The paymaster came from out from home to pay us some back money that was owing to us, so that there was a captain of each company to go down to the paymaster’s residence to give in the strength of the company; and I being very intimate with the captain, whose name was Shaw, he told me to bring two men with me up to the captain’s quarters, and from there we removed off to the paymaster’s residence. The captain had orders from the paymaster to take one bag of dollars—out of ten. Our pay at this time was two pounds five shillings per month; he ordered me to name the men to pack up the dollars, and bring them on with them; I named one of the men to lift them, who said they were so heavy he could not get them on his shoulder; I said to the next man, “You try them,” and he could not lift them. The captain said, “Hey, mon, what, canna twa strong able men like you lift them small bags of dollars up?” He then said, “Knight, you try them;” I caught hold of them, and had very great difficulty in getting them on my shoulder, so the captain told me to proceed with them. I carried them about two hundred yards, and put them on a wall off my shoulder. “Now,” I said, “you carry them in your turns, each of you, but mind and put them so as another can get them.” So they brought them into the captain’s quarters, and, by the captain’s orders, put them off their shoulders in the captain’s apartment, when he said, “That will do, you can go to your convent.” I was going along with them, and he said, “Stop, Knight;” so I stopped with the captain, and fell into some conversation with him about the British service of Waterloo, etc. He belonged to the same brigade with me; I did not know him at the time; I formerly belonged to the ninety-fifth rifles, and he was in the fifty-second light infantry. After some short time, I asked him when he was going to serve the companies’ money out; he replied not before Monday, as it was Saturday when he got the money from the paymaster; he said, if he was to serve the money out, he should not have a soldier of his company out on parade, as the colonel used to read the service on Sundays at the drum head. I said, “Very well, sir,” and was about making my departure when he called me back, and said, “Here are two dollars for you, keep your own counsel; if the sergeant of the company should ask you any questions as to when the captain was going to serve out the pay, tell them on Monday, for, if he served it out to-day, he would not get any man to attend church parade.”
As I was going through the town, after leaving the captain’s residence, I called into a wine shop and drank a glass of wine; when I arrived at the convent, the sergeant of the companies came about me to know when the captain was going to serve out the pay; I said he had given me instructions to inform them it would be on Monday; so they rested in quiet and contentment. In the afternoon the bugler sounded the non-commissioned officers’ call, and the sergeants of companies had orders to go to the quarter-master’s stores, and to bring the ornaments from the stores to the different companies. The sergeant of the company I belonged to, which was the light company, brought green wings to put on the jackets, and also the grenadiers with white wings, and the other eight battalion companies brought small brass plates, of a horseshoe shape; I did not know much about wings in those days, although belonging to the rifles, but we all had to appear on church parade with our different ornaments on the shoulders of our jackets, so the tailors of the different companies were ordered to get them on as quickly as they could, or any handy men that could use their needle. I had not been used to any such thing in the rifles, and I said to a man in the grenadiers, that if he would comb my wings out, and dress them nicely, I would pay him well for it. As I knew him I took him down into the town and gave him a glass of wine; we seldom had a glass of wine without having the full measure, which was a pint, for three halfpence—he was very thankful. I said, “I will give you a quarter of a dollar if you will dress them nicely.” He replied that he would; I remarked, I “may as well pay you while I am here.” I expected to have found my jacket in the morning in the place where I usually hang it up, on a peg over my bed, but when I took my jacket down in the morning to clean it to go on parade, I found the wings as rough as they were when they were served out. The scamp had got drunk, and neglected combing my wings out, and the only part of my dress looking bad on account of the wings being rough and not combed out; I thought I would have two or three extra guards given me that day, as the colonel used to inspect the battalion when the line had to be formed, for the rear rank to step back two paces for inspection order by the colonel. At the very last minute or two, in turning out, I wetted a brush to lay the nap down, and went on parade; I was the right hand man in the light company. The captain came on parade to inspect the company; he looked at my wings, but said nothing. The colonel came on parade, and he called out for the battalion to form line; after we had formed line, he called out for rear rank inspection order, and then came over to inspect the light company. He looked very hard at me at the time, I was alarmed about my wings looking so ill; I said to myself, “I will get two or three extra guards.” The colonel asked the captain, “What kind of a soldier is this on the right of your company?” The captain gave me an excellent character, and the colonel replied that he had often witnessed me coming through the town, and that I had paid him all military honours. He added, “I appoint him as corporal;” so, in the room of getting two or three extra guards, as I thought I should, I was lucky enough to get made full corporal. On church parade, after the services had been preached by the colonel, he dismissed the battalion, and we went into our respective quarters. In the afternoon, the companies’ call was sounded for sergeants of each company to go to the order room to receive orders. In bringing the orders from the orderly room, the sergeant came into my room and said to his brother sergeant, “Who do you think is made corporal of our company to-day?” he could not tell; the other said, “Thomas Knight.” “Well,” he said, “a man very well fitted for it, and well disciplined in the service, and also bears a good name and excellent character.” I went to the tailor’s shop to get the stripes on, it was the Monday morning following—after I had got my stripes on, I went to parade as usual. Shortly after that, we had orders to march to Nangaros, a seaport town in the Western Islands, and to embark on board of a squadron. All the soldiers, according to the different positions they were in, took up their former position under the care of their officers. Captain Charles Shaw, of my company, acquainted me that we were expecting to land at St. Michael’s, to go through a field-day along with the other regiments. Accordingly, we all landed, and went through a field-day there. The British were very much noticed that day by the inhabitants of the town.
