Head-Quarters, Berrio Planca, in front of Pamplona, half a league, July 31st, 1813.—To my great surprise, here I am again, and now tell you how and why.
Head-Quarters, again at Lezaca, near Bera, in the Mountains, August 3rd, 1813.—I had just taken up this paper, and headed it as above, to begin my history, when a turn of good fortune, arising from the courage of our army from the superior manœuvres of our General, have in eight days brought head-quarters back to our old place, whence the first sheet of this letter was dated. I have been too much occupied in this interval almost to sit down, much more to write; but I will endeavour to detail the important events I have witnessed in them in the best order my recollection will permit.
On the 25th July I went over to dine with the artillery. About seven I mounted to return home, Colonel Ross, Captains Jenkinson and Belson riding with me. On our way we met a messenger. I asked him to whom he was going? He said to Colonel Ross. The Colonel was thereupon called back. It turned out to be an order to march that night, and rather to the rear. There had been a distant firing all day, on the right wing near Maya. Lord Wellington was over at St. Sebastian. Belson was sent to General Alten with orders by Colonel Ross. Jenkinson galloped back to order the troops to get ready. Colonel Ross begged me to tell General Murray he would endeavour to reach Sambillo that night; and giving a receipt for the letter, was off. On my return I found Lord Wellington still absent, and reports flying about, but no orders. I soon found, however, that matters were not going on well, and ordered everything to be ready for the march next morning. Lord Wellington returned to dinner at eight, and found the following account of matters on our right just arrived to greet him on his return from the failure of St. Sebastian.
The French had collected a force both at the pass of Roncesvalles against General Cole, and at the pass of Maya against General Hill. In the morning of the 25th they pushed a strong reconnoissance against General Stewart, commanding Hills advance brigade near Maya, made a show, but gave way again. This report we had heard, and thought all was over. About three, however, the French advanced against Cole and Hill. About twenty-two thousand against Cole’s force, about sixteen thousand against General Stewart’s brigade; the force of the latter are scattered on the hills round the pass. The French came up in one close body, and gradually ascended the hill. Our people fired on them the whole time, and the destruction was very considerable. Still, however, they gained ground. Twice were they charged by a single regiment of ours, and the head of the column gave a little, but the press of numbers urged them on, and as our force was only about three thousand men, and that acting only by small bodies of regiments or companies, the French drove all before them after a most gallant but fatal resistance, before a sufficient reinforcement could be brought up. Four Portuguese guns were abandoned. Our loss in killed and wounded you will see in the “Gazette.” It is said to be twelve hundred British, almost all in three or four regiments—principally the 50th, 92nd, 74th, and 28th. In the 92nd, I am told, there was no officer except the Quarter-Master in a state to march off the men at parade. Colonel Belson (28th) had only four officers left besides himself on duty, as he had been thinned at Vittoria. To add to this disaster, General Cole thought he was not justified in opposing the superior force against him, and gave way in the pass of Roncesvalles. This left an opening for the enemy to get in the rear of General Hill in the valley of Bastan at Elisondo. Of course, therefore, he was obliged to fall back also, and the result was that Lord Wellington on his return found his right wing forced, and his position completely turned. Retreat, and that a rapid one, became necessary, in order to take a new position, and to fall back on the divisions near Pamplona.
After I was in bed on the night of the 25th the order came to march, as I expected. Lord Wellington was off early straight across to the second division. The light divisions fell back from our front; the seventh also toward St. Estevan towards the second; the artillery proceeded to St. Estevan by Sambillo. Head-quarters were sent over the mountains by Yanga and Aranor to a little village called Eligarraga, just as you descend into the valley of St. Estevan, there to wait for orders.
We had a wild and tedious road of four leagues, up and down the mountains like Blue Beard’s procession, in which we should now all be adepts. A road ran round the bottom through Sambillo, but probably it was not thought safe, and that it might interfere with the artillery, as it was narrow the whole way, and nothing could pass.
About two o’clock on the 26th we reached Eligarraga, and there found Major Canning sitting by the wayside to order on everything three long leagues further through Estevan, and then after keeping the road along the valley about a league beyond towards the pass into the Bastan Valley, near Trinita and Elisondo, we were to turn at Oronoz through a pass on the right, which brought us into the rear of the valley of Bastan, and into the rear of General Hill’s division, to a place called Almendoz, on the road to Pamplona from Elisondo, General Hill’s head-quarters being half a league in our present rear as we retreated, at our old head-quarters, Berrueta. In the meantime the seventh and light divisions got down into the valley of St. Estevan that night.
At Almendoz we found the effects of the battle at Maya. The wounded had just reached that place, and there those who had not been dressed, had their wounds examined, and all were urged on to the rear over a mountain pass to Lanz as fast as possible. The village of Almendoz was very small; the wounded lying about in all directions, till cars and mules could help them on. It was near seven o’clock, and we had nothing to eat since seven in the morning; quarters very bad of course, and the inhabitants all in the greatest distress, beginning to pack up, to desert their houses, as the people in the valley of Bastan, at Elisondo, &c., had done already, the French having got possession. A retreat is a most distressing scene even at the best, and when conducted with perfect order as this was.
About nine o’clock that night orders came to march at daylight for Ulague, a place about half-way between Lanz and Ostiz. After a five o’clock breakfast, away we went for the mountains again. The road was choked with baggage, and artillery, and fugitives, amongst others, fourteen or fifteen nuns in their dresses, who were reduced by fatigue to beg some rum of us as we passed, which unfortunately we had not with us. We got on by scrambling along the paths near the road, and arrived about twelve. On the 27th we arrived at Lanz. We there found General Murray and several officers, all looking very serious and gloomy, and orders given for everything to be turned off that road to the right, and not to go to Ulague, as Cole had been pressed. The firing was very sharp, and the French were urging on to that road, besides which, by taking to the right we got towards the camino real, from Pamplona to Tolosa, and could have made for General Graham’s if necessary. We were turned through Arayes (where I had been on the advance, and by the road where I had lost myself before in the night), on through a rich valley and several villages to Lissago, or Lisasso.
Here (the 27th) we were placed very snugly, only about two leagues and a-half from the Tolosa road, about three from Pamplona, and in the midst of the divisions. General Cole, with the fourth division, had fallen back on Pamplona to some hills near Villa Alba, or Villalba: there he joined the third division, General Picton’s, and some Spaniards. General Hill fell back to Lanz. From Berrueta, the seventh division got a short way over the mountains, from St. Estevan to near Lisasso, our head-quarters, and thus got near the sixth. The light division fell back more towards Goigueta, or Ernani, to communicate with Graham and protect the Tolosa road, and thus we stood all night.