotts was sent to head the party who were to rescue Beauharnois and poor Mrs. Ellice* and the other prisoners. Fancy her and her sister, after being seven days without taking off her clothes, crammed into a room with 30 or 40 others ; then, when sitting in a corner to be out of the way, if possible, of the bullets which came into the house, not knowing what force was sent, what the firing was, and expecting the rebels would put them to death every minute, to see the door open, and hear Major Phillpotts exclaim, ' I congratulate you, Mrs. Ellice ; all is safe, and you are free.' She gave me the whole account, from the first attack on their house. They were woke from their sleep by such a shout and yell, she says, she never shall forget. Then Mr. Ellice was carried away from them, and they never heard of him again till they saw him after their rescue. He, poor man, passed the whole
* Her husband had been Lord Durham's Private Secretary.
306 LOWER CANADA. [Cn. XIX»
time in the dark, and on the day Napicrville was taken, to which place 400 were carrying him, when they heard of the defeat, they consulted in his hearing whether they should kill him, but finally let him escape, and he arrived here Sunday.
" Prisoners are coming in from arrests and skirmishes every day. We have now between 600 and 700, and the jail cannot hold them. The court-martials must begin directly. My husband decidedly thinks that the worst is past. We are strong enough if all the States were to invade us instead of this vile portion of cut-throats.
" Few persons know or believe the extent of the com- munications Sir John received from Washington and other places. From the confessions of the chiefs, had they not been disturbed and detected sooner than they ex- pected, it would have been bad indeed. I was told yester- day by a person of judgment, it is impossible to calculate to what extent things would have gone had Sir John not arrived here the very day he did and proclaimed martial law that day"
" 1 8th November.
" I must give you the good news just arrived from Pres- cott. As soon as the heavy artillery, iS-pounders, could be procured from Kingston, the 83rd, commanded by Colonel Dundas, and the armed steamboat by Captain vSandom recommenced the attack, I told you was sus^ pended, on the Americans, who had taken up a very strong position in a windmill and adjacent houses. They bore the second battering for more than an hour, but then surrendered. About 100 prisoners, 16 wounded, six pieces of cannon, quantity of powder, &c. Two or three hun- dred had contrived, in the nights previously, to make their escape, and amongst them their leader, a Pole — but fortu- nately he has been taken. I trust this example will make the Yankees more careful how they pay us another visit
" I believe I told you of all the combustibles, &c., found on board the ' Princess Victoria ' steamboat, which was the
1838.] COURTS-MARTIAL. 307
only one for some days communicating between Montreal and La Prairie, and conveying all our troops backwards and forwards ; a man also secreted. It has now been discovered that she in flames was the appointed signal for their great rising, &c., to commence. One of their chief plots was to take possession of all the boats, and one or two have always been suspected as to captain and crew. So Sir John took quickly possession of them and put strong guards on board.
" Despatches have this day arrived. The Queen thanks Sir John for consenting to remain.
" The courts-martial commence trying the 700 prisoners here to-morrow. How I wish it was all over. They all pass close to our windows. It is curious and most melancholy to witness the different expression of their countenances."
What was to be done with the rebels who had been taken prisoners ? Lord Glenelg had suggested the constitution of a tribunal for cases of treason and murder. Colborne thought this impracticable, and his special council decided that the prisoners should be tried by courts-martial. The court was convened on the 28th November.
From Lady Colborne.
" Montreal,
" roth December.
" With the first dozen only yet tried, four are sentenced to be hung, six transported, and two acquitted. This is not yet publicly known. I know my dear good husband will and must feel all this to be particularly trying, as all have very good characters up to the time they meddled in politics, and almost all with families. Still, as you will see by the Herald, nothing can satisfy the #//ra-British party and with one party he must be content to be stig- matized as a tyrant, with the other as shamefully lenient
308 LOWER CANADA. [Cn. XIX.
i am sure he feels as a Christian should, with much more inclination to be too lenient.
" He has at last suspended [8th December] the refrac- tory judges Bedard and Panet,* and a fine fuss he says it will make in England. The Council and all the judges are unanimous in approving what he has done.
" All the confessions make it clear that that Sunday night [4th November] the whole country was to rise. The first arrests at St. John's threw a panic over them. But I little, at the time, thought of what importance Sir John's arrival was that Saturday night.
" We are not alarmed in the least now, except for the future state of the Provinces, and I trust that we shall be out of it before another winter. I do not think anything should now induce Sir John to remain much longer."
" Montreal,
" ;th January.
" The very morning before your letter came I had a good laugh at Sir John saying how much he should like to be a gardener in Devonshire, and to have me for his weeding-woman !
" I hope you saw the Yankee resolution at a public meeting that The Despot Colborne had filled up the measure of his own and his country's iniquity, and deserved, &c. The court-martials are going on. Two or three more must suffer; but in spite of the Herald, who calls him ' weak/ &c., &c, Sir John hopes that may suffice. Sir George [Arthur] takes life for life, but then they are Americans.
" Nothing would make those who were hanged here believe that Sir John would dare to execute the sentence ; the change in the behaviour of the prisoners has been great since. They now get frightened after the first day of their trial at the solemnity of the court, and the caution
* See Kingsford, X., pp. 188 — 191. Kingsford supports Colborne in this action.
1838.] APPOINTED GOVERNOR-GENERAL. 309
and care shown towards them, and instead of laughing and bravado they become humble and apparently grateful."
The following letter announces Sir John Colborne's receipt of his commission as Governor-General. The appointment had been gazetted on I4th December:
From Lady Colborne.
" Montreal,
" 1 5th January.
" I must first notice all the great tin cases that have arrived with the different commissions for all the different provinces, constituting Sir John Governor-General. Lord Glenelg might have been amused at Sir John's first exclamation on the arrival of the news, ' Oh, well, at all events, it gives us a frigate to go home in.' For our chil- dren's sake, we ought to rejoice that they will have proofs, in the honours conferred on him, that their father was one worthy of their highest admiration and imitation ; nor would I pretend to say we do not feel gratified by the appointment as well as by the way, for Lord Glenelg expresses much from the Queen, as well as the sub- stantial addition that the commission is sent free of ex- pense. It is usual for the Governors to pay £500 for it, and Sir James Kempt never took his out rather than have that to pay.
" I shall be most thankful when these dreadful courts- martial are over, for little as their results satisfy the horrible Herald, who now declares Sir John to be under ' petticoat government/ from his ' weakness and timidity,' they will, even confining themselves to the narrowest limits, have still many more examples to make. Five are almost immediately to be executed, four of these, horrible murderers, and one leader of the rebellion.
" Is there any chance of Lord Durham becoming for- midable as leader of a decided Radical party ? I cannot
3IO LOWER CANADA. [€H. XIX.
but think after all he is too conscientious to take any steps he really thinks bad for the country to gratify his own wounded pride. The worst is, he acts too much from the impulse of feeling, and (perhaps) regrets too late."
Kingsford tells a touching story in connection with the execution of one of the prisoners, Duquette. A Vermont merchant who knew the prisoner, and thought that, being only 1 8, he could not have been involved in anything very serious, determined to plead for him to the Governor-General. He hired horses and travelled with all speed to Montreal, where he told his story to Sir John Colborne. Sir John was deeply affected, tears rolled down his cheeks, and he sobbed out, " My God, you are too late. That young man was executed yesterday."*
And Major Richardson gives similar testimony to Sir John's reluctance to shed blood :
" His enemies have accused him of being blood- thirsty and crueL Never was there a more unjust or ungrounded charge. . . . Even where his own impartial judgment has pointed out to him that mercy were a compromise of duty, more than one life which had been forfeited to the Crown has he restored to the entreaties of a despairing family."t
Canon Anderson, of the Cathedral, Montreal, told Lady Montgomery- Moore the following story of this time, which he had had from Sir John Colborne's Adjutant-General, Colonel Eden. On the morning when an execution was to take place, Colonel Eden called to see Sir John on business connected with it, and was told to go upstairs to his
* Kingsford, X., pp. 186, 187. f Eight Years in Canada, p. 64.
1839-] CHOICE OF A COAT-OF-ARMS. 311
study. The door was ajar, and thinking Sir John was not there, he entered. He saw him kneeling. "Anderson," Colonel Eden said, " I saw that good man on his knees, so rapt in prayer that he did not even hear me, and I went back and burst into tears, it so touched me."
Lord Durham's report was laid before Parliament on the 3ist January, and on the 3rd May a royal message recommended the union of Upper and Lower Canada. This, however, did not become law till the following year.
Lady Colborne wrote to her brother, " Montreal, 1 3th May," thanking him for the trouble he had taken about Sir John's coat-of-arms. She says:
" I always liked the idea of a 52nd [soldier] and an Indian, or rather, a backwoodsman ; that is, an emigrant with an axe.* Sir John says, with regard to the fees, ' Well, if that is not paying for a fool's cap, I don't know what is.'
" There is to be a very grand review on the Queen's birthday. It will be a finer sight than they have ever had ; between 5,000 and 6,000 men. We must have a ball in the evening. Sir John has had intimation of a ship coming for [the political convicts], so I hope soon our jail will be emptied and the gallows down. I do so hate passing it, almost within reach of one's hand, in one of our best drives.
" I cannot think there is any chance of anything definitive settled on for Canada in time for Sir John to leave the country this summer. I do not, indeed, think that, having seen through so much of it, he would like to
* Sir John Colborne eventually chose as his supporters a soldier of the 52nd and an American Indian. Sir John Moore in 1804 had chosen a soldier of the 52nd and one of the o,2nd Highlanders (two soldiers of that regiment having saved his life in 1799 at Egmont-op- Zee). Sir Harry Smith in 1846 chose a soldier of the 52nd and one of the 95th (his own regiment).
312 LOWER CANADA. [Cn. XIX.
relinquish his post till some entire change precluded his continuing. He would then, with pleasure, resign all into the hands of whatever great man may come out. Though I am sure we ought not to be discontented whilst he is so very well, so constant in his exercise, good appetite, good sleeping, excellent spirits. It is quite a mercy that being obliged to see so much company, he is one seldom to be annoyed by it. Indeed, it seems to me he enjoys it, unless he happens to get two stiff ladies each side of him, and even the evening parties which we have about once a fort- night, with the bands of the different regiments, he seems to like as well as the others. The great drawback here is the impossibility of saving much."
The following letter, written by Sir John Colborne early in August to the new Colonial Secretary, Lord Normanby, is a reply to a notification that the Government proposed to supersede him as Governor-General, but desired to retain his services as Commander of the Forces. As will be seen, this appeared to Sir John a preposterous and impossible demand :
" I have received your lordship's letter, and hasten to assure you that I am prepared to receive Lord [Dun- fermline], and to render him all the assistance in my power. Were it possible that I could remain in this country with advantage to the public, and with credit and satisfaction to myself in descending from the high office I at present hold in this colony, there is no civil governor that could have been selected with whom I should act with greater pleasure than Lord [Dunfermline] or with a fairer prospect of our relative duties being carried on agreeably, from my long friendship and acquaintance with several members of his family.* But I am persuaded that, on
* James Abercromby, third son of Sir Ralph, was Speaker of the House of Commons, 1835 — May, 1839. On his retirement he was created Baron Dunfermline.
1839-] RECALLED. 313
reflecting on the prominent part which I have taken in the affairs of Canada, under circumstances most distressing and extraordinary, your lordship will concur with me in thinking that a request from Her Majesty's Government that I should remain in that country after the arrival of my suc- cessor is an unreasonable proposal. I beg, therefore, that your lordship will have the goodness to obtain for me Her Majesty's permission to take my departure in the vessel which brings out the new Governor-General to Quebec. The Province is perfectly quiet, and I have not the least doubt that it will continue undisturbed. Trie American patriots have neither the means, nor, at present, the inclina- tion, to encourage excitement or renew the system of depredation and outrage which prevailed on the frontier of the adjacent states for so long a period."
Colborne sent the above letter to Lord Fitzroy Somerset with the letter following :
"pth August, 1839.
" My dear Lord, — I transmit to you the copy of a private letter which I have written to Lord Normanby.
" I am confident that Lord Hill will be of opinion that I could not remain in this country after being deposed. The work which I had to perform in my civil [government] has brought me in contact with so many political char- acters that I cannot suppose Ministers would wish that a Governor-General, the stern judge presiding over " duris- sima regna"* should descend from his seat and stand
* Colborne probably had in mind a speech delivered by Mr. Roebuck in the Court of Queen's Bench on i6th January, 1839, in the case of some political prisoners, tried in Canada on 8th March, 1838. Mr. Roebuck said : " In all the law-books he had not found any descrip- tion of judgment like the one by which the prisoners had been subjected to detention except in 77. Institutes, and Lord Coke uses this remarkable expression respecting it : he says, ' A philosophical poet of antiquity had nobly described the damnable and damned proceedings of the judge in hell : Gnossius haec Rhadamanthus habet durissima regna: Castigatque auditque dolos subigitque faterl: and also fixit leges pretio atque refixit : first he punisheth, then he heareth, and lastly he compelleth to confess, making and marring laws at his pleasure, which all good judges must abhor. ' "
314 LOWER CANADA. [Cu. XIX.
behind his amiable, conciliating, propitiating successor, whilst he is introducing the golden age which must naturally follow the recently-disturbed state into which this Province was thrown by the ambition and intrigues ot a faction which has been destroyed. I am by no means contending that Ministers have not rightly decided, and probably for the benefit of the Province, but that my posi- tion should be fairly considered, though I have been accidentally appointed Governor-General. I am, however, inclined to believe that the union of the Provinces should have taken place under my superintendence, and that the permanent viceroy would have made his appearance with more advantage after I had given effect to that measure."*
From Lady Colborne^ enclosing copies of the above letters.
" Sorel,
" 1 2th August
" It is beginning to get about here. One calls it ' appalling news for the poor Provinces/ Yet no one thinks, of the few who know it, that he could have remained in the other situation. The letter to Lord Fitzroy Somerset is exactly what he thinks, and I think what he thinks ought to be known.
" I will send you what the Herald of to-day, the 1 3th, says of the Report. He is not complimentary to Sir John in general, from his not being ultra in his doings with the Canadians, but now he finds he is going, he speaks the truth. It is gratifying certainly to hear how all the loyal speak of it. Another wrote : ' All was going well, and would have continued so. Now in two years we shall have general and open rebellion again/ "
* Colborne wrote to Lord Hill on iyth September in the same strain : " Can you imagine a more painful situation than for the present Governor of these Provinces to relinquish his post to remain in Canada under the [command?] of his successor, to witness the gradual introduction of the milder sway which must naturally follow the iron reign of last year, and to receive the maledictions of the disturbers of society who have been repressed ? "
I839-] REFUSAL OF MILITARY COMMAND. 315
From Lady Colborne.
" Sorel,
" 24th August.
" Everything just as uncertain as before. The expected person does not come, so here we are ; Sir John, after all his work, &c. (and Canada, too) made the sport of a set of men without sufficient firmness or principle to know what to do, and willing to sacrifice everything to their own party feelings. Perhaps they will find someone in December, and expect us to leave at a moment's notice in January, as we did from Toronto. I now dare think nothing of our return.
" Sir John's going seems a perfect secret in England. Perhaps Sir John will get into a scrape for letting it out here, yet we could not set off without preparations. The lord thought of was Dunfermline, late Mr. Abercrombie, who has refused. Lord Normanby says the only reason for this plan was the desire of himself and his colleagues to have someone of recent political character personally known to themselves in preparation for the Union, and talks of the inestimable importance of Sir John's remaining the next winter as Commander of the Forces, and the intense anxiety with which he waits his answer.
" They will get his whole plan of government, sent off as his duty to the Provinces when he thought he was going immediately, and his answer about the suspended judges. What will the answer be? Perhaps that he is to be brought home in chains!
" Company of an evening he cannot bear now. Works at night, and then he is cheerful and in spirits ; never fagged beyond what half an hour's rest recovers him from ; but how can this go on ? "
From Lady Colborne. " Sorel,
" 1 4th September. " Last night came a private note from Lord Normanby
316 LOWER CANADA. [Cn. XIX.
to say that Mr. Poulett Thompson is the Governor-General, and will be publicly announced by the next packet ! "
The following letter from the fallen Colonial Secretary, Lord Glenelg, shows that in spite of his notorious errors as Colonial Secretary, he was not without magnanimity:
" London,
" 2 ist August, 1839.
" Sir, — The closing of the parliamentary session gives me an opportunity of taking leave by letter of several friends with whom I have been officially connected with the colonies [sic] ; and although I cannot claim the privi- lege of a private friendship with you, I am unwilling that our official relations should cease without expressing to you the sentiments of esteem and regard towards you which they have left impressed on my mind, nor without offering my warm and sincere wishes for your health and happiness. — Believe me, Sir, with great truth, your faithful servant,
" GLENELG.
" Lieutenant-General Sir J. Colborne, G.C.B., " Governor-General, &c., &c."
Sir John Colborne replied as follows :
" 1 5th October, 1839.
" My Lord, — I have had the pleasure of receiving your letter of the 2ist August
" I beg to assure your lordship that I shall ever recollect with satisfaction the period of our official connection, and that I feel greatly obliged for the kindness, attention and support which I received from you in our official relations in times of extraordinary trial. — Your faithful servant,
"J. COLBORNE."
In September Sir John Colborne was empowered to invest a distinguished officer, Lieutenant-General
1 839-] GLENELG AND MACDONELL. 317
James Macdonell, with the K.C.B. Mr. Henry remarks :
"With much grace and propriety one eminent soldier was thus the royal representative in con- ferring this honour on another gallant companion-in- arms ; and that well-tried sword which had led the 52nd to victory on many a hard-fought field and finally waved before them when they routed a column of Napoleon's Guard on the evening of iWaterloo, was now most fitly employed in bestowing knighthood on the stalwart and indomitable defender of Hougomont."*
From Sir John Colborne. " Montreal,
"2;th September, 1839.
" We have now a fair prospect of being at Plymouth before the end of November. . . . We may look for the ' Pique ' in the St. Lawrence early in October. Having applied for my [return] home in the vessel that brings out the new Governor-General, I conclude that the captain of the ' Pique ' will have received orders to take me and my family to England. I think we may probably embark before the 1 5th of next month. I cannot regret that the fates have decreed that I am to leave this country of dis- cord and vexation. If I had had fair play and the Minis- ters might have been depended on to give their full support to my measures, the office of Governor-General could have been held by me at this critical period with a prospect of a favourable result But I am persuaded I should have been removed whenever it suited their con- venience, and perhaps under circumstances less satisfactory than those which have caused my removal at this period. Everyone agrees that I could not remain as a deposed Governor and Commander of the Forces, and as my ser-
* W. Henry, II., pp. 347. 348.
318 LOWER CANADA. [Cn. XIX.
vices have not been withdrawn in consequence of my own wish to return to England, I have no reason to accuse myself of backing out of a bad affair at a time when I might have been usefully employed."
From Lady Colborne.
" Montreal,
" 1 4th October.
" We shall receive Mr. Thompson into the house here, and when we leave Montreal, go at once on board the frigate at Quebec without landing.
" You will see Sir John happy and contented, though certainly not -flattered or gratified by the conduct of the Ministry, though Sir John is the first to say, and also feels, he cannot complain if they think they are doing the best for the Province, which of course they do."
On the 1 7th October Mr. Poulett Thompson (afterwards Lord Sydenham) arrived, and two days later assumed office.
On the 23rd Sir John Colborne left Canada, having first been invested with the G.C.B. as a reward for his services. By an interesting coin- cidence he received this honour at the hands of Sir James Macdonell, whom he had himself so recently invested with the K.C.B., and who had been granted special authority to confer it.
Mr. Henry writes : " An affecting scene took place at Montreal when Sir John Colborne took his final departure. A large concourse of the British population, with a most numerous military staff, escorted him to the wharf, and on his embarkation, bade the veteran and venerable chief ' farewell ' in peals upon peals of loud, affectionate and prolonged cheering. When at length the voice of the last
I839-] DEPARTURE FOR ENGLAND. 319
assemblage was dying away, a man perched on a mast exclaimed, ' One cheer more for the colonel of the 52nd !' This touched a new chord of stirring recollection in the heart of the multitude, and the acclamation was instantly resumed as loud as ever.
" Finally, on the 23rd October, Sir John and his family embarked on the ' Pique/ at Quebec, under a salute from the citadel and the. shipping. The frigate got under way soon after ; encountered a terrific thunderstorm the same night, by which her foretopmast was struck; but the lightning glanced harmlessly from the ship, for the laurelled head she bore was not destined to be thus laid low, and the ' Pique ' proceeded down the St. Lawrence amidst the regrets and good wishes of every loyal and honourable man in Canada,"
Kingsford thus passes judgment on Colborne's eleven years' service in Canada :
" As Lieutenant-Governor of Upper Canada he acted with great caution and ability. Had Sir John Colborne filled no other position his name would be simply added to the list of many who for a short or long time perform an important duty, to be forgotten in a few months on their departure from the Pro- vince. The service he rendered to Canada was after his appointment as Commander of the Forces, during the governments of Lords Gosford and Durham, and his position of administrator and of Governor-General until the arrival of Lord Sydenham.
" In this trying period Sir John Colborne showed himself to be the possessor of the qualities especially called for in the crisis, an unwavering sense of duty,
LOWER CANADA. [Cn. XIX.
firmness of purpose, willingness to assume responsi- bility, and a sense of the necessity of acting with vigour, determination and moderation. His pre- sence totally changed the situation in Quebec and Montreal, for it gave confidence to all who were Veady to risk life and fortune in the defence of the institutions on which they based their liberties, prosperity and happiness. On all sides his personal character and ability were made manifest; he gained, as by magic, the confidence of the supporters of the government. Failure was experienced in none of his combinations.
" It must ever be one of the most satisfactory events in Canadian history that at the close of the first rebellion of 1837 not a single execution took place. The endeavour on the part of the authorities was to throw a veil over the past. In this effort Sir John Colborne was a prominent actor.
"When, in spite of the merciful treatment of all who had taken part in the first revolt, the second rebellion of 1838 broke out, there arose the feeling that the law must be vindicated. The emergency was met by Colborne with that sense of duty which was a part of his character. The foolish amiability springing from the false sentiment of unwillingness to vindicate society at the cost of individual suffering has no place in the mind of the true statesman. It in no way operated on Colborne's sense of duty, not from hardness of heart or remorselessness of purpose, for his heart was most humane and full of kindly emotions. His assent to the twelve executions following the court-martial, given with great pain, may be traced to the sense of the necessity of
1828-39.] PUBLIC AND PRIVATE QUALITIES. 321
example. The number pardoned by Sir John Colborne shows the sentiment of humanity he was ready to exercise. The recognition by the Imperial Government of his services was only the just reward of his patriotism, his worth, his devotion to duty, and his entirely successful grappling with the difficulties that lay in his path. He crushed the hydra of rebellion. Except for the hope of aid from the United States, and the encouragement to those engaged in it given by men of mistaken views in England, it would not, after 1837, have again raised its head. When, however, the insurrection was repeated in 1838, in a week it was ended."1*
Concerning one special benefit which Colborne conferred on Canada, Mr. R. E. Kingsford, M.A., LL.B. (son of the historian), writes to me as follows : :< There is no act of Sir John Colborne's in Canada which has had more lasting influence than his founda- tion of Upper Canada College. If you have never been in Canada it is very hard for you to understand what a difference the foundation of the College made in our national history. At a time when, owing to the recent settlement of the country, superior educa- tion was almost unobtainable, this College was founded, and for years it was the only large school where a really first-class education could be got. No single act of any governor in Canada did more for the Empire than the foundation of the College. The boys educated there have always been trained to be loyal to the Crown, and at the same time never
* Kingsford, X., pp. 203 — 205 (condensed).
M
.
322 LOWER CANADA. [Cu. XIX.
to forget their own country. As Sir John Colborne planted, so has the tree grown."
To these eulogies of Sir John Colborne's public qualities may be appended a recognition of the beneficial character of his private life. " In all those governments in which he became the head of English society, there never failed to be felt the beneficial influence of a cheerful, joyous family and household, hospitable to travellers, courteous to all, charitable to the poor, ready for all innocent gaiety or festivity, and strict in all religious practices. The influence on society may be understood when it was long after remembered that, on some idle wonder being expressed that the Governor went to church on foot instead of in his carriage, he replied that ' his servants had souls as well as himself.' And when he refuted a report of a rude answer enforced by an oath, which had been imputed to him, he could do so by simply saying, ' The Commander-in-Chief never swears/ "*
Bishop Bethune, a representative of Canadian conservatism, writes :
" Sir John Colborne was every inch a soldier ; and events proved that he was rarely at fault when called upon to discharge the duties of the profession to which he had given his best years. He was a man, too, of pure and honourable mind ; with decided religious impressions ; and most anxious for the welfare and advancement of the Church of England, to which he belonged."f
* Christian Remembrancer, October, 1867. ^Memoir of Bishop Strachan, p. 130.
( 323 )
CHAPTER XX.
RETURN TO ENGLAND. PEERAGE, 1839. LORD
HIGH COMMISSIONER OF THE IONIAN ISLANDS,
1843-1849.
ON the 1 7th November Sir John Colborne and his family landed at Plymouth, and at the same time received the news of the death of Mrs. Yonge, Lady Colborne's mother, which had occurred on the 2nd. She was in her 8oth year. They proceeded to Lyneham, near Plympton, a country house within a few miles of Puslinch, Lady Colborne's early home, and at this time the home of the Reverend John Yonge, her brother, and his wife, Alethea, Lord Seaton's half-sister. Before the end of the month Sir John, who was then in London, learnt that his services were to be rewarded by the grant of a barony and a pension of ^2,000 a year for three lives. The Gazette of 6th December announced that his title would be " Baron Seaton, of Seaton, in the County of Devon."* This was faute de mieux; for Sir John's strong wish to be " Lord Colborne " had been rendered impossible by the transformation of Mr. Ridley Colborne into " Lord
* The choice of the title seems to have been due to an intention on Sir J. Colborne's part of buying a property near Seaton — an intention not fulfilled.
M 2
324 IN ENGLAND. [Cn. XX.
Colborne of West Harling " six months before. On the Qth the new peer visited the Queen at Windsor, and on the i6th January took his seat, his supporters being his old comrades, Lord Lynedoch (Sir Thomas Graham) and Lord Strafford, who, as " Sir John Byng," had commanded the Brigade of Guards at Waterloo.
On the occasion of this or some later visit to the House of Lords an incident occurred which I give in the touching words of Lord Seaton's surviving daughter, Lady Montgomery- Moore :
"As my father and mother were once going to the opening or closing of Parliament (I think), all my father's orders and ribbons were laid out on a table. He took two, and when my mother asked him to put on some others he said hastily and half-contemptuously, ' No, no.' Mrs. Stephen Moore, who was present, said, 'You ought to be proud of these things/ and he just looked back as he was going through the door, with his peculiar sweet meaning smile, and said, ' You don't know that I am not too proud of them.' It made a great impression on me, child as I was, and now I see it as part of his wonderfully disciplined character."
On the 27th March, 1840, the House of Lords discussed the Royal Message in regard to the proposed grant to Lord Seaton.
Lord Melbourne believed there was only one exception to the general approbation of the course taken, and that was centred in the person of the noble lord himself, who had expressed doubts that the services which he had performed were of sufficient merit to render him worthy of the honours that her Majesty had bestowed, and whether, under the circumstances, he was warranted in accepting
1839-40.] CREATED LORD SEATON. 325
them. He believed that that doubt was not shared by any other man in the community.
The Duke of Wellington said that at all times and under all circumstances Lord Seaton had given promise, now so nobly fulfilled, of distinguished ability, gallantry and zeal. He should most willingly vote for the Address; he never gave a vote with greater satisfaction.
The Duke of Richmond spoke as one who had served under Lord Seaton. He said that when he first heard of the rebellion in Canada it was a great consolation to him to know that he who had com- manded the 52nd Light Infantry in the Peninsula — that he who had gained the respect and affection of the inhabitants of the district in which his troops were quartered by the sense of justice which actuated all his proceedings in regard to the former and by the discipline he maintained among the latter — that he who was beloved and revered by the soldiers and officers who had the honour to serve under his command — that such a man was then the Commander of Her Majesty's Forces. He believed that Lord Seaton had as strong claims on the gratitude of his country as any man then alive.
The House of Commons discussed the grant on the 30th March.