After seven hours under a broiling sun, and the field-day was over, we had an excellent allowance served out to us; and then we returned on board our respective ships. In the evening, after we had joined our ships, we went out in search of the enemy’s squadron, as we had heard the Don Juan was not many leagues from us; and, having a good fine wind, the Admiral ordered all sail to be extended, so we went about thirteen knots an hour. After we had been running about sixteen hours, we had as foul a wind as we had had fair, and never got sight of her during the period I was on board. We put back into our old position, beat up and down the coast, and came into Vigo Bay on Sunday, the 8th of July, 1831. The Admiral gave orders for the Union Jack to be placed on shore, to see if anyone would meddle with it. It was on the beach, and the wind blowing it to its full extent, during the whole of Sunday; but no one came to meddle with it.
On Monday, the 9th, we landed from the Squadron 12,000 men. Captain Shaw, of the Light Company of the British Battalion, learned that the Admiral had to keep us on board to do duty as marines; he gave orders to the company for all to be ready to jump into the boats when they lowered; once into the boat, they would be obliged to let us go on shore. So we all jumped into the different boats to land. There was plenty of swearing, roaring, and laughing, on our landing, coming off to the beach side, as there was, at this time, a very rough surf on the sea. As the boats were running in, one man, standing forward on the gunwale of the boat, was afraid to jump; I pushed him aside, telling him to let me pass. I waited my opportunity for the boats going up on the beach, gave a jump, and cleared it very well, about knee deep in water. The man just behind me, whom I had before put aside, jumped immediately after me, and in he went right up to his chin; he spluttered out mightily, “Arrah, man, I am drowned!” I was standing on the beach, laughing at him. “Come on, man, you’re not half drowned.”
During the time of our landing, the cavalry of the enemy came out of the wood, and rode down on the beach to cut off our landing. When they were within about a hundred and fifty yards from the beach, coming down over the rocks, the ships fired a few rounds over our heads, and sent the cavalry to the rightabout. A portion of them retired back into the wood. As our battalion formed on the top of the rocks, convenient to the wood, Colonel Hodges called out, “I will give eight dollars to whoever can get me a mule.” But no mule was to be found, till we saw one that a countryman was riding up a lane; we seized him and his mule, and gave the mule to the Colonel.
The whole of our army lay extended along the top of the rocks, some distance up abreast of the wood, where the General gave orders to the troops to remain till further orders. When the British battalion was ordered to take the advanced post and proceed into the wood, the Light Company had orders to take the advance of the battalion about four or five hundred yards, and there to lay during the night to keep a sharp look-out. I was called upon to take six men in advance of the company about three or four hundred yards, to take up a good position, and place a sentinel on each side of the road. I was fortunate enough in the position, and stood so that I could discover a small paddock dividing the two woods, in which I placed one man behind a tree. I told him to keep a sharp look-out, and if anyone was seen advancing towards him, to let him come just near enough to make sure of a shot, and then return to where I was lying with the other four men. I placed another man on the left of the road, and gave him proper notice. The man on the right was very timorous; and as I was leaning my elbow on a wall, watching his movements, he was turning his head in every direction as if the devil was alongside of him. I discovered him coming away from his post, so I cocked my musket as he advanced towards me, and I had twenty minds to shoot him. I asked him what was the matter with him. He said, “There is a man in the wood.” “Why not shoot him?” I asked. “I did not like until I saw you,” he replied. So, with musket cocked, I accompanied him back to his post, and said, “Now, you stand there until your time is up; if you offer to run away any more, I will put a ball through you.” “Will you?” he exclaimed. “You may depend on it,” I answered; “because you put all our lives in danger by leaving your post exposed.” Poor fellow! it was a new kind of work to him; and before two hours elapsed he was turning his head in every direction again, as if the devil was still alongside of him. I went over to the man on the left side of the road, who was a staunch one; he called out three times, “Hold! Who comes there?” “Corporal,” I answered. “Advance, Corporal, and all’s well!” cried he. “Have you seen anything to-night since you have been on sentry?;” His name was Witney. “I have seen nothing,” he replied; “I want a shot so bad, I would fire at an old woman if she came in my way.” Shortly after I came back to where my other four men were lying, I warned two men—the next for duty—to go down and relieve those two men. I went over to the right, as usual, to relieve the soldier and to put another in his place; he stood behind a tree, and made no reply as to who was coming. I brought him with me to go over to relieve Witney, and we came back into the road where I had taken up my position.
