In January, 1811, Colonel the Honourable E. M. Pakenham was placed at the head of the Adjutant-General's department, and the command of the Fusilier Brigade was intrusted to Major-General Houstoun. The brigade was stationed, at this period, at Aveiras de Cima.

At length disease, want of provisions, and the impregnable lines of Torres Vedras, turned the vain boasting of the French commander into defeat; he retraced his steps towards Spain, covering wantonly, and with brutal cruelty, the line of his retreat with rapine, bloodshed, devastation, and burning villages. The Royal Fusiliers moved forward in pursuit; several skirmishes occurred, and, on the 12th of March, the brigade was in line near Redinha (a town in the central part of Portugal, in the province of Beira), and advancing to attack the rear column of the French army under one of Napoleon's most active and enterprising generals, Ney; but as the British ranks moved majestically forward in firm array, the French fired a volley and instantly fled under the cover of the smoke towards Condexia.

In the meantime Marshal Soult, being at the head of another French army, had captured Badajoz, the capital of Spanish Estremadura; also Olivenza, another fortified town on the west frontier of Spain; and a detachment from his army had besieged Campo Mayor, a barrier fortress of Portugal, in the province of Alemtejo; and on the 14th of March the Royal Fusiliers were detached to the Alemtejo, to join the forces under Marshal Sir William Carr Beresford, and take part in the relief of Campo Mayor, and in the re-capture of Badajoz and Olivenza. While on the march, Campo Mayor surrendered; and the British, continuing their route, arrived before the town on the 25th of March, as the French columns were marching out, when the thirteenth light dragoons and some Portuguese cavalry charged with great gallantry, and threw the enemy into confusion.

The Royal Fusiliers were stationed at Campo Mayor about a fortnight, and were subsequently employed in the siege of Olivenza, which was terminated in seven days by the surrender of the garrison on the 15th of April. The loss of the regiment was limited to one man killed and one wounded.

This success was followed by the siege of the strong fortress of Badajoz, situated on a beautiful plain on the Guadiana,—a noble river five hundred yards broad; and the Royal Fusiliers were employed in this service. Marshal Soult, who had retired after the capture of this fortress in March, quitted Seville, and, assembling a powerful force, advanced to its relief. The allied army turned the siege into a blockade, and moving forward to meet the advancing foe, took up a position at Albuhera. The Royal Fusiliers formed part of the blockading force, but were subsequently ordered to join the army; and they arrived in position about nine o'clock on the morning of the 16th of May, at the moment when the French were advancing to commence one of the most obstinate and sanguinary actions in which British troops were ever engaged. The Fusilier Brigade, commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel Sir William Myers, of the Seventh, was ordered to form in an oblique line behind the right; the first battalion of the Seventh was commanded by Major John Mervin Nooth, and the second by Lieut.-Colonel Edward Blakeney.

Being favoured by a height which the allies had neglected to occupy, the French commander concentrated behind it fifteen thousand men and forty guns, within ten minutes' march of the right wing of the allied army, without his opponent's knowledge; at the same time he extended the remainder of his forces along the woody banks of the Feria, towards its confluence with the Albuhera. A little before nine on the morning of the 16th of May, these troops issued from the woods in one massive column, supported by a second, flanked by cavalry and preceded by artillery, and attacked the bridge, where they met with a formidable resistance. The British general, anticipating the principal effort would be against his right, directed the Spaniards under General Blake to change front, and the second division to support them: but the Spanish general delaying to execute the movement, the enemy was among his troops before they were completely formed. A destructive cannonade, a heavy fire of musketry, and the approach of some French squadrons menacing to charge, put the Spaniards into disorder, and they fell back fighting. The French columns pushed forward; their reserves mounted the heights in their rear, and their batteries were brought into line.

