On the 19th the troops stood to their arms an hour before daybreak; but the enemy continued stationary, and well they might, as they had made the previous night and day an enormous march to cut us off in detail, according to the Duke of Ragusa's favourite expression; however, at four o'clock in the afternoon the Earl of Wellington rode up to Lieutenant Wilkinson of the 43d, who was on picquet, and said, "What are the enemy doing?" Wilkinson replied, "The French are in motion." The dust was flying upwards from behind the ridge of hills in our front. The General-in-chief said, "Yes—to the right now;" and ordered the first brigade of our division to make a corresponding movement, by crossing a valley, to prolong our right. We ascended a high hill, and formed on our original front, when the French army issued from behind the hills, presenting a martial appearance, and a grand display of moving squadrons, with brazen helmets, and a great body of infantry flanked by their cannon.
The river Guarena was nearly dried up, and was the only obstacle between the contending armies, as the face of the country still continued bare and hilly, without even a tree to be seen. The Duke of Ragusa entered the valley to reconnoitre, surrounded by a numerous staff, when two guns of our horse-artillery opened, and a ball struck on the ground, and knocked up the dust in the very centre of the group, without killing any one: they took the hint, and shifted their ground.
Eight of the enemy's guns instantly began a heavy firing on our brigade: the first shot struck an officer of the horse-artillery on the side of his helmet, and displaced him from his horse; after a short time the brigade went to the right about, to get out of range. At that moment the Spaniards[36] attached to us simultaneously started from the left of each regiment, and I do not recollect ever seeing them afterwards: it was most ludicrous to witness the flight of these patriots, in disorder, while our troops retired sloping their arms with the utmost sang-froid. We soon halted, and faced about; the enemy's guns ceased to play, and a large force of our light dragoons mounted the hill in our rear, with sloped swords. Night coming on, we formed columns in case of accidents. An officer and myself then stole down the hill on horseback, in search of water for ourselves and animals: having passed our advanced posts some distance, and hearing strange voices, we looked at each other, and whispered that to go further would be indiscreet, wherefore, rejoining the column, we wrapped ourselves in our cloaks, and fell into a profound slumber, out of which we were awakened by a great bustle and the trampling of horses. Word passed to stand to our arms, and the Portuguese Caçadores fired some shots, but I was so overcome by drowsiness, that I continued in a squatting position, rubbing my eyes, too lazy to move. The confusion was caused by two or three mules breaking their ropes, and becoming lively; not unusual amongst such animals.
On the 20th our division concentrated soon after daylight, and descended into the plain of Velesa, where we observed our whole army formed in a dense phalanx, ready to deploy in order of battle. The French army were not in sight; however, it was evident they intended to avail themselves of the high ground; a brigade of our cavalry had pushed half way up the ridge, to entice them to show front, and to develope their movements, as it appeared during the night they had moved on a quarter circle, round our extreme right flank, and were now pushing on, and trying to cut off our communications. The Duke of Ragusa would not accept battle as long as he could gain ground without it, unless we attacked at a disadvantage, as he seemed to be a perfect master of the localities of the country.
Our army, under all these circumstances, broke up, and began to retreat, the different divisions arranged in such a manner, that, should it become necessary, by wheeling to the left, they could show front, and be ready to engage, the more particularly as both armies were again moving parallel to each other; and in this order they continued some leagues, and bivouacked. It became necessary for the troops to cook with fires of stubble, as there was not any wood in the neighbourhood. A brigade of Portuguese cavalry happened to be left at some distance in the rear, and, as it slowly retired in line, presented such an imposing front to their own rear, that, by mistake, an artillery officer ordered them to be saluted by a couple of shot, which unfortunately did some execution.
On the 21st, two hours before daylight, we began our march, branching off towards Salamanca, and took up our ground in the valley, below St. Christoval, the enemy having moved on Alba de Tormes and its vicinity. Toward evening, we fell in, and crossed the Tormes by a ford, under the hill of Cabrerizos, and marched in the direction of Salamanca, the river being on our right hand. Night approached, and a German hussar passed us at full speed, and said, "She's co-ming," meaning the French dragoons, who had pushed forward to the village of Calbarasa de Abaxo.
The atmosphere became now overspread with an unusual darkness; the thunder began to roll, the lightning was vivid, and the rain fell in torrents. During the storm a whole troop of horses galloped past at full speed, without their riders, having broke loose from fright, caused by the loud claps of thunder. Continuing our march, we soon bivouacked about two miles from Salamanca, our left wing resting on the Tormes, and in vain attempted to screen ourselves from the pelting of the storm. However, the morning of the 22d broke beautiful and serene; and at six o'clock we heard to our right, and about two miles to the front, a brisk fire of small arms, which continued for an hour, and then died away. The enemy had attacked the seventh division, in a wood near the heights of Nuestra Señora de la Pena, to ascertain whether the Earl of Wellington intended to give up Salamanca. A young officer was washing his shirt in the Tormes when the order came to fall in at eleven o'clock, and was under the necessity of putting it on wringing wet.
The light division advanced, and took up the ground which the seventh division had occupied in the morning; the wood extended a short way to our front. The division was formed in open column, concealed from a small body of the enemy, who were stationed in small force half a mile to our front, with two pieces of cannon, on some rocks, round the old quinta of Nuestra Señora de la Pena. From our situation we formed a corps of reserve, communicating with the third division placed on the top of the conical hill of Cabrerizos, on our extreme left, and rather in advance of us, on the right bank of the Tormes.
We had no sooner piled arms, than I began to look about me. A Table Mountain, or rather one of Los dos Arapiles, was a short way to the right, and a mile to the front, with a very large mass of troops formed behind it, in contiguous columns, with one red regiment presenting their front towards the enemy in line at the top of it. Large bodies of cavalry, the first, fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh divisions of infantry, with a proportion of artillery, composed the right and centre of the army in the plain, towards Las Torres; also a corps of Spanish Patriots. Placed thus, who could have thought that the General-in-Chief intended that day to retreat? I never did. Nor could I see the reason for it: it seemed advisable to beat the French before El Rey Joseph coming from Madrid, and General Chauvel, who, with a reinforcement of cavalry and horse-artillery, had crossed the Duoro, near Pollos, should make their appearance with additional forces.