From the Morena to the sea, the lower Guadiana separates the two kingdoms. The Spanish side, extremely rugged, contained the fortresses of San Lucar de Guadiana, Lepe, and Ayamonte. The Portuguese frontier, Serpa, Mertola, Alcontin, and Castro Marin, and, although the greater number of these places were dismantled, the walls of all were standing, some in good repair, and those of Portugal for the most part garrisoned by militia and ordenanza.
When Mortier attempted Badajos, on the 12th of February, Romana was near Truxillo, and the place was so ill provided, that a fortnight’s blockade Mr. Stuart’s Correspondence. MSS.would have reduced it; but the French general, who had only brought up eight thousand infantry and a brigade of cavalry, could not invest it in face of the troops assembling in the vicinity, and therefore retired to Zafra, leaving his horsemen near Olivenza. In this position he remained until the 19th of February, when his cavalry was surprised at Valverde, and the commander Beauregard slain. Romana returned to Badajos the 20th and the 27th, and Mortier then leaving some troops in Zafra, marched to Merida, to connect himself with the second corps, which had arrived at Montijo, on the Guadiana.
It will be remembered that this corps, commanded by general Mermet, occupied the valley of the Tagus in its whole length during the invasion of Andalusia, and communicating with the sixth corps through the pass of Baños, formed an intermediate reserve between Mortier and Kellerman. The latter was at Bejar, and Miranda de Castanar, watching the duke Del Parque, in the early part of January; but withdrew to Salamanca, when the British army arrived in the valley of the Mondego, and the duke Del Parque, leaving Martin Carrera with a weak division in the Sierra de Gata, marched, with thirteen thousand men, through the pass of Perales, crossed the Tagus at Barca de Alconete on the 10th of February, and on the 12th, the day Mortier summoned Badajos, was in position with his right at Albuquerque and his left on the Guadiana.
When Mermet, whose advanced guard was at Placentia, knew of this movement, he first detached three thousand men across the Tagus, by Seradillo, to observe Del Parque, and soon afterwards Soult’s brother, with four thousand men from Talavera, crossed the bridge of Arzobispo, and advancing by Caceres, surprised some Spanish troops at Villa del Rey and reaching Montijo, pushed patrols close to Badajos. The remainder of the second corps arrived at Caceres by degrees; general Reynier then took the command, and, as I have said, was joined by Mortier, who immediately commenced defensive works at Merida, and prepared gabions and facines as if to besiege Badajos.
These demonstrations attracted the notice of general Hill, who advanced with ten thousand men from Abrantes to Portalegre, and Romana, finding himself, by the junction of the duke Del Parque’s army, at the head of twenty-five thousand men, resolved to act against the communications of the French.
His first division, commanded by Charles O’Donnel, brother to the Catalan general, occupied Albuquerque. The second, under Mendizabel, was posted near Castello de Vide. The third, consisting of five thousand Asturians, was sent, under Ballasteros, to Olivenza, and the fourth remained at Badajos. The fifth, under Contreras, was detached to Monasterio, with orders to interrupt Mortier’s communication with Seville.
Contreras reached Xeres de los Cavalleros the 1st of March, but a detachment from Zafra soon drove him thence, and Romana retired to Campo Mayor with three divisions, leaving Ballasteros with the fourth at Olivenza. On the other hand, Mortier, uneasy about Contreras’ movements, repaired to Zafra, leaving the second corps at Merida, and the 10th, Romana, advanced again towards Albuquerque; but having pushed a detachment beyond the Salor river, it was surprised by general Foy. The 14th O’Donnel endeavoured to surprise Foy, but the latter, with very inferior numbers, fought his way through the Puerto de Trasquillon, and the Spaniards took possession of Caceres.
At this period the insurrections in Grenada, the movements of the Murcian army, and the general excitement of Valencia, in consequence of Suchet’s retreat, caused Joseph to recall Mortier for the defence of Andalusia, and the latter, after holding a council of war with Reynier, destroyed the works at Merida, the 19th of March, and retired to Seville, leaving Gazan’s division at Monasterio. Reynier having sent his stores to Truxillo drove the Spaniards out of Caceres the 20th, and followed them to the Salor, but afterwards took post at Torremacho, and O’Donnel returned to Caceres.
There are two routes leading from Merida and Badajos to Seville: 1º. The Royal Causeway, which passes the Morena by Zafra, Los Santos, Monasterio, and Ronquillo. 2º. A shorter, but more difficult, road, which, running westward of the causeway, passes the mountains by Xeres de los Cavalleros, Fregenal, and Araceña. These parallel routes, have no cross communications in the Morena, but on the Estremaduran side, a road runs from Xeres de los Cavalleros to Zafra, and on the Andalusian side, from Araceña to Ronquillo. When, therefore, Mortier retired, Ballasteros marched from Olivenza to Xeres de los Cavalleros, and being joined by Contreras, their united corps, amounting to ten thousand men, gained the Royal Causeway by Zafra, and, on the evening of the 29th of March, came up with Gazan, and fought an undecided action; but the next day, the Spaniards being repulsed, Ballasteros retired to Araceña and Contreras to the high mountains above Ronquillo. From Araceña, Ballasteros marched to Huerva, within a few leagues of Seville, but Gerard’s division drove him back to Araceña, and defeated him there; yet again entering the Condado de Neibla, he established himself at Zalamea de Real on the Tinto river.
Meanwhile, Romana detached a force to seize Merida, and cut the communication of the fifth corps with Reynier, but that general, marching with eight thousand men from Torremocha, passed through to Medellin before the Spaniards arrived, and pushed troops, the 2d of April, into the Morena, intending to take Contreras in rear, while Gazan attacked him in front; and this would have happened, but that O’Donnel, immediately threatened Merida, and so drew Reynier back. Nevertheless, Contreras was attacked by Gazan, at Pedroche, and so completely defeated, that he regained Zafra in the night of the 14th, with only two thousand men, and Ballasteros also, assailed by a detachment from Seville, retired to Araceña. The 20th, Reynier marched to Montijo, and O’Donnel retired from Caceres, but his rear guard was defeated at La Rocca the 21st, and his division would have been lost, if Mendizabel and Hill also had not come to his aid, when Reynier declining a general action, retired to Merida. The insurrection in the Alpuxaras was now quelled, the Valencians remained inactive, Joseph re-entered Madrid, Soult assumed the government of Andalusia, and Mortier returned to Estremadura. While on the Spanish side, Contreras was displaced, and Imas, his successor, advanced to Ronquillo, in Mortier’s rear; Ballasteros remained at Aroche; Hill returned to Portalegre; and Romana encamped, with fourteen thousand men, near Bajados, where a Spanish plot Mr. Stuart’s Correspondence. MSS.was formed to assassinate him. It was discovered, but the villain who was to have executed the atrocious deed escaped.