Recollections of the eventful life of a soldier

by Joseph Donaldson

When we entered the latter place, there was a large convent fronting us, which, as well as many of the houses, had been set on fire by the French. I never before witnessed such destruction. The finest furniture had been broken up for firewood; the very floors torn up, beds cut in pieces, with their contents thrown about, intermixed with kitchen utensils, broken mirrors, china, &c. &c., all in one heterogeneous mass of ruin, and not an inhabitant to be seen.

We had scarcely taken up our quarters, until I was called out for duty, and placed on the commissary guard. The mules with the stores had arrived, and the store-keeper looking for a place to put them in, when we joined him. At last he pitched on a chapel for the purpose. There was a large fire in the middle of the floor, on which was heaped broken pieces of the altar, wooden images, frames of pictures; even the ornamented wood-work of the organ was broken up for the purpose.

In searching for the cleanest place to set down the bags of biscuit, we found a door leading to some place apart from the chapel. As it was quite dark, I caught up a burning piece of wood to inspect the place—but what was my horror, when I entered and found the half-consumed skeletons of human beings on every side; some lying, others kneeling, and more of them standing upright against the walls. The floor was covered with ashes, in many places still red. I stood fixed to the spot—the burning stick dropped from my hand. I informed some of my comrades of what we had seen, and we re-entered. Such an appalling sight was never witnessed. Of those who had sunk on the floor, nothing remained but the bones; while the others, who were in a kneeling or standing posture, were only partially consumed; and the agonised expression of their scorched and blackened features was awful beyond description.

Next morning we continued our march to Leria, and on entering it found it burned. We were quartered in a convent outside the town, which was partially consumed, where we remained the succeeding day.

On the top of a hill, to the left of the town, was a sort of redoubt. I went with Dennis to take a view of the place, and going up to where some of our soldiers were standing, we found three children lying, two already dead, but the other was still breathing. There were pieces of biscuit lying beside them, which our soldiers had brought—but it was too late. They had evidently perished from hunger; one of them had expired with the bit in his mouth. This was part of the horrors of war; but only a part. The wanton cruelty of the French soldiers, on this retreat, defies description.

From Leria we advanced towards Pombal, in front of which the French army had concentrated their force and made a stand; but they retired during the night, and took up a strong position at the end of a defile between Pombal and Redinha, with their right on a wood, and their left occupying the high ground above the river of Redinha, the town being in their rear. In this position our division attacked their left, the light division their right, and the fourth their centre; the rest of our army being in reserve. Their right was soon dislodged from their position in the wood, and retreated across a narrow bridge over the Redinha, followed by our light troops; but as the fords and bridge were commanded by their cannon, some time was lost before a sufficient number of troops could be passed over, to make a new disposition to attack the heights on which they had taken post. A portion of the division crossed the river by swimming, headed by Major Lloyd; but the columns moved on towards the bridge. As we were advancing, a cannon shot from the enemy struck our column, killed a sergeant, and wounded two or three men; besides tearing our armourer’s knapsack open, and scattering its contents about in every direction—the poor fellow was so frightened that he grew sick, went to the rear, and soon after died.

Our troops having passed the river, we soon drove them from their position back upon the main body, and next day their whole army was strongly posted at Condeixa. Our division was ordered to march through the mountains on their left towards the only road open for their retreat, which had the effect of dislodging them from their strong position; here our part of the duty was very fatiguing, for the hills were so steep that we had to scramble up the one side on our hands and feet, and slide down in the same manner on the other.

The French had retreated in such haste from their position at Condeixa that they left the communication with Coimbra unguarded, and our army communicated with Colonel Trant and the Portuguese militia, who were in possession of it.

They were now obliged to abandon all the positions which they had successively taken in the mountains, and their rear guard was thrown back on the main body at Miranda de Corvo, from which they immediately retreated, destroying part of their ammunition and baggage. At this place we passed many dead bodies of French and Portuguese, lying on the road; and one part of it was covered with asses, which the French had hamstrung before they left them. It was pitiable enough to see the poor creatures in this state; yet there was something ludicrous in the position that the animals had taken, when thus cruelly lamed; they were sitting in a group upon their hinder end, staring in each other’s faces, seemingly in deep consultation on some important subject, and looking as grave and dull as many an assembly of their biped brethren at home.

The enemy now took up a new position on the river Ceira, leaving a division at a small village as an advanced guard, which was attacked by the third and light divisions, and after some hard fighting their army retired across the Ceira during the night, destroying the bridge. The enemy suffered severely here, for besides their killed and wounded, numbers were drowned in crossing the river.