About three o’clock on that day (August 17) a considerable body of the enemy advanced from the town and attacked the picquets on the left of the line towards the seashore. This small force, consisting of four companies of the 2nd Battalion and six of two line regiments, in all not more than 1,000 men with two light field-pieces, were opposed to about 3,000 of the enemy. But almost as soon as they came in contact the Danes gave way and retired into the town, leaving a good many dead and wounded. The detachment of the 2nd Battalion lost 1 man killed, and 2 men were wounded.
On the 19th the 2nd Battalion was moved further to the right, and nearer to the town; and from this day till the 24th a constant fire was kept up between the advanced posts and the place; by which, however, no loss seems to have been inflicted on the Riflemen. On the 24th they were under arms at two o’clock in the morning, and immediately advanced, driving in the Danish outposts; in this operation they encountered considerable opposition, and had some skirmishing among the gardens and suburbs. During the 25th a constant fire both of artillery and small arms was kept up from the place, by which a battalion of the German Legion suffered rather severely. They were relieved on outpost duty a little before dark by the 2nd Battalion, who did not lose a man at this post. On the 26th a division was formed, under Sir Arthur Wellesley, to which the two Battalions of the 95th were attached; and they were ordered to proceed into the interior to disperse a large body of militia and armed peasantry. They marched about three P.M., and made their way through the country on the left of the great road to Roeskild. They halted that night at Cagstrup; and next morning continued to advance towards Kioge, halting in the evening at a village near Roeskild. The troops were now, or just previously, formed into two brigades, the five companies of the 1st Battalion being attached to that under the immediate command of Sir Arthur Wellesley, and those of the 2nd Battalion to General Baron Linsingen’s brigade.
On the 29th Sir Arthur Wellesley attacked the Danish army, which was established in position on the north side of the town and rivulet of Kioge. He sent round Baron Linsingen’s brigade to cross the rivulet at Salbye and fall upon the enemy’s left flank, while Sir Arthur himself advanced on his front, covered by the 1st Battalion skirmishers. The enemy gave way at once before an attack by the 92nd, and retreated in disorder, ‘followed in the most gallant style by the 1st Battalion of the 95th,’[37] and eventually by the whole infantry. Major-General Oxholm, the second in command of the Danish army, attempted to make a stand with the rear-guard in the village of Hervolge, but was briskly attacked by some German hussars and a company of the 2nd Battalion; and though he took up a strong position in the churchyard, which was considerably higher than any other part of the village, he was, after a short resistance, compelled to surrender with several officers and about 400 men. In this action at Kioge the loss suffered by the 95th appears to have been inconsiderable; no mention of casualties appears in the 2nd Battalion Record; Sir Arthur Wellesley says that ‘a few men of the 95th fell.’[38] They must have belonged to the 1st Battalion. The conduct and steadiness of the 1st Battalion of the 95th, under Colonel Beckwith, are ‘mentioned particularly’ in Sir Arthur Wellesley’s despatch.[39]
The two Battalions were engaged all the remainder of the 29th and during the 30th in scouring the woods near Kioge, in order to complete the dispersion of the Danish force and to prevent its reassembling. They reached Ringstæd on the 31st; and as the regular portion of the troops of the enemy had retired into one of the islands, and the militia had entirely disbanded itself, they halted here till after the surrender of Copenhagen on September 7. But during this halt detachments were occasionally sent out to search for and disperse any lurking parties of the enemy, and to bring in arms or stores. One of these detachments, consisting of 100 men of the 2nd Battalion, mounted in light German waggons, scoured a considerable tract of country, and took possession of ten guns of small calibre, forty rifles, and a number of muskets.
