Sept.-Dec. 10th
The river Guadiana passes for a great way through a flat country, whose banks in the rainy season are overflowed; consequently when the river diminishes from dryness and the heat of the weather, its banks become impregnated with myriads of vermin and also with vegetable matter in a state of putrefaction. In every stagnant pool these exhalations poison the surrounding atmosphere with pestilential vapours. The people of the country leave it for some months at this season, and a common observation among them is that strangers who come here at this season seldom leave it again, i.e. they die. The town of Campo Mayor is fortified, and has also a citadel. It stands on a plain abounding with corn. At about the distance of a league a small river named the Caya flows. This river forms the boundary line between the two countries. Campo Mayor was besieged by the Spaniards in 1801, and fell in nineteen days. I got a bad typhus fever here, and the priest wanted to confess me and save me from everlasting perdition! I recovered very slowly until the order for leaving this part of the country arrived. In a few days, even on the line of march, I became well. My brother, in the 34th Regiment, also suffered from the effects of this contagion.
Badajoz is the frontier Spanish fortification, and is of much more importance, being very strong and upon the left bank of the Guadiana, over which is a fine strong Roman bridge in good preservation, 700 paces long and 14 wide. This place is the capital of Estremadura, and a Bishop's See. Fort San Christoval is an outwork upon the right bank of the river, and commands the town. Elvas is a fortified town of Portugal, of considerable importance, and about four leagues from Badajoz. It is placed upon a rising piece of ground about a league from the Guadiana, and has two outworks to support the town. Fort de Lippe is placed upon a high hill and justly called a masterpiece in fortification. The other fort, Santa Lucia, stands upon a smaller hill, and communicates with the town by a covered way. Elvas is supplied with water by an aqueduct. The water is brought a considerable distance. If the place was invested regularly the aqueduct might easily be destroyed, which would be a most serious inconvenience to the inhabitants. The general hospital was at this place. Above 4000 British soldiers were buried here during our stay in cantonments.
Albuquerque is a walled town of Spain, about three leagues from Campo Mayor. It has a fort situated upon a hill close to the town. This place gives the title to a Duke, who possesses many privileges and an extensive range of forests, in which are plenty of wild boars and wolves, hunted frequently by those who are fond of such amusement.
Letter No. III
Campo Mayor, Portugal,
September 1809.
Dear Parents—My last letter was written at Castello Branco, which I hope you received. I must now enter into a long detail of proceedings, the result of which has not proved of any service to England or Spain as yet, and I am afraid there is no likelihood our services in this quarter ever will, unless we have a sufficient disposable force to cope with the French, who are much more numerous than we expected. I will now bid adieu to the land of plenty, a land well according with the Scripture phrase—flowing with milk and honey.
We very soon passed the frontiers of Portugal and entered Spain by forced marches, generally of twenty English miles by day and sometimes much more, the weather extremely hot and sultry and the roads very bad. Sometimes we met with stupendous mountains, whose summits were enveloped in the clouds; the villages in general were deserted by the unfortunate inhabitants, and houses, churches, and everything they possessed were one entire scene of ruin; some towns were completely burnt to the ground, even the corn-fields (of this year's produce) were generally laid waste by fire wherever the French had been. We daily experienced great hardships from want of a proper supply of bread and food of every kind. Sometimes with difficulty we got a little, when every man endeavoured to get as much as possible for himself, and I generally was not backward in contriving to satisfy the cravings of a hungry stomach, as well as the oldest soldier among them. From such fatiguing marches, and often bad food and water, by day exposed to burning sun, and by night to the heavy dews, sleeping generally upon the ground, you will not wonder at the men becoming unhealthy, which daily obliged men to fall out on the march. Even the strongest in outward appearance would lie down, or rather fall down, and say positively they could not go any farther. The officers of our regiment—most of them rode on horses or mules—did not experience the fatigues so materially. As I had no money to spare, I was obliged to walk, and, God knows, if illness had intervened or I had not been able to march, my case would have been dismal; but, thank the Almighty, He has blessed me with an excellent constitution, and all the hardships I have met with have not made the least impression upon me. A little John Bull-like, when hunger stared me in the face I put on a sorrowful countenance, but by some means or other a sheep or pig came in my way and I soon turned butcher. No sooner dead than roasted or grilled. I assure you I have dined thus many times and felt much more real content and pleasure than at a sumptuous feast. We now and then met with fields of corn, and if the men were allowed to halt, they soon filled their haversacks with ears, and boiled it when they arrived at the end of the march.
An express arrived from Sir Arthur Wellesley desiring the Brigade would lose no time in making a speedy junction with the Grand Army, and the last twenty-four hours' march is almost unparalleled by any soldiers after the fatigues we had already experienced. I had only six ounces of mouldy bread and some bad water, which I got by the road occasionally in passing, to support me for twenty-four hours, in which time we marched fifty-two miles, resting three hours on the ground. We certainly should have found a much greater difficulty in accomplishing it had we not met several wounded British officers riding from the field of action, who told us what was passing when they left. Every man seemed anxious to push on, and all were in high spirits, hoping soon to be on the field of battle and to assist their brave countrymen. The cannons distinctly sounding on our ears as we came near. I forgot to say that the dastardly Spaniards were running in all directions, the field being covered with the panic-struck. They received many a hearty curse as they passed us. After all our efforts, we arrived on the field of battle just soon enough to be too late. The horrid sights were beyond anything I could have imagined. Thousands dead and dying in every direction, horses, men, French and English, in whole lines who had cut each other down, and, I am sorry to say, the Spaniards butchering the wounded Frenchmen at every opportunity, and stripping them naked, which gave admission to the attacks of myriads of pernicious flies and the heat of a burning sun. You may be sure everything was done on our part and the commanding officer's to put a stop to such horrid brutality and give assistance, but the ground being covered for at least five miles with dead and dying, and we expecting another attack, the army was drawn up in a line ready to receive the enemy. Our regiment was posted in front of the army, but the French thought proper to have no more of it at the present, and retreated about three miles and beyond a river, which secured their front.