Lieut.-Colonel the Hon. Sir Robert
Le Poer Trench.
From a bust in possession of his
daughter, Mrs Burrowes.
“But bearing on through the skirmishers with the might of a giant, Pakenham broke the half formed line into fragments, and sent the whole in confusion upon the advancing supports.”[447] Some squadrons of light cavalry fell upon the right of the third division, but the 5th Regiment repulsed them. Pakenham continued his “tempestuous course” for upwards of three miles, until the French were “pierced, broken, and discomfited.” The advance in line of the 74th attracted particular notice, and was much applauded by Major-General Pakenham, who frequently exclaimed, “Beautifully done, 74th; beautiful, 74th!”
Lord Londonderry says, in his Story of the Peninsular War:—
“The attack of the third division was not only the most spirited, but the most perfect thing of the kind that modern times have witnessed.
“Regardless alike of a charge of cavalry and of the murderous fire which the enemy’s batteries opened, on went these fearless warriors, horse and foot, without check or pause, until they won the ridge, and then the infantry giving their volley, and the cavalry falling on, sword in hand, the French were pierced, broken, and discomfited. So close indeed was the struggle, that in several instances the British colours were seen waving over the heads of the enemy’s battalions.”
Of the division of Thomières, originally 7000 strong, 2000 had been taken prisoners, with two eagles and eleven pieces of cannon. The French right resisted till dark, when they were finally driven from the field, and having sustained a heavy loss, retreated through the woods across the Tormes.
The casualties in the regiment at the battle of Salamanca were:—Killed, 3 rank and file. Wounded, 2 officers, Brevet-Major Thomson and Lieutenant Ewing, both severely; 2 sergeants, and 42 rank and file.
After this the 74th, with the other allied regiments, proceeded to Madrid, where it remained till October 20, the men passing their time most agreeably. But, although there was plenty of gaiety, Madrid exhibited a sad combination of luxury and desolation; there was no money, the people were starving, and even noble families secretly sought charity.
In the end of September, when the distress was very great, Lieutenant-Colonel Trench and the officers of the 74th and 45th Regiments, having witnessed the distress, and feeling the utmost compassion for numbers of miserable objects, commenced giving a daily dinner to about 200 of them, among whom were some persons of high distinction, who without this resource must have perished. Napier says on this subject, that “the Madrilenos discovered a deep and unaffected gratitude for kindness received at the hands of the British officers, who contributed, not much, for they had it not, but enough of money to form soup charities, by which hundreds were succoured. Surely this is not the least of the many honourable distinctions those brave men have earned.”
During the latter part of October and the month of November, the 74th, which had joined Lieutenant-General Hill, in order to check the movement of Soult and King Joseph, performed many fatiguing marches and counter marches, enduring many great hardships and privations, marching over impassable roads and marshy plains, under a continued deluge of rain, provisions deficient, and no shelter procurable. On the 14th of November the allied army commenced its retreat from Alba de Tormes towards Ciudad Rodrigo, and the following extract from the graphic journal of Major Alves of the 74th will give the reader some idea of the hardships which these poor soldiers had to undergo at this time:—“From the time we left the Arapiles, on the 15th, until our arrival at Ciudad Rodrigo, a distance of only about 15 leagues, we were under arms every morning an hour before daylight, and never got to our barrack until about sunset, the roads being almost unpassable, particularly for artillery, and with us generally ankle deep. It scarcely ceased to rain during the retreat. Our first endeavour after our arrival at our watery bivouack, was to make it as comfortable as circumstances would admit; and as exertion was our best assistance, we immediately set to and cut down as many trees as would make a good fire, and then as many as would keep us from the wet underneath. If we succeeded in making a good enough fire to keep the feet warm, I generally managed to have a tolerably good sleep, although during the period I had scarcely ever a dry shirt. To add to our misery, during the retreat we were deficient in provisions, and had rum only on two days. The loss of men by death from the wet and cold during this period was very great. Our regiment alone was deficient about thirty out of thirty-four who had only joined us from England on the 14th, the evening before we retreated from the Arapiles.”