The retrograde of the Spaniards laid open the position of the allied army, and the only good road by which a retreat could be conducted was exposed. To remedy this disaster, the leading brigade of the second division rushed forward; it was speedily under a destructive fire; a heavy rain concealing distant objects; and four regiments of French lancers and hussars having turned the right flank in the obscurity, charged the British battalions in the rear at the moment when they developed their attack, and slew or took prisoners nearly two-thirds of their numbers: one battalion, being in column, maintained its ground, while the French horsemen overthrew all other opposition, and captured six guns. A lancer attacked Marshal Beresford, who pushed the lance aside, and, grappling with the lancer, threw him from his horse. Another British brigade came boldly into the fight, repelling a charge of lancers on its flank; the remaining brigade of the second division arrived; a Spanish corps moved forward, and the enemy's infantry recoiled; but soon recovering, renewed the conflict with greater violence than before. The fighting became vehement, and more than two-thirds of every British corps engaged had fallen, when their ammunition began to fail, and the enemy established a column in advance upon the right flank. The tide of success was evidently flowing in favour of the French, when the fourth division was ordered to the heat of the conflict, and a brigade of the second division, which had only been slightly engaged, rushed forward into the fight. At this moment a number of captured British soldiers were being hurried to the rear of the French army; the enemy's reserves were pushing forward to reinforce their front;—the field was covered with heaps of dead bodies;—the lancers were riding furiously about the upper part of the hill spearing wounded men, and six pieces of artillery were in the hands of the French.

A crisis had arrived, and a mighty—a determined—a desperate—effort alone could save the allied army from defeat; at this critical moment Major-General Sir Lowry Cole led the Fusilier Brigade up the contested heights to stem the torrent of battle and wrest the palm of victory from Napoleon's veteran legions. The Fusiliers—admired for their appearance—applauded for their order and discipline—moved forward with a resolute step to confront a host of foes; they felt the importance of the task which devolved upon them, and knew the high character of the troops they had to contend with; and national pride,—an esprit de corps,—a noble enthusiasm to rival the regiments which triumphed at Busaco,—and to exceed their own achievements at Martinique and Talavera,—animated every breast; they were flanked by a battalion of the Lusitanian legion; and mounting the hill at the moment when a regiment of Spanish cavalry was fleeing before a body of French dragoons, they soon drove the lancers from the contested height, and recovered five of the captured guns. Encouraged by this presage of victory, the Fusiliers marched sternly onward in line, over heaps of killed and wounded, to encounter three heavy columns of French infantry, supported by cavalry and artillery, and each column mustering about twice the numbers of the Fusilier Brigade.

Gallantly issuing from amidst the smoke and broken fragments of discomfited corps, the Fusiliers marched with a firm and solemn step over the carcases of men and horses which obstructed their way, and their bearing was that of men determined to decide the fortune of a battle. The French columns were pressing onward to complete the overthrow of the allied army, when suddenly the surprising spectacle of a majestic line of Fusiliers burst upon their sight; they halted; fired a volley; then endeavoured to deploy; and their numerous artillery sent a storm of bullets against the British ranks. The commander of the brigade, Lieutenant-Colonel Sir William Myers of the Royal Fusiliers, was killed; the commander of the division, Major-General Sir Lowry Cole, Lieutenant-Colonel Blakeney, commanding a battalion of the Royal Fusiliers, and a number of other officers, fell wounded; the colour staves of the Seventh were shattered, and the colours torn; at the same time chasms were rent in the ranks of the brigade; a momentary pause ensued: but instantly recovering, the Fusiliers braved the tempest of iron and lead, and boldly confronted the fierce and numerous bands opposed to them. As the smoke cleared, the French beheld a line of bayonets coming upon them, and the next moment, the thundering volleys of the Fusiliers broke the heads of formations. The French commander urged his veterans forward; individuals, spurred on by an unavailing intrepidity, sacrificed their lives to gain time for their companions to deploy;—the columns responded to the calls of their leader, and, striving to extricate themselves, fired on friends and foes;—the lancers on the flanks threatened to charge; but British intrepidity could not be shaken;—the Fusiliers knew not how to quail! The brigade preserved its firm array; the murderous volleys of the Fusiliers swept down hundreds of Frenchmen, and suddenly raising a loud shout, they precipitated themselves upon the opposing multitudes, and plunging fearlessly into the crowds, they closed with desperate energy upon their opponents. The fortune of the day was no longer doubtful; British prowess prevailed, and the French were overpowered, slaughtered, and forced back in irremediable confusion upon their reserves. The supporting columns endeavoured to stem the torrent of British valour; but in vain;—the whole were driven headlong down the ascent;—the key of the position was thus nobly recovered, and the Fusiliers,—breathless,—besmeared with sweat and mud and gore,—stood triumphant upon the contested height, surrounded with heaps of dying and dead, and wondering at the brilliant success which crowned their manly efforts.