The terms of the capitulation of Copenhagen extended only to the British and Danish forces in the Island of Zealand, and the troops were, therefore, still liable to attack from any Danish force which might be reassembled on the mainland or in the other islands. Strong outposts were therefore established in the towns and villages along the Belt, and the two Rifle Battalions were employed on this service; the 1st Battalion occupying Callundborg, Slagelse, Corsoer, and Skielskior; and the 2nd Battalion, Nestved, Lundbye, Wordingborg, and Præstoe. They remained in their cantonments till October 15, when they retired towards Copenhagen, which they reached on the 17th. The two Battalions embarked on board the ‘Princess Caroline,’ 74, a Danish prize, sailed on the 21st, arrived in Yarmouth Roads in November, and (after a stormy passage) at Dover on the 15th, landed next day at Deal, and joined their Battalions at Hythe.[40]
On April 8, 1808, three companies of the 1st Battalion (Major Norcott’s, Captains Ross’[41] and O’Hare’s), under the command of Major Gilmour, marched to Harwich, embarked the next day, sailed the following day, and joined the troops assembled in Yarmouth Roads destined for the Baltic, under Sir John Moore, to co-operate with Sweden. They arrived at Gottenburg on May 17, but owing to misunderstandings with the King of Sweden they never landed; and having remained on board their transports nearly ten weeks, they sailed at the latter end of July, and eventually landed in Portugal, at Peniche, at the end of August, and formed a junction with the force under Sir Arthur Wellesley.
But previously to their arrival there, two companies from those of the Battalion remaining in England (Captains Cameron’s[42] and Ramage’s), under Colonel Beckwith, embarked at Harwich early in July. The strength of this detachment was about 180 men;[43] these landed on August 19, a few days before Major Gilmour’s force, which was immediately united to it.
About the same time four companies of the 2nd Battalion, under the command of Major Robert Travers, had embarked at Dover on June 8, and formed part of the force destined for Portugal under Sir Arthur Wellesley. The transports assembled in Cork harbour early in July. The strength of the detachment of the 2nd Battalion was 1 field-officer, 4 captains, 13 subalterns, 1 staff, 20 sergeants, 8 buglers, and 399 rank and file.[44] These disembarked at Figueira, in Mondego Bay, on August 1, 1808.
These four 2nd Battalion companies were attached to General Fane’s brigade; and, immediately after disembarkation, pushed on, keeping their right towards the sea, several miles over an unbroken plain of white sand. The men, who had been many weeks on board ship, were much fatigued by this their first day’s march, as the weather was hot, and the sand so loose that they sank ankle-deep every step. They encamped at night near the village of Lavaos, to which the rest of the army moved up as soon as they disembarked. On August 9, these companies, forming part of the advance, marched from Lavaos about three o’clock in the morning. Their destination was Leiria, and their orders were, if the enemy were in strength at Leiria not to drive him out till the 10th, but to halt in the pine-woods which cover the country between Lavaos and Leiria. And General Hill was ordered to let 200 Riflemen and a few dragoons feel their way into Leiria, and if they obtained possession to support them with his whole corps.[45] However, the French had evacuated Leiria before the Riflemen entered it, and it bore terrible marks of their cruelty and excesses.
The army marched hence towards Lisbon, the Riflemen still forming the advance, and daily expecting to fall in with the enemy, who were gradually retiring before them. The first meeting took place at Obidos on the evening of August 15, where, after a long march, a party of French cavalry and infantry were found. These were immediately attacked by the Riflemen under Major Travers, together with some of the 60th, and forced to retire. In the eagerness of this first encounter the pursuit was continued too far, and the Riflemen pushed on to a distance of three miles from Obidos, and quite away from any support. They were then attacked by a superior body of the enemy, who attempted to cut them off from the main body of the detachment to which they belonged, which now advanced to their support. Larger bodies of the enemy appeared on both flanks, and it was with some difficulty that General Spencer, who had gone out to Obidos, when he heard that the Riflemen had advanced, was able to extricate them.[46] In this sharp skirmish Lieutenant Bunbury and 2 men were killed, and Captain Pakenham[47] and 6 men wounded. Ralph Bunbury was the first English officer who fell in the Peninsula. Harris says that he was ‘the first man that was hit;’ and he was much regretted by his brother officers. It is painful to add that this first blood was spilt, in Sir Arthur Wellesley’s opinion, unnecessarily. ‘The affair,’ he writes to Lord Castlereagh, ‘was unpleasant, because it was quite useless; and was occasioned solely by the imprudence of the officer and the dash and eagerness of the men; they behaved remarkably well, and did some execution with their rifles.’[48] And to the Duke of Richmond he says, ‘that it was foolishly brought on by the over-eagerness of the Riflemen in the pursuit of an enemy’s picquet; the troops behaved remarkably well, but not with great prudence.’[49]