Notwithstanding Romana’s presence, Reynier and the younger Soult, passed the Guadiana below Badajos, with only four hundred cavalry, and closely examined the works of that fortress, in despite of the whole Spanish army; and at the same time, Mortier’s advanced guards arrived on the Guadiana, and a reinforcement of four thousand men joined the second corps from Toledo. But as the want of provisions would not permit the French to remain concentrated, Mortier returned to the Morena, to watch Imas. The 14th of May, a French detachment again came close up to Badajos, then took the road to Olivenza, and would have cut off Ballasteros, if Hill had not by a sudden march to Elvas, arrested their movements. Meanwhile, Ballasteros again menaced Seville, and was again driven back upon Aroche, with a loss of three hundred men.
To check these frequent incursions, the French threatened the frontier of Portugal, by the Lower Guadiana; sometimes appearing at Gibraleon, and Villa Blanca, sometimes towards Serpa, the possession of which would have lamed Ballasteros’ movements, yet the advantages were still chequered. A Portuguese flotilla intercepted, at the mouth of the Guadiana, a convoy of provisions going to the first corps; and O’Donnel having made an attempt during Reynier’s absence, to surprise Truxillo, was repulsed, and regained Albuquerque with great difficulty. It would be perplexing, to trace in detail all the movements, on the line from Badajos to Ayamonte, yet two circumstances there were, of historical importance. In the beginning of July, when Lacy was in the Sierra de Ronda, Ballasteros near Aroche, and Copons in the Condado Neibla, the French marched against Lacy, leaving Seville garrisoned solely by Spaniards in Joseph’s service; and while this example was furnished by the enemy, the Portuguese and Spanish troops on the frontier, complaining, the one of inhospitality, the other of robbery and violence, would, but for the mediation of the British authorities, have come to blows, for the mutual spirit of hatred extended to the governments on both sides.
Hitherto, Hill had not meddled in the Spanish operations, save, when Romana was hardly pressed, but the latter’s demands for aid were continual, and most of his projects were ill judged, and contrary to lord Wellington’s advice. On the 26th of June however, Reynier passing the Guadiana, foraged all the country about Campo Mayor, and then turned by Montijo to Merida; it was known that his corps belonged to the army assembling in Castile for the invasion of Portugal, and that he had collected mules and other means of transport in Estremadura; and the spies asserted, that he was going to cross the Tagus. Hill, therefore, gathered his divisions well in hand, ready to move as Reynier moved, to cross the Tagus if he crossed it, and by parallel operations to guard the frontier of Beira. The march of the second corps was, however, postponed, and the after operations belonging to greater combinations, will be treated of in another place.
Although, apparently complicated, the movements in Estremadura were simple in principle. The valley of the Guadiana as far as Badajos, is separated from the valley of the Tagus, by a range of heights, connecting the Guadalupe mountains with those of Albuquerque, and the country between those hills and the Tagus, contained fertile valleys, and considerable towns; such as Valencia de Alcantara and Caceres. To profit from their resources was an object to both parties. Reynier, whose base was at Truxillo, could easily make incursions as far as Caceres, but beyond that town, the Salor, presented a barrier, from behind which, the Spaniards supported by the fort of Albuquerque, could observe whether the incursion was made in force, and act accordingly; hence O’Donnel’s frequent advances and retreats.
Reynier could not operate seriously, unless in unison with the fifth corps, and by the valley of the Guadiana; and, therefore, Merida, on account of its stone bridge, was the key of his movements; but Mortier’s base of operations, being in Andalusia, his front, was spread, from Zafra to Merida, to cover his line of retreat, and to draw provisions from about Llerena; but the road of Xeres de los Cavalleros was open to the Spaniards, and the frequent advances of Ballasteros and Contreras, were to harass Mortier’s line of communication. The clue of affairs was this; Romana, holding Badajos, and being supported by Hill, acted on both flanks of the French, and the Portuguese frontier furnished a retreat from every part of his lines of operation; but, as his projects were generally vague and injudicious, lord Wellington forbad Hill to assist, except for definite and approved objects.