While the Fusiliers were contending on the height, fresh men were brought forward; the French generals perceived that the day was irretrievably lost, and withdrew their broken masses beyond the river.[18] Numerous instances of individual gallantry occurred, and Serjeant Gough of the first battalion having recovered the regimental colour of the third foot, or buffs, which corps had been nearly annihilated by the charge of the lancers, was rewarded with a commission in the second West India regiment.

To the Royal Fusiliers, the honour of having triumphed over superior numbers of Napoleon's veteran bands, and the glory of having added lustre to the British arms, were justly due; but the splendour of victory was shrouded with grief at the loss of many brave officers and soldiers. Among others, the fall of their commander, the brave, the chivalrous Sir William Myers, caused a sense of deep sorrow. His career, though short, had been brilliant; his manners were those of a finished gentleman and scholar, and every action was marked with the enthusiasm of a soldier whose noblest pride was his profession, and whose solicitude was always alive to the interests and honour of his corps. At the early age of twenty-eight he closed a life of honour in a death of glory.

Return of killed and wounded of the Royal Fusiliers at the battle of Albuhera.

Names of officers of the Royal Fusiliers present at the battle of Albuhera.

The list of killed and wounded, containing about seven hundred officers and soldiers, proclaims with dreadful eloquence the sanguinary character of the contest in which the Royal Fusiliers were engaged. Their heroic conduct was subsequently rewarded with the privilege of bearing the word "Albuhera" inscribed on their colours. Major Blakeney was promoted to the lieutenant-colonelcy vacant by the death of Sir William Myers; Major Nooth was rewarded with the rank of lieutenant-colonel in the army, and Captain Despard (who succeeded to the command of the second battalion after the fall of Lieutenant-Colonel Blakeney), with that of major. A gold clasp was sent to the relatives of Sir William Myers; Lieutenant-Colonel Blakeney was rewarded with a gold clasp, and Major Nooth and Captain Despard with gold medals.

After the battle, the brigade was attached to the remains of the second division commanded by Major-General the Honourable William Stewart, whose estimation of the conduct of the Fusiliers is attested by the following letter.

"Almandrelejo, 26th May, 1811.

"Sir,

"As you have been so kind as to permit me to transmit to you the names of the officers of my division who commanded corps on the 16th instant, it may not be deemed irregular if, during the absence of Major-General Cole, I forward to you the names of the officers of the Fusilier Brigade who were similarly situated.

"The remains of that gallant corps having been attached to the second division, immediately after the action of Albuhera, and the major-general of the second division having been obliged to leave the field from a wound, I am induced to lay before you, for such favourable report on the subject as you may deem expedient to the Commander of the Forces, the enclosed returns which have been put in my possession by the officer now in command of the Fusilier Brigade, and who commanded the same in action, after the successive incapacity from wounds of his four senior officers. I am afraid lest by further delay the exertions of that brigade be not sufficiently known. From the circumstance of the Fusilier Brigade having been joined with my third brigade in the hard-fought defence of our centre position for above three hours, and from the severe loss sustained by the Fusiliers on the spot, and from the testimony of the surrounding allied army, I feel myself authorised in stating that the conduct of the Fusilier Brigade on the 16th instant was admirable, and such as effectually secured the victory of that day.

"It is a duty, moreover, which I owe to the brave soldiers under my temporary command, to report that the second division is indebted to the Royal Fusiliers for the recapture of a six pounder, and of a regimental colour of the third, or buffs, both of which had been lost in the too successful attack of the enemy's cavalry, on my first brigade, in the beginning of that day.

"I am, &c.
"William Stewart,
"Major-General.

"To Marshal Beresford."

Both battalions having sustained so severe a loss, the second battalion transferred its men to the first, and the officers and staff serjeants returned to England to recruit.