After Lord John Russell had recounted Lord Seaton's services, Sir Robert Peel said it was a proud distinction, not only to Sir J. Colborne, but to the army, that for so many years he had been connected with the army and in it learnt to exhibit in his decisions the most discreet and moderate and humane conduct.
326 IN ENGLAND. [Cn. XX.
The manner in which he performed his duty in Guernsey led him (Sir Robert) at that time to form an opinion that however limited the sphere in which he was then acting, yet from the universal satis- faction given by his prudence, discretion, temper and humanity, if ever called on to act in a more extended sphere, he would support the character which he then obtained.
After Mr. Hume had spoken against the motion, Sir Henry Hardinge said if he were asked what was the most remarkable characteristic of Sir John Colborne he should say it was that of divesting himself of all personal and selfish considerations more than any man he knew.
Sir Hussey Vivian said no man was more beloved in the army, nor was there any man of whose humanity he had heard greater encomiums.
The motion was carried by 82 to 16.
The grant of the peerage and pension was generally applauded, as it was felt that Sir John Colborne's well- devised and energetic measures had saved Lower Canada to the British Crown.
Lord Seaton was in London during most of the "season" of 1840. On the 2Oth May we find him riding with the Duke of Wellington; on the 2ist he received the freedom of the City. About the same time he was presented with a magnificent piece of plate by merchants of London engaged in trade with Canada. On the i8th June he attended the Waterloo banquet at Apsley House, when the Duke of Wellington proposed his health in flattering terms. He attended a levee on ist July and spoke in the House of Lords on the Clergy Reserves Bill
1840.] NAPIER'S PENINSULAR WAR. 327
(Canada) on 3rd August. Among the friends and persons of interest with whom he dined were the Archbishops of Canterbury and York, Lord John Russell, Mr. Justice Coleridge, Sir James Kempt, Sir W. Heathcote, Sir R. Inglis, Lord Fitzroy Somerset, Sir Charles des Voeux, Lord Liverpool and the Duke of Cambridge, while at the Duke of Wellington's table on I3th August he met all the foreign ambassadors.
On 1 8th August Lord and Lady Seaton left London, and after visiting Oxford, Cheltenham, Gloucester, Tintern, Clifton, Sidmouth and Tor- quay, found themselves once more at Lyneham on 2nd September.
The following letters of this time were written to Colonel William Napier after the reading of the sixth volume of Napier's History of the Peninsular War:
" Lyneham,
"26th October, 1840.
" My dear Napier, — -You will think me a most ungrateful old soldier for not having sooner returned you my best thanks for your sixth volume of your labours. But I must acquaint you in my defence that before I left London I intended to pay you a visit en route, or in my search for a bouse in the neighbourhood of Bath or Bristol. That pleasure, however, I afterwards was unexpectedly obliged to defer.
" I did not read the campaigns of 1813 and 1814 till my arrival at this quiet place, where my whole attention was for some weeks absorbed in the study of them. I read with much delight and benefit the account of the operations of Soult in his attempt to relieve Pampeluna. The whole of the inarches of the columns by the passes of Maya and Roncesvalles were, in fact, new to me. I knew
328 IN ENGLAND. [Cn. XX.
nothing of the defensive movements of Hill, Cole and Byng. They all appear to have turned into their right places at last miraculously. Both armies, on their retreats, were certainly within a few hours of destruction. A little more enterprise and knowledge would have settled our affairs for that campaign. The details of the accidents and mistakes which occurred on both sides are very interesting and curious. Although we were so much con- cerned in the movements from the positions before Bayonne to Toulouse, I did not exactly comprehend them till I had followed the different columns in your history. Soult, I think, lost many opportunities of making an example of some of our columns on the march before and after Orthes. He was too much perplexed and alarmed, and managed badly. Your observations on the movements are fair, and ought to be satisfactory to the Commanders- in-Chief.
" The attack on the position of Toulouse was, I always thought, undertaken with numbers inadequate to the work. The part which the Spaniards had to perform would have been too hard for any two of our divisions. I have no doubt that Soult might have made a brilliant affair if he had attacked at the time the Spaniards failed, and turned on the Light Division ; provided he had watched the march of your favourite general* closely, and opposed him with two divisions or three, while he was preparing to ascend.
" I was surprised to find in London how many civilians had read your work. I sat next to Lord John Russell on the Queen's birthday. He asked me whether I had read Napier's History, and after some remarks I told him that I believed you regretted that you had entered so much into the details of the movements, as the controversial publications had occasioned much extra work. He replied, ' But the details are very interesting/
" It is impossible to please all parties. I wish, however, that you had avoided some of the observations of the kind
* Beresford ?
1840.] THE DUKE OF WELLINGTON. 329
which Caesar says should be shunned as rocks by an historian. I heard many remarks in respect to your harsh judgment on Adam, (I mean as to his capacity for civil affairs), which his friends and enemies thought was unnecessary.*
" You will be surprised to hear that the Duke had for- gotten that he had given, or permitted you to have, a volume of the intercepted correspondence, when it was applied for a few months since. ... I understood that he had not read your work, and says he never will read it.
" I have not yet decided in what county I shall settle, or whether I shall take up my residence in this part or near town. I do not think I shall be employed, or that I shall have an opportunity of taking your little boy under my charge in Ireland.
. . . With my kindest regards to Mrs. Napier, and many thanks for your book and what you say of me in it, — Believe me, sincerely yours,
"J. COLBORNE.
"It must be gratifying to you, after your hard labours, the wide circulation of your history, and the sensation which it has made and the manner in which it is quoted."
" Lyneham,
" 1 4th November, 1840.
" My dear Napier, — . . . The constant occupations of the Duke^ and the state of excitement in which he is kept by his political party, and his desire to retain his influence and necessary application to the subjects on which he speaks when he takes the lead, tend to shake him and wear him down perceptibly, and to make him a very old man in every respect. But the beauty of his character, his rectitude and good intentions, are always conspicuous, notwithstanding his occasional petulance and
* Sir F. Adam (of "Adam's Brigade"), when High Commissioner of the Ionian Islands (1824—1831), had come in sharp conflict with Charles Napier, then Resident of Cephalonia.
330 IN ENGLAND. [Cn. XX.
ill humour and the convulsive attacks to which he is liable from the kind of life he is compelled to lead and his great inattention to his health.
" I have been for many years altogether so absorbed by my own concerns, plans and schemes connected with colonial objects, emigration and schools, and the daily occurrences and mortifications to which all good Governors are exposed, that I have had little time or inclination to keep pace with the current history of the potentates of the Ionian Islands, and of the oppressors and oppressed. Adam, I believe you know, has never been popular, and is disliked by many who have served with him and under him, but I think your friends and supporters regret that you have touched on his conduct and capacity in your history, as to his evil deeds and employments unconnected with the period in which he is brought forward.
" I cannot recollect where I have met with the observa- tion or maxim which I attributed to Caesar — it cannot, I think, be from him directly. I am persuaded, however, that I have met with it in some author, that ' it was the rule of Caesar to abstain from initiating personal remarks, as he would be careful vitare scopulos.'
" ... We shall have no war [with France, on the Syrian question]. I agree with you as to our helpless state and bad prospects. — Sincerely yours,
"J. COLBORNE."
On 23rd March, 1841, Lord.Seaton and his family removed from Lyneham to Kitley, a larger house at a mile or two's distance, and still closer to Puslinch, the home of Lady Seaton's brother. A month later he writes of his new home with enthusiasm : " Kitley is certainly the most beautiful place in the county."
Lord Seaton again attended the " Waterloo banquet" on the i8th June. In November he met at Plymouth on different occasions two
1841-3-] APPOINTED TO THE IONIAN ISLES. 331
distinguished men about to sail for distant parts of the Empire — Lord Ellenborough, the new Governor-General of India, and George Augustus Selwyn, the first Bishop of New Zealand.
Lord Seaton spent the winter of 1842-3 abroad. Accompanied by his eldest son, he left Kitley on 4th October for London, and on the nth crossed from Shoreham to Havre. The following is the itinerary of the tour: I2th October, Rouen; I3th, Vernon; I4th, Paris; i8th, Auxerre ; 2Oth, Chalons; 2ist, Lyons ; 23rd, Avignon ; 25th, Marseilles ; 27th, Tou- louse [seen probably for the first time since 1814]; 3Oth, Frejus; 3ist, Antibes. ist November, Nice. 1 6th January, Mentone ; i7th, Oneglia; i8th, Savona; iQth, Genoa; 22nd, Spezia; 24th, Pisa; 26th, Massa; 27th, Chiavesi; 28th, by Genoa to Novi; 29th, Turin; 3ist, St. Jean. 2nd February, Orbi ; 3rd, Neuchatel; 5th, Carlsruhe ; 6th, Mannheim; 7th, Mayence ; 8th, Cologne; 9th, Liege; loth, Gand ; i2th, by Ostend to London.
Lord Seaton had barely returned home when he was" appointed Lord High Commissioner of the Ionian Islands, and had another long journey before him.
Leaving his family to follow some weeks later, he left London on loth March and reached Paris on the i3th. The following gives his route: I4th March, Fontainebleau ; I7th, Lyons; i8th, Avig- non; iQth, Aix; 20th, Marseilles; 2ist-22nd, by steamer to Genoa ; 23rd, Chiavesi ; 25th, Pisa ; 27th, embarked at Leghorn; 28th, passed Ostia, Capri, &c. ; 30th, landed at Messina; 3151, "arrived at
332 IONIAN ISLANDS. [Cn. XX.
Corfu half past 10 p.m. Disembarked at n and took possession of the palace."
For the next six years the Old Palace, Corfu, was to be his home.
The Ionian Islands had belonged to Venice until the extinction of the Venetian Republic in 1797. From this circumstance, though the population was Greek and belonged to the Greek Church, the language of society was Italian. In 1797 the islands were taken by the French, but in 1799 were re-conquered by the allied Russians and Turks. In 1801 the islands were formed into " The Septinsular Republic," under the nominal protection of Turkey. The republic, from 1802, was controlled by a Russian plenipotentiary, and was by no means of a democratic kind, as the voters, or " synklitse," were only allowed to choose one candidate out of two offered to them by the government, the Senate of Corfu. After 1806 the Republic was still more completely under Russian control, till a secret clause in the Treaty of Tilsit, 25th June, 1807, handed it over to the Emperor Napoleon. Marshal Berthier now occu- pied the islands and hoisted the French flag. In 1809 a British force under Collingwood took possession of Zante and Cephalonia, and soon after, of Santa Maura and Ithaca. Corfu fell to England after Napoleon's fall in 1814, and the Treaty of Paris, 1815, sanctioned that British Protectorate of the whole group of islands which lasted till they were handed over to the Kingdom of Greece in 1863.
From 1816 to 1824 Sir Thomas Maitland ruled the islands as Lord High Commissioner. He was the author of the Constitution under which the
1797-1843-] HISTORY OF THE ISLANDS. 333
islands were governed from 1817 till 1849. Under this Constitution the High Commissioner selected a " Primary Council," whose duty it was to draw up a "double list" of candidates from which the electorate were to choose the members of the Legis- lative Assembly. This packed Assembly nominated a Senate, but the High Commissioner could veto any senator. If he found it necessary to use his veto twice, he was to choose two names from which the Assembly was to select one for the vacant place. The Senate was the executive, but it was also a legislative body, as its consent as well as that of the High Commissioner was necessary to any bill passed by the Assembly. The President of the Senate, who had great powers, was chosen by the Lord High Commissioner, and only for two and a half years, while the other senators served for five years. The Senate could make provisional laws while the Assembly was not sitting and carry on the expendi- ture till a new budget was voted. The Lord High Commissioner could prorogue the Assembly at pleasure.
The Lord High Commissioner had the powers of " high police," in virtue of which, in case of emergency (of which he was sole judge), he could banish to some rock, or out of the islands altogether, anyone he pleased. Almost every Lord High Commissioner made use of these powers.
Thus, while the lonians were still in name " one sole free and independent state," the power of the British Lord High Commissioner was made practically absolute.
Lord Seaton entered on the office of Lord High
334 IONIAN ISLANDS. [Cn. XX.
Commissioner on ist April, 1843. " He came to Corfu," writes his antagonist, Sir George Ferguson Bowen, "with the prestige of his well-won rank and brilliant services — as the gallant officer who led the assault on the French lines at Ciudad Rodrigo, who wheeled his brigade [sic] on the flank of the Imperial Guard at Waterloo, and who, as it was well said of him, trampled out the Canadian Rebellion with the iron heel of his boot. In appearance and bearing the very beau ideal of an English officer and gentleman, he possessed in his remarkably dignified carriage and manners no mean element of success in governing Orientals. His courtesy and hospitality will be attested by all who knew Corfu during his administration ; his laborious attention to public business and ready accessibility to every class are known to all who served under him."*
During the first five years of his rule Lord Seaton hardly departed from the method of government established by his predecessors. His first parlia- ment, which met on the ist March, 1845, was chosen in the ordinary manner. " He permitted no free press nor any other expression of public opinion, while he carried out his own plans of moral and material improvement. He introduced some excellent measures. Education and schools pros- pered under his sway. [The colleges in Corfu and the other islands were revised and placed on the English system, and the ladies of his family endeavoured to raise the tone of education among the Greek girls, both of the upper and lower classes,
* The Ionian Islands under British Protection , 2nd Ed., 1851, P- 39*
1843-8.] LORD SEATON'S GOVERNMENT. 335
by establishing a school with an English lady at its head who might endeavour to rouse them from their Levantine indifference.*] He conferred a very great boon on the poor inhabitants by the appoint- ment (as early as 1844) of district courts for the settlement of minor legal cases. He built an excellent prison. He endeavoured also to teach the Corfiots agriculture by making good laws regarding roads, and also by means of a model farm ; and though he failed in the latter object, the attempt was praiseworthy. His canal at Santa Maura is said to have cost ,£28,000. If finished, it would greatly have facilitated the commerce of the islands, and Lord Seaton does not deserve to be condemned for attempting to carry out so useful a design."t
Lord Seaton had for some time serving on his staff in Corfu H.R.H. the Duke of Cambridge, then Prince George of Cambridge. The following letter will show the esteem which the Prince felt for him :
" London,
" loth May, 1845.
" My dear Lord Seaton, — You have been so very kind to me ever since our first acquaintance, and I am so very much indebted to you for the favourable report you were so good as to make of me, that I cannot deprive myself of the pleasure of being the first to inform you that the Queen has been graciously pleased to promote me to the rank of major-general, the announcement of which
* Christian Remembrancer, October, 1867. At Beechwood there are still preserved a great number of samplers, beautifully worked with texts in Greek or English, which testify to the assiduity of the Ionian school children in adopting the manners of English school children of the same date.
f Viscount Kirkwall, Four Years in the Ionian Islands, I., pp. 162 163.
336 IONIAN ISLANDS. [Cn. XX.
appeared in last night's Gazette, and the whole thing has been done in the most gracious and flattering manner to myself by all the parties concerned. I feel that this mark of favour has been almost entirely owing to the kind manner in which you have spoken of me and approved of my very humble services while I had the pleasure of serving under you, and I hope you will, therefore, again allow me to assure you that I feel deeply grateful to you, and that as long as I live I shall never forget the marked attention and kindness which I have on many occasions experienced at your hands.
" I now look upon myself as a made man, by which I mean that I shall get on in the world. The rank was everything to me, and having once got that I look forward with certainty to an employment on the staff in the United Kingdom.
"... There is again a strong report of a revolt in the autumn, but I cannot say whether there is any truth in it Of course at the Horse Guards it is denied, but that says nothing. . . . — Your most sincere friend,
" GEORGE."
The Ionian Constitution of 1817 had, as will have been seen, a deceptive character. While the Ionian Islands were, in the eye of international law, an independent state, their government had been trans- formed into the despotic rule of a British official This might have been patiently endured, so long as the islanders had no Power to look to which had any more claim on their affections than Great Britain. But the creation of the Kingdom of Greece in the twenties had changed the situation, and a national feeling, a desire to share the fortunes of their brothers-in-blood, sprang up in the islands, especially in Cephalonia, which had been less sub- ject to Italian influence than Corfu. Even the
i843-8.] DESIRE FOR REFORMS. 337
home Government seemed to think that some concession of political rights must be made if the lonians were to remain contented with British administration. Lord John Russell had written in June, 1840: "I should yield with much regret to the conviction that the time is still unripe for con- ceding to the Ionian people, to at least some extent, the advantages of greater freedom of the press and a more complete system of representation. It would not be to the honour of this country to have occupied the Ionian States for so many years without having advanced the inhabitants towards some qualification for institutions more liberal than those which were granted to them, avowedly as a mere preparation for such a change."
The bloodless revolution which occurred at Athens in September, 1843, and which led to the granting of a Liberal Constitution by King Otto, encouraged that party in the Ionian Islands which desired a union with Greece. Cephalonia especially grew more unsettled. Lord Seaton, in spite of his Conservative predilections, came round to the view that the true course of British policy was to do what had become an act of justice while it could be done as an act of grace and not as one extorted by violence. The French Revolution of 1848, and its accompanying movements all over Europe, seem to have served as fresh arguments with him and with the home Government, for embarking on a policy of concession.
Lord Seaton accordingly announced his intention to remove restrictions on a free press, a measure justified by the fact that Athenian newspapers had
338 IONIAN ISLANDS. [Cn. XX.
been never interdicted in the islands, and lately, owing to improved communications, had come in much more freely. Lord Seaton had indeed suggested a modification in the press laws as early as 1844. A bill for the removal of restrictions on the press was passed in June, 1848, and ratified at the end of the year, though no newspaper was published in the Ionian Islands before 1849.
His next step was to provide for free election to municipal offices, which came into effect in May, 1849. But already, in July, 1848, he had proposed changes in the direction of giving a more popular character to the legislative assembly.
A disturbance in Cephalonia on 26th September caused Lord Seaton to proceed to the island, but neither this nor some doubts expressed by Lord Grey, the Colonial Minister, deterred him from the path he had chosen. He asked for an additional regiment from England, but proceeded with the preparation of his reforms.
The chief points of the new system of government devised by Lord Seaton were :
1. Perfect freedom of election as regards the members of the Assembly.
2. Reduction of the qualification for the franchise.
3. Vote by ballot.
4. Trial by jury, in political cases only. The last arrangement is somewhat difficult to
comprehend, and from the beginning it proved a failure.
The final reforms were passed in May, 1849, tne last month of Lord Seaton's tenure of office. His
1848-9.] LORD SEATON'S REFORMS. 339
successor, Mr. Henry Ward, took office on ist June, and it was left to him and to his successors to face the consequences of the new state of things.
If those consequences were unsatisfactory to friends of the British Protectorate — if the Greek party in the islands grew stronger and more unmanageable till Great Britain saw her best course in surrendering her rights (1863) — Lord Seaton is not perhaps to be greatly blamed. The spirit of the age, the " nationalism " which came to play so great a part in Germany and Italy, was against the preservation of British connexion, even if it had remained safeguarded by the constitution of 1817, and Lord Beaton's hope that his reforms would satisfy all legitimate aspirations and prove a bond of attachment to British rule was doomed to disappoint- ment, no less than the similar hopes entertained by the French reformers of 1789.
He has been severely criticised by Viscount Kirk- wall (afterwards sixth Earl of Orkney) in Four Years in the Ionian Islands, and with more bitter- ness and animosity by Sir George Bowen^ in The Ionian Islands under British Protection. Those who would see his defence must turn to an article in the Edinburgh Review, January, 1853, which is from his own pen. We can only quote one or two sentences : " The reviewer [i.e., Bowen] expresses his surprise that so many important privileges should have been granted at the same time ; but we tell
* Mr. Bowen, on a recommendation received from Oxford, had been appointed by Lord Seaton Rector of the University of Corfu. For this post Lord Seaton states that he showed himself at once unsuitable in spite of his high classical attainments. Mr. Bowen, in return, attacked Lord Seaton's policy with a good deal of personal animus.
340 IONIAN ISLANDS. [Cn. XX.
him that conceding by instalments is bad policy, and seldom succeeds when the proposed modifications of a Constitution are determined on and can be, with justice, claimed, and are expected and desired by the intelligent and loyal. The Government, by at once anticipating their wishes, establishes confidence and respect."
" There are assuredly many difficulties incident to the reforms, but they are not without their reward."
"In governing the people of the Ionian Islands common sense and sincerity are the essential requisites."
" If a prosperous Greek kingdom should be witnessed rapidly growing to maturity under a real constitutional policy, it would, we are sure, be a matter of great rejoicing; and, ardently as every Englishman may desire that British colonies may be planted in every part of the earth to which they can carry the institutions and character of their native land, the prospect is scarcely more delightful than that the islands of the Ionian Seas should form a district of Greece, as soon as ever a prosperous and powerful Greek nation shall come into existence, fit and qualified to assist in maintaining the European balance of power and in diffusing the blessings of civilisation."
To these extracts may be appended part of a letter written by Lord Seaton from Livermead House on 2Oth September, 1849, to m's successor, Mr. Ward, who had written to say that having formed opinions at variance with Lord Seaton's he proposed to introduce another bill giving the High
1849.] LORD SEATON'S DEFENCE. 341
Commissioner more control, and asking Lord Seaton to explain his reasons for some of his actions :
" I still can boast of being a Conservative in this country and in every other where there are institutions worth preserving, but, being a reasonable one, I can profit by the past, and from the knowledge which I imagine I have acquired in the offices I have held. When parts of a constitutional chart have become so almost objectionable and unsuited to circumstances that even the friends of existing government cannot openly venture to defend them, it becomes absolutely necessary to reflect well and deliberately on the probable results of the concessions which the governed have a right and are expected to demand, and then to grant at once all that is expedient and just to concede, instead of dealing with extorted con- cession after concession under the delusion that each requires a trial. The folly and madness of withholding rights under such circumstances, and afterwards making improper concessions, created in the colonies a gang of demagogues and made them formidable. The revolution of 1843 in Greece, and the Constitution forced from the king by the best of the Greeks, Athenian intercourse and Athenian papers, and the recent importation from Paris and the universities of Italy could not but produce a very great change in the society of Corfu. Whatever might have been my opinions in 1843 and 1844, it is not extra- ordinary that they should have been modified by my constant communication with all classes and by my gradual acquaintance with the wishes and sentiments of the in- telligent friends of the protective government, and by the occurrences and changes in the neighbouring states. The series of events which took place in 1848 rendered more circumspection necessary perhaps, but it was by no means desirable that the changes which had been suggested should be delayed. Neither the president of the senate nor any honest Ionian pretended to defend the mockery of the representative government established. The
342 IONIAN ISLANDS. [Cn. XX.
Government Press must have given way ; for I cannot suppose that after a free Press had been permitted in Germany and Italy, the privilege could have been refused to the only community under our protection with a Con- stitution not possessing it. ...
" I am persuaded that the liberal measures introduced lately in the islands will weaken the cause of the faction opposed to us in Greece and in the Ionian States, and enable the supporters of the Protective Government to hoist their colours, and conscientiously uphold their insti- tutions with more energy than has hitherto been shown; check the movement party, and tend to augment the influence which you appear so apprehensive of losing. . .
" SEATON."
Lord Kirkwall, who served on Sir Henry Ward's staff, writes : " It is astonishing that it never occurred to Lord Seaton that he was paving the way for the cession of the Protectorate and for the union of the islands with Greece.* . . . He did not perceive that the great mass of the lonians cared little for reforms, and desired only the Union. Yet he might have suspected that a people who were so apparently indifferent to the exercise of the despotic high police powers could not really care much for liberty as understood by Englishmen. . . . Orthodoxy and nationalism . . . have ever been hitherto the two levers by which the Ionian demagogues raised the passions of the people and acquired their affections. . . . Lord Seaton paved the way for the Union by rendering impossible, for any useful purpose, the continu- ance of their Protectorate. ... It will now be
* The last extract, quoted above, from Lord Seaton's Edinburgh article shows that he clearly saw this to be a possible result, but it was a result which he contemplated with equanimity.
1 849-] LORD SEATON'S ADMINISTRATION. 343
evident to the reader why the Ionian Liberals, that is, the lonians generally, cherish with enthusiastic affection the memory of Lord Seaton ; and also why the Protectionists, whether Ionian or English, have always severely condemned his conduct. Person- ally, the gallant and noble lord was exceedingly popular with all who came in contact with him. His high character, distinguished name, noble appear- ance, and affable manners could not but make a favourable impression. . . . Not the least of the benefits conferred on the lonians by Lord Seaton was the effect of the high character and unimpeachable private conduct of his lordship and his amiable family during their stay in the islands."*
* I., pp. 181 — 184.
( 344 )
CHAPTER XXI.
RETURN TO ENGLAND, 1849. CHOBHAM CAMP, 1853. VIE\VS ox THE CRIMEAN WAR, 1854-5.
ON 2nd June, 1849, Lord Seaton and his family left Corfu amid a striking demonstration of affection. Before returning to England they made an extended tour on the Continent, the itinerary embracing Trieste, Vienna, Prague, Dresden, Berlin, Hanover, where Lord Seaton dined with the King on ist July, Cologne, Aix, Brussels. From Brussels Lord Seaton paid two visits to the field of Waterloo — which he had not seen since 1815 — and found that the circumstances of the day came back to him with startling freshness. It was no doubt with pleasure that he told the old tale on the historic scene to his wife, his eldest son, and his daughters.
After a month in London Lord and Lady Seaton spent the winter at Livermead House, Torquay. From here, on I2th December, 1849, ne wrote a letter to his son, Captain the Hon. Francis Colborne, 1 5th Regiment, then at the Depot, Brecon, on some of the duties of a good commanding officer.
" The great and principal objects to be attended to are the really important affairs, by which a regiment or corps
1849-51-] DUTIES OF A COMMANDING OFFICER. 345
is kept in good order and discipline, and the officers and men in good humour, and not to bother with trifles, nor to interfere in matters in which you have not full power to direct and control.
" The hospital and guard-house should be under constant inspection, so that the men and officers may know that you take an interest in their daily concerns, and that punishments are inflicted with justice. All this is trouble- some at the first throw off, but in reality saves much vexation and embarrassment, after a good system is established and the men have confidence in the justice of the commanding officer; who must never be in a passion, and never commit himself by a hasty expression. With such resolutions, and giving each subject a calm consideration, he will find himself always in the right, and on the high and advantageous ground. You, I am sure, have frequently seen that a foolish, vain commanding officer can spoil a regiment in a month.
" You may depend on it, that when officers are aware that the commander works hard and knows his business, they wdll support him. He must, however, repose great confidence in officers commanding companies, or, at least, appear to consult them, and to give them full swing in the arrangements in barracks.
" The details of the field exercise must be constantly studied. An officer with common capacity may become a good drill with practice and knowing the principles of our field exercise ; and yet, how rarely do we meet officers up to their business in this respect ! Every officer of the 52nd could work a regiment in the field perfectly, because he was compelled to begin early and frequently tried."
Lord and Lady Seaton went to London for the season of 1850, and settled in August in a new home, Deer Park, near Honiton. On the I2th February, 1851, their eldest son, James (afterwards second Lord Seaton) was married to Charlotte,
346 IN ENGLAND. [Cn. XXI.
younger daughter and co-heiress of Lord Downes. Lord Downes, as Ulysses Burgh, had had a dis- tinguished Peninsular career, but strange to say, at that time he and Colborne had never met.
Lord and Lady Seaton again spent the season in London, and on the i8th June Lord Seaton was again present at a " Waterloo banquet." In August they stayed ten days at Ryde, afterwards visiting Otter- bourne, the home of Captain W. Crawley Yonge, and Lyndhurst, close to the scenes of Lord Seaton's childhood. On the igth they were back at Deer Park.
From Deer Park Lord Seaton wrote, on " St. Patrick's Day," 1852:
" I am employed in writing an article intended for a Review on parts of our defective military organization."
The article appeared in the Edinburgh Review in June, under the title " Our Defensive Arma- ment." Lord Seaton insists on the necessity of further strengthening the country against sudden invasion and praises Lord John Russell for the Militia Bill on which he had recently left office.
" Since our economists," he says, " will not give us regular soldiers and sailors enough, we must be content with the next best force which we can get, and that is a militia." " Meanwhile, having got its militia, the Government will, in our opinion, act wisely if it take steps to put the fleet in an effective state. . v . In con- clusion we beg to observe that our views of this great question have been formed neither to-day nor yesterday. We have long felt that the country was
1852.] THE GREAT DUKE'S FUNERAL. 347
helpless in case of sudden war. . . . We are satisfied that it is better to do little than to do nothing."