As near as I could say, the time of night was about twelve o’clock, when the captain of my company advanced towards me “privately.” I challenged him in the usual practice in the British army; he answered the challenge. I said, “Advance, all’s well.” He asked, “Corporal, have you seen anything in the wood?” I answered, “No, I have not seen anything worse than myself.” “I have had an interview with the colonel,” he said, “who said he heard that the army was going to advance.” Shortly after, we heard the enemy was very strong, and had taken up their position in a village in front of us, something about four miles. The army advanced and the British battalion took the lead of the brigades; I was ordered to take the advance with the six men for that distance, viz., four miles. We came into the village, and found it was a false report. There was no enemy whatever there.
We lay neutral until the day approached. I thought to myself I would try to get something to drink, and also some provisions for my haversack; so as to enable me to be strong and long-winded. I got into a house and I thought I heard a noise. I kept my musket ready cocked to shoot the first that might oppose me. Some time after, I found it was some of my own fellows on the same errand as myself, coming up to see what they could lay hands on. I saw an old Portuguese person, about eighty years of age; and I asked him could he fill my canteen (in the Portuguese language) with good wine, and he complied with my request. After I had got my canteen filled, I was fortunate enough to fall in with half a loaf of bread. I went through into a garden, and I shook off a few figs from a tree. In coming back into the yard belonging to the house, I discovered three Portuguese cavalry in the yard. They called out to me, in broken English, “Englishman, Englishman, love wine!” I asked, “Would they have any?” “No, get from old man.” I accordingly went out of the yard and proceeded up the road, and I discovered, over a middling high wall, two very beautiful young ladies; they spoke to me in a little broken English, saying that we were going to fight with Don Miguel’s army to-morrow. They asked me if I would accept of a drop of wine; I replied that I had enough, but was very much obliged to them. They then asked me if I would take any grapes; I answered that I would, so they gave me a few very large bunches of grapes. I kindly thanked them, and wished them good-bye. We shortly afterwards had daylight sufficiently clear to see what we were about.
The army advanced at the dawn of the day to storm the town of Oporto; the British were kept back that day, to bring up all stragglers over brooks, hills, rivers, &c. We were under a broiling sun; it was on Tuesday, the 10th of July, 1831, when we came up in sight of Oporto. The signal was made from the squadron that went round the bay and over the bar, and passed the falls of Lordella, close to the river Doura. When the shipping came up abreast of the township, there was very little to oppose them; the army pushed forward, and took the town without exchanging a shot. We then marched through the town with colours flying, and instruments of the different regiments playing gaily; we came down to the Arsenal Square, and there we formed close columns, and lay there till further orders. I said to my next man, “I will have a glass of wine, as we have taken Oporto.” Captain Shaw coming round, and seeing me drinking, said, I was showing a bad example to the men, but, notwithstanding, I went through my degrees of finishing what I had in the glass (which was a pint one). In the course of the afternoon, about four o’clock, as we had been in close column about four hours, the British had orders to proceed to the convent of St. Lazarus, and there to remain till further orders. We occupied one part of the convent, and the old invalids of the monks (about two hundred of them) occupied the other part; they were supposed to be all in number previous to the time of our taking the town about one thousand one hundred of them, of which about nine hundred disappeared to fight in Don Miguel’s service. We occupied the apartments in the convent in which they had formerly lived; the French regiment occupied another place, at the top part of a street, called Rutendemoza, at the opposite side of the town; and the regiments of the line in and out round about Oporto—the Tachedores lay in another part of the town. There were five regiments of them; as riflemen, they had the skull and marrow bone on their shakos; they were called “Death or Glory,” and were very intimate with the British subjects.