After the victory at Albuhera the siege of Badajoz was resumed, the Seventh forming part of the covering army. A concentration of the enemy's force having taken place, the allies withdrew behind the Caya, where they awaited the attack of their opponents. The French generals had drained the provinces of troops to assemble a powerful army; but the stern character of British soldiers had been proved, and, having relieved Badajoz, they retired without hazarding an engagement.

The allied army broke up from the Caya in July, and the Royal Fusiliers moved towards the northern frontiers of Portugal; they halted a short period at the village of Aldea de Santa Margaritta, and afterwards marched to Aldea de Bispo. Meanwhile Lord Wellington blockaded Ciudad Rodrigo.

Marshal Marmont assembled sixty thousand men, and advanced to relieve Ciudad Rodrigo. Lord Wellington's forces were not sufficiently numerous to warrant his hazarding a general engagement, excepting under very advantageous circumstances; he however held his positions; and on the 25th of September the Fusilier Brigade, under Major-General the Honourable E. M. Pakenham, advanced to sustain a small body of troops under Major-Generals Colville and Alten, which had been attacked at El Bodon by forty squadrons of French cavalry and fourteen battalions of infantry with cannon. This portion of the allied army having retrograded, the French cavalry menaced the Fusiliers; but were deterred charging by the steady and determined countenance of the brigade.

During the night Lord Wellington strengthened his position; but afterwards withdrew to a post twelve miles behind Guinaldo. The enemy coming forward with overwhelming numbers, his lordship withdrew during the night of the 26th of September, covered by the Fusiliers and a body of cavalry.

The French, pressing the British rear during the retrograde movement on the 27th of September, attacked the Fusiliers, who were halted on a height behind the village of Aldea de Pont. Lord Wellington directed the Seventh to charge in line down the hill, and supported them with some Portuguese infantry. The Royal Fusiliers dashed forward in line with the steadiness of old soldiers at a review, routed the French, and drove them down the height, to the admiration of all present; Lord Wellington witnessed the firm conduct of the Royal Fusiliers, and expressed his approbation of their steady and gallant bearing. The French were afterwards repulsed in an attempt to turn the flank of the brigade by a wood: the twenty-third Fusiliers and Portuguese Caçadores turned the French left, and Aldea de Pont was again occupied by the allies. It was, however, subsequently abandoned, and the army went into position on the Coa. The French withdrew, and the Royal Fusiliers went into quarters at Villa Ciervo. The regiment had been joined, a short time before, by three hundred and sixty-four young soldiers from England: its loss at Aldea de Pont was nine men killed; Captain Wylly, Lieutenants Barrington, Wallace, and Seaton, one Serjeant, and thirty-six private soldiers wounded.[20]

On the 1st of January, 1812, the first battalion mustered upwards of thirteen hundred officers and soldiers, and it was immediately afterwards employed in the siege of Ciudad Rodrigo, which was undertaken in the winter. This fortress was captured by storm during the night of the 19th of January, 1812, while the French marshal was assembling an army to advance to its relief. The loss of the Royal Fusiliers, during the siege, was limited to two men killed and eight wounded. After the capture of Ciudad Rodrigo the regiment remained at the village of Cileçes el Chico, where it was detained several days by the swelling of the Agueda from heavy rains: it subsequently retired and went into cantonments.

After withdrawing from before Ciudad Rodrigo, the regiment was allowed only a short period of repose before it was called upon to march to Spanish Estremadura, to take part in wresting the strong fortress of Badajoz from the enemy. Leaving its cantonments near Fuentes d'Onor on the 27th of February, it proceeded southwards; boats were laid over the Guadiana on the 15th of March, and on the following day Badajoz was invested by the third, fourth, and light divisions; the Royal Fusiliers, forming part of the fourth division, were engaged in the siege. The batteries were opened, and, notwithstanding the sallies of the French garrison under the resolute General Phillipon, inundations from heavy rains, and other obstructions, practicable breaches were ready in the early part of April; and on the evening of the 6th of that month the Royal Fusiliers were under arms to take part in the storming of that stupendous fortress. The fourth and light divisions were to march against the breaches; the light division was to assault the bastion of Santa Maria, and the fourth, the Trinidad, with the breach in the curtain connecting the two bastions; one body of the grenadiers of the fourth division, under Captain John Mair, of the Royal Fusiliers, led the attack against the bastion of Trinidad; and another body, under Captain William Francis Cholwick, also of the Seventh, led the assault on the breach in the curtain.