Another letter of Lord Seaton's, of the i5th April, 1852, shows us the impression made on him by the loss of the " Birkenhead," of which the news had just arrived from Cape Town. ' The account of it," he says, " can scarcely be read without tears."
On the 1 8th June Lord Seaton was again present at a " Waterloo banquet " — as it proved, the last ever held. Among other friends he there met his old comrade of the Light Division, Sir Harry Smith, who had lately returned to England from the Cape of Good Hope. In September he was at Malvern, and here heard the news of the great Duke's death. At the State Funeral on November i8th Lord Seaton was a pall-bearer. In a subsequent letter to his second son he described what he had seen and felt on the occasion :
" Deer Park,
"8th December, 1852.
" On the morning of the funeral I arrived at the Horse Guards about 8. I found breakfast prepared, and met the military parties that were to proceed in mourning coaches. I was shown to my seat in the coach about 9, and was accompanied by Lord Londonderry, Maitland and Wood- ford. We arrived at St. Paul's about 12, but in conse- quence of the machinery for the removal of the coffin from the bier not having been previously tried we were detained at the entrance of the west door more than [an] hour, Lord Anglesey frequently exclaiming he had never been so cold in his life before. However, all the old boys bore the breeze well, and I have not heard that they suffered from it.
348 IN ENGLAND. [Cn. XXI.
" When the procession moved towards the dome, led by the dean, clergy and choristers, the solemn scene was most impressive. I, as a pall-bearer, stood near the centre of the coffin during the service, with my back to the Ministers and House of Lords and in front of the Speaker and his House. The lowering into the grave and the gradual disappearance of the coffin amidst the attentive concern of 15,000 or 17,000 people, together with the grand and solemn music and prayers, and with the evidently affected expression of those immediately near the grave, was alto- gether the most impressive, solemn and affecting moment that I ever experienced. I was very much affected, and thought I should have been obliged to sit down. The formalities of the heraldic officials which followed, how- ever, had a different effect. I mean the breaking of the staff and the pompous announcement of the Duke's titles, so inapplicable to the present age. He was a very great and a very extraordinary man. We found our coaches easily, and I returned in company with Lord Combermere and Lord Londonderry and Sir C. Napier."
Five days later Lord Seaton attended a dinner given by the new Commander-in-Chief, Lord Hardinge, of which he has left an interesting account :
" I was invited to dine with the Commander-in-Chief on the 23rd November, 1852, to meet all the foreign generals. The dinner was given in the Premier's apart- ments in Downing-street. General Scharnhorst, the Prussian, came up to me after dinner, shook hands and said, ' I have watched you from this ' (putting his hand towards the ground) ' up to this date, and am delighted to find that you are liked and loved in all places.' Scharn- horst was with me in the Alemtejo in Portugal, when he was in the Hanoverian Artillery. He is a son of General Scharnhorst, who, with Stein, remodelled the Prussian army. Sir E. Blakeney sat near me, and reminded me
I853-] SIR HARRY AND LADY SMITH. 349
that we had not met since 1813, at a very bad dinner at General Skerrett's, in bivouac in the Pyrenees."*
Two years later the second Duke of Wellington sent Lord Seaton a memento of his illustrious father, with the following note :
" Apsley House,
";th July, 1855.
" My dear Lord Seaton,— I send you a sword that I have seen my father wear, well knowing the friendship and attachment which existed between you and him. — Yours
sincerely,
" WELLINGTON."
In the spring of 1853 Lord Seaton was confined to his house for many weeks by illness. After his recovery he visited Dittisham, of which his son, Graham, had lately become Rector, and there, on the 6th May, received a letter from Lord Hardinge, offering him the command of the camp to be formed at Chobham on I4th June. From Dittisham, with Lady Seaton, he paid a flying visit to Plymouth, where he was visited by Sir Harry Smith, then in command of the Western District.
Lady Montgomery-Moore tells me of a previous meeting with Sir Harry and Lady Smith, whea Lady Smith apparently met her old Peninsular friend for the first time for 40 years. With the warmth of her Spanish nature she threw her arms round him and kissed him, crying, " Oh, Colborne, Colborne, to see you again ! " Both Sir Harry and his wife had an almost romantic affection for their old brigadier, and he — though of a far more reserved nature — warmly returned it. He said of Lady Smith, " In the most
* See Autobiography of Sir Harry Smith, L, pp. 126 — 128.
350 IN ENGLAND. [Cn. XXI.
trying circumstances for years [i.e., when as a girl- wife she followed the army in the Peninsula] no one could have behaved with more absolute dis- cretion. I have the greatest regard and admiration for her."
On the 27th May Lord Seaton removed with his family to Hyams, near Bagshot, which was to be his home during the existence of the Chobham Camp of exercise. He dined with Lord Hardinge on the 28th, with the Queen on June 6th, and at Pembroke College, Oxford, on the Qth.
At Lord Hardinge's table he had a discussion with General Burgoyne on Fergusson's scheme for the defence of Portsmouth by earthworks. He gives the following account of the conversation in a letter to Captain W. C. Yonge :
" Hyams, Bagshot,
"2Qth May, 1853.
" I yesterday dined with Lord Hardinge, where I met the Duke of Cambridge, the major-generals, and all the heads of departments who are to be under my command during the Chobham campaign. Burgoyne placed himself next to me at dinner, and began immediately on the sub- ject of Fergusson's system, and mentioned that he was informed that I approved of his system and had expressed a decided opinion in its favour. I replied that I had only read The Perils of Portsmouth, and not his work on fortification, that I thought every new invention ought to have a fair trial and be tried, that the earthen works were generally commended by East Indian officers, that when there was a water power, and at Gosport and Ports- mouth, the line proposed by Fergusson appeared a for- midable barrier, although [I ?] considered there were several objections to the system, and that I had expressed no decided opinion as to its adoption, nor was I yet a
1853-] CHOBHAM CAMP. 351
sufficient judge of its merits. He told me in reply that he was employed in drawing up observations on its defects, that he could prove that 67 guns could be exploded on any circle taken, that sorties could not be made, that earthen works in India were made of a peculiar sort of clay only to be found in the East, that any wall in a ditch, it could be proved, could be demolished, that the number of guns proposed by Fergusson could not be collected, and that batteries could be established against them sufficient to take the place, that Fergusson had not studied the theory of plunging shot, and the certain destructive fire by that means, into a ditch. I do not mean to become the champion of a new system, but I think it ought to be tried, which he said would be difficult. He appeared to consider the discussion terminated, and to think that it was impossible it could be adopted against the opinion of the whole corps of Engineers."
On the 1 4th June Lady Seaton notes in her diary : " We all went on the ground to see the troops arrive and form the encampment ; a fine sight."
Lord Seaton was now busily occupied in training the troops, and reviews and field days followed in quick succession. On the 2ist the Queen was present. On the 24th Lord Seaton dined with Prince Albert in his tent. The Queen was again present on the 5th July, when a bridge was thrown across Virginia Water, and again at a review on the 4th August.
It has been said of Lord Seaton's command of the camp at Chobham :
" Not only was every officer and man sensible of that courtesy and consideration that never demanded more than could be well performed, and as in old times of real war, had caused the saying that there was nothing his men would not do for him, but the
352 IN ENGLAND. [Cfi. XXI.
training under his experienced eye was felt to have been of the greatest service to the troops when the actual trial of the Crimean campaign ensued."*
Sir William Fraser records that Lord Seaton told him at Chobham that the hill opposite the lines, crowned with pine trees, was not unlike the heights of Busaco.f
At the end of September Lord and Lady Seaton were again home at Deer Park. A month later there was a flying visit to Brixham, where they again met Sir Harry and Lady Smith, and other such visits were paid, including a sad one to Otterbourne, on the occasion of the funeral of Captain William Crawley Yonge (4th March, 1854), but Deer Park was their home during the winter and spring. By the end of February war with Russia was a certainty and a month later Major Francis Colborne left Canada to join the troops in the Crimea as Assistant-Quartermaster-General to the Third Divi- sion. In a letter of 3rd June Lord Seaton gave his son some instruction in his new duties :
" Taking up good and convenient positions on the march, free from bad air, with good water, and plenty of shade, and satisfactory (pour parler militairement), when it. can be accomplished, with the military points attended to as a position, will be the test of your fitness for the department If you are put on three or four hours before your division be sure to have all quite ready, and the points taken up for every brigade and the advanced posts for picquets settled ; and the reasons prepared for your having decided on the position and disposition. These positions on the march will generally be for convenience of the
* Christian Remembrancer, October, 1867. •f Words on Wellington, p. 206.
I854-] DUTIES OF AN A.-Q.-M.-G. 353
troops. In allotting villages or parts of a town for canton- ments, or for a temporary halt, take care to accustom your- self to look at a town quickly, and to determine how many regiments can be stowed away in such a district or such parts of the town ; and when you have inspected streets and houses and counted public buildings from your horse, have your markers and orderlies ready to chalk on the doors and walls ' 1st Brigade/ ' 2nd Brigade/ etc., leaving the brigadiers 'and brigade majors to settle details and to quarter off field officers and regiments. Sketch every position you occupy, and state your reasons for the dis- position and position. This activity and knowledge of your business will soon set you at ease, and render you a valuable officer and bring you to your proper level. An active officer, with judgment, is sure to get into notice, and all this you can accomplish quietly and modestly, although with firmness and confidence in your own capacity. Camp kettles and baggage arrangements must also be attended to, and do not forget to be constantly in communication with the commissariat department, acquainting the com- missaries with the arrangements for the day and with the numbers of mules or horses necessary for conveying am- munition, etc. The more intimate you become with the officers of the commissariat the better. You will find them most useful, if they are treated with respect, and consulted as to the affairs under their charge. Thus much for my hasty lecture."
On the 24th March Lord Seaton, who had previously been Colonel of the 26th Foot, received the appointment of Colonel of the 2nd Life Guards. At a levee on the 3rd May he received in virtue of this office the Gold Stick from Her Majesty, and as Gold Stick attended a ball at the Palace on the i;th.
On the 3rd July a son was born to the Hon. James Colborne. He was Lord and Lady Seaton's first
N
354 IN ENGLAND. [Cn. XXI.
grandson, and is at present the third holder of the title.
The alliance of England and France in the Crimea drew together the English and Imperial Courts, and it was arranged that Prince Albert should visit the French camp at St. Omer as the guest of Napoleon III., the first occasion, as is said, of the Prince's being parted from the Queen, even for a day, since their marriage. Lord Seaton was among those who were asked to accompany him. After dining at Osborne on 4th September he embarked with Prince Albert in the Royal yacht. They disembarked at Boulogne at 7 a.m. next day, and after visiting the camp returned to England the same night. Lady Seaton, on I2th September, writes to her son Francis :
" They returned to Osborne on Saturday morning at 9 o'clock, the Queen meeting them in the ' Fairy/ and your father says her meeting the Prince was really beautiful and made him almost drop a tear. He seems to have enjoyed himself as much as it was possible, considering how anxious he is about the Crimea expedition, and to have been treated quite like a friend by both Prince and Emperor. He says he used to listen with intense interest to the telegraphic messages delivered each night to the Emperor and Prince, especially the messages from St. Arnaud."
A curious incident took place during this visit to a place familiar to Lord Seaton in the days of the occupation of France. At a cottage at which the Emperor and his staff halted Lord Seaton had some conversation with the old woman who owned it, and they recognized each other. The Emperor said facetiously to his staff, " Oh, gentlemen, we can quite imagine what occurred between these two
I854-] WITH PRINCE ALBERT TO ST. OMER. 355
young people in those days ! " a joke which was not very palatable to the Spartan virtue of the English general.
On his return from France Lord Seaton visited his connexions, the Yonges of Otterbourne. Miss Charlotte Yonge writes of this visit : " I had the great pleasure of taking him to a Sunday evening service at Winchester College Chapel and hearing how much he enjoyed it ; observing upon the great improvement in reverence and discipline since his own days * sixty years since.' '
With a son at the seat of war, Lord and Lady Seaton were deeply concerned in all that took place in the Crimea, and heard with deep emotion during the autumn of a rumoured fall of Sebastopol, of the fact that it had not fallen, of the battles of the Alma, of Balaclava, "in which our light cavalry were so sacrificed," and of Inkerman.
One day Lady Seaton writes in her diary, " Lord Seaton and I drove to meet the boy with the Times; " another day, " Ordered a buffalo skin to be sent to Francis ; " and another, " Sent Francis a sprig of laurel." This was after he had been mentioned for Inkerman.
The anxiety of the moment is reflected in the following letter addressed to Lord Seaton by his old comrade, Sir George Napier, who had himself volunteered his services in the war :
" Nice,
" 28th November, 1854.
" I see by the papers, if they state truth, that you have strongly impressed on Lord Hardinge and the Duke of Newcastle the necessity of reinforcements being sent out,
N 2
356 IN ENGLAND. CH. XXI.
and I trust in God your advice will be taken, but I blame the Ministers strongly for not having sent every soldier in England three months ago ! I am sure you would have urged it to the utmost of your power, and if, as I expected, and as they ought to have done, they had made you War Minister (and not a boy civilian, who must be and is ignorant of war), all would have been quite safe, and our excellent friend and comrade, Lord Raglan, would not have had to regret the want of troops! Why not send the militia to Gibraltar ; they would volunteer instantly; and then make Harry Smith Governor, and he would soon drill and d — n them into order, and make ten thousand of them ready in the spring to volunteer to the Crimea."
In his reply to the above letter, Lord Seaton com- mented, a month later, on the course of the war up to that date :
" We may assert positively that the grand enterprise was undertaken with an inadequate force and too late. From the day I heard the attack on Sebastopol was sanc- tioned I could scarcely think or talk on any other subject ; and to this hour all my thoughts are turned to that quarter, and to the splendid troops contending against every hard- ship and disadvantage that an army can encounter.
" From the moment I was informed that the expedition was in contemplation, I gave my opinion freely to many of my military friends, but I have never had any com- munication with Ministers or with the authorities at the Horse Guards, beyond a casual remark. The substance of my conversation with military friends was as follows, and I think the same opinions must have occurred to most persons, looking at the affair as a military question : —
" We knew that in the month of April the Russians had 27,000 men in Sebastopol, that they had 95,000 men in Bessarabia and on the Danube, and reserves at Jassy and Kiev. It therefore appeared certain that a military Emperor would make every possible effort to protect the
1854.] THE CRIMEAN WAR. 357
most important part of his Empire, the Crimea, and on the least demonstration being made in that quarter he would take means to assign a large force to meet any attack on the part of the Allies. Thus we could not but calculate that 27,000 men working in Sebastopol would make a siege necessary, that if a siege should be necessary then it would require 70,000 men to invest the place (that was Colonel Chesney's estimate), that magazines would be formed at Cherson and Perekop, ready for the supply of reinforce- ments, that we should have, under the most favourable circumstances, a formidable army to oppose our landing, that we must then expect to fight two battles on apparently good positions before we could drive in the Russian force and invest Sebastopol ; and that if we could not ensure its fall in three or four days, or that it was likely a siege of even ten days must be the result of our disembarkation, then the enemy would have the great advantage of being able to assemble a large force and a relieving army to engage the Allies in a series of battles and operations.
" This was the dark side of the question, but, I added, the whole probable result must depend on the information collected, certain information as to the defences of Sebas- topol, its capabilities, and the number of troops in the place and in the Crimea.
" If it should be true, and if the commanders of the Allies have ascertained, that there are not more than 40,000 men in the Crimea, that by taking possession of the heights near Inkerman two or three forts can be commanded and easily destroyed, and that the town would be thus open and the ships and arsenals exposed, the enterprise will be as successful, as the whole scheme is splendid and glorious. But how could any military man at a distance think of the expedition, except as a most hazardous undertaking ? The preparations had begun early in July, the very bay, in which the Allies were to land, was pointed out in the Times, almost officially and ostentatiously, on the 2Oth July, and the Czar had nearly two months to prepare for the dis- embarkation of troops between Eupatoria and the Bibbek.
IN ENGLAND. [Cn. XXI.
What reason could there be for not supposing that he would at least be able to have 70,000 men in the field; that 25,000 would be the opposing force in landing, and that the remainder would retire to a contracted position near the grand fortifications, and the detached force follow in the rear ? If Menschikoff had not engaged in any deci- sive operations till he had taken up a position near the forts, and had retired, disputing every day the advance, while the rear of the Allies was menaced and harassed, it is evident that 50,000 or 58,000 was a force not adequate to the operations contemplated. The original plan, I believe, was to disembark within seven miles of St Con- stantine, and then to attack the works on the north side ; but the danger and risk of this scheme from a [the?] number of troops seen in position required more caution.
"It was obvious to almost every military man before the expedition started, that the' heights of Inkerman should have been the first object, except the forts on the north were very vulnerable and easy to take. The scheme of breaking ground before strong defences on the north and depending on a rough and stormy coast as the basis of operations, while the Allies had not sufficient force to invest the place or guard the roads to the eastward, was objectionable. We cannot but suppose that the Czar either was persuaded that the expedition was intended for other points, or that he calculated on a siege, or on time sufficient to be able to outnumber the Allies. It has been said that if the Allies had followed the defeated Russians, with the divisions fit to move, on the day of the battle of Alma, the town might have been entered without much loss or opposition the following day ; but it is impossible to judge of these reported practicable operations without knowing the state of the defences of Sebastopol, the force assigned for its protection at the time Menschikoff approached it and marched to Batchiserai.
" We cannot read the account of the terrific encounter at Inkerman without trembling. I think it appears that the picquets were badly posted, and that precautions [were
I854-] BATTLE OF INKERMAN. 359
neglected?]. Under the circumstances in which our inadequate force found itself, the brigadiers and generals of division would be expected to adopt means to prevent, we must suppose, the probability of being attacked before the whole of the armies could get into position. But the Russian columns did actually contrive to get within a few hundred yards of the right of the Allies without being checked. It was fortunate they were attacked on all sides by nearly 8,000 of the best soldiers in the world, deployed, and every shot from their arms piercing with effect. The Russians probably lost the generals in command and officers in command of battalions ; they began to move and the dense columns then were exposed to active lines, the masses of the Russians advancing and retiring without plan, or having any superior officers to direct their move- ments ; so that, like a Spanish bull-fight, the tormented animal was exposed to the picatori on every flank until tired out and rendered incapable of resisting from loss of blood and wounds.
" I should suppose that no serious operation will take place before Sebastopol till the arrival of large reinforce- ments, and that when the approaches are completed and the defences at certain points destroyed, a lodgment will be made, and the garrison, [being] without casemates, will find it necessary to evacuate the works on the south side.
" It occurred to me that as soon as one regiment of the Allies had arrived at Constantinople, or near it, any probability of an advance on the part of the Russians into Bulgaria, with a view of marching towards the Balkan passes, was at an end. The siege of Silistria was an absurd operation at the time it was undertaken, and con- trary to the counsel of Paskicostt, and when the Austrians began to menace and march to the frontiers of Moldavia, it was evident the Russians would pass the Pruth as soon as their forces could be collected. Thus we might have had very early in the campaign a force in the Bay of Bomgas on either side of the passes, a kind of floating
360 IN ENGLAND. [Cn. XXI.
army, with our means of transport ready for the Crimea.* But when the siege of Silistria was abandoned on the 22nd June and the Russians retreated on Bucharest and on Jassy, and when the Austrians had liberated the Russian force in Wallachia and Moldavia by preparing to occupy these provinces, and when it was certain the Russian army could march in 24 days from Bucharest to Bender, on the Dniester, the success of the expedition to the Crimea evidently depended on the immense force that could be conveyed there by the Allies in a certain time."
iWe may supplement the above by an extract from a letter of 2ist January, 1855, addressed to his son Francis :
" It appears to me that the 3rd Division was the only one in hand on the terrific day of Inkerman. The Times continues to let off the steam against the staff of the British army at Sebastopol siege ; as if all the faux calcul had been occasioned by an incompetent staff and from officers not having been educated at Sandhurst. The non- sense and stuff that appears in the papers is disgusting.
" The whole case is evident. An inadequate force undertakes an enterprise too late, and having been un- prepared for a siege in winter, the men are worked beyond their strength, and no general could have prevented the confusion and mismanagement that immediately followed the grand failure.
" A quartermaster-general is not made in one campaign, and certainly never without much fighting previously. Sir G. Murray was an indifferent one on his first campaign, but being very clever, and having seen much service, he became the best staff officer in Europe. All the arrange- ments ought to have been made by the quartermaster-
* In a shorter letter to Lord Hardinge of 2oth December, in which Lord Seaton gives a similar account of his views, he says more clearly : " The army of the Allies should have been considered as a floating force, ready to menace the left of the Russians." On 8th May, 1855, he wrote to the Duke of Newcastle to protest against a statement that he had approved of the siege.
1 854.] BLUNDERS OF THE CAMPAIGN. 361
general, the commissary-general, and the commanding officer of Artillery and Engineers, after constant interviews with the Commander-in-Chief.
" The Duke of Wellington, when he arrived at Brussels in 1815, found no arrangements made. The commissary- general and the commanding officer of Artillery bought all the horses and had all the carts and waggons con- structed in a short time, and by calculation ordered the exact number of horses and conveyances for Medical Department, Artillery and Engineers, and commissariat and baggage of divisions, and staff of headquarters. This was all accomplished by two officers, the quartermaster- general and commissary-general, with the assistance of the incessant labours of the commanding officer of the Artillery.
" But in this case of the Crimea you have been taken aback, and had never men sufficient for the investment or to carry on the approaches on either side. Sir H. Douglas has written a very foolish pamphlet, which you will see quoted in the Times.
" With respect to the operations of the Allied armies, I mean the mere battles, I think the movements would be condemned at a distance, if they are to be judged by mili- tary rules established by strategists and tacticians. When the attack is made, I hope it will be only made on the side attacked by the French. If a lodgment is made opposite their nearest approach, and then the streets cowed by a menacing process, blowing up four or five houses wherever resistance is made, the town must be evacuated, and in carrying one part the whole would be in your possession. The attack on the side of the English ought to be more of a diversion than a real attack, with the intention of taking advantage of accidental circumstances."
Lady Seaton has the following entry for the last day of the year : " Lord Seaton, Cordelia and I, in walking home from church in the evening, watched the last sunset of 1854 and talked of that of
62 IN ENGLAND. [Cn. XXI.
with anxiety of the events that .might have happened." A few weeks later John Colborne, the youngest son, followed his brother to the Crimea.
Early in 1855 Lord Seaton received a character- istic note from his old comrade, General Charles Beckwith:*
" Turin,
"6th January, 1855.
" My dear Lord Seaton, — I am most grateful to you for your kind and soldierlike answer to my letter. The attention and affection of our old superiors is the sweetest reward of our past toils and dangers. Old death may mow us down, as he did our brave cavalry at Balaklava, but the feeling which binds soldiers to one another is indestructible, the most sacred on earth, and will spring up again into life when we shall chase death before us and triumph in a glorious immortality.
" CHARLES BECKWITH."
* See pp. 222, 223, n.
CHAPTER XXII.
COMMAND IN IRELAND, 1855-60. VISIT TO VIENNA,
1857. YEARS OF RETIREMENT AT BEECHWOOD.
DEATH, 1863. MEMORIALS.
On 3ist January Lord Seaton received an offer from Lord Hardinge of the command of the forces in Ireland. He accepted it, and after a visit to London, in which he dined at the Palace and with the Commander-in-Chief, arrived in Dublin on I2th March to take up his appointment.
In virtue of his office he became Governor of the Royal Hospital at Kilmainham, and here he was joined by his family on the I3th April.
" The Royal Hospital, which had been made by the great Duke of Ormond into an Irish Chelsea, had fallen into an irregular state, but under Lord Seaton it received a thorough revivification — an active and benevolent sub-governor was appointed, and abuses were cleared away. The Royal Hospital formed a quadrangle, two sides of which were inhabited by the pensioners, and the other two con- sisted of the chapel and the Governor's house. Every Sunday after morning service Lord Seaton might be seen inspecting the serving out of the day's ration to the old men, all arrayed in uniforms remind- ing one of prints of Corporal Trim, all moving like
364 IN IRELAND. [Cn. XXII.
clockwork as they marched in, saluted, received their portion, saluted and marched out, their honest hearts warmed by the kindly looks and words of the Governor and his family."*
The Crimea still sent home news of good and evil import. In June the failure of the Redan had a sad sequel in the death of Lord Raglan ; in July, to the gratification of his parents, Francis Colborne had obtained the C.B.f
Lord Seaton's five years in Ireland led to the strengthening of some personal ties — for example, with the veteran Lord Gough, with Lord Downes, and Lord and Lady Clonmell, now connected with Lord Seaton by his eldest son's marriage, with the Lord Lieutenant, Lord Carlisle, and his successor, Lord Eglinton.
Among those who visited Lord Seaton during the years of his command in Ireland were his old com- rades of the 52nd Regiment, Sir Frederick Love, Sir William Rowan and Sir James Alexander. Of the admiration felt by the first-named for his old chief, Major Richardson, telling of an evening he spent as the guest of Sir George Arthur at Toronto in November, 1838, gives interesting testimony: '' The conversation turned on the services of the gallant Sir John Colborne. It was delightful to hear Colonel Love — an old 52nd man himself — who wore the well-merited reward of his valour upon his breast, expatiate on the feats of arms of Sir John in the Peninsula. He tracked him through his brilliant course, dwelt upon every dashing enterprise in which
* Christian Remembrancer, October, 1867.
f He was afterwards made K.C.B. for his services in China in 1878.
clockwork as they marched in, saluted, rec the- marched out, their h
ad words e
une
d evil
had obtained the
Lord Seaton's five years in Ireland led to strengthening of some personal ties — for example, with the veteran Lord Gough, with Lord Downes, and Lord and Lady Clonmell, now connected with Lord Seaton by his eldest son's marriage, with the Lord Lieutenant, Lord Carlisle, and his successor, Lord Eglinton.
year
spent a rge Arthur at Toronto
in November, 1838, gives interesting testimony: " The conversation turned on the services of the gallant Sir John Colborne. It was delightful-to hear Colonel Love — =an old 52nd man himself — who wore the well-merited reward of his valour upon his breast, expatiate on the feats of arms of Sir John in the Peninsula. He tracked him through his brilliant course, dwelt upon every dashing enterprise in which
otober, 1867. Is made K.C.B. for his services in China in
1855-60.] AS COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF. 365
he had been engaged and related so many amusing anecdotes of his service, that the whole party were disappointed when he had closed."*
General Montgomery-Moore, who was on Lord Seaton's staff in Ireland, says : " Nothing was so striking to us young aides-de-camp as the quiet way in which the General gave his orders. It must, of course, frequently happen that some little confusion arises between the giving and the receiving of an order. A quiet smile, or ' Humph ! ' or * What a stupid fellow ! ' was the extent of the outburst if things went wrong. He held his troops so in the hollow of his hand — so to speak — that no mistakes ever upset his arrangements. His successor in the Irish command would use rather strong language on his field days, and the riddle was then asked, ' What is the difference between the late and the present Commander of the Forces?' Answer, * Only a vowel. One never emits an oath, and the other never omits one.' Once, when I was riding with Lord Seaton, I unwittingly said, ' Sir John Moore was rather wanting in decision, was he not ? ' ' Deci- sion? No. I never met so decided a character,' he replied, quite annoyed. Sometimes when he was talking he would think we showed symptoms of weariness, and he would at once stop. ' Oh, I see, you look upon me as a sort of Uncle Toby.' Nothing after that would induce him to go on."
In Ireland Lord Seaton kept up the system started at Chobham of training soldiers to active service in camps, and every summer he held a long series of reviews at the Curragh, which became, as has been
* Eight Years in Canada, p. 70.
366 IN IRELAND. [Cn. XXII.
said, a most useful place of instruction both to the regular troops and the Irish militia who were brought into training there, while the society of the place was rendered enjoyable to the officers and their wives by the kindly courtesy of the ladies of Lord Seaton's family. One of these ladies in particular, the Hon. Cordelia Colborne, undertook a wider work of beneficence, in organizing means of supporting the wives and children of the soldiers at the front, a work which, when the Crimean War was over, was prolonged by the calls made by the Indian Mutiny. For five years, it is said, she might almost have been called the providence of the soldiers' wives and widows of Dublin. The result of her labours was the adoption by the War Office of the principle that soldiers' clothing should be made up by soldiers' wives.