To put an end to the Spanish system, Mortier had only to unite the two corps and give battle, or, if that was refused, to besiege Badajos, which, from its influence, situation, and the advantage of its stone bridge, was the key to the Alemtejo; and this he ardently desired. Soult, however, would not Appendix, [No. V.] Section 1.permit him to undertake any decisive operation while Andalusia was exposed to sudden insurrections and descents from Cadiz, and to say that either marshal was wrong would be rash, because two great interests clashed. Mortier and Reynier united, could have furnished twenty thousand infantry, fifty guns, and more than three thousand cavalry, all excellent troops. Romana having garrisoned Badajos, Olivenza, and Albuquerque, could not bring more than fifteen thousand men into line, and must have joined Hill. But with a mixed force and divided command, the latter could not have ventured a battle in the plain country beyond Portalegre. A defeat would have opened Lisbon to the victor, and lord Wellington must then have detached largely from the north, the king and Soult could have reinforced Mortier, and the ultimate consequences are not to be assumed.
On the other hand, Soult, judging, that ere further conquests were attempted, the great province of Andalusia, should be rendered a strong hold and independent of extraneous events, bent all his attention to that object. An exact and economical arrangement, provided for the current consumption of his troops; vast reserve magazines were filled without overwhelming the people; and the native municipal authorities, recognized and supported in matters of police and supply, acted zealously, yet without any imputation upon their patriotism; for those who see and feel the miseries, flowing from disorderly and wasting armies, may honestly assist a general labouring to preserve regularity. Yet all this could not be the work of a day, and meanwhile the marshals under Soult’s orders, being employed only in a military capacity, desired the entire control of their own corps, and to be engaged in great field operations, because, thus only could they be distinguished; whereas the duke of Dalmatia while contributing to the final subjugation of Spain, by concentrating the elements of permanent strength in Andalusia, was also well assured, that, in fixing a solid foundation for future military operations, he should obtain reputation as an able administrator and pacificator of a conquered country.
His views, however, clashed, not more with those of the generals, than with the wishes of the king, whose poverty, forced him to grasp at all the revenues of Andalusia, and who having led the army, in person across the Morena, claimed both as monarch and conqueror. But he who wields the sword will always be first served. Soult, guided by the secret orders of Napoleon, resisted the king’s demands, and thus excited the monarch’s hatred to an incredible degree; nevertheless, the duke of Dalmatia, never lost the emperor’s confidence, and his province, reference being had to the nature of the war, was admirably well governed. The people were gradually tranquillized; the military resources of the country drawn forth, and considerable bodies of native troops raised, and even successfully employed, to repress the efforts of the Partisan chiefs. The arsenal of construction at Seville was put into full activity; the mines of lead at Linares were worked; the copper of the river Tinto gathered for the supply of the founderies, and every provision for the use of a large army collected; privateers also were fitted out, a commerce was commenced with neutral nations in the ports of Grenada, and finally, a secret, but Mr. Stuart’s Correspondence. MSS.considerable, traffic carried on with Lisbon itself, demonstrated the administrative talents of Soult. Andalusia soon became the most powerful establishment of the French in Spain.
Both marshals appear to have entertained sound views, and the advantages of either plan being considered, leads to the reflection that they might have been reconciled. A reinforcement of twenty-five thousand men in Estremadura, during the months of June and July, would have left scarcely a shadow of defence for Portugal; and it would seem that Napoleon had an eye to this, as we find him directing Suchet, in July, to co-operate with fifteen thousand men in the invasion, whenever Tortoza should fall. The application of this reasoning will, however, be better understood as the narrative advances; and whether Napoleon’s recent marriage with the Austrian princess drew him away from business, or that, absorbed by the other many and great interests of his empire, he neglected Spanish affairs, or whether deceived by exaggerated accounts of successes, he thought the necessity for more troops less than it really was, I have not been able to ascertain. Neither can I find any good reason, why the king, whose army was increased to twenty thousand men before the end of June, made no movement to favour the attack on Portugal. It is, however, scarcely necessary to seek any other cause, than the inevitable errors, that mar all great military combinations not directed by a single hand.