The obvious conclusion to be drawn from his signature of the Convention was that, the opportunity of following up the victory having been lost, the surrender of Lisbon and the evacuation of the whole of Portugal by the French troops were advantages too great to be rejected and left to the uncertain decision of arms.
But whatever may have been his private opinion, he was fortunate to rise superior to the disgrace which fell upon his commanding officers, probably because the victory of Vimiera must have served to open the eyes of our Government to the folly of submitting a man of his abilities to the command of Generals higher in rank but far inferior in military experience. It can but appear singular that a General should be superseded in his command in the very moment of battle, and that, before his successor had time to grasp the reins of power, the latter should in turn be himself succeeded, by yet another commander! It affords an extraordinary instance either of indecision or of intrigue in the Cabinet!… Suffice it to say that this Triumvirate produced as a monument to their glory the Convention of Cintra!
Following upon this event, Sir John Moore took command of the British troops in Portugal, and advanced into Spain to relieve the Spaniards. "There was," relates John Stanhope, "at this period no man in the army whose character stood higher than that of Sir John Moore. He was a man of the finest principles and of the most undaunted courage; by those under his command he was adored. In the hour of battle he had the most perfect self-possession and confidence both in his troops and in himself, which alone was sufficient to ensure success. Though not a fortunate general, he was esteemed one of the most able in the British service, and it gives me pleasure to add, that I have since heard French officers who served against him give the highest testimony in favour of his military conduct. But his political opinions, which were hostile to Government, added to the difficulty of his situation, and that circumstance undoubtedly weighed upon his mind…. It is to this very susceptibility, this want of moral courage and readiness to sacrifice his own reputation to the cause in which he was engaged, that his misfortunes are principally to be attributed."
The story of Moore's advance into Spain, as John Stanhope points out, "undoubtedly betrays, both on his part and on that of the Government, a most lamentable ignorance of the real state of that country. Because they heard of Spanish armies in the field, they idly supposed that these were armies in the accepted sense of the word and not a mere collection of peasants, undisciplined and chiefly unarmed, officered by men as ignorant of their profession as themselves and commanded by a General yet more incompetent.—And with armies so composed they actually sent a British force to co-operate! … Sir John Moore had not been long in Spain before he discovered the mistake that had been committed and the danger of his situation; he saw at once that the course he ought to adopt was to retreat upon Portugal, fall back upon his resources and rely entirely upon his own judgment."
The story of his dilemma, and of how he was forced to act against his convictions, is well known to posterity. After dwelling at length upon the aspects of the situation, John Stanhope concludes:
He made a rapid march on Madrid and was on the point of attacking Soult when he learnt, by an intercepted dispatch, that Bonaparte was marching against him in person and that he was in immediate danger of being surrounded. The consequence was his famous retreat. As to the manner in which that was conducted, I have heard a French General, who was employed in the actual army by which Moore was pursued, speak of his enemy's tactics with boundless admiration. But perhaps the highest praise which can be accorded to it is that the pursuit, in the first instance, was conducted by Bonaparte in person, and subsequently by Soult and Ney under his express directions, and yet that Sir John Moore succeeded in effecting his escape without once being entraîné, and crowned his efforts by the victory of Corunna—a victory which, sealed as it was with his own blood, ought to wash out the memory of any errors which he may have committed. [10]
Mrs Spencer-Stanhope to John Spencer-Stanhope. RAMSGATE, January 27th, 1809.
You will have experienced the greatest grief for the loss of our gallant defender, Sir John Moore—a great blow to this country. But while deploring his death, we must not forget to glory in what our brave troops performed, tho' 'tis grievous to think how many lives have been lost, and what the remaining army have gone through, without lamenting that this almost unexampled victory will be of so little use.
Last night this place was thrown into surprise and confusion by the arrival of one or two Transports with part of the 52nd, and of two or three other Regiments. The poor men were obliged to pass the night in the Transports as they could not come on shore till the orders came from Canterbury. Your father went last night to see some of them. He found a Serjeant who said they had no assistance from the Spaniards, but the accounts are so various I do not like to give too ready credit to what I hear, tho' I hear there is not the patriotism amongst them one should suppose.
Lady Lilford, [11] that beauty en masse (who is here with two daughters ill out of the four she has with her) was made very happy last night by the arrival of her Son who was in the 52nd, & of whom she had not been able to hear anything.