We get a pleasant picture of the life at the Curragh in a letter from Lady Seaton to her son Francis, of i ;th October, 1855 :
" The excitement to-day has been to see new colours given to the Wexford Militia by Mrs. Carew, the Colonel's wife. What a" very pretty ceremony it is ! Even your father had never seen it before. And then the saluting him was so pretty! Afterwards we had a most splendid luncheon in the mess-room, given to 150. Your papa behaved very well, even to drinking champagne, and even to the wearing his medals! Now you have earned some, he begins to be proud of his own, I tell him! He is so well! Nothing can agree better with him than this kind of life and the Curragh air ! "
On many occasions Lord Seaton made tours of inspection to various parts of Ireland. In these he was generally accompanied by his eldest son as
i855-6o.] VISIT TO VIENNA. 367
aide-de-camp. Once he visited Bragganstown, the home of his mother's family, the Garstins.
In 1856 Lord Seaton acquired the house and estate of Beechwood, near Sparkwell, South Devon. This house, within a few miles of his earlier residences, Lyneham and Kitley, and of his wife's ancestral home, Puslinch, had been known to him ever since he became acquainted with Devon- shire and took a Devonshire bride. Unfortunately, his half-sister, Alethea, was no longer reigning at Puslinch — she had died in 1844 — and his only full sister, Cordelia (Mrs. Duke Yonge), died at Plymouth on 2Oth July, 1856. Lord Seaton paid one or two visits to Beechwood before the end of his Irish command.
In June, 1857, he made a longer journey of much interest, having been invited by the Emperor of Austria to attend the looth anniversary of the Order of Maria Theresa at Vienna. Accompanied by his eldest son and Captain Alexander Montgomery- Moore, his aides-de-camp, he reached Vienna on the 1 7th June.
The surviving member of the party has kindly supplied me with an account of what followed :
" We arrived late in the evening and were received by the Emperor's equerry and the officers who were to attend on Lord Seaton and his staff. Immediately after dinner we drove in one of the royal carriages to witness a torchlight tattoo. Next morning we attended a review, followed by High Mass in the field. The young Emperor, looking younger than his years from his slight figure and his white uniform, was an interesting personality. Lord Seaton and
368 IN IRELAND. [Cn. XXII.
his staff were presented to him on the field and he was pleased to express the pleasure it gave him to see us there. Later in the day we went to the Palace of Schonbrunn, where were drawn up detachments of men from every province of the empire, who were all inspected and addressed by the Emperor. A sumptuous repast followed, and we tasted the celebrated Tokay, said to be 100 years old. On one side of me was Prince Esterhazy, who had been for twenty-five years Ambassador in London — on the other srde, the Prince of Capua, who had married Miss Smyth, an Irish lady. This was arranged specially by the Emperor, and it struck me as a remarkable instance of kindness and attention to the youngest member of the British mission, and a sign of the Emperor's appreciation of the effort made by my distinguished chief to be present on such an occasion. We were afterwards at a Court, and were presented to the Empress and the Archduchess Sophia, the Emperor's mother, and I had the honour of a short conversation with the Archduke John, a venerable old man with long, snow-white hair, who had commanded the Austrians at Hohenlinden. On this and every occasion the young Emperor seemed much interested in Lord Seaton and frequently addressed him. He took us through his arsenal next morning, and after a pontoon had been thrown across the Danube we rode across it in his staff with 25,000 men. He seemed a master of all military details, and was constantly drawing Lord Seaton's attention to some improvement or new invention, and at that time the Austrian army was the model for the rest of Europe."
1 857-59-] THE TWENTIETH REGIMENT. 369
On Lord Seaton's return he stayed some days in Paris, and there pointed out to his companions the spot in the Champs Elysees in which the 52nd had been encamped in 1815. After visiting London and Devonshire he returned to Ireland on 22nd July.
On the 30th September his daughter, the Hon. Jane Colborne, was married in the Royal Chapel to Captain Montgomery-Moore, now General Sir Alexander Montgomery-Moore, K.C.B. Lord Car- lisle, then Viceroy, and Lord Cardigan, of Balaclava fame, were among those present.
Early in 1858 another marriage ceremony claimed Lord Seaton's presence.
" I had an agreeable trip to London," he writes on 1 7th February, " on the occasion of the late marriage [of the Princess Royal]. The Queen spoke to me en passant, and told me that she had no occasion to ask me how I was, inferring from my looks, I suppose, that Ireland has agreed with me."
On ist August, 1859, Lord Seaton had the pleasure of presenting new colours to the 2nd Battalion of his first regiment, the 2Oth. In doing so he said : " In presenting these colours at your request, Colonel Radcliffe, I may be allowed to observe that on entering the army I was appointed to the 20th, that I served my first campaign with it, and continued to share with it for many years the active service on which the corps was engaged. Early friendships and attachments leave the strongest impressions and associations, and you may imagine that I feel it almost a right to be pre- ferred on this occasion for the duty you have proposed that I should undertake."
370 LEAVES IRELAND. [Cn. XXII.
A lew months- later he announced to his brother- in-law, the Reverend John Yonge, his speedy resignation of his command.
" Dublin,
" 1 2th November, 1859.
" I have determined on relinquishing my appointment at the end of five years, the period fixed for holding commands. Although I am blessed at present with sana mens in cor pore sano, I must always be expecting to break down, and think it necessary to vacate my seat decently, and to retire while I am able to take my leave in an effective state, without attracting the sarcastic remarks of the Press as to my tenacity in holding on at my age. [He was nearly 82.] I think I shall be able to employ myself with my private concerns at Beechwood, where I can live at less expense than in Dublin, and imagine myself a farmer on a small scale. — Affectionately yours,
" SEATON."
On the 22nd March, 1860, Lord Seaton was entertained by the Lord Lieutenant at a farewell dinner, another day he received a eulogistic address from the Lord Mayor and citizens of Dublin, and on the 3Oth left Ireland. A day later he received from H.R.H. the Duke of Cambridge the following letter, announcing his elevation to the rank of Field- Marshal :
" Horse Guards,
"30th March, 1860.
" My dear Lord Seaton, — Though a public letter will go to you this day expressive of my sentiments on your relinquishing the high military post which you have filled in Ireland for the last five years, I cannot deprive myself of the pleasure of adding a few lines of my own to assure you of my sincere and heartfelt thanks for the able support
1860.] FIELD-MARSHAL. 3 7 1
which I have ever received at your hands, as also of deep regret at your period of service having come to a close. I have, however, one most agreeable task to perform in announcing to you that Her Majesty has been graciously pleased to mark her sense of the great services you have rendered both to herself and to the country during a very extended military career, by raising you to the rank of Field-Marshal, which nomination will appear in the Gazette this evening. As an old and sincere friend, let me conclude by expressing a hope that this mark of favour may be acceptable to yourself, and that health and strength may yet long attend you. — I remain, my dear Lord Seaton, your most sincere friend,
" GEORGE."
The writer in the Christian Remembrancer for October, 1867, gives a striking picture of Lord Seaton as he appeared in his vigorous old age, during his years of command in Ireland :
" Little can anyone who saw him forget that grand figure, the noble stature, erect and unbent by years, the fine head covered by short crisp curls of perfectly white hair, the bright limpid blue eyes, that seemed to have the capacity of looking into and at everything at once with the alert steadiness peculiar to soldiers and sailors, the complexion which to the last had the soft purity and fairness of skin of a child, and the peculiarly gentle mouth. The forehead was very high, with the same peculiar compression of the temples as in the Duke of Wellington, which caused Lord Seaton to be often mistaken for him in spite of being a much taller and larger-framed man, with nothing of the aquiline mould, but with perfectly straight features and a long, mobile upper lip. Hearing, teeth, alertness of bearing, elasticity of
372 AT BEECHWOOD. [Cn. XXII.
step, readiness of attention and wonderful and minute accuracy of memory, all remained as perfect as in a young man, and those who have seen him riding at the head of his staff at Chobham, Dublin, or at the Curragh have seen one of the finest remnants of the men who broke the pride of Napoleon."
After leaving Ireland Lord and Lady Seaton spent six weeks in London. Lady Seaton writes to her son Francis on 2Oth May :
" At the last Drawing Room and Ball your father, as Gold Stick, was obliged to guard the Queen to the last moment. Oh, I wish you could have seen him — covered with collars and medals — as fine, or finer than any of them, and just above the Queen. Lady Rothes said, ' He did look so noble, and so splendid and so benevolent, I know I made my first courtesy to him! Someone else was heard to say, ' Oh, do come and look at Lord Seaton ! He is a perfect picture ! '
They left on the igth May, spent a few days at Newhouse, near Salisbury, with Mr. Eyre Matcham, an uncle of Captain Montgomery- Moore's, and then went by Bath and Torquay to Dittisham, the home of their son, the Hon. and Reverend Graham Colborne. They finally settled at their chosen home, Beechwood, in August. At Beechwood Lord Seaton spent his time in improving his estate and in assisting to build a church and school for the adjacent hamlet of Sparkwell ; there, as everywhere, leading his family in efforts for the good of those around him.
Lady Montgomery-Moore gives the following
1 86o-6 1.] A COUNTRY GENTLEMAN. 373
account of the last ride she took with her father — apparently on nth February, 1861 :
"He rode about 16 miles at a good trot, through the woods and round by Fleet to Puslinch and back. I can see him now, a straight, tall, slight figure, on his dear black horse Middleton, at those Puslinch steps, taking out his card-case and holding the reins over his arm. As he went home he said, ' I wanted to see your uncle about my will.' I remember laughing and saying. ' Oh, that does not matter.' He gave one the idea of life. He was very free from the ordinary concomitants of old age. He had an interest in everything, and his ideas were advancing always on politics, Church matters, &c. I remember a letter from Lord Airey, then Adjutant-General at the Horse Guards, about the time my father left Dublin in 1860, saying that he was such a referee in difficulties — his ideas were always in advance — unlike the case of most military men."
Immediately after this Lord Seaton was laid up for a month, as he had been once or twice in Ireland, with a bronchial affection, but by the beginning of April he was well again. In the summer he sat to Mr. Fisher for a portrait painted at the desire of the United Service Club, and now in the club's possession.
" I am still before the painter," he writes on igth August, to Mrs. W. C. Yonge, " a very painful pro- cess, but Elizabeth and my friends who have been permitted to inspect the Field-Marshal in his seven- league boots think it a very good picture, and not to be mistaken by his comrades who have requested him to put himself in attitude for the occasion."
On the 2nd December he wrote to his friend, Mr. Matcham, of Newhouse, a nephew of Lord Nelson's,
374 AT BEECHWOOD. [Cn. XXII.
in regard to some recently-published extracts from Mrs. Trench's diary, reflecting on the character of Lord Nelson, which Mr. Matcham had answered. Lord Seaton warmly testifies to the character of the great seaman :
" I never had the honour of being introduced to the illustrious Nelson, but having been employed in the Mediterranean from 1800 to 1809, I had frequent oppor- tunities of hearing, from able officers who were intimately acquainted with him, and had long served under his im- mediate command, their enthusiastic admiration of him in regard to the simplicity of his character and his diffidence when referring to his own career and brilliant actions. His very abstemious habits in social intercourse were so universally known that no further notice can be required to counteract the attacks of the malevolent gossip contained in the journal."
A few days later, owing to fears of a war with the United States, Sir George Cornewall Lewis con- sulted Lord Seaton in regard to the defence of Canada. He replied the same day with a complete scheme of defence, and wrote three days later that he had been thanked for his " valuable and luminous observations."
On the 1 4th December the Prince Consort died. He had been Colonel-in-Chief of the Rifle Brigade, the old " 95th," which had served so gallantly side by side with the 52nd in the Light Division. In the depth of her bereavement the Queen wrote herself to Lord Seaton to say that in this office there was no one whom she should so much like to succeed the Prince as he. He was gazetted to the colonelcy of the Brigade on I4th February, 1862.
But the closing days of 1861 had brought a sad
1861-62.] ILLNESS AND BEREAVEMENT. 375
change in Lord Seaton's health, of which the following entries in his wife's diary are a pathetic testimony :
" 2Qth December (Sunday). — We were all at Sparkwell Church, and all received the Holy Communion. Lord S. quite well.
" 3Oth. — Lord S. quite well, and took a long ride with Francis and Theresa Cochrane, but at 10 o'clock was taken ill, and at 6 o'clock this morning (3ist) I sent for Mr. Rogers and Dr. Yonge.
" Never well again ! " [Written subsequently.]
Lord Seaton's illness, due to a cold caught in his ride, occasioned him much intermittent pain and confined him to his room during most of the year. From week to week his state varied. On the 3ist January he was " out in the carriage," and then again ** not so well." On the 28th April he was visited by Mr. Paget, and, by his advice, brought downstairs. Towards the end of May he was " better," but the improvement had a terrible check. On the 3Oth May, after a week's illness, his beloved daughter, Cordelia, she who had been the ministering angel of the poor in Dublin, was taken away from him. She had been her father's devoted companion, and the bereavement was a bitter one.
Still, we are told, " the shock made no material difference in his condition, and there was no air of the feebleness of old age about him, no bending, no decay, but the same affectionateness, the same serenity and sweetness, the same quiet depth of dutiful trust and undemonstrative devotion that had been his through life."*
* Christian Remembrancer, October, 1867.
376 AT TOKQUAY. [Cn. XXII.
He still, from time to time, was out of doors, walking or driving at Beechwood, until on the gth December a change was made to Valetta House, Torquay. At Torquay he was still able to take drives on fine days. On Christmas Day Lady Seaton's diary records : " Dr. Harris [her brother- in-law] administered the Holy Communion to Lord Seaton at Valetta House." Against the last week of February she writes, " Down and about every day ; " on the 8th March, " Mr. Paget came to see Lord Seaton ; thinks him better than when he saw him last year;" on the 29th, "Mr. Paget here; Lord Seaton in great pain." On 6th April there was a change for the worse. A week or so later occurred a touching incident which is thus related by his surviving son, the Hon. and Reverend Graham Colborne ;
" On the last day or two before his death we found him shedding tears whilst sitting in his chair, and on my mother's asking him why he was weeping, he replied that he was thinking of his poor soldier servant, a soldier of the 52nd, who was shot down in the last charge of the regiment on the French Guards at Waterloo, and cried out to him, ' Oh, colonel, colonel, come and help me,' and his replying, ' Lie quietly ; the battle will be over in half an hour, when you will be carried to the rear and all will be well,' or words to that effect, but the poor fellow died where he was. I only mention this as showing my dear father's tender-heartedness, and his remembering all this in his last hours."
On April 1 7th, by his own request, the Holy Communion was administered to him. He followed the service reverently and repeated the responses, but his wife and children, who were kneeling round
1863.] DEATH. 377
his bed, saw that the end was near. Scarcely had the clergyman pronounced the blessing, when, holding the hand of his son Graham, and looking at him steadfastly, he said distinctly three or four times, " For Christ's sake ! for Christ's sake ! " and passed away. The veteran had at last found rest.
He had completed the 85th year of his age and the 68th year of his connexion with the army; in two months more he would have celebrated the 5oth anniversary of his marriage.
Upon his faithful wife and family sorrow fell upon sorrow. His eldest son James and his wife had spent the last sad weeks at Torquay. Three days after Lord Seaton's death his daughter-in-law, now Lady Seaton, lay in childbirth; six days later, in the same house, she too died !
Ere this, on the 24th April, Lord Seaton had been laid by his daughter's side in the churchyard of Newton Ferrers, the church of which Lady Seaton's brother was Rector, as her father had been before him. When she passed away, on 28th November, 1872, she was laid there too. She had spent the years of her widowhood at Beechwood.
Many honours were paid to the memory of the veteran commander.
A bust for the United Service Club was executed by Mr. G. G. Adams, A.R.A., and, by the Queen's desire, submitted for her inspection early in December, 1863.
A bronze statue, also by Mr. Adams, raised by the public subscription of noblemen and gentlemen of the county and other friends, was unveiled at
378 POSTHUMOUS HONOURS. [Cn. XXII.
Mount Wise, Devonport, on 2Qth November, 1866. It represents Lord Seaton in his Field-Marshal's uniform with the baton in his right hand and his left resting on his sword, and bears the inscription :
" In memory of the distinguished career and of the stainless character of Field-Marshal Lord Seaton, G.C.B., G.C.M.G., G.C.H., this monument is erected by his friends and comrades."
Sir Edmund Prideaux, in his speech as Chairman of the Memorial Committee, said that to the end of his service Lord Seaton had maintained the same earnest, uncompromising zeal, the same self- devotedness, the same self-denying love of order, the same high chivalrous spirit, the simple, yet grand dignity which had characterized him everywhere.
As far back as 1844 a cairn had been erected by the Highlanders of Glengarry on an island in Lake St. Francis, in the county of Glengarry, Canada, in honour of him whom they considered " The Saviour of Canada." In recollection of Lord Seaton's command of the 52nd its dimensions were 52 feet by 52.
It was no slight honour that a portrait of Lord Seaton should long have hung among the Waterloo heroes in Apsley House, and another should be keeping his memory alive to future soldiers in the United Service Club.
The tattered colours of the 52nd Regiment were sent to the second Lord Seaton in 1868 at the wish of the regiment, in memory of the peerless leader under whom it had won so many of its laurels. They are now honourably preserved at Beechwood.
x868.] THE COLOURS OF THE FIFTY.SECOND. 379
The gift was preceded by the following letter from General Sir William Rowan :
" Bath,
"30th June, 1868.
" My dear Lord Seaton, — The officer commanding the 52nd Regiment having informed me that new colours have been issued to replace those worn out by long service, little remaining of them but the bare poles, and being at my disposal as colonel of the regiment, he has suggested that it might be agreeable to the family of the late Lord Seaton to have them deposited near the tomb of the distinguished officer who so frequently led that regiment to victory. Should this proposal be acceptable to the family, I need not say the high gratification it will afford me to give the necessary directions for carrying out this mark of respect to the memory of an honoured officer and valued friend, under whom I had the privilege and happiness to serve for so many years. — Believe me, my dear Lord Seaton, very sincerely yours,
"WM. ROWAN."
When Winchester College celebrated its Quin- centenary of 1887 by the erection of a school museum, four medallions on the outer wall com- memorated four Wykehamists of whom Wykehamists were most proud. These were Grocyn, Ken, Seaton and Selborne.
A beautiful east window in Sparkwell Church has been placed there by the present Lord Seaton in memory of his grandfather and grandmother, and his father and mother.
But the fame of John Colborne needs no sucK memorials. It belongs to those things which bis country will not willingly let die.
John Colborne was a soldier sans peur et sans re-proche. From youth to old age, as he was
380 JOHN COLBORNFS CAREER. [CH. XXII.
physically one of the noblest types of manhood, so he was morally. In all family relations — as son, stepson, brother, husband, father — he was all that it was possible for man to be, and he carried with him through life the adoring affection and reverence of those near to him. Unwearied in self-improvement, he made his way partly by innate military genius, but greatly by sheer moral effort, unaided by the power of money, to the highest rank to which a soldier's ambition can aspire. Whatever the motive or the means, such success would have commanded respect. But in John Colborne there was no self-seeking ; suc- cess came as the due of merit, and it was received with a touching humility. When a lady heard him, with some of his old comrades, talking over some occur- rences of the great war, and remarked, " How proud you gentlemen must feel at the recollection that you had a share in those great events ! " he replied, we are told, very gently, " Proud? no, rather humbled, I think." Not ambition, but duty, was the guiding star of Colborne's life. It was his determination in preparing himself in hours of leisure for the crisis that was to come, it was his zeal to do his daily work to the utmost at all costs to himself, it was his fearless disregard of man's favour and his loyalty to the brave and good in fair report or foul, that made him one on whom others could lean with confidence in the crisis of a battle or the turmoil of political revolution. " Not slothful in business, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord."
In the heat of action it might be said of him as of Wordsworth's warrior, that he was " happy as a Lover, and attired with sudden brightness like a
THE "HAPPY WARRIORS 381
Man inspired." As has been well remarked, it was in those moments that he was probably most truly him- self. The grave reserve of the commanding officer was then dissolved, so that the 52nd, who were so proud of him, said humorously, that he was never so pleasant to deal with as in action. In the civil commands of his later life any military sternness was replaced by the most winning urbanity.
And beyond these physical and moral qualities, v/hich made him a type of ideal manhood, he had those flashes of genius — not perhaps in his secondary occupations as a statesman — but certainly in his own calling as a soldier, which prompt to great deeds. And then what Colborne's " eagle eye " saw, Colborne's " iron heart " dared to per- form. Let Nivelle and Orthes and Waterloo witness.
" This is the happy Warrior : this is he Whom every man is arms should wish to be."
APPENDIX I.
LORD SEATON ON SIR JOHN MOORE'S CAMPAIGN IN SPAIN.
A
LETTER TO COLONEL WILLIAM NAPIER, CONTAINING A DIARY OF THE CAMPAIGN.
" 1 6th March, 1827.
" My dear Napier, — I am afraid you pester yourself too much with divisions and the details of their operations. Look at the first volume of the Precis M Hit air e. What an advantage an author has who disencumbers himself of all the stuff that is only fit to enter the journal of a writer who intends his work for a few English book-clubs.
" I entreat you to look over again attentively the last memoranda I gave you at Brook Farm, I mean the march from Lisbon to Corunna. / think I have mentioned in them every occurrence fully as much as the operations of those months deserve, and I hope you will only dwell particularly on the following points. These I trust will appear as prominent as you may judge consistent with your work, viz. :
" I. That when Sir John Moore decided on the march of the first brigades to Salamanca he expected that Sir D. Baird would have arrived early in October in the neighbourhood of Salamanca ; that he could not have anticipated the delay occasioned by the folly of the Junta of Corunna. That as it was more probable that the army would incline towards Madrid than to any other point, he was right, in the doubt
384 APPENDIX L
about the practicability of the roads, to march his artillery by the Badajos road, as he could easily move all his infantry (including the Corunna Division, had it arrived at the time he had good reason for supposing it must assemble in Castile) to the right to Avila, or to a more forward position.
" 2. That if his force had been collected at Salamanca early in October, he positively could not have assisted the Spaniards, and that if he had moved towards Madrid he probably would have been so entangled with the Spaniards that the case must have turned out as hopeless as it did afterwards, and the movements of the French would have been more concentrated. All this ought to be explained, because Jones places great importance on the prolonged march of the artillery, and Southey says that Madrid would have been saved if Sir John Moore had remained in its neighbourhood with his division.
" 3. That the only operation he undertook was the one to serve the cause. For if he had moved into Portugal the country was unprepared to make any defence, and ho general could have acted with tolerable security without some point to which he could retire on.
" 4. That having been thrown on Gallicia, the best thing that he could do was to draw the French after him, and to get out of an exhausted country by embarkation.
I believe I was present at every affair and skirmish from Benevente to Corunna, but there was scarcely anything that occurred except the cavalry skirmish at Benevente that deserves notice. The affair at Lugo was a mere two hours' skirmish or reconnaissance.
" I think the dates of the march of the divisions from Sahagun that I have given you are correct. I cannot give you the march of each division. In my memoranda that I gave to you at Cobham you will find the movements of the principal columns correctly stated. On referring to my little journal I perceive that headquarters left Sahagun on the 25th and marched to Mayorga. Our first skirmish on the advance to Sahagun, with the exception of Stewart's little affair at Rueda, was on the 2ist of December. The following is a copy from my journal.*
" ' 2 1 st. — Marched to Sahagun, five leagues from Val-
* The copy contains particulars not given in the original Journal, which is preserved at Beech wood.
SIR J. MOORE'S CAMPAIGN. 385
deras. Lord Paget reached Melgar [de] Abajo with the loth and 1 5th Dragoons at 2 this morning. On our arrival at Sahagun we found that the French cavalry amounting to 600 or 700 had come out of Sahagun at daylight and were attacked by the i$th Dragoons under Lord Paget, who defeated them and took two lieutenant-colonels, 1 1 officers and 144 men. I went down with the adjutant of the regi- ment and other officers to the ground where the affair took place. Lord Paget appeared to have gained a decided advantage in charging at the time he did and forcing the enemy to receive his charge on the best ground.
"*25th. — Marched from Sahagun to Mayorga.
" ' 26th. — Marched from Mayorga through Fuentes to Benevente ; arrived there in the evening. A small party of the enemy's cavalry had approached the bridge and carried off some of the commissariat cattle.
" ' 2^th. — The general received a report from Lord Paget that the enemy's cavalry, having entered Mayorga, were followed by part of the loth Dragoons, who charged them and took 70 prisoners. The i8th Dragoons fell in with another party and took 20 prisoners. The enemy's cavalry patrolled as far as the bridge of Castro Gonzalo about 6 p.m.
1 ' 28th. — Generals Hope and Fraser retired with their divisions towards Astorga. The i8th Dragoons attacked a French patrol near Villa Pando, which was afterwards the cause of an alarm.
" ' 2Qth. — The reserve marched this morning. Four squadrons of the enemy crossed at the ford and attacked the picquets, which, on being reinforced, repulsed the enemy. Sir J. marched early in the morning. I remained till 8 or later. As I was packing up my papers my servant informed me that the French had forded the river. I rode down towards the river at full speed ; met several dismounted troopers and some French officers prisoners. The picquets appeared to me retiring in good order, the troop of the German Hussars had reinforced the picquets and charged the leading French squadrons. The French cavalry, formed in four squadrons, were advancing steadily towards Benevente. Our picquets were retiring and forming up frequently in front of the leading French squadron. Some of the troops of the loth Hussars were beginning to assemble about 400 yards in rear of the picquets.
386 APPENDIX I.
" ' At this moment Lord Paget rode up. " You see there are not many of them. I wish to draw them on till the loth are ready, but I don't know what they may have on the other side. Our lads, the picquets, are up to a charge." By this time the loth were assembled, and the French were a few hundred yards from them, rather to their right. Lord Paget wheeled the loth into line, gave the word, " Charge ! " I rather think that the French wheeled about at the very moment the word " Charge " was given. They galloped at full speed in tolerable order towards the river, and passing over better ground than the loth did, gained some paces on them. Those of the enemy that were badly mounted were taken, but the main body appeared to me not to be overtaken in their flight. The French passed the river in a dense column and formed up for a few minutes on the other side. Two guns had arrived on the ground at this period, and fired, I believe, about two rounds, which sent them up the opposite bank. Lefebvre was taken, being badly mounted. A German officer told me that he took him, and that Lefebvre defended himself, but I did not give credit to his assertion. Jansen was the German officer's name.
' 1st January. — Marched from Astorga in the evening. I rode out to the cavalry picquets and had [heard?] a few shots in front. Arrived at Combrios [Combarros], halted a few hours. Marched about midnight on receiving Lord Paget's report that the enemy were in force. At Nurenas the general wrote to Corunna and Lugo that it was his intention that the army should retire on Betanzos.
2nd. — Arrived at Bembybre as Sir David Baird's Corps was marching out of it. The enemy's patrols were seen by ours during the night.
" ' 3rd. — Marched to Villa Franca. The enemy's cavalry entered Bembybre about I p.m., to the number of 600. I remained in front of Bembybre till I saw their advanced guard. The patrol of the I5th retired before them. The reserve halted between Bembybre and Cacabelos to pro- tect the stragglers.
' ' 4th. — The enemy's cavalry appeared in great force on the heights above Cacabelos about 2 o'clock. Sir J. Moore was in Villa Franca. I rode out to the advanced picquet of our cavalry. I found the reserve under arms. The 52nd and 2Oth Regiments were posted on the right and left of the road leading to Villa Franca, behind the bridge
SIR J. MOORE'S CAMPAIGN. 387
of Cacabelos. The 95th were posted in front of the village with the river behind them, under a hill, so that the approach of the enemy could not be discovered by them. Many staff officers of cavalry were on the road behind the cavalry picquet The enemy appeared to have about a squadron on the road, and their vedettes were advanced close to ours. In this situation we remained about an hour. Suddenly I observed our picquet retiring rapidly, and all the staff and cavalry officers with them. We all met on the bridge together. The passage became blocked up by the 95th pressing towards the same point. This halt was for a very short space, but the enemy's cavalry were approaching at a brisk gallop behind us. Some of the 95th got into the houses and, I believe, these were taken. I rode up the hill towards Villa Franca. The 52nd and 2Oth had been withdrawn by order of Sir J. Moore to the summit of the hill. Advanced picquets were stationed below and fired on the French cavalry that passed the bridge. The enemy retired immediately.