Moving silently from their camp-ground along the left of the river Rivillas and the inundations, the fourth and light divisions made a short detour, and arrived at the glacis at the moment the third division attacked the castle. Ladders were placed, and about five hundred men of the light division had descended into the ditch with the most heroic bravery, cheering as they went, when suddenly a loud report like thunder was heard, and the storming parties were blown to pieces by the explosion of hundreds of shells and powder barrels. Undismayed by this terrific destruction, the men of the light and fourth divisions raised a loud shout and plunged into the ditch, where many men perished in the inundations; others, after overcoming numerous difficulties, approached the breach exposed to a most destructive fire. As they ascended, loose planks studded with sharp iron points wounded their feet and produced great mischief, and a range of sword-blades with sharp points and keen-edges, firmly fixed in beams chained together and set deep in the ruins, arrested the progress of the soldiers; at the same time a terrible fire of musketry thinned their ranks. Again the assailants rushed up the breaches with the most determined resolution; but the sword-blades stopped their career, and the thundering powder-barrels and hissing shells exploded continually. Numerous and astonishing efforts of valour and intrepidity were made, and the most heroic bravery displayed, yet the obstacles were such as could not be overcome; and about midnight, when two thousand brave soldiers had fallen, the survivors received orders to retire, and re-form for a second attack. In the meantime the third division had captured the castle, and a brigade had carried the bastion of San Vincente; the town was thus forced; partial actions afterwards took place in various places; and the governor escaped to the fort of St. Christoval, where he surrendered. Thus, by the union of ability, energy, and valour, two important fortresses were captured in three months, in the face of two French armies: the British commander was enabled to enlarge the sphere of his operations, and these successes appeared as the first rays of the coming glory which was about to shine resplendently on the British arms.

The Royal Fusiliers were subsequently honoured with the royal authority to bear the word "Badajoz" on their colours; Lieutenant-Colonel Blakeney and Captain John Mair received medals; but the regiment had to regret the loss of many brave men; the casualties among the officers were so great that the command of the division devolved on a major, all the general officers and lieutenant-colonels being wounded. The loss of the Seventh may be seen in the following returns.

List of the Officers of the Royal Fusiliers at the siege of Badajoz.

From Estremadura the Royal Fusiliers retraced their steps to the Agueda, and the army, advancing into Spain in June, drove the French from Salamanca. The inhabitants of this city illuminated their houses, shouted, sang, and wept for joy as the British troops took up a position on the mountain of St. Christoval, about five miles in advance; at the same time the forts (fortified convents) at Salamanca were besieged.

The French general, Marmont, advanced with a powerful army, and a series of manœuvres followed; but he was unable to relieve the forts, and they fell into the hands of the allies towards the end of June, when he withdrew beyond the Douro, followed by Lord Wellington.

On the night of the 16th of July the Royal Fusiliers marched to Castrejon, to which place the fourth and light division and a brigade of cavalry proceeded, preparatory to the assembling of the army on the Guarena; but the French commander, having been reinforced, passed the Douro, and attacked the troops at Castrejon on the morning of the 18th of July. Some sharp skirmishing occurred, and the Royal Fusiliers had two men killed and fourteen wounded; but this small body of British, being opposed to the whole French army, withdrew behind the Guarena. A series of manœuvres brought the allied army back to the position of St. Christoval, in front of Salamanca, in the vicinity of which city the two armies confronted each other on the 22nd of July.

In the early part of this day about five hundred French gained possession of a village in front of the fourth division, and Captain John Crowder advanced with two companies of the Royal Fusiliers to dislodge them, which service was performed with such distinguished firmness and resolution, that Lord Wellington, who witnessed the affair, requested to know the name of the officer, and Captain Crowder was rewarded with the rank of major in