During our stay in Oporto, when at various times we had a combat with the enemy, we went on the Velonga, in the Cassemere road, under an expectation to fall in with the enemy at three leagues distance, but when we came there they retreated to Pennyfields. We were fortunate enough in the morning to fall in with fifty mules loaded with bread to take into the town of Oporto. We proceeded on to Pennyfields, and in the three days’ march towards that place, under a broiling sun, and everything poisoned before us by the enemy, we came into a village two days’ march from Velonga, a distance of ten leagues (thirty miles). On the third day I was appointed to guard the colours, along with my brother non-commission officers; the ensign fell from fatigue, and the oldest sergeant in the regiment took the colours, and so on, according to the period of their service. I was appointed (being the oldest corporal) to take the colours, and carried them about a quarter of a mile; I was getting over a low wall and fell across the wall with the colours, my head on one side and my feet on the other. I lay for some time quite exhausted, never expecting to get up any more. After lying there for some considerable time, I tried to rise. I got up on my knees and fell back again; however, I recovered myself after a short period, and saw an old Portuguese Paysanne, or peasant. I called out to him in Portuguese, as well as I could, and asked him to get me a canteen of water; he did so, and I thanked him in the Portuguese language. I took a hearty good drink of it, and was very much revived, and able to get upon my legs. I went about three hundred yards and discovered another corporal; I called out to him, but he made no reply. I went over to see what was the matter with him, and found he was lying in the same position I had been; I gave him a good drink of water, and he recovered. I got him on his legs, and we both went along together, almost reeling from weakness. I discovered about two hundred yards to the right, a great quantity of soldiers dressed in scarlet; I went over to them to see what they were, and found them to be a portion of our battalion lying dead on the ground, forty-four in number. I could not tell or discover who they were, from their being so much distorted by the poison they had drunk in the water. Some of them I could see were belonging to my own company, and some were grenadiers and battalion companies. I came over to my brother corporal and acquainted him with what I had witnessed; he asked, “Don’t you know any of their names?” I replied that I did not, for they were so much disfigured; he said, “Go back again, and the first man you come to, look at his haversack.” This was done that one man should not rob another; the first man I came to was a man of my own company, he was lying on his back. I turned him on his face and discovered on his haversack, “Richard Ovenden, light company;” “Poor Dick! you’ll never play the fiddle any more!” He used to amuse us at Oporto by playing the fiddle of an evening; I came back to my brother corporal, and told him that Richard Ovenden, of the light company, was the first man I discovered. We went on together, and I observed a sergeant a short distance from the road, leaning up against a wall, with his fusee on his arm; I found he was quite dead and stiff, and the wall supporting him; I took hold of him and put him under the wall. We advanced a little further, and I saw two tailors belonging to the battalion company, one by the name of Pearce, and the other name was Robinson—they had died together, hand in hand; we went on a little further, and I discovered a great number of men of all regiments lying round big waterholes, all poisoned—as many as two or three hundred. It was a very shocking and sickening sight to see so many brave men sent to their long account in such a dreadful manner. Our troops at the time had captured the town, and we got into it more dead than alive. The first gentleman I saw was Captain Shaw, captain of my company (light company); he came up to me and shook hands with me, he was very glad to see me; he heard I was dead under the hill, and I said, “I heard you were dead, too, captain.” There were orders issued for the men not to take too much wine or provisions, as, from being without food some time, it was feared it might have a bad effect. The cavalry had orders to keep their horses closely fastened, so that they might be ready at any moment, as we were laying during the night under expectation of the enemy reinforcing troops from Lisbon. They came up early on the following morning with a reinforcement; our spies came galloping into town, and acquainted the general that commanded the whole of the army (Soldano, a gentleman of Oporto), that they were about twenty-seven thousand strong, and we at the same time were from seven thousand to eight thousand. We were ordered to retire back to Oporto, and as fast as possible we occupied a hill in front, and the enemy in the rear, coming up about a league distance, where we arrived on the second evening. They brought all their reinforcements up to the town of Oporto, and were determined to take the town, if possible; and as they came on the hard roads and across the fields, the orders were that the officer of the outlying duty was to touch the train in order to blow up the road, and the enemy with it. It was reported that there were as many as three thousand blown up by the trains. The guns from the batteries commenced full play on the enemy’s columns, supposed to be about three hours’ engagement. When it came to nightfall the enemy had lost about seven thousand troops; they beat the retreat during the night, so that we heard no more of them. We marched back to the convent, the British battalion at Oporto, and lay there till further orders.