' ' On my arrival on our position I found Sir J. Moore there with two battalions and two guns. The guns had fired as the enemy passed the bridge. The 95th were posted in vineyards to the right of the road, nearer to the river than the other battalions. We all took out our glasses and observed large masses of cavalry deploying on the height in front of Cacabelos. I think I said, or some officer said, that there were 20 squadrons. We had a dis- pute whether there were infantry or not. About half an hour before dark the enemy made a show of passing the river in front of the 95th and did push on their skirmishers. The 95th commenced a tremendous fire, which I thought was unnecessary, which continued till after dark. Sir J. Moore ordered the /6th and all that were in Villa Franca to march. He desired me to go to Ross and to desire that the 2Oth might remain on the road in front of Villa Franca till about 10 o'clock. I found all quiet and no appearance of the enemy. Sir John Moore marched about half past 9 and arrived at Herrerias early in the morning, where we halted a few hours. It was from this place that Sir J. wrote to Baird, Hope and Fraser and Broderick that the army would halt at Lugo and assemble there. These despatches were forwarded by Captain Napier to Baird and sent on by him by a dragoon, who lost them.
1 ( 5th. — Arrived at Nogales. Letters were despatched
O 2
388 APPENDIX I.
again to the generals in the rear and the commissary- general to push on provisions for Lugo.
" ' 6th. — The reserve marched from Nogales. The vedettes of the enemy appeared about 8 o'clock on the high mountain above Nogales. Here, at a short distance from the town, a mine was sprung to render the road impassable. I remained to see the explosion, but it failed, and made a very trifling obstacle.
' The enemy's cavalry moved on steadily, and did not appear in any great force till the evening, about 2 o'clock. Our column halted on the road about this time while the money in the bullock car was thrown over. I think I observed about three squadrons near us, and where we halted, they showed no disposition to press us. Towards the evening we halted again on some advan- tageous ground with two pieces of artillery ready to fire. The enemy remained at some distance and retired a little to their left to shelter their advanced guard. About 5 or 6 o'clock we retired quickly down the hill in front of Sobrado or Constantina and passed the rivulet or river before the enemy could discover that we were in full retreat. They came on at a brisk trot when we were in position and the picquets posted at the bridge skirmished with their advanced guard. A few shots were [fired] at them from our guns on the position. I observed that the cavalry filed off to occupy the different villages on their side of the river — no appearance of an intention to attack. ' ' I went down after dark, or as soon as the firing had ceased, and visited the bridge, which was blocked up with carts. The reserve cooked and halted till after midnight.
' We marched about an hour after midnight and arrived at Lugo early on the 7th.' (Thus says my journal, but I see Jones* asserts that we marched from Villa Franca to Lugo in 43 hours, which must be a mistake.)
" Noble'sf book is full of lies and blunders ; his dates, however, agree with mine. He confuses the position of Constantina, three leagues or more from Lugo, with our position in front of Lugo. But I rather think I have occasioned the misstatement of Jones, who
* Sir J. T. Jones in his Account of the War (1818). •j- Le Noble, the anonymous author of the Campagne des Francah en Galice et Portugal, 1809. For this identification I am indebted to the kindness of Mr. C. W. C. Oman, Fellow of All Souls'.
•S1//? J. MOORE'S CAMPAIGN. 389
copied from James Moore. Perhaps you can ascertain this from George Napier. My journal is correct as to the number of hours, but perhaps I have made some mistake in the day we marched from Villa Franca. For I see that the general order about the ill-conduct of the troops is dated ' Headquarters, Lugo, the 6th.'
" ' ^th. — On the 7th the enemy opened a fire from two or three field pieces on our right and continued firing the greater part of the day. Towards the evening Soult pushed on two or three battalions to our position, near the centre. The enemy having shown in some force, Sir John Moore was on the position, making his arrangements. The 5 ist and the 76th Regiments, who were opposite the skirmishers of the enemy, gave way, and many of them retired, or rather, ran back in confusion. Sir J. Moore rode up to C. Crauford, I think, or some colonel or general and desired him to send out skirmishers. The battalions, or the 500 or 600 men of the enemy, were immediately checked.
" ' Sir J. Moore desired me to place Baird's Divisions on the left, which had received orders to march from their quarters. I rode to the left and met the head of the column. On my return I found everything quiet. Sir J. Moore imagined that this reconnaissance was preparatory to an attack in the morning. He gave orders for the different divisions to be under arms early on the 8th.
( ' 8th. — The enemy on the 8th made no appearance that indicated an attack. The corps commenced their retreat from Lugo in the evening. Lord William Bentinck's Division and some of Baird's Corps did not get into the high road until I or 2 o'clock in the morning of the gth.
' ' gth. — The army halted at Valmonde or Valmeda — continued the retreat on the night of the gth. There was more confusion on this night than on any other, from the circumstances which have been mentioned already, viz., from the permission given by Baird to halt on the road during a storm, and from the men being allowed to shelter themselves under the hedges adjoining the road, so that when orders [were] given to resume the march many regi- ments did not muster 100 men. The stragglers amounted to, perhaps, 1,500.
' loth. — These were pressed hard by the French cavalry the greater part of the day. We had a small
390 APPENDIX L
rearguard of cavalry, but I should think not more than a squadron. Grant, of the I5th, I know was present, and attempted to form up a body of stragglers that checked the enemy. But there was no affair of cavalry between Lugo and Betanzos. Sir E. Paget halted about two miles from Betanzos and continued in that position, I believe, the whole night. The main body of cavalry had marched on to Corunna.
"' nth. — On the nth January the army marched from Betanzos. The 28th Regiment halted at the end of the town while the engineer was superintending the com- pletion of a mine to destroy the bridge. The French cavalry advanced at a brisk trot through the streets at this moment. One company of the 28th opened a fire and they immediately retired. The column on this day retired without being molested. The Guards and Fane's Brigade marched into Corunna, Hope's Division remained at El Burgo. The bridge over the Mero was destroyed on the 12th. The other divisions were quartered in villages between El Burgo and Corunna.
" * 1 2th. — On the I2th Sir J. Moore examined El Burgo and rode over the heights of Portoso, but he imagined that he could not occupy this position as he could not cover the St lago road, and [on account of] the great distance between Portoso and Corunna.
'" 1 3th. — Beckwith retired from the Mero on the I3th, but was ordered to reoccupy El Burgo. The bridges over the Mero were destroyed. An officer of Engineers lost his life in mining the bridge near Cambri.
' 1 4th. — The advanced guard of the enemy passed the Mero on the I4th.
' 1 5th. — On the I5th he took possession of the heights. The transports from Vigo were in sight on the evening of the 1 4th.
' 1 6th. — On the i6th, soon after Sir J. Moore arrived on the ground, I observed the enemy descending from their position in three masses, preceded by numerous skir- mishers. Our picquets were at this time retiring in some confusion. Sir J. Moore desired me to ride to Sir E. Paget and to tell him to advance on the enemy's left, as he had agreed with him, and to tell Fane to draw out his brigade on the St. lago road. On my return I found several companies of the 5oth and 42nd retiring, and that Sir J. Moore had been wounded There was a heavy fire
SIR J. MOORE'S CAMPAIGN. 391
from behind all the hedges and enclosures, but scarcely any considerable force could be discovered on either side. The French maintained a heavy fire from their field-pieces on the position, directing them chiefly on the mounted officers. The enemy appeared to me to be retiring at every point towards their own position.
"* i;th. — On the i/th the enemy did not appear till 7 o'clock, when a small corps of cavalry advanced cautiously. About three in the evening the enemy brought forward a few field-pieces to the high ground near the water and opened a fire on some of the transports near the citadel. At this moment I was about to embark/
" I have copied an old journal which was written in great haste, and have related the substance of that which came under my own view. The whole of Noble's account is false. The absurd stuff about Betanzos being intended to be destroyed must be his own invention. It may be asserted safely that we never saw the enemy on the march in any force except at Lugo, and that all their fighting was with the stragglers.
*' The bridge of Castro Gonzalo was burnt. I believe you know more about this than I do. Crauford superin- tended it. With respect to the Engineers' tools, I heard Pasley complaining of the want of them. There was at that time no staff corps or any establishment attached to that department, and all work of mining was performed by working parties, and tools were issued by the Quarter- master-General's Department or by the Commissariat. At Astorga, I believe, among the camp equipage destroyed, the entrenching tools shared the same fate.
" The next bridge attempted to be destroyed was not far from Nogales, on the Rio Herrerias, but when the bridge was proposed to be destroyed Sir J. Moore himself rather objected to it, knowing the river could be forded a few hundred yards below.
" The next bridge was between Lugo and Betanzos, I believe over the Mino. Jones has exaggerated the occurrences on this day's march.
" We may affirm that all the straggling before the march from Lugo was of that kind which is common to all British columns, and that the stragglers up to that day were chiefly composed of drunkards. Two divisions which were quartered in the villages near the position in front of Lugo marched by a narrow lane instead of at once striking into
392 APPENDIX I.
the main road. Thus marching on this bad road on a dark night the rear of the column was not far from Lugo till two o'clock on the morning of the Qth. But even this was not of much importance ; for the whole had passed the river and halted three leagues from Lugo before one o'clock p.m. I observed few stragglers that had not passed the river, and arrived at the bivouac near Venta Bahamondo or Venta de Guteniz before 2 p.m.
" The French did not enter Lugo before 9 o'clock and were not seen during this march. There was a small rearguard of cavalry. The columns marched about 7 or 8 o'clock on the evening of the gth. The weather was dreadful and it rained the whole night, and in the divisions that were suffered to halt during the night and put in motion before half the men were assembled there was a great deal of confusion, and during the whole of this day there were many that could not find their divi- sions. Two regiments (the 59th, I believe, was one) did not arrive at Betanzos with more than 150 men. Sir J. Moore passed these dispersed divisions early in the morning. From this imprudent halt alone arose all the horrors which Jones ascribes unjustly to hard marching. It is evident that the reserve marched in perfect order, although the different corps of that division had more work than the others. Thus, if the generals of division had been more expert, the divisions would have arrived at Corunna without ever once seeing the enemy except at Lugo.
" The reserve halted in a good position in front of Betanzos. I rode out to Sir E. Paget and everything appeared in perfect order, but stragglers were passing in great numbers. Jones says that he could discover nothing like an organized army.
" On the I oth we halted
" At Betanzos a mine was sprung at the end of the town on the road leading to Corunna. This detained the French cavalry some time. The divisions marched in one column and everything appeared to go on very regularly. The cavalry retired to Corunna independently. There could have been nothing but a rearguard [affair?] between Lugo and Corunna, and no kind of skirmish took place. The 76th were at Villa Franca, the 59th and 5ist, I believe, did not march further than Lugo — nor the 23rd; but I am not quite certain of this.
SIR J. MOORE'S CAMPAIGN. 393
" You are nearly right in your estimate of the army at Lugo. However, I think the cavalry fit for service must have been under 1,500. You are nearly right in your estimate of the combatants at Corunna, viz., 14,600. Noble's plan of the battle appears correct, and, I think, better than ours.
" Sir J. Moore, you must recollect, moved in the direction of Mayorga to ensure his junction with Baird, and from that place to Carrion by Sahagun, and by the direct road, there is not more than four or five miles difference. But as a good place to concentrate, and a short distance to march from and to communicate with Romana at Mavilla, Sahagun was preferable to Mayorga to march from with an intention of making an attack. Besides, Sir J. Moore had the choice of marching on Saldanha at the same time.
" Sir John Moore would probably have pushed on Sir E. Paget further and supported him with Fane's Brigade had he ...
" I think you should dwell much on his intention of going to Vigo to put everything right, and on the folly of Baird's allowing the signal to be hoisted for all the trans- ports to steer for England before the officers had been trans-shipped to their own battalions, &c.
" I am sorry I cannot give you a better account of the march ; but in the papers which I gave you at Cobham and the preceding ones describing the march from Lisbon, I took great care that the dates were correct by comparing them with old records. I recollect having had some dis- cussion about the date of the 6th and 7th January some years since. Jones has copied most of his narrative from James Moore, and assumed that as the data of his argu- ments. The order dated ' Lugo, the gth ' is certainly a mistake. I have written this in much haste to save the packet, so that I fear you will have as much trouble in reading it as I had in deciphering yours.
" Do read Southey's second volume. He has completely ruined his character as an historian. His work ought to be reviewed immediately. I will transmit to you what I think should be published respecting his errors and bitterness against Sir John. That story about Bonaparte's having said that he would have shot Soult if he had issued his proclamation declaring himself King of Portugal I suspect to be one of his ridiculous anecdotes for which he has no authority. He states that Sir John Moore's move-
394 APPENDIX I.
ments had some effect, but not by any means in pro- portion to ' the sacrifice ' he made, and that if he had fought in Gallicia the Spaniards would have attacked Madrid ! ! Against this statement we have only to produce St. Infantado's letters. However, his book will save you much trouble. Do not be disheartened. The important documents will always make your work the best that has been circulated. — Yours sincerely,
"J. COLBORNE."
B
EXTRACTS FROM AN UNPUBLISHED ARTICLE (1827) ON SOUTHEY'S " HISTORY OF THE PENINSULAR WAR."
i. SOUTHEY'S ACCOUNTS OF SIR JOHN MOORE AND MR. FRERE.
" The depreciation of the services of Sir John Moore and the defence of Mr. Frere seems the grand object of Mr. Southey's work. It is this bias that has induced him to assert with dogmatical presumption that ' Sir John Moore wanted faith in the courage of British soldiers/ a general that had confided in it more than any other, and that had fought with them in the first rank from his youth, and directed the most glorious and arduous operations of the British army.
" Mr. Frere conducted himself, we think, as a con- scientious and well-intentioned Minister, but he participated in the delusion and blindness of the Spanish Government, and his official letters and documents seem to partake of the arrogance of his patron and poet. He certainly deserves many of the eulogiums passed upon him, but if Mr. Southey has attempted to wind him up at the expense of a man whose reputation was basely sacrificed to party spirit, who had devoted his whole life and energies to his country and profession, whose ability and decision did materially aid the Spanish people, he has for ever forfeited any claim he might have had to the character of a just and diligent historian, and far better would it have been for his fame had he never ventured beyond his strength — beyond
SIX J. MOORE'S CAMPAIGN. 395
the Remains of Henry Kirke White and the precincts of biography."
2. SIR JOHN MOORE RIGHT IN NOT FIGHTING AN ACTION
EARLIER.
" A battle should not be fought except an important object is to be gained. Sir John Moore had taken the lead with an inferior force, and the movements of his adversary became subordinate to his. In uniting the British army and directing it with the aid of Romana's Division against an isolated corps, he effected a total change in the enemy's combinations. He was aware that no consideration but the actual crisis at which Spanish affairs had arrived should induce him to give up Portugal and his communications with Lisbon. On military principles he perceived his movement was faulty, yet a glorious cause and the representations of the Spanish authorities, the attention he was bound to pay to their reports of the exertions they were making on the Tagus, in La Mancha and Estremadura, demanded that a trial of the activity and perseverance of the provinces should be made. His friend, Mr. Stuart, informed him that a retrograde movement on Portugal would produce an effect not less serious than the most decisive victory [of the enemy].
" His offensive movement, then, was founded on the exaggerated statements from Aranjuez, Toledo and the southern provinces. He drew the principal mass of the hostile force on him, but he attracted it from Saragossa, from the capital, from the pursuit of the hunted divisions of Castanos, St. Juan and Galuzzo ; he protected the straggling mob of Blake and gave Romana an opportunity of organizing it. He might defeat Soult and destroy his corps or some of the divisions of the 8th Corps on the march to Madrid.
" The most important part of his project had been accomplished ; to risk his army in carrying into effect a secondary operation from which a certain loss would have been sustained without an important result might have suited the tactics of Cuesta, Venegas, Carbaojal and Arezaga, but not those of an officer of experience.
" In few cases can a commander be justified in bringing on an action to save what is termed the ' honour of the
396 APPENDIX /.
nation.1 Why should Sir John Moore, who had gained his first object, and then found it necessary to conduct his army by a retrograde movement and steadily pursued his purpose, lose his army to increase his own reputation ? "•
3. STRAGGLING ON SIR JOHN MOORE'S CAMPAIGN.
" In no one movement during the whole campaign were we able to prevent straggling to an immense amount Luckily we generally advanced — when we recovered our stragglers. In every British army the great majority of the men are well-conducted, brave, the best soldiers ; by practice they become intelligent and [excellent] in every respect. I suppose the army given up by the Duke of Wellington at Bordeaux was the most compact and movable army that had ever been assembled. But let us not suppose that to the very last we effected [the putting down of straggling] ; the disease of straggling was incurable. The system of recruiting is so defective and so radically bad that in every regiment we must say there are from 50 to 100 bad characters that neither punishment nor any kind of discipline can restrain. In quarters they are kept in some measure restrained, but the moment the army is in move- ment they separate from their regiment. Their object is to march independently and ultimately to get into some hospital. So that for the most part these kind of characters are absent and unserviceable.
" So that in this campaign, when we talk of disorder and disorganization, the disorganization was confined entirely to this species of straggling occasioned by drunkards, or a preference to march independently and overtake their divisions at their leisure. We appeal to every regiment on this retreat whether there was any disobedience or disorder but this. The divisions of Hope and Fraser being a head one and Sir D. Baird's being ahead of the corps which covered the retreat — these divi- sions never having seen the enemy till their arrival at Lugo — proves that the rapidity of the march was not the cause of the [straggling], besides, the stragglers of the covering [corps], which had to fight, were comparatively fewer; and the whole march was performed with great regularity. We must except one night, the night after the march to Lugo, but this was purely accidental."
SIR J. MOORE'S CAMPAIGN. 397
LETTER TO LADY NAPIER ON SIR JOHN MOORE'S CHOICE OF
CORUNNA AS HIS PORT OF EMBARKATION.
" 109, Eaton-square, "28th May, 1850.
" My dear Lady Napier, — In reply to your queries, you must first be made acquainted that when Sir J. Moore was assured that Napoleon was in full march in search of him, he despatched Colonel Fletcher, Commanding Engineer, with instructions to visit Vigo, Betanzos, Corunna and Ferrol, and report on the facilities or advantages offered at each of those places as points of embarkation for jtroops pursued by an enemy. At Lugo, I believe, Fletcher returned with his report, and on the night of our arrival read it to the Military Secretary half asleep from fatigue. In the morning early it was laid before the Commander-in- Chief. Sir J. Moore had many years before been employed by the Duke of York at the desire of the Minister of the day in making an inspection of the coast in the vicinity of Ferrol, and from his own recollection imagined that vessels tacking out of the river would be exposed to the fire of an enemy.
" Corunna, therefore, was decided on under the circum- stances of the case, as the point from which troops could embark with less risk and with reference to the stand which might be safely made at Betanzos en route, and its short distance from Corunna, and the march which could easily and safely be accomplished by the columns retiring from that position. The needless march and countermarch of Fraser's Division, the slow progress of the several corps in retiring from the position taken up at Lugo, the forced night march and imprudent halt of Baird's Division and consequent dispersion of the troops in barns and sheltered fields, determined Sir J. Moore to continue his march with as little delay as possible from Betanzos in the expec- tation of seeing the transports in the Bay of Corunna prepared to receive artillery, baggage and troops. — Yours very sincerely,
" J. COLBORNE."
( 398 )
APPENDIX II.
LORD SEATON'S ACCOUNTS OF WATERLOO, WITH SOME REMARKS.
OBSERVATIONS ON COLONEL GAWLER'S " CRISIS OF THE ACTION AT WATERLOO" (DICTATED TO COLONEL W. ROWAN, AT TORONTO, 1835).
" To establish the precise time when the battle was no longer doubtful and the movements which were the immediate cause of hastening the crisis is the object of the writer. And as he is persuaded that the movements of Sir H. Clinton's Division and of General Adam's Brigade, and of the 52nd Regiment in particular, tended greatly to hasten the crisis, it is necessary to describe the several positions of the division from half-past three o'clock to half-past seven, fixing from seven to half-past seven as the critical half hour, but time passes so quickly in an action, and everyone is so occupied in performing his own duty, that it will be difficult to find persons agree as to time. However that may be, it is clear that while the columns of Napoleon, which made the unsuccessful attack on the ' point which is usually called our right centre, advanced in full march towards the troops occupying our centre (the Brunswickers retiring and the British Guards closing in), no one who was looking steadfastly at the movements of the Imperial Guards at that time could say that the battle did not look critical, or but that the Imperial Guards had the appearance of success, and also that our centre was on the point of being penetrated. This, then, we must fix as the time when no change for the better on
WATERLOO.
399
our side had taken place, and that we were in the greatest danger; but the moment the Imperial Guards halted and formed square in consequence of a menaced attack on their left flank, our prospects were immediately changed for the better. It was the ' crisis,' and half an hour after- wards, when they were thrown into confusion and they retreated towards ' La Belle Alliance/ the battle was won. They had no reserve formed worth the name of a reserve. All attacks of cavalry or infantry after that moment were the necessary consequence of the flight and the endeavour to save such part of the crew of the wreck as could be brought off without incurring further risk.
" Therefore, however splendid the conduct of any corps might have been, after the first flight of the French, in reaping the fruits of the victory and in completing the rout of the retiring columns, they took no part in the critical affair on the plateau of La Haye Sainte or plain below it which the left flank of Napoleon's columns overlooked.
"Assuming that the three regiments, the 52nd, 7 1st and 95th passed the cross-road which runs a few hundred yards in rear of La Haye Sainte and forms an acute angle with the Nivelles road, at half-past three or four o'clock, the 52nd halted in the low ground three or four hundred yards in front of that road, and about 700 yards from the nearest angle of Hougomont. Remaining there an hour, the 52nd Regiment, being a strong regiment, formed two squares, the 7 ist formed square 200 yards to the right of the 52nd, and on the approach of the French cavalry towards the 7 1st, the 95th, apparently not more than two companies, formed close to the rear of the 52nd. Colonel Nicolay of the staff corps and several officers ran into the square of the 52nd. Two of the enemy's guns were on the high bank or ridge in front of the 52nd, apparently about 200 yards from the squares ; but were only to be seen by the mounted officers. A mounted officer, Sir John Colborne, who had ascertained the exact position of these guns, called out from the commencement of the ascent to a captain of the 52nd to say whether he could see the guns from his part of the square. These guns and a howitzer fired constantly on the squares. The right and front faces of the right square of the 52nd opened a fire obliquely on the French Cuirassiers, who made a movement towards the rear of Hougomont, towards the 7ist The remainder
400 APPENDIX II.
of Clinton's Division were formed to the rear of the right of the 7 ist Regiment.
" The Duke of Wellington sent a message to the 52nd by Colonel Hervey to retire up the hill, about half-past five; but Colonel Hervey was requested by Sir John Colborne to inform the Duke that the regiment was not in danger from the guns in front, if the order was given from the apparent vicinity of the guns. However, on the Nassau Regiment, or some of the allied troops, running rapidly out of the wood of Hougomont towards our line, the 52nd prepared to retire and form two lines — the right sub-divisions forming one line and the left sub-divisions the other — and retired rapidly up the hill towards the cross-road which they had crossed an hour before. While they were retiring, a field officer of the Cuirassiers galloped out of the enemy's columns and came at full speed down the hill towards the 52nd, hallooing lustily, ' Vive le Rot! ' as he approached. This officer pointed out the spot where Napoleon was and where the Imperial Guards were on the march to make a grand attack. The 52nd halted in two lines about 10 yards behind the cross-road where the ground sloped towards our position. The officer of the Cuirassiers pointed out to the officer commanding the 52nd, Sir John Colborne, the exact spot where Napoleon was with the Imperial Guards. The guns under Colonel Gould* on the cross-road were all silent, there was scarcely any firing except in the rear of La Haye Sainte and on that part of our centre. The dense columns of the French were in full march on the plateau of La Haye Sainte, near the farm, and the flank of the columns at this time appeared to form a right angle with the 52nd, supposing the left of the line of the 52nd to be prolonged. A few minutes before this an officer, Sir John Colborne, had occasion to look at his watch and said, ' The wounded had better be left where they are, the action must be over in half an hour.1 Therefore, at seven, we will say, the $2nd wheeled the left company nearly a quarter of a circle to the left and formed the remainder on the new line, with the intention of moving on the left -flank of the Imperial column and -firing into the column to retard the movement. The 52nd thus, at seven o'clock, were formed into two lines, not four deep, but each left sub-division in rear of
* Lieut.-Colonel C. Gold.
WATERLOO. 401
its right, the whole forming two complete lines, the rear line keeping the wheeling distance of a sub-division from the front line. At this time the 95 th, apparently a small number, formed on the left of the 52nd. A strong com- pany of the 52nd was sent to skirmish in front and to fire into the Imperial column. At this moment General Adam came to the 52nd from the /ist, seeing the 52nd moving on. The Duke, it appears, at the same time had sent Colonel Percy to the 52nd. The 52nd, however, were already in motion, its right flank totally unprotected, and moved off in two lines well formed, and covered by skir- mishers commanded by Lieutenants Anderson and Campbell, who had directions to push on and look to the whole battalion as their support.
" Whether the 95 th moved off with the 52nd is not certain. They certainly did not continue on the left flank the whole time of the march towards the front The 5 2nd moved steadily on. The instant the French columns felt the fire of Anderson's skirmishers they halted, appeared to be in some confusion, and opened a heavy fire on the 52nd. The two officers of the skirmishers were wounded and the greater part of the men ; the right of the battalion also suffered severely. The 52nd still moved on, passing the entire front of Byng's* Brigade of British Guards (who were stationary and not firing) at about 300 yards or so in front of them, and forming probably a right angle, or perhaps an obtuse angle, with the line of the Guards.
"At the moment the 52nd commenced the movement Lord Hill was near the British Guards commanded by Maitland, and no movement on their part had then taken place. Therefore it is imagined that when the 52nd com- menced the movement — they were shortly followed by the 7 1st and the whole of Clinton's Division — the Imperial troops saw that their flank and rear were menaced by a mass of troops — they halted ; but the moment this halt took place our centre also made a forward movement, which was resisted by the attacking corps of the French. t The 52nd in the meantime had proceeded to within a short distance of the rising ground on which the French
* Most of Byng's own brigade was at Hougomont. Colborne means Maitland's Brigade, with whom Byng was, as he had succeeded to the command of the whole division through Cooke's being wounded.
j- Colborne means that he imagines whatever movement was made by the Guards, took place at this time.
402 APPENDIX II.
were formed, when a body of British cavalry were per- ceived at full speed approaching the front of the left company of the 52nd.* The officer of the company gave orders to fire, "supposing they had come from the enemy's column. The three adjoining companies wheeled back to form square. The battalion at the time was under a heavy fire from the Imperial Guards, and the regiment was halted for a few minutes to enable the companies to rectify their line. At this moment while the three com- panies were forming up, the Duke was close in the rear and said, ' Well, never mind — go on, go on ! ' This halt brought the ?ist, which corps had not been so much exposed to the fire as the 52nd, close on the right of the 52nd. The 52nd then advanced at full speed. The greater part of the French gave way in confusion, but some remained formed close to the deep road running direct from La Haye Sainte to La Belle Alliance. Captain Cross called out, ' They are coming over, don't fire ! ' The French, however, opened a straggling fire, some running across the road and a few remaining till the 52nd were within six or seven yards of them. The whole of the 52nd charged briskly till they were impeded by the deep road, when they halted for a minute or two till they received the word to pass. They had some difficulty in getting over. When they had passed they formed line and wheeled to the right. Sir John Colborne's horse was here shot, and he mounted one of the gun horses. They found a gun on the plateau fully horsed and moved on in line, keeping their right on the road, and passed La Belle Alliance, and were joined by the skirmishers at the head of Billow's Corps, which shortly after that came obliquely from the left
"In the meantime the ?ist had proceeded towards Rossomme and did not pass the road where the 52nd did The whole of Sir H. Clinton's Division, the moment the French were observed in retreat and in confusion, had struck to their right towards Rossomme. The 52nd passed about 80 pieces of cannon and tumbrils within a quarter of an hour after they had passed the Charleroi road from Waterloo. The skirmishing or attack that took place in the retreat from Rossomme or Planchenoit, the 52nd took no part in ; they halted when the evening
* See p. 227 n.
WATERLOO. 403
closed. Billow's corps in column passed the 52nd after the regiment had halted.
" The writer has never been on the ground since ; but he is positive, as far as his memory can be relied on, that these facts are correctly stated, and is thus certain that no corps whatever passed between the 52nd and the French from the time the 52nd moved on the flank of the French, for the 52nd were under a heavy fire the whole time and were opposed to the moment they touched the Charleroi road. When they were formed to the left of the Charleroi road no corps was near them. The only corps of cavalry near the 52nd or the French column during the attack was the regiment of cavalry that moved in the direction of the left company of the 52nd. Thus it appears that the movement to which Sir H. Vivian alludes* must have been the attack made in retreat, and that all the troops that came in contact with the French must have moved across the track of the 52nd in their movement from the cross- road to the Charleroi road and while the 52nd were charging up to the plateau of La Haye Sainte."
Note by Sir William Rowan: "When the 52nd had halted and taken up its ground for the night I went to look for my brother. ... At some distance in the rear I fell in with the Guards, also halted with piled arms. While talking to Captain Davies, formerly of the 52nd, Sir John Byng came up and said, ' We saw the 52nd behaving nobly, as it always has done.' " — W. R.
B
LETTER, MEMORANDUM, AND SECOND LETTER TO CAPTAIN SIBORNE.
" Kitley, Yealmpton,
" 22nd February, 1843.
" I have been so fully occupied since the year 1815 that I have seldom had time or inclination to read any of the accounts of the battle of Waterloo. Indeed, it has always been a most unpleasant task to refer to our past military operations, which are connected with many painful recollections.
* In his controversy with Colonel Gawler in the United Service Journal, 1833, Pt. II., p. 315, &c.
404 APPENDIX II.
" I have cautiously abstained from giving opinions on controverted points that would draw me into discussions. I think, however, that it almost becomes my duty to give you every assistance in my power to enable you to com- pare the facts in my statement with the information which you have received from various sources, and to correct the errors which appear in the account you have forwarded to me.
" We were all so intent in performing our own parts that we are disposed to imagine that the brigade or corps with which we were engaged played a most distinguished part, and attribute more importance to the movements under our own immediate observation than they deserved. I am persuaded that none but mounted officers can give a correct account of the battle, and very few of those had an opportunity of seeing much beyond the limited space which they traversed.
" I have, in great haste, from the impressions which I strongly retain at this moment, written down the principal facts which occurred under my observation, a kind of log-book from 1 1 o'clock to the close of the action. . . . — I remain, &c.,
" SEATON."
Memoranda :
" Kitley,
" 24th February, 1843.
"It was eleven o'clock when our batteries (of 20 guns, I believe) in position on the rising ground to our left of Hougomont opened their fire on a column advancing on Hougomont.
" The French commandant of the Premier Legere men- tioned to me a few days after the battle that he was in the front of that column, and that the first shot from our guns killed and wounded three of his regiment. At this time several shots reached the 52nd Regiment, then halted in column to the rear of the road leading to Merbe Braine and the point of intersection of that road and the Nivelles road.
" Desirous of seeing the commencement of the action, I rode with Colonel Rowan to a commanding eminence. My attention was directed to the French Lancers, which showed themselves near the cross-road leading to Braine-
WATERLOO. 405
la-Leud, and cheering. After this cheer a large space of our position to the left of Hougomont appeared covered with our dispersed cavalry, rapidly retiring. Two large masses of French cavalry followed them in good order. They passed the batteries of 20 guns to which I have referred, which appeared abandoned and had ceased to fire.
" I returned to the 52nd Regiment, which was on the march in column and advancing towards the cross-road that connects the high road from Genappe to Waterloo and the road from Nivelles to Waterloo. The 52nd continued its march to the valley which separated the right central part of our position from the enemy and halted about 500 yards in front of the cross-road. I rode up the opposite ascent and observed two guns pointed and firing at our column. I returned and called out to Captain Shedden, the officer leading the column, and desired him to tell me whether he could see these guns. I formed two squares on the appearance of the masses of heavy cavalry to our right, but nearer to the /ist Regiment than to the 52nd.
" Several shells fell near the left angle of our more advanced square and the left side of it was grazed by a sharp fire. Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Rowan was anxious to take the command of the left square, in which Colonel Chalmers was, but on my acquainting him that I should superintend both the squares, he remained, at my request, with me. The front and right faces of this square opened fire on the French Cuirassiers advancing towards us, and the French cavalry halted and retired and appeared in disorder.
" Colonel Hervey, one of the Duke of Wellington's aides- de-camp, brought up an order from the Duke for the 52nd to retire up the hill. I mentioned to him that if the Duke had ordered us to retire with reference to our exposed position, that we were protected by the ground in front.
' Very well/ he replied, ' I will mention this.' How- ever, soon after I had received this order I heard a great noise and clamour in the direction of Hougomont, and observed the Nassau Regiment, I believe, running in dis- order out of the wood ; and supposing that Hougomont would be abandoned and our flank would be exposed, I formed columns from squares and wheeled into two lines, and this formation being completed we faced about and
406 APPENDIX II.
retired in two lines through the Belgian guns under the command of Colonel Gould,* and as we were ascending the hill a French colonel of the Cuirassiers galloped out of the French ranks, holloaing out, ' Vive le Roil ' repeatedly, and rode up to me, addressed [me] and said, ' Ce — Napoleon est la avec les Gardes. Voila fattaque qui se -fait' This officer remained with me for some time.
" On our arriving near the cross-road on the summit of the hill, near the Belgian guns, I halted the 52nd. Many of our wounded were lying a few paces in our front. My anxious attention had been attracted to the dense columns moving on the Genappe road towards the centre of our position, and observing their rapid advance I ordered our left-hand company to wheel to the left and formed the remaining companies on that company. Colonel Charles Rowan assisted in completing this formation, with whom I had had some conversation on the intended movement and on the necessity of menacing the flank of the French columns.
" This movement placed us nearly parallel with the moving columns of the French Imperial Guards. I ordered a strong company to extend in our front, and at this moment Sir F. Adam rode up and asked me what 1 was going to do. I think I said, ' To make that column feel our Ere.' Sir F. Adam then ordered me to move on and that the ?ist should follow, and rode away towards the 7 1 st.
" I instantly ordered the extended company of the 52nd, about 100 men under the command of Lieutenant Anderson, to advance as quickly as possible without any support except from the battalion, and to fire into the French column at any distance. Thus the 52nd formed in two lines of half-companies, the rear line at 10 paces' distance from the front, after giving three cheers, followed the extended company, passed along the front of the Brigade of Guards in line, commanded by Sir John Byng, and about 500! yards in front of them. If our line had been produced it would have formed an obtuse angle with this Brigade of Guards.
" I observed that as soon as the French columns were sharply attacked by our skirmishers, a considerable part
* Colonel Gold's guns were British, f Siborne adds a ?
WATERLOO. 407
of the column halted and formed a line facing towards the 52nd and opened a very sharp fire on the skirmishers and on the battalion. The only skirmishers, I think, that were out on that day from our brigade were those of the 52nd which I have mentioned, but I am certain that none fired but those of the 52nd. Three or four companies of the 95th were formed on our left, rather to the rear of our line ; the remainder of the brigade, the 7 1 st, must have been at least 600 yards to the rear* when the 52nd com- menced its movement towards the Imperial Guards ; but I think I observed the /ist moving on, as well as the whole of Sir H. Clinton's Division, when we had advanced a few hundred paces.
" I have no doubt that the fire on the flank of the French column from the 52nd skirmishers and the appearance of a general attack on its flank from Sir F. Adam's Brigade and Sir H. Clinton's Division generally, was the cause of the first check received, or halt made, by the Imperial Guards. The 52nd suffered severely from the fire of the enemy; the loss of skirmishers was severe and the two officers of the com- pany were wounded. The right wing of the 52nd lost nearly 1 50 men during the advance ; the officer carrying the regimental colour was killedt
" At this moment two or three squadrons of the 23rd Dragoons appeared directly in front of the line of the 52nd, approaching rapidly towards the line. The two companies on the left halted and fired into them, supposing them to be the enemy's cavalry. My horse was wounded ; I called out to the adjutant to stop the fire, and whilst we were rectifying this mistake which had occurred, the only one that had occurred during the day, and which inter- rupted our march, the Duke of Wellington came to the rear of the left of our line near the two companies which had fired. I said to his Grace, ' It is our own cavalry which has caused this firing/ His Grace replied, ' Never mind, go on, go on.' We continued our advance, which soon brought us under the hill or ascent occupied by the Imperial Guards, and we found ourselves protected from their fire by the hill. Our line, from the badness of the
* Sibornesays " not more than 150 yards."
f According to Leeke (p. 38), Ensign Nettles was killed while the 52nd was retiring just before the attack by the Imperial Guards.
408 APPENDIX IL
ground and the interruption to which I have alluded, had thrown the two right-hand companies into some disorder, and I, suspecting the French cavalry were not far from our right, called out to the officers commanding Nos. I and 2 Companies to halt and bring up their companies in good line, and whilst I was restraining the disorderly impetu- osity of these companies under great excitement, several officers in front, Colonel Churchill and Colonel Chalmers, were cheering and wraving their hats and caps in front.
"At this time the 7 1st formed on our right flank and I ordered the bugles to sound the advance and the whole line charged up the hill, and on our arriving at the edge of the deep road, the opposite side of which the Imperial Guards had occupied, the 52nd fired, at least, most of the companies. We observed the enemy in great con- fusion, some firing, others throwing away their packs and running to the rear.
" Captain Cross called out that the French soldiers near us were going to surrender, but on their continuing to fire on us, I ordered the 52nd Regiment to ' pass the road,' and the whole passed through the guns and carriages, &c., and we formed columns of companies, our right resting on the road to Genappe. We moved on in column and passed, I think, 80 guns or carriages in about 10 minutes after this new formation. No cavalry whatever could be seen on our left or to the left of the Genappe road, and I am sure that no British cavalry were between us and the French for the last hour of the battle. I think, therefore, that the attacks of our cavalry at this time must have been made by the cavalry which had passed in rear of the 52nd and to the right of the Genappe road.
" I observed smoke and firing towards Planchenoit and to the right and left of the Genappe road. The ;ist did not cross the Genappe road but moved to the right as well as part of [the other brigade of] Sir H. Clinton's Division.
" At the junction of the Genappe road and the road leading, I believe, from Wavre to Nivelles, the skirmishers of the 52nd and the advance of the Prussians under General Billow mixed. When we passed this point it was nearly dark. We halted a few hundred yards from it and the whole of General Billow's Corps passed our right on the road leading to Genappe.
" The Duke of Wellington, on returning, I suppose, from Belle Alliance, passed the left of our column and
WATERLOO. 409
inquired for me and left a message that we were to halt for the night.
" Sir John Byng mentioned to me at Paris that he observed our movement in front of his brigade, and that at this time his brigade had no ammunition left. Lord Hill mentioned to me also that he was near the Brigade of Guards when he observed the 52nd moving across the plain, that some men of the British Guards were retiring, that he ordered them to advance, waving his hat to them.
" I think, therefore, that this was the time when a portion of the Imperial Guards halted to fire on the 52nd, and that immediately after this halt the British Guards charged and made their forward movement. It appears to me evident, if this statement be correct, the movement of the 52nd took place some time before any forward movement was made by the Guards.
" Perhaps this information and the minute details which I have mentioned may enable you, with the different accounts which you have received from other officers, to correct the many errors into which you have fallen in your account of the close of the engagement. If Colonel Charles Rowan, Lord Strafford* and Sir F. Adam confirm these details, you may consider this account of the last two hours of the battle of Waterloo authentic, and a correct version.!
" I have been particular in stating many unimportant occurrences, because I am persuaded several absurd blunders and stories have originated from the movements of the 52nd and General Adam's Brigade having been misrepresented.
" S."
To Captain Siborne.
[Private and confidential.]
" Corfu,
"22nd April, 1843.
" Dear Sir, — I was so much occupied previously to my departure from England that I had not time to reply to your letter of 2/th February.
* Previously, Sir J. Byng.
•]- This paragraph from ' perhaps ' is omitted in the published Waterloo Letters, its place being supplied by stars.
410 APPENDIX II.
"Although I think it incumbent on me again to offer some remarks on the battle of Waterloo, with reference to my observations on the errors which it appeared to me you had fallen into, I send you my explanations, persuaded that we of the 52nd, who have so freely given our notions of the results of the movements towards the close of the action, were little qualified to furnish correct information on the subject of the general operations of our army, in consequence of our whole attention having been absorbed by the movements which we were actively engaged in carrying into effect, and that you, who have had access to the evidence of officers posted in every part of the field, must be enabled to form a just conclusion as to the grand features of the battle.
" I met in town with several officers of the 52nd who were near me at the close of the action, and as they all differ materially in their accounts of it, I beg you will destroy the confidential statement which I forwarded to you, and which I drew up after being acquainted with your earnest desire to collect information on certain points, under the impression only that some of the details mentioned by me might tend to confirm other accounts in your possession.
" Sir Frederick Adam and myself are persuaded that there was only one attack made by the Imperial Guards, and that that attack was in progress at the moment when the 52nd Regiment wheeled to its left and advanced, unsupported by any other corps excepting four companies of the 95th, and that the Imperial Guards halted and fell back precisely at that time and opened a fire from the left flank of their formation, and that their hesitation in moving to the front and change of position took place in conse- quence of the fire of the 52nd, its steady advance, and the appearance of the supporting line of the rest of Adam's Brigade and the whole of Sir H. Clinton's Division.
" I was in a position which enabled me to observe the moment at which the columns of the Imperial Guards halted and closed to the rear — and my attention was chiefly and anxiously directed, to the point where they halted.
" I am, therefore, confident that the whole of the columns of the attack of the Imperial Guards that approached the line defended by the Brigade of British Guards were on march at the time the 52nd wheeled, and continued their march till the fire of the regiment was felt by them; and
WATERLOO. 411
that the attack of the 52nd commenced after it had advanced 50 or 60 paces, and before any forward movement on the part of the British Guards.
" I conclude, then, that the Imperial Guards assumed a defensive position at that time, and remained on the defensive till they were assailed and dispersed by General Adam's Brigade, and that when the 52nd commenced its first advance it was at least 300 yards in front of any other corps except the 95th and that no other regiment was near the 52nd on its reaching the point occupied by the Imperial Guards, behind the road encumbered by the French artillery, except the 7 1st, which regiment had moved to its right and did not cross the road in front.
" The Duke of Wellington states, I believe, in his memorandum of the battle of Waterloo that he sent an order to Sir H. Clinton to advance and attack the Imperial Guards as they were approaching our line. This order was carried by Colonel Percy, who mentioned to me that he saw the 52nd advancing along the plain as he was conveying the Duke's message. The forward movement of the British Guards must therefore have taken place about the time he left the Duke.
"All subsequent operations were defensive on the part of the French, and were occasioned probably by the simultaneous movements of the British Guards and the 52nd, the menaced advance of Sir H. Clinton, and the approach of the Prussians which had compelled Napoleon to throw back his right wing. — I remain, dear sir, yours faithfully,
" SEATON."
ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS TUT BY CAPTAIN W. C. YONGE, AND
LETTER.
Question I. — At what period was Adam wounded, and if he did not continue with the brigade during the whole battle, at what time did he leave the field, and who succeeded to the command?
Answer.— He was wounded either during or immediately after the wheeling up of the 52nd to the left for the purpose of taking in flank the French advancing column
412 APPENDIX II.
in their final attack, and then left the field. No one assumed the command of the brigade ; the commanding officer of each "regiment acted according to his discretion.
Question II. — Did Sir John Colborne order the for- mation of four deep, and did he direct the advance and charge of the 52nd on his own responsibility or through direction of the Duke?
Answer. — The Duke of Wellington had some time previously ordered the formation of four deep. Sir John Colborne, thinking such a formation in the ordinary manner (i.e., with intervals between the files) inexpedient, did not comply with the order. But the 52nd were subsequently formed in two squares on the slope of the hill in advance of the position, from whence, after some time, they were withdrawn to the crest of the hill, and then Sir John Colborne, as the safest way of complying with the order, placed the left wing of the regiment in rear of the right wing, closed up.
He received no directions from anyone for the wheeling of the regiment and the attack on the flank of the French column. A few minutes previously a colonel of French Cuirassiers had galloped in, shouting, " Vive le Roi " ; and coming to Sir John Colborne, informed him that Napoleon was forming a column of attack and pointed out where the formation was going on. As soon as this column advanced, Sir John Colborne, having said to the adjutant, Winterbottom, " We must bring the regiment up on their flank," Winterbottom said, "We cannot do it ; we cannot wheel the regiment." To which Sir John Colborne replied, " Wheel the left company, and the others will con- form to it." During the movement Adam came up and asked, " What are you about ? " To which Sir John Colborne replied, " Don't you see that advancing column ? " Almost immediately afterwards Adam's wound took place and he left the field.
Question III. — When the 52nd were formed four deep with their right shoulder forward, what was the exact position of the 7 1st?
Answer. — The /ist, having been in line to the right of the 52nd, it will be obvious that when the wheel of the 52nd had taken place so as to bring their line at right angles to the position, the /ist were considerably in their rear. The forward movement of the 52nd was retarded
WATERLOO. 413
by two circumstances. 1st— The French column being, as usual, flanked by skirmishers, Sir John Colborne desired to throw out some to answer them, and requested the officer commanding two companies of the Rifle Corps (attached to the brigade) to deploy for this purpose. He refused, and then Sir John Colborne ordered out the right companies of the 52nd, checking for the time the advance of the regiment. The other cause was that some English Light Dragoons being charged by the enemy, were driven in with such haste that they galloped directly on the line of the 52nd, followed closely by the French, several of whom were shot close upon and even within our line, the men opening intervals to let them through and shooting them as they passed. These two causes of delay in the advance of the 52nd enabled the /ist, who had followed our movement, to come up, and they advanced on our right, I believe, at about the ordinary interval of battalions in line.
Question IV. — Did the /ist co-operate instantly with the 52nd advance, and yield them efficient support, and how near was the left of the /ist to the right of the 52nd at any one moment during their movement, first to La Haye Sainte and continued up to La Belle Alliance?
Answer. — The first part of this question is answered above.
When the French column was driven back and the regi- ments, bringing up their left shoulders, followed them, the 7 1st gradually increased their distance, diverging to their right and going to the right of the road while the 52nd went to the left.
I think the /ist did not approach the 52nd again until both the regiments arrived at La Belle Alliance.
Question V. — What was the force of the Imperial Guards with which the 52nd came into immediate contact, and what was the total force brought up to sustain the attack?
Answer. — The French column appeared to consist of six or seven thousand men. I cannot at all say what portion of them were of the Imperial Guard. After their repulse the 52nd followed them rapidly, at a run, so as to overtake and pass a considerable number who were entangled in a hollow cross-road, and then passed on to the attack of a body of apparently between 2,000 and
414 APPENDIX II.
3,000 of the Guards, who had preserved their order and occupied a hill rather to the left of the direct line of advance towards La Belle Alliance. I think there were three battalions of them. They opened a heavy fire on us as we advanced in line till we came within 50 or 60 yards, when moving off in good order, our men being rather blown with their long run, by the time we got to the crest of the hill they had disappeared on the other side and we saw no more of them. A considerable space of ground was passed between the hollow cross-road which I have mentioned and the hill where these battalions were posted. In going over this ground the Duke was immediately in rear of the 52nd, and when, in consequence of seeing that parties of Cuirassiers who were retiring before us were continually trying to form, apparently with the intention of charging us, several of the officers were rather checking the pace of the men for fear of the ranks becoming disordered, he two or three times called out, " Go on, go on," and so it was that these Cuirassiers were fairly driven off without ever being able to make any head.
Question VI. — Was the charge of Maitland's Brigade or a battalion thereof seen by the 52nd, and, if so, in what state did they retire after breaking, as it is said they did, the leading column of the French Guard?
Answer. — This charge and the reported expression of the Duke of Wellington, " Up, Guards, and at them," are altogether apocryphal,* and to be classed with that fiction on the part of the French, " La Garde meurt, mats ne se rend pas" which they assert to have been uttered in answer to a summons to surrender by those very battalions of the Imperial Guards whom I have described as convey- ing themselves away so cleverly before we could get to the top of the hill on which they were posted.
To those who claim for the Guards the credit of repelling this column of attack, we might say as Prince Hal to FalstafT, " Mark how plain a tale shall put you down." The 52nd having, as before mentioned, changed front to the left so as to bring their line to a slightly obtuse angle with the line of the position, and the /ist
* To this hasty dictum we must not attach too much importance. In his communications to Colonel Rowan and Captain Siborne, Colbornc had tried to reconcile his recollections with the accounts given by the Guards. See also his letter to Colonel Bentham below.
WATERLOO. 415
having come up on their right, they advanced on the flank of the enemy's column, and the left of the 52nd outflanked the head of the column.* On our approach the French halted and retired in confusion, receiving a severe fire from the two regiments which, bringing up their left shoulders, pursued them so that the 52nd passed over the ground on which the enemy's column had advanced. It is evident that had the Guards charged the head of the column, they must have been intermingled with the left of the 52nd, whereas, in fact, as to Byng's Brigade, they were stationary, doing nothing, like a regiment on parade, and this was accounted for shortly after by Sir John Byng, who told Colborne that they had no ammunition left, adding, " I was very glad to see you coming in our front."
As to Maitland's, they had been falling back a short distance, but on our movement taking place advanced again and halted in line with Byng. The Duke also on our advance galloped forward, as Major Percy, one of his aides-de-camp, said, with a very different expression of countenance from that which he had worn for some while before.
Not a word was heard of any charge made by the Guards until after our arrival at Paris, when the despatch had come out, and astonished everyone by the omission of all mention of the circumstances of the repulse of this last effort of the enemy, and when Lord Bathurst, in the House of Lords, had said, in giving an account of the action, that the English Guards had . . . (remainder wanting).
To Captain W. C. Yonge.
";th February, 1852.
" From some questions put to me, I fear it may be the intention of Bentham, or some of our^ 52nd friends, to bring before the public the exploits of our old corps and its officers. Nothing can be more disagreeable or create more jealousy than thrusting continually before readers the claims, or supposed merits, of particular corps or officers long after the events, to be discussed or recorded, as a tribute to their exertions. It does no good to indi- viduals or generals, and such notices are very properly considered as puffs, or as published for some interested
* Not so drawn in Leeke's Plate I., p. 43.
41 6 APPENDIX II.
motive. I heard the Duke of Wellington say at his own table at Paris in 1815, ' Let the battle of Waterloo stand where it does ; we are satisfied/ He knew that the first impressions given could not be removed easily, and that the merit of the English army being brought into an authorised controversy would become depreciated by the advocacy of some and the jealousy of others. Dr. Moore annoyed his son, Sir John, and exposed him to bitter sarcasms by his continual insertion in the papers [of] eulogiums on his gallant and successful service. Sir Sydney Smith, a man of extraordinary qualifications, destroyed his character by his talking and writing, so that he passed for a charlatan par tout. n
D
LETTER AND MEMORANDUM TO COLONEL BENTHAM.
"Deer Park, Honiton, w 1 5th October, 1853.
" My dear Bentham, — ... It may be more satis- factory to you, instead of replying to your queries, to draw your attention to the principal movements which accelerated the termination of the battle of Waterloo, and to the facts which would be admitted as evidence in support of the claims of the 52nd to the merit of having first checked the advance of the Imperial Guards at the crisis of the battle and of having completed their deroute by marching directly on their dense columns, and, by a flank movement, charging them so vigorously that the whole gave way and retired in confusion. The statements of officers engaged at Waterloo I found were generally so difficult and conflicting that it was impossible to draw up any correct account from them. Captain Siborne, I believe, consulted every officer in command with whom he was acquainted or to whom he was introduced, and endeavoured to make their versions correspond with the facts generally known relative to the movements of divi- sions, brigades and regiments. I have never read his account. If you bring the 52nd into a contest with the Guards by attempting to prove from rumour that the latter was retiring at the time they are said to have charged and defeated the French troops, you will raise up a host
WATERLOO. 417
of opponents to your account, which would rather injure the cause of the 52nd.
" I suppose that the Guards must have made some for- ward movement and that many officers must have seen it, but I contend that the French columns had been checked and thrown into disorder before the Guards moved. I saw the column of the Imperial Guards steadily advancing to a certain point and I observed them halt, which was precisely as the skirmishers of the 52nd opened fire on their flank. My attention was so completely drawn to our position and dangerous advance, a large mass of cavalry having been seen on our right, exposed as it was, that I could see no movement whatever on the part of the Guards ; and, indeed, as we advanced, I believe we were too much under their position to have had them in sight. Sir J. Byng's Brigade remained in line without firing or making any movement while we passed along its front, our line forming a right angle with that brigade, and about 200 yards nearer to the French. Sir J. Byng told me afterwards at Paris that he had his whole attention drawn to our movement, and that his brigade had no ammunition left. He gave us at that time full credit for our advance. Till the Duke of Wellington's despatch was made known at Paris we had never heard of the charge of the Guards, and I am inclined to believe that the attack of the French had been checked by the advance of the 52nd and the movements afterwards of the whole of Sir H. Clinton's Division, before any forward movement had been made by the brigade commanded by Sir P. Maitland. This account corresponds with that given me by Lord Hill, who was close to the Guards and saw no moving across the plain.
" When we followed the French to La Belle Alliance no troops from the part of the position occupied by the Guards were near us, and we passed 80 guns and carriages a short time after the French had retired, which they had left on the road from La Haye Sainte to La Belle Alliance.
" I have written this as circumstances occurred to me to remind me of the part we performed, without method, but with these remarks and the facts mentioned in the enclosure you may be able to judge correctly of the claims of the 52nd. — Yours very faithfully,
" SEATON."
41 8 APPENDIX II.
(Enclosure.)
" The 52nd crossed the road running in the direction of Hougomont, and halting in the low ground, formed two squares. A large mass of cavalry menaced several times the front and right faces of the square nearest Hougomont. and their guns opened fire, on which the cavalry retired, but not far. At the same time two guns opened on the same square, enfilading the left face of it. A shell burst at the angle, killing and wounding several men. At this moment Colonel C. Rowan said to Sir J. Colborne, ' Do you think we can stand this ? ' He replied, ' But you see it is not a simultaneous attack.' A few minutes after- wards Colonel Hervey, an aide-de-camp to the Duke of Wellington, rode into the square and delivered the message, ' The Duke wishes you to retire up the hill/ Sir John Colborne replied, ' Acquaint the Duke, if he thinks we are too exposed, that we are not suffering from the fire of those guns.' f Very well,' he said, ' I will mention that.' There was, however, a sudden rush of several companies of the Nassau Regiment out of the wood of Hougomont, from which it was supposed that the wood was occupied by the enemy. Therefore the 52nd formed two lines from square and retired up the slope to the left [right ?] of Sir John Byng's Brigade. A few minutes before the 52nd began to retire an officer galloped out from the French cavalry down the hill, shouting, ' Vive le Roi! ' and riding up to Sir J. Colborne and Colonel Rowan, stated that Napoleon was advancing ' there,' pointing to the road leading to La Haye Sainte, to attack with his columns. Sir John Colborne retired with this officer in rear of the 52nd, passing through the batteries commanded by Colonel Gould, and after posting the 52nd in line, ordered the adjutant to take the wounded to the rear.
"At about half -past six o'clock, after he had been anxiously looking at the dense columns moving towards La Haye Sainte and afterwards advancing rapidly on that road, he ordered the 52nd to wheel to the left on the left company. This brought the 52nd parallel with the flank of the French column of attack. A strong company, com- manded by Lieutenant Anderson, was ordered to extend, skirmish in front, and feel the enemy, and the regiment immediately advanced. The French troops, on feeling the fire of the skirmishers, appeared checked, halted, and opened a heavy fire on the 52nd.
WATERLOO. 419
" The Imperial troops had been in movement up to this time, and no forward movement on the part of the Guards had as yet taken place. Lord Hill said a few days after- wards, ' I saw the 52nd moving across the plain.' It is, therefore, believed that the flank movement of the 5 2nd and the advance of Sir H. Clintons Division afterwards compelled the French column to halt, and whatever move- ment on the part of the Guards took place must have been ordered after the 52nd had occasioned the halt of the French. The 52nd, as they closed on the French, saw only in their front the troops opposed to them. The French cavalry on the right of the 52nd had retired, having probably been withdrawn when the Prussians first appeared marching on Planchenoit. The 52nd passed in front of the Brigade of Guards commanded by Sir J. Byng, advancing always on the Imperial Guards, who had wheeled from column and continued their fire till the 52nd arrived at the crest of the deep road which divided them. They then dispersed, and the 52nd, crossing the road, advanced in pursuit. At this time General Billow's skir- mishers appeared on the left of the 52nd and firing increased in the direction of Planchenoit. The 52nd must have been at least half an hour moving on the flank of the French from the time the regiment first wheeled till the charge took place.
" The crisis may be called the period when the French columns, advancing with the intention of penetrating our centre, were checked and compelled to halt by the flank movement and fire of the 52nd. This was the very first appearance of a change in our favour. The attackers were attacked and checked in their assault and driven from the ground which they had gained before they could deploy.
" The whole of the Imperial columns advanced at the same time and their flank was first attacked by the 52nd before any forward movement was made to check them in front The Prussians could not have attracted the atten- tion of the French so as to cause the throwing back of their right wing till after the Imperial Guards had com- menced the attack on our centre. The 52nd marched in pursuit till 9 o'clock. Biilow's column passed at the cross- road near Belle Alliance.
" Colonel Percy was ordered by the Duke to carry a message to Sir H. Clinton to advance with his division, and saw the 52nd advancing along the plain as he left
P 2
420 APPENDIX II.
the Duke and before any movement whatever had been made by the Guards. The 52nd opened fire when some squadrons of our own cavalry appeared in front of the left company of the 5 2nd. This impeded their march for some minutes. No regiment except the 52nd fired on the flank of the Imperial Guards, while this attack of the 52nd was going on so close to the position of the Guards. The 52nd having been actually engaged closely with the divisions of the halted column for half an hour, there can be no difficulty, perhaps, in ascer- taining the precise time the British Guards charged, as their forward movement must have taken place during that half hour, and the Imperial Guards were not finally dispersed till the 52nd charged up the hill close to the road, behind which the Imperial Guards had been half an hour, it may be said, in position.
"October, 1853."
E
MEMORANDUM BY JAMES, SECOND LORD SEATON.
The second Lord Seaton, in 18/3, addressed a letter on the subject of the 52nd at Waterloo to Mr. F. Hope Patterson, author of Recollections of the 33rd Regiment (privately printed). This letter was privately printed in 1894, after Lord Seaton's death.
Speaking of his father, Lord Seaton writes :
" However much he disliked interfering personally in this . . . controversy, ... it always caused him a certain amount of surprise and annoyance to find the long movement and march of the 52nd denied, a movement which was the talk, indeed, of the whole army on the march to Paris and during the time it was there stationed, and on account of which movement he had been daily receiving congratulations from numerous officers of the English army, including Sir John Byng, of the Guards, himself. The conversion of this extended and dangerous movement of the 52nd into a mere wheel of the regiment on the flank of the Guards annoyed him as much almost as seeing the movement altogether ignored (as it was) in the meagre despatch of the Duke of Wellington.
WATERLOO. 421
"... Another point on which Lord Seaton always insisted was that there was one grand attack made by Napoleon with his Guards to break through the centre and follow up the advantage gained by Donzelot in the pos- session of La Haye Sainte, and thus establish a decided advantage before the Prussians could develop their attack in flank, and that he watched and saw the whole of this French attack from beginning to end, and that there were no two isolated attacks as described by Siborne and others. ... It would have placed him in an anomalous position, in opposition to the spirit of his subsequent movement, to have allowed, from his position on the hill facing Hougomont, the alleged first attack to have taken place without movement or ever seeing it.
" Lord Seaton, however, never pretended, as Colonel Chesney rather sarcastically implies, that the 52nd defeated the whole French army. They always gave full credit to the energetic and brilliant co-operation of the Prussians . . . they agreed with Colonel Chesney in what he has stated as to the effect of the Prussian advance. . . .
" Another point on which Lord Seaton was certain, from personal observation and from seeing the result, was that the French line generally (or except in certain instances) did not wait to be attacked, but broke in a succession of panics. . . . Lord Seaton saw this occur . . . directly after his charge or flank attack. A part of this you will see confirmed if you will read the French despatch — a despatch that was little read in England at the time, but which Lord Seaton often alluded to in confirmation of the fact that a panic had occurred. It is published at the end of Cotton's book, A Voice from Waterloo"
F
REMARKS.
Lord Seaton's accounts of the movement of the 52nd are not perhaps as lucid as could be wished. For many years he seems to have tried to dismiss the subject of Waterloo from his mind, and when he was induced to pen his memoranda, he wrote apparently without the aid of plans and without much knowledge of what had been written from other points of view about the last phase
422 APPENDIX II.
in the great battle. If, however, his accounts are com- pared with those of other writers who took part in the movement, Mr. W. Leeke,* Colonel G. Gawler,t and Cap- tain W. C. Yonge,t the main facts, so far as Adam's Brigade is concerned, stand before us not to be assailed.
The great difficulty is, of course, to reconcile the accounts of the 52nd officers with those of the officers of Maitland's Brigade of Guards. The latter claim to have themselves routed the leading column of the Imperial Guards, and their evidence, collected by Sir James Lindsay in the Army and 'Navy Gazette, 1867, p. 467, is not to be made light of.§
And Major Macready, in the United Service Magazine for 1845, shows that Colin Halkett's Brigade was also engaged with part of the Imperial Guard. At what moment did these attacks take place ? In what relation do they stand to the movement originated by Colborne ?
These questions involve a further one : What was the constitution and formation of the French attacking force?
Captain Siborne, after collecting the evidence of indi- vidual officers of different corps, was driven to adopt the theory that the French Imperial Guard made two attacks with two columns at a quarter of an hour's interval — that the first column (formed near La Haye Sainte and con- sisting- of six battalions) was repelled by the British Guards, and the second (formed near the angle of the orchard of Hougomont, and consisting of four battalions) by Adam's Brigade and the rest of Sir H. Clinton's Divi- sion. This theory is now generally given up. Colborne's evidence is here very weighty, and he utterly scouted the idea of two attacks.
Mr. Ropes || believes that the French force came on in two columns in echelon, the rear column being to the left ; that the leading column was repulsed by the Guards, and that Colborne saw only the rear column, which he
* Lord Section's Regiment at Waterloo, 1866.
f The Close and Crisis of the Action at Waterloo (United Service Journal, 1833).
J Memoir of Lord Scatons Services, privately printed, 1853.
§ Sir John Byng's report, " Nivelles, June 19, 1815," Sir P. Mait- land's report of same date, Lord Saltoun's letter of 1815, letter from Captain Powell (published in Waterloo Letters], &c.
|| The Campaign of Waterloo.
WATERLOO. 423
took for the whole attacking force. This theory obliges us to believe that the leading column of the attack could have advanced and become engaged with Maitland's Guards unseen by Colborne. Is that possible ?
But neither Siborne nor Ropes seems to have been acquainted with a valuable memorandum, now preserved in the Morrison collection, London, written by General Petit, who commanded, at Waterloo, the 1st Grenadiers of the Old Guard. This document, which Mrs. Morrison has kindly allowed me to copy, if it is to be relied on, gives us the exact constitution of Napoleon's attacking force*
According to General Petit (who seems not to use the expression " Middle Guard "), the infantry of the Old Guard was composed of two divisions, the one consisting of the ist, 2nd, 3rd and 4th Grenadiers, the other of the ist, 2nd, 3rd and 4th Chasseurs. In each division the 1st Regiment formed a reserve.
The strength of these regiments was (roughly) as follows : —
ist Grenadiers ... 1,450
2nd „ ... 1,250
3rd „ ... 1,250
4th „ ... 800
ist Chasseurs ... 1,450
2nd „ ... 1,250
3rd „ ... 1,250
4th „ ... 1,000
At the close of the battle of Waterloo the eight battalions composing these regiments were employed, according to Petit, as follows : —
The ist Grenadiers was posted in two squares near Belle Alliance, on either side of the Charleroi road, as a reserve. This was commanded by General Petit himself. These were the last two squares that stood their ground.
The ist Battalion ist Chasseurs was placed behind the farm of Le Caillou, apparently.
The ist Battalions 2nd Grenadiers and 2nd Chasseurs had been sent to Planchenoit
The great column of attack was formed of the 3rd (ist Battalion only) and 4th Grenadiers and Chasseurs f in
* The document has been used by Houssaye, in whose notes I first heard of it. It had also, I think, been used by the authors of the Victoires, Conquetes, &c., de V Armee Fran$aise, and in that case must have been written by 1821. It will be found in print in the English Historical Review, April, 1903.
t These (3rd and 4th) regiments are often called "The Middle Guard.'*
424
APPENDIX II.
squares of battalions in echelon, but in close contact, except that the 4th regiments of each arm, owing to their weakness, only formed one battalion each. The column was arranged as follows :
ist Batt. 3rd Grenadiers. (Its right close to the Charleroi road.)
4th Grenadiers.
4th Chasseurs.
ist Batt. 3rd Chasseurs.
2nd Batt. 3rd Chasseurs.
The total strength of this column was therefore about 3,675 men.
When this column was repulsed, an attempt was made to bring forward the 2nd Battalions 2nd Grenadiers and 2nd Chasseurs, but they had similarly to fall back.
Meanwhile the 2nd Battalion 3rd Grenadiers was posted at a point between Belle Alliance and Hougomont, the Emperor remaining with it during the attack. The bat-
WATERLOO. 425
talion was joined by Cambronne with 2nd Battalion 1st Chasseurs. These, if we should follow Petit, would be the squares of the Guard which retired when the 52nd approached them after its encounter with the main column. But Colborne speaks of " three squares," and Houssaye makes these consist of the 2nd Battalion 1st Chasseurs and the above-mentioned 2nd Battalions 2nd Grenadiers and 2nd Chasseurs.
On the strength of Petit's account of the formation of the main attacking force, M. Henri Houssaye* constructs the following theory of its defeat
He maintains that by the time the five squares in echelon approached the British lines they had become four, owing to the fourth combining with the third. These echelons, of which three consisted of only one battalion each, attacked the British line at different points. The first encountered the left of Halkett's Brigade, the second the right of that brigade, the third, the strongest, was repelled by Maitland's Guards, the fourth by Adam's Bri- gade. Each echelon encountered a force superior to it in numbers, and was repulsed in detail. This view, though consistent with the plan of the battle drawn by Craan, is strongly contradicted by Colborne's evidence, as well as that of most other witnesses, English and French.
Colborne maintains that he saw the approaching force as a column, that he wheeled the 52nd Regiment on the left flank of the first body, and that up to that time there had been no fighting on the part of the Guards.
Is it possible to reconcile these statements of so com- petent an eye-witness with the testimony of combatants at other points of the Allied line? With great diffidence I would suggest that they can be reconciled in the following manner : —
Petit tells us that the column — formed as he has described — marched parallel to the Charleroi road till it had passed La Haye Sainte. We know that from that point at least, instead of keeping its previous direction, it crossed the field diagonally to its left, if not in obedience to an order, by a natural tendency to take the line of least resistance.
What effect would this change of direction have on the formation of the attacking body?
* 1815, Waterloo.
426 APPENDIX If.
Each square would execute a half-left wheel movement. British Guards.
If the dotted lines be taken to represent the original position, and the continuous lines the new position of the squares, it will be seen that they will now be no longer in echelon but in line.
If we then suppose that the left squares (the original rear squares) got at all in advance of the squares on their right*, and if we further suppose that two or three of the squares on the left got more or less massed together one in rear of the other, the attack would be made somewhat as follows : —
JBritisJv
&jX^ " A ri\ •*\ |
**8 *e 0^ ,.C °6 |
s^li |
* Captain Meiklejohn points out in a letter that the greater resist- ance offered to the French squares on the right than to those on the left, and the fact that they were marching over ground more encumbered with the results of previous righting, might well cause these squares to make less progress than those to their left. He suggests also that the intervention of the French Light Artillery might cause the left squares to lose touch with those to their right, and diverge still more to the left.
WATERLOO. 427
Now such a formation would satisfy the conditions of the problem.
While Colborne and Leeke, speaking only, we may suppose, of the troops approaching their angle of the position, saw them as two columns with an interval between them, an observer in the 2nd Battalion 95th Regiment, Corporal Aldridge, whose testimony is given in Siborne's Waterloo Letters, says that, to his eye, " The French came up in three columns abreast of each other; they looked like quarter- distance columns."
The plan of the battle, by the Belgian, Craan, 1816, represents the French Guards as deployed in four bodies opposite different points of the Allied line. And Major Macready, 3Oth Regiment, stated in the United Service Magazine, 1 845 : " All I heard and all I read of those events soon after their occurrence would, equally with what I saw, have led me to conclude that the first* attack of the Imperial Guards came in contact with the British front in an echelon or line, and not in a mass of columns — something as represented in Craan's plan."
Assuming then that the French Guard came on in the manner indicated, Colborne may well have seen the whole body advancing from La Haye Sainte, as he describes and have brought the 52nd Regiment on the flank of the leading square (or column), according to his contention, before ever the British Guards were engaged. He could not, of course, safely have brought his regiment on the flank of the leading square if other squares had been following in echelon on his right.
When the leading square, owing to Colborne's move- ment, came to a halt, we may suppose that the squares to its right and rear continued their course and en- countered Colin Halkett's Division and Maitland's Guards. These squares, we may then suppose, were already thrown into confusion by the British fire and charges when the troops on the left were driven back under the fire and charge of Adam's Brigade, and, as Captain Yonge says, " involved in their disorder the other troops in echelon on their right."!
* He is here presuming the truth of Siborne's theory of the two attacks.
f It is remarkable that Yonge assumes the rear part of the attacking force to have been echeloned to its right, and Leeke draws it so in his plan, p. 43.
428 APPENDIX II.
If this theory be found untenable, I can only leave the task of reconciling the various accounts of the repulse of the Imperial Guard to enthusiasts possessed of more military knowledge than I can claim, and a more than ordinary amount of courage.
429
INDEX.
Abercromby, Col. Hon. A., 159. Abercromby, Hon. James. See
Dunfermline, Lord. Abercromby (Abercrombie), Gen.
Sir John, 130, 155. Abercromby (Abercrombie), Sir
Ralph, in Holland, 8 — 15 ; in
Minorca and Egypt, 22 — 26. Acadie, 281. Adam, Sir F. Waterloo Campaign,
225, 238, 244, 401, 406, 409, 410—
412; Ionian Islands, 329, 330. Adam's Brigade at Waterloo,
215—237, 398—428; at Paris,
241 — 246.
Adams, Mr. G. G., A.R.A., 377. Addington Ministry, 43. Airey, Lord, 373. Alava, d', Gen. M. R., 219. Alba de Tormes, Battle of, 131. Albemarle, Lord, Story told by,
216, 217. Albert, Prince Consort, 351, 374;
visits Napoleon III. at St. Omer,
354-
Albuhera, 155 ; battle of, 158—162. Alemtejo, The, 132, 143, 146. Alexander, Sir J. E., 364. Alexandria, 25—32, 42, 59, 101. Alhandra, 142, 144, 145, 146. Alkmaar, Battle of, 19. Almeida, 93, 139, 143. Alten, Gen. Baron, 183, 187, 189,
190, 201. American Captain, an, Stories of,
38.
Anderson, Canon, of Montreal, 310. Anderson, Lieut. M., 52nd, 401, 406,
418.
Anderson, Col., no — 114, 117, 252. Anglesey, Marquis of (Lord Paget,
Lord Uxbridge), 86, 97, 103, 124,
219, 222, 347, 385, 386. Anstruther, Brig.-Gen., 114.
Antonio De Bane, a servant, 122,
155 ; letter from, 178. Antony, Cornwall, 125, 165, 177,
181, 208, 272. Apsley House, 378. Areizaga, Gen., 130, 133, 395. Armorial bearings, 311. Arthur, Sir George, 297, 301, 308,
364.
Ashworth, Brig.-Gen., 145. Astorga, 95, 96, 102, 104, 105, 386,
391-
Atalaya, 137, 138. Austerlitz, Battle of, 48. Austria and Napoleon, 47, 59. Austria, Archduchess Sophia of, 368 Austria, Archduke John of, 368. Austria, Emperor of (Francis
Joseph), 367—369. Azuaga, 156, 157.
Badajos, 90, 131, 133, 135, 150, 152, 154, 156, 157, 159. I0"o; storming of, 176 n.
Baden, 247.
Baird, Gen. Sir D., 31, 93 — 96, 102, 1 1 6, 383— 397 passim.
Balaclava, Battle of, 355, 362.
Ballesteros, Gen., 160.
Barcelona, 203.
Barclay, Lieut. -Col. (52nd Regt), 174.
Bargus, Alethea Henrietta. See Yonge, Mrs. John.
Bargus, Frances Mary. See Yonge, Mrs. W. C.
Bargus, Miss, 82.
Bargus, Richard, 68.
Bargus, Rev. T., 3, 4, 13, 124, 125 ; letters to, 7 — 120 passim.
Bargus, Mrs. Thomas. See Col- borne, Mrs. Samuel.
Bargus, Mrs. T. (Mary Kingsman), 4, 62, 95 ; letters to, 129, 132.
430
INDEX.
Barham Downs, 8.
Barkway, Herts, 7, 44, 45, 71—73.
Barnard, Gen. Sir A., 170, 176 nt
204, 247.
Barrosa, Battle of, 155. Bathur^t, Lord, 234, 415. Bayonne, 198, 199, 328. Beauharnois, 303, 304, 305. Beckwith, Maj.-Gen. Charles, 194,
199, 222 ; family history, 223 n ;
letter from, 362. Beckwith, Col. T. S., 173. Bedard, Judge, 308. Beechwood, Plympton, 367, 370,
372-376. Belle Isle, 22. Benalcazar, Colborne's gallantry at,
156. Benavente (Benevente), 82, 105,
384, 385 ; cavalry affair near, 97,
102—104, 385, 386. Bentham, Col. (52nd), 415 ; letter
and memorandum to, 416. Bentinck, Lord William, 389. Beresford, Marshal, 144, 149 — 151,
154) IS5> J59, 160, 162, 206. Bergen, Battle of, 17 — 19. Berlin, 247.
Betanzos, 390, 391, 397. Bethune, Bishop, of Toronto, his
estimate of Colborne, 322. Birch, Col., 74.
" Birkenhead," The loss of the, 347. Blake, Gen. (of the Spanish Army),
95, 160, 395-
Blakeney, Gen. Sir E., 348.
Blucher, Marshal, 244.
Bonaparte, Joseph, 50, 134.
Bonaparte, Napoleon, 29, 33, 43, 86, 96, 102, 107, 134, *n, 212, 214, 215, 240, 393 ; seen by Col- borne at Waterloo, 223, 224, 400; j book read by, 244.
Borgia, 54.
Boucherville, 303, 304.
Bouchette, R. S. M., 292.
Boulton, Mr. (Attorney-General of Upper Canada), 259, 266.
Bowen, Sir G. F., 334, 339.
Boyle, Lord, 4.
Brabourne Lees, 73 — 75.
Bragganstown, 4 n, 367.
Braine-le-Comte, 215.
Bridge-making, 148, 149.
British character, 108, 135.
British soldiers, Quality of, 107, 198.
Brodrick, Gen., 387.
Brooke, Lord, 3.
Brotherton, Col., 232.
Brown, " General " T. S., 286, 288.
289.
Brussels, 208, 210, 211, 214. Buenos Ayres, Disaster at, 69, 73,
74-
Buller, C., 299. Billow, Gen. Von, 228,402,403,408,
419-
Bunbury, Sir H. E., 53, 123. Bunbury, Mrs. (born Fox), 155. Buonaparte. See Bonaparte. Burghersh, Lord, 127. Burgos, 91, 93.
Burgoyne, F. M. Sir J. F., 350. Burrard, Capt., in. Burrard, Sir Harry, i. Burrard, Gen. Sir Harry, 80 — 85. Busaco (Vusacos), Battle of, 140,
141,352. Byng, Gen. Sir John. See Strafford.
Cadiz, 133, 134.
Cadoux, Capt. D. (95 th Regt.), 184. Cairo, 30; capitulation of, 25, 26. Calabria, 33, 35, 36, 51—56. Calahorra (Calhorra), Colborne's
frustrated ride to, 90, 92. Cambridge, H.R.H. Adolphus, Duke
of, 327. Cambridge, H.R.H. George, Duke
of, 350; letters from, 335, 370. Cameron, Gen. Sir Alan, Stories of,
136-
Campbell, Col. (41 st Regt.), 73, 120. Campbell, Lieut. G. (52nd), 401. Campbell, Capt. J. (42nd Regt.),
Story of, 148.
Campo Mayor, Affair of, 150 — 154. Canada, 378 ; the defence of, 374. Canada, Lower, 271 — 322. Canada, Upper, 253—270, 280, 291,
296, 319; Reserve Lands question,
260, 261 ; Rebellion in, 304 — 321. Canadian Rebellion, 1837, 285 —
293, 320; 1838, 301 — 306, 320;
courts-martial, 306 — 311, 320, 321. Canaveral, Colborne's ride to, 91. Canning, Right Hon. G., speech by,
on the Corunna Campaign, 121 ;
his Ministry, 251; death, 252. Canterbury, 7, 8. Capua, Prince of (son of ex-King
of Naples), 368. Cardigan, Lord, 369. Cargill, Lieut. (52nd Regt.), 187 «. Carlisle, (7th) Earl of, 364, 369. Carmichael, Col., 303.
INDEX.
431
Castanos, Gen. (of the Spanish
Army), 90, 92, 96,395. Casteleur, Chateau of, 197, 199. Castello Branco, 139. Castel Sarrasin, 207. Castlereagh, Lord, 81, 121 n. Castricum, Battle of, 19. Castro de Gonzalo, 102, 103, 385,
391
Caughnawaga, 302. Cavan, Earl of, 31. Cephalonia, 336—338. Ceuta, 64. Chalmers, Lieut.-Col. W. (52nd),
405, 408. Chamusca, 148. Chartres, Duke de, 245. Chenier, Dr., 289, 290, 293. Chesney, Col., 421. Chester, 248.
Chobham Camp, 350— 352. Christ's Hospital, 2—4. Cintra, Convention of, 83, 85, 94. Ciudad Rodrigo, 93, 134, 143, 150;
siege of, 165 — 175. Clarke, Col. J. (66th), 158. Claval, Col., 53.
Clephane, Lieut.-Col. (20th), 73. Clinton, Sir H., 99, 213. Clinton's Division at Waterloo,
215—237. 398. 400, 401, 402, 422. Clonmell, Lord, 364. Clonmell, Lady, 364. Coa, Battle of the, 137, 138. Coimbra, 85, 175—179- Colborne, Charles, 1—2. Colborne, Cordelia Anne. See
Yonge, Mrs. Duke. Colborne, Hon, Cordelia, 284, 361,
366, 375. Colborne, Lieut. -Gen. the Hon. Sir
Francis, 247, 249, 284, 291, 292,
301 ; in the Crimea, 352, 355, 364 ;
letters to, 366, 372; letters to,
on duties of officers, 344, 352;
letter to, on the Crimean War,
360. Colborne, Hon. and Rev. Graham,
349. 372, 376-
Colborne, Hon. James. See Seaton, 2nd Lord.
Colborne, Hon. Jane. See Mont- gomery-Moore, The Hon. Lady.
Colborne, John Saumarez, Death of, 356.
Colborne, Lady (Miss Elizabeth Yonge). See Seaton, Lady.
Colborne, Samuel, I, 2.
Colborne, Mrs. Samuel, I — 4. Coldwater, Upper Canada, 265. Cole, Gen. Sir G. Lowry, 155, 188,
328; at Albuhera, 159; at Orthes,
200 — 203.
Coleridge, Sir J. T., 327. Coleridge, Samuel Taylor, 2, 39 n. Collins (Canadian journalist), 254,
255-
Combermere, F. M. Viscount, 348. Commanding officers, Duties of, 344. Constantino, 156, 157. Cooke, Lieut.-Gen. Sir G., 234. Coote, Gen. Eyre, 26—28. Corfu, 332—344. Cork, 21. Corunna, 93, 383, 397; retreat to,
96 — 1 08, 384, 397 ; battle of, 100,
108—110, 117, 390, 391. Cotton's Voice from Waterloo, 421. Crabbendam, 8 — 16. Craig, Lieut.-Gen. Sir James, 46, 48,
49-
Crampton, Capt. J. (95th Regt.), 169.
Craufurd, Gen. J. Catlin, 389.
Craufurd, Gen. R., 391 ; at White- locke's trial, 74 ; Battle of the Coa, J37. *38; at Ciudad Rodrigo, 172, 173; stories of, 170, 173, 174.
Crimean War, 352 — 362 ; Sir G. Napier's and Lord Seaton's com- ments on, 355—361.
Cross, Capt. J. (52nd), 402, 408.
Cuesta, Gen. (of the Spanish Army), 128, 130, 395.
Cunningham, Gen., 19.
Curragh, the, Reviews at, 366, 372.
Dalrymple, Gen. Sir Hew, 80, 82,
83, 85. Davies, Capt. J. H. (ist Foot Guards),
403-
Davoust, Marshal, 239, 240. Deer Park, near Honiton, 34.5, 346,
352. Derby (i4th), Earl of (Mr. Stanley),
259-
Des Voeux, Sir C., 12, 14, 15, 327. Devonport, 378.
Diggle, Gen. C., Anecdote of, 63. Dittisham, 349, 372. Divisions. See Peninsular Army. Don, Major-Gen., 8, 9. Donzelot, Gen., 421. " Doric Club,'' 280, 282. Douglas, Sir Howard, 361. Douglas, Sir James, 85. Douro, Passage of the, 126, 127.
432
INDEX.
Downes, Lord, 346, 364. Dresden, 247.
Drummond, Major-Gen., 164. Drummond, Mr. (Minister at
Palermo), 64. Dublin, 363—372. Duckworth, Admiral, 59, 127. Duckworth, Col. G. H. (48th Regt.),
161.
Duffey, Capt. J. (43rd Regt.), 169. Dundas, Col. (83rd), 306. Dundas, Mr., M.P., 99. Dunfermline, Lord (Jas. Aber-
cromby), $11,315. Duquette (Canadian rebel), 310. D'Urban, Sir B., 156 «, 157. Durham (ist) Earl of, 302, 309;
Governor-General of Canada, 295
—301 j his Report, 255, 296, 311.
Eden, Lieut.-Col. John, 310, 311. Eglinton, Earl of, 364. Egmont Binnen, Battle of, 19. Egmont op Zee, Battle of, 17 — 19. Eguia, Gen. (of the Spanish Army),
128, 130. Egypt, Expedition to, 25 — 32 ;
second expedition to, 59, 101. El Bodon, 1 66, 168, 169. Elder, Col. G. (Portuguese Ca9a-
dores), Story of, 176**. Ellenborough, Earl of, 331. Ellice, Edward, 305. Ellice, Mrs. E., 305. Elvas, 91, 133, 134, 154; Colborne
sent to procure the surrender of,
86—90.
England, Col., 65. Esla, The, 102—104. Esterhazy, Prince, 368. Estremadura, Spanish Army in,
128—131, 395. Estremoz, 86, 90. Exeter, 6.
Falmouth, 115.
Fane, Gen. H., 390, 393.
Fane, Capt. T., 195.
Fareham, 4.
Fergusson's scheme for the defence
of Portsmouth, 350. Ferrol, 397.
" Fits de Liberte" 279, 280, 282. Fisher's portrait of Lord Seaton,
373, 378. Flaxley, 181. Florence, 247. Foncebadon, 105.
Fort George, Minorca, 22 — 25.
Fox, Gen. Henry, 57—64, no, 122; stories of, 65, 66.
Fox, Mrs. H., 61, 62, 109.
Foy, Gen., 202.
France, Occupation of , by the Allies, 241—248.
Fraser, Maj.-Gen. A. M., 385, 387, 396, 397-
Fran9ois (Sir J. Moore's servant), no, 112, 114.
Fraser, Sir W., 352.
French and English in the Penin- sula, Relations of, 127, 145, 148,
153- French officers, Stories of, 187, 195,
223, 239, 400.
Frere, Right Hon. J. H., 121 «, 394. Freyre, Lieut. -Gen. (Spanish Army),
204.
Friedland, Battle of, 62. Fuente Ovejuna, 156, 157. Fuentes de Onoro, Battle of, 164.
Gaeta, 49, 50, 56.
Galicia, Moore's campaign in, 104—107, 383—397.
Galluzzo, Capt.-Gen. of Estrema- dura, 90, 395.
Garonne, R., 204.
Garstin (2Oth Regt.), 36.
Garstin, Cordelia Anne. See Col- borne, Mrs. Samuel.
Gawler, Col. G. (52nd), 227, 398; praises Lord Seaton's movement at Waterloo, 231, 232.
Gerona, Siege of, 135.
Gibbs, Major E. (52nd), 169.
Gibraltar, 38, 41, 64, 67, 70.
Girod, Gen., 88.
Girod (Canadian rebel), 289, 290,
293-
Gizeh, 30. Glenelg, Lord, 261, 272, 273, 294,
307; letter to, 261 — 264, 316;
despatches from, 271, 272, 299,
309; letters from, 299, 316. Goddard, Dr. (Winchester), 4, 124,
181.
Godden, Sir Robert, 211. Goderich, Lord. See Ripon, Earl of. Gold, Lieut.-Col. C., 400, 406. Gomm, F. M. Sir W. M., 96 n. Gordon, Col. J. Willoughby, in,
117, 120.
Gore, Col. Hon. C., 285—289, 304. Gosford, (2nd) Earl of, 276, 378 —
28 J, 294.
INDEX.
433
Gottenburgh (Gottenborg), 75 — 77. Gough, (ist) Viscount, 364. Gould. See Gold. Graham, Col. T. See Lynedoch,
Lord. Grant, Lieut.-Col. C. (i5th Hussars),
390-
Greece, 332, 336, 337, 3*0—342. Gregg, Commodore (Russian
service), 47. Greville, Charles, 36. Grey, (3rd) Earl, 338. Guelphic Order, 274. Guernsey, Colborne Lieut. -Gov. of,
249—253, 326; Elizabeth College,
249, 250. Guinaldo, 165. Gurwood, Lieut. J. ($2nd), 167, 171.
Hagerman, Mr. (Solicitor-General of Upper Canada), 259, 301.
Halifax, N. S., 279.
Hamilton (Upper Canada), 255.
Hamilton, Gen., 12, 15, 16.
Hamilton, Lady, and Nelson, 66, 67.
Hanover, 344.
Hardinge, (ist) Viscount (Sir H. Hardinge), at Albuhera, 159; on the march to Paris, 244 ; praises Lord Seaton, 326; Commander- in-Chief, 348, 350, 355, 360 n, 363.
Harris, Dr. (Torquay), 376.
Head, Sir F. B., 264, 271 — 273, 275, 283.
Head, Col. M. (i3th Lt. Dragoons), 150.
Heathcote, Sir W., 327.
Helder (Heelder), The, 8, 13, 14, 1 6.
Hervey, Gen. (Col.) F. E., 86, 126, 127, 223, 400, 405, 418.
Hesse-Philippsthal, Prince of, 50,
59-
Hill, Viscount (Sir R. Hill), 409, 417, 419; Hill's Division, 132 — 162, 401 ; at Busaco, 140 ; Wellington's opinion of him, 140; in the Pyrenees, 328; his action at St. Pierre, 198, 199; Commander-in- Chief, 300, 313, 314 n.
Hoghton, Major-Gen. D., at Albu- hera, 159.
Holland, Expedition to, 7 — 20.
Holland, King of, 210, an.
Hope, Gen. Sir John (4th Earl of Hopetoun), 93, 94, 95 «, 96, 100, in, 1 1 6— 118, 385, 387, 390, 396.
Houat, Island of, 22.
Hull, 248.
Hume, Jos., M.P., 260, 278, 326.
Hutchinson, Lieut.-Gen. (2nd Earl
of Donoughmore), 25 — 28, 31. Hyams, Bagshot, 350.
Indian Army in Egypt, 30, 31.
Indians in Canada, 262, 301 ; address from, 264.
Infantry officers, ought to be mounted, 214.
Inglis, Sir R., 327.
Inkerman, Battle of, 355,358, 360.
Ionian Islands, 277 ; Sir F. Adam Lord High Commissioner, 329, 330; Lord Seaton, ditto, 331 — 343; history of, 332; constitu- tion of 1817, 333, 336; Lord Seaton's reforms, 337—343.
Ireland, Lord Seaton Commander of the Forces in, 363 — 372.
Jaraicejo, 128.
Jones, Sir J. T., 388, 392, 393. Junot, Marshal, Duke of Abrantes, 67, 82, 83, 84, 86.
Kellermann, Gen. F. C., and the Convention of Cintra, 85, 86, 88, 89; story of, 94.
Kempt, Gen. Sir J., at Maida, 51 — 53; at Vera, 186, 189; at Orthes, 201 ; his advice to Colborne, 251, 252 ; Gov.-Gen. of Canada, 309 ; in London, 327.
Kent, H.R.H. the Duke of, Stories of, 41.
Keppel, Lieut. See Albemarle, Lord.
Kilmainham, Rojal Hospital, 363, 364-
Kingston, 306.
Kirkwall, Viscount, 339, 342.
Kitley, 330, 331.
Lacy (Lascy), Marshal (Russian
service), 47. La Mancha, Spanish Army of, 129,
130, 132, 395- Lamb, Charles, 3. La Prairie, 303, 307. Las Agallios, 165. Latour-Maubourg, Gen., 150, 156,
158.
Le Boutillier, Mr. G., 249. Leeke, W. (52nd Regt.), 209, 214,
216, 220, 221, 224, 227 n, 237,
238, 242, 243, 248.
434
INDEX.
Lefebvre-Desnouettes, Gen., 97, 98,
102—104, 386. Leith, Gen. Sir]., 141. Le Noble, Mons., 388, 391, 393. Lesaca, 183.
Leweson-Gower, Maj.-Gen., 74. Lewis, Sir G. C., 374. Lichfield, 6, 248. Lisbon, 70, 84, 86, 88, 90, 91, 93,
146, 165, 176 n, 395. Liverpool, 6. Liverpool, Lord, 121 n. London, 116 — 124, 165, 324 — 327,
345—349* 372; Freedom of the
City presented to Lord Seaton,
326. Londonderry, (3rd) Marquis of
(Gen. Sir C. Stewart), 118, 121,
127, 347. 348, 384- Love, Gen. Sir J. F., 364. Lowe, Sir Hudson, 213, 246. Lugo, 100, 105, 384 — 397/>ass/w. Lumley, Hon. William, 33, 153,
159.
Lygon, Col, 242. Lymington, I, 3. Lyndhurst, i, 346. Lynedoch, Lord (Col. T. Graham),
75, 86, 97, in, 155, 182, 324;
extracts from diary, 90, 114, 115 ;
stories of, 98 — 100. Lyneham, 323, 327. Lysons, Gen. Sir Daniel, 292 «.
MacDonald, Col., 17 — 19. Macdoncll, Major-Gen. Sir J., 303,
317. 3*8.
Mackenzie, W. L., 258—261, 266. McLean, Capt. (2oth), 51, 52. McNamara, Lieut. T. (95th), 169. Madrid, 93, 96, 143, 384. Magilla, 157.
Maida, Battle of, 34, 51—56, 68. Mailhot (Canadian rebel), 303. Mainwaring, Col. (5ist), 164. Maitland, Gen. Sir P., 254, 257, 347 ;
Maitland's Brigade at Waterloo,
224, 232, 234, 235, 398—428. Maitland, Sir T., 332. Malta, 23, 30 ; 2oth Regt. stationed
at, 33—45-
Mamalouc beys massacred, 31. Mannheim, 247. March, Lord. See Richmond, Duke
of.
Mareotis, Lake, 27, 28. Maria Theresa of Austria, Order of,
241; its centenary, 367 — 369.
Markham, Capt. (32nd), 286.
Massena, Marshal, in Italy, 50, 56 ; besieging Almeida, 139; defeated at Busaco, 140, 141 ; invades Portugal, 142 — 147; retreats, 148
—154-
Matcham, Mr. Eyre, 6, 372 — 374. Maude, Gen., 74. Mayorga, 385, 393. Mein, Capt. W. (52nd), 167 — 170,
189; story of, 184. Melbourne, Lord, 324. Menou, Gen., 26, 27, 31. Merbe Braine, 216, 217, 220. Merry, Capt. A. (52nd), 169. Messina, 50, 52, 55, 58, 60, 68. Mileto, Action at, 59. Militia, 23, 346. Militia, ist Staffordshire, 7.
„ 2nd Staffordshire, 7.
„ 3rd Lancashire, 7.
,, Irish, 21, 366. Milton, Lord, 121. Minorca, 22 — 26. Missisquoi, 292. Moncey, Marshal, 238. Mondego, R., 141, 142, 150. Montgomery- Moore, Gen. Sir A. G.,
241, 365, 367—369- Montgomery- Moore, The Hon. Lady,
112 n, 235, 324,369,372. Montreal, 270, 274, 279 — 282, 286,
288 — 290, 293, 296, 299, 300, 302,
303. 307. 3*8, 320. Moore, Francis, 118, 122. Moore, Adm. Sir Graham, 1 1 1 n ;
letter from, 256. Moore, James Carrick, 112 n, 126,
130, 389, 393-
Moore, Dr. John, 118 n, 122 n, 416.
Moore, Gen. Sir John, 116, 118, 119, 121 n, 125, 163, 416; in Holland, 9 ; in Sicily and Gibraltar, 57 — 71 ; in Sweden, 72 — 79; in the Peninsula, 80 — 84, 91, 92 ; on the retreat to Corunna, 102 — 106, 383 — 394; death of, 108 — 115, 117; Colborne's appreciation of, 61, 100 — 102, 106 — 109, 117, 251, 365, 383—397 J stories of, 94, 97, 98, 100 ; his conduct debated in Parliament, 120 — 122; letters of, 118, 130; his supporters to his arms, 311 n.
Moore, Mrs. Stephen, 324.
Moore, Wm., Letter from, 252.
Mortier, Marshal, 134, 150, 154.
Mulcaster, Capt. (R. E.), 167.
INDEX.
435
Murray, Gen. Sir George, 77, 78, 125, 129, 182, 190, 242, 247, 255, 360.
Napier, Sir Charles J., 114, 329 n,
348. Napier, Sir George T., 113 — 115,
170, 176 n, 199, 202, 203, 387,
389; atCiudad Rodrigo, 171, 172;
letters from, 256, 269, 355 ;
letter to, 356. Napier, Sir W. F. P., 231 his
opinion of Sir J. Moore and of
Colborne, 251 ; letter from, 252 n;
letters to, 327—329, 383—394. Napier, Lady (Miss Caroline Fox),
397-
Napierville, 302 — 304, 306. Naples, 35, 36, 43, 66 ; expedition
to, 46 — 50. Naples, King and Queen of. See
Two Sicilies, King and Queen of. Napoleon I. See Bonaparte. Napoleon III., 354. Nelson, Adm. Lord, 23, 43, 45, 64;
stories of, 66, 67 ; character
defended, 374. Nelson, Robert, 302, 303. Nelson, Dr. Woiford, 280, 283, 285,
286, 288, 289, 292. Netherlands, The, 208 — 213. Nettles, Ensign W. (52nd), 407. Neuilly, Bridge of, Crossing of the,
239-
New Brunswick, 280. Newcastle, Duke of, 355, 360 n. Newton Ferrers, 125, 377. New York, 270, 271. Ney, Marshal, Duke d'Elchingen,
134, 245. Niagara, 297.
Nicolay, Col. W. (Staff Corps), 399. Nisbet, Josiah, 67. Nivelle, Battle of, 189 — 196. Nivelles, 215, 238. Noble. See Le Noble. Nogales, 388, 391. Normanby, (ist) Marquess of, Letter
to, 312, 313; letters from, 312,
315. Nora Scotia, 278. See " Halifax."
Ocana, Battle of, 130, 131, 133, 205. Odelltown, 302, 304. O'Donnel (Odonnel), Gen., 135. O'Hara, General C, 64, 65. Oliphant, Lieut.-Col. (2Oth), 45. Olivenca, 150, 155.
Oporto, 141, 142; Bishop of, 143. Orange, Prince of, 208 ; stories of,
209 — 213; Colborne, Mil. Sec. to,
208 — 213.
Orthes, Battle of, 199 — 203, 231, 328. Osman Bey, 31.
Otterbourne, Hants, 4, 346, 352, 355. Otway, Col. L. W. (i3th Light
Dragoons), 150, 152.
Paget, Gen. the Hon. Sir E., 108,
112, 117,390, 392,393. Paget, Mr. (Sir) James, 375, 376. Paget, Lord. See Anglesey. Pakenham, Gen. Sir E., 205. Palermo, 56, 58, 62. Palmerston, Viscount, 251. Pamplona (Pampeluna), Siege of,
183, 184, 327. Panet, Judge, 308. Papineau, L. J., 260, 274, 276, 278,
280, 282, 283, 285, 286, 288. Paris occupied by the Allies, 238 —
246; revisited, 247, 331, 369. Pasley, C. (R.E.), 391. Patterson, F. Hope, 420. Peel, Sir Robert, 325. Pembroke College, Oxford, 3, 350. Peninsular Army:
2nd Division (Hill's), 132 — 162 passim ; at Busaco, 140, 141 ; at St. Pierre, 198.
3rd Division (Picton's), 200, 202, 203.
4th Division, 159, 160, 200, 203.
6th Division^ 200.
7th Division, 200, 203.
Light Division, 163 — 208 passi m. Peninsular War, 80 — 209, 383 — 397. Perceval, Right Hon. S., 121. Percy, Col. the Hon. H., 112 — 114,
225, 401, 411, 419. Petit, Gen., 225 n, 228 n, 233 «, 423
—425.
Petten, Battle of, 17. Petty, Lord H., 121. Phillpotts, Major, 305. Picquets, 10, 144, 145, 185. Picton, Gen. Sir T., 203, 206, 218. Pierrepont, Capt. (2Oth), 68, 177. Plymouth, 180. Pompey's Pillar, 26, 28, 30. Portalegre, 133, 134. Portsmouth, The defence cf, 350,
351.
Portugal, 80 — 92 ; Massena's in- vasion of, 142 — 147 ; Royal family of, 70; King John of, 144.
436
INDEX,
Portuguese Army, English officers
in, 145-
Powlett, Capt. (2oth Regt.), 12, 18. Prescott (Upper Canada), 304, 306. Preston, 6, 7. Prideaux, Sir E., 378. Prussia, King of (Frederick William
III.), 248. Puslinch, Yealmpton, 125, 165, 181,
208, 323, 330, 367, 373. Pyramids, The, 29, 30. Pyrenees, The, 193 ; Battles of, 183.
Quebec, 277, 280, 281, 284, 294, 295, 300, 319, 320; Plains of Abraham, 278, 296.
Queenston, 297.
Quevres-au-Camp, 215.
Radcliffe, Lieut.-Col. (2Oth), 369.
Raglan, Lord (Lord FitzRoy Som- erset), 201, 202, 209, 275, 300, 327, 356, 364 ; letter to, 313.
Regiments :
2nd Life Guards, 353.
1st (King's) Dragoon Guards,
297, 303. 7th Hussars, 303. lOth Light Dragoons (Hussars),
103, 385, 386. I3th Light Dragoons at Campo
Mayor, 150—154. i8th Light Dragoons, 385. 23rd Light Dragoons, 227, 413. Grenadier Guards, 303. ist Foot (Royals), 286, 287, 288. 3rd (Buffs), 137; at Albuhera,
159—162. 1 5th, 301, 303. 1 7th, 8, 303. 20th, 6 — 73 passim, Si, 83, 369,
336, 387- 23rd, 392.
24th, 284, 286, 298, 303. 26th, 353. 27th, 51,52. 28th, 390. 29th, 159, 1 60. 3ist, 137, 160. 32nd, 285, 286, 287. 40th, 8. 42nd, 390. 43ra", 138, 298; at the storming of
Fort San Francisco, 166 — 171. 48th, 137; at Albuhera, 159 — 162. 50th, 390. 5'st, 389, 392.
Regiments (continued] :
52nd, 63, 163 — 250 passim, 283, 311, 317, 319, 325, 345, 376, 378, 386, 387, 398-428 passim.
57th, 1 60.
59th, 392.
63rd, 8.
66th, 1 30-163 passim, 267, 286,303.
7ist, 216, 221, 223, 225, 226, 228, 230, 238, 399—413 passim.
73rd, 303.
76th, 387, 389, 392.
79th, 136.
83rd, 306.
94th, 260.
95th (Rifle Brigade), 138, 163, l67> 173. !83, 189, 200, 201, 216, 221, 226, 227, 387, 399, 401 — 413; Lord Seaton becomes Colonel-in-Chief, 374.
Portuguese Ca9adores, 133, 140,
141, 143, 152, 158, 163, 183, 186,
189, 192, 200, 20 :, 203; parting
from the Light Division, 208. Reynier (Regnier), Gen., 52, 137,
138, 139, 145. Rhune, La Petite, Storming of,
189—194. Richardson, Major John, 296, 297,
364-
Richelieu, R., 281, 286, 301. Richmond, Duke of (Earl of March),
178, 202, 325.
Richmond, Surrey, 118, 122. Ripon, Earl of (Viscount Goderich)
252 «, 259, 262.
Roebuck, J. A., M.P., 278, 313 n. Roli9a, Battle of, 83, 84. Romana, Marquis of, 105, 135, 395. Rome, 247.
Ropes, Mr. J. C., 234, 422, 423. Rosetta, 29, 30. Ross, Major-Gen. Robert, 12, 33, 34,
63, 67, 120, 207, 387. Rothes, Lady, 372. Rowan, Col. Sir C., 227, 235, 239,
240, 404 — 406, 409, 414 n, 418. Rowan, Field-Marshal Sir W., 364,
398, 403 ; letter from, 379. Rueda, 384. Russell, Lord J., 277, 295, 325, 327,
328, 337, 346. Russia, Emperor of (Alexander I.),
243, 248. Russia, 59, 85 ; allied with England —
in Holland, 17 ; at Gibraltar, 41 ;
in the Mediterranean, 44 — 50 ;
Crimean War, 352 — 364.
INDEX.
437
Ryder, Judge-Advocate, 74. Rysbraeck, J. M. (sculptor),
Sahagun, 384, 385, 393.
St. Benoit (St. Bennet), 290, 291.
St. Boes, 200, 201, 203.
St. Charles, 285, 286, 287, 288.
St. Cyr, Marshal, 47.
St. Denis, Lower Canada, 280,
285—289. St. Edouard, 303. St. Eustache, 289 — 291, 293. St. Germain, 246. St. Helen's (Isle of Wight), 80, 83. St. Jean de Luz, 189, 200. St. John's, 308. St. Lucia, no. St. Martha, 160.
St. Martin's, Lower Canada, 293. St. Miguel, 141, 142. St. Omer, 248. St. Pierre, Action of, 198. St. Remi, 303. St. Scholastique, 291. Sala, 199. Salamanca, 91, 93 — 95, 131, 134,383,
384-
San Domingo, 74.
San Francisco, Fort of, Capture of, 1 66 — 171.
San Sebastian, Siege of, 182 — 184.
St. Andero (Santander), 181.
Santarem, 142, 148 — 150.
Saragossa, 135, 395.
Sarzedas, 139.
Saugo, 165.
Schagen Brug, Battle of, 12 — 16, 1 8.
Scharnhorst, Gen., 348.
Scott (Canadian rebel), 293.
Scott, G. E. (52nd Regt.), 222.
Seaton, F.M., Lord, passim.
Seaton, Lady (Miss Elizabeth Yonge), 125, 165, 181, 246—253, 346, 351, 355, 36l> 373, 375— 377 J tetters from, 275, 281, 286, 287, 290, 300, 302, 303, 306, 307, 308,309,311, 314, 315, 318, 354, 366, 372.
Seaton, 2nd Lord (James Colborne). 246, 247, 249, 284, 304, 331, 345, 367, 377 I paternal directions to, 268; letter to, 379; memo- randum by, 420.
Seaton, Lady (Hon. Charlotte de Burgh), 345, 377.
Seaton, 3rd Lord, 353, 379.
Sebastopol, 355 — 360.
Selsey, 2nd Lord, 7, I2O«.
Selsey, Lady (Hester E. Jennings),
1 20. Selwyn, G. A., Bishop of New
Zealand, 331.
Seville, 129, 133, 134, 143, 158, 160. Shaw- Kennedy, Gen. Sir James,
praises Colborne's movement at
Waterloo, 230, 231. Shedden, Capt. J. (52nd), 405. Siborne, Capt., Letters, &c., to,
403 — 411, 414 n. Sicily, 33—38, 57—67, 75, 331- Sierra Morena, 160. Skerrett, Gen., 183, 184, 349. Smith, Lieut. -Gen. Sir Harry, 142,
J53W> 159 «, 164, i66n, 180, 184,
187—192, 197, 198, 207, 31 1 n,
347,349, 352,356, 381. Smith, Lady (Juana M. de Leon),
198, 352 ; a meeting with Lord
Seaton, and his regard for her,
349-
Smith, Lieut.-Col. (27th), 52. Smith, Adm. Sir W. Sidney, 28, 70,
416. Smyth, Lieut.-Col. (20th),8— 10, 12,
17-
Snodgrass, Col. K., 192. Somerset, Lord FitzRoy. See
Raglan, Lord. Sonnini, C. N. S., 28. Sontag, Gen. (Dutch), n. Sorel, Lower Canada, 279, 280, 284,
285, 286, 289, 291, 298, 302. Soult, Marshal (Duke de Dalmatic),
96, 102, 104, 129, 130, 154, 158,
160, 161, 182, 183, 198, 203, 327,
328, 389, 393, 395. Southey's History of the Peninsular
War, 100, 253, 393, 394—396- Spaniards, Character of the, 133 —
136 ; how regarded by the French,
195 ; at Toulouse, 204, 205, 328. Sparkwell, Devon, 379. Sperling, J. (R.E.), 232. Stanhope, Major Hon. C., 114. Stanhope, Capt. Hon. J., 112 — 114. Stanhope, Lady Hester, 112. Stanley, Mr. See Derby. Stewart, Sir C. W. See Londonderry. Stewart, Gen. Sir W., 140, 148, 150,
153, 161 ; report by, 161. Stockholm, 76 — 78. Strafford, Earl of (Maj.-Gen. Sir
John Byng), 234, 324, 328, 401,
403, 406, 409, 415, 417, 420. Straggling in Moore's Army, 391,
392> 396.
438
INDEX.
Stuart, Major-Gen. Sir John (Count
of Maida), 51— 53, 56, 57. Stuart de Rothesay, Lord (Mr.
Stuart), 211, 395. Sweden; King of (Gustavus IV.), 75,
77 — 79 J expedition to, 75 — 79,
101. Sydenham, Lord (Mr. Poulett
Thompson), 316, 318. Syracuse, 38, 43, 47.
Tagus, R., 133, 134, 137, 138, 140,
142, 144, 148, 150, 154. Talavera, Battle of, 125 — 129, 174. Tarbes, Battle of, 203. Taylor, Sir H., 252; letter to, 272;
letter from, 274. Thomar (Tomar), 150, 154. Thompson (R.E.), 167. Thompson, Mr. Poulett. See Syden- ham, Lord.
Tierney, G., M.P., 121. Toronto (York), 254, 258, 259, 260,
266, 267 ; King's College, 257 ;
Upper Canada College, 257, 321. Torquay, 249, 344, 376, 377. Torrens, Sir H., 252; letter from,
163.
Torres Vedras, Lines of, 142. Toulouse, 203, 204, 207 ; Battle of,
204 — 206, 328. Townsend, Miss, Letter to, 92, 108,
123.
Trafalgar, Victory of, 46. Travers, Capt. J. (95th), 169. Trench, Mrs., her diary, 374. Trinidad, 253. Turks, 26, 29. Two Sicilies, Kingof the(Ferdinand),
35» 5°) 66; Queen of (Caroline),
46, 64, 66, 101 ; King of (Joseph),
50.
United Service Club, 378.
Upton, Col. the Hon. A. P. (Guards),
Story of, 183. Uxbridge, Lord. See Anglesey.
Valenciennes, 248. Valetta, 23, 39. Valladolid, 93, 95, 96. Venegas, Gen., 128 «, 134, 395. Vera, Bridge of, 184 ; storming of
the Pass of, 185 — 189, 231. Versailles, 246. Victor, Marshal, 128. Victoria, Queen, 307, 300, 350, 351,
354, 369, 372.
Villafranca, 98, 144, 386, 387, 389
392.
Villamur, Gen., 156. Vimiero (Veimira), Battle of, 83 —
85.
Vittoria, 91, 181. Vivian, Gen. Sir Hussey, 203, 219,
326, 403.
Wade, Col. T. F., C.B., 39.
Walker, Capt. (20th), 18.
Wallace, Major (2oth), 73.
Ward, Sir (Mr.) Henry, 339 ; letter to, 340—342.
War Office, 251, 252.
Warton, Dr. Joseph, 4.
Warwick, Earl of, 6.
Washington, 274, 306.
Waterloo, Campaign of, 217 — 237, 361, 398 — 428 ; battlefield re- visited, 344; Banquets, 326, 330, 346, 347-
Weedon, 248.
Weir, Lieut. G. (32nd), 285, 287, 288, 299.
Wellesley, Hon. Henry, 124.
Wellesley, Lady Emily, 209.
Wellesley, Lord Charles, 301.
Wellesley, Sir A. See Wellington, Duke of.
Wellington (ist), Duke of (Sir A. Wellesley), 82— 84, 124, 125, 128, 129, 139, i68«, 170, 172, 175, 178, 182, 1 86, 189, 199, 212, 237, 247, 325 — 327, 411, 416; at Vimiero, 83,' 84; at Talavera, 127; at Busaco, 140; before Nivelle, 190, 191 ; at Orthes, 201 — 203 ; at Toulouse, 204 — 206 ; at Waterloo, 223, 226, 227, 400, 402, 407 — 419; Waterloo despatch, 233, 417, 420 ; funeral, 347 ; his sword, 349 ; stories of, 164, 171, 188, 210, 211, 218, 241 — 246; note from, 181. Colborne's opinions : — of his regard for the aristocracy, 126; his genius shown in 1810, 142 — 144; ditto throughout the Penin- sular War, 207 ; ditto at Water- loo, 236; his character in old age, 329 ; Colborne's supposed resemblance to, 267, 296,301, 371.
Wellington, (2nd) Dake of, Note from, 349.
Wetherall, Col. G. A. (Royals), 285, 286, 287, 304.
Whinyates, Capt. E. C. (R.H.A.), 218.
INDEX.
439
Whitelocke, Gen., 69; trial of, 73,
74-
Whyte (White), Gen., 74. William IV., 274, 275. Winchester, 3, 7.
Winchester College, 3—6, 355. 379. Windham, W. (M.P.), 121. Windsor, 7. Winterbottom, Lieut. J. (Adjutant,
52nd), 203, 412. Wolseley, Field- Marshal Viscount,
217 n.
Wood, Col. Sir G. A. (R.A.), 218. Woodford, Gen. Sir A., 347. Woodgate, Lieut. J. (52nd), 169, 170.
Yarmouth, 20.
Yealmpton, 246, 247, 249, 288.
Yonge, Miss Charlotte M., 4, 5, 6 «,
16, 22, 236, 237, 251, 355. Yonge, Rev. Duke, 43, 118, 125;
letters to, 160, 178. Yonge, Mrs. Duke (Cordelia Anne
Colborne), 2, 43, 126, 367; letters
to, 13, 22,35, 116, 177, 272. Yonge, Miss Elizabeth. See Seaton,
Lady. Yonge, Rev. James, 125.
Yonge, Mrs. James (Lady Seaton's mother), 323 ; letter to, 290.
Yonge, Rev. John, 181, 298, 323, 377; letters to, 275, 277, 278, 281, 286, 287, 298, 370.
Yonge, Mrs. John (Alethea Henri- etta Bargus), 3, 62, 95, 323, 367 ; letters to, 44, 67, 71, 75, 76, 95, 119, 122, 123, 126, 131, 134 (2), 138, 141, 146, 179.
Yonge, Capt. W. C. (52nd), 220, 221 n, 251, 346; his praise of Colborne's movement at Water- loo, 229 ; answers to questions of, 411, 416.
Yonge, Mrs. W. C. (Frances Mary Bargus), 4, 62, 68, 95, 250, 251, 352; letters to, 137, 180, 237,
373-
York. See Toronto. York, H.R.H. the Duke of, 7, 8, 16,
19, 60, 118, 120, 124, 136, 397.
Zafra, 156.
Zamora, 165.
Zezere, R., 140, 147, 148,' 149.
Zijp Dyke, 8, 12, 19.
Zurich, 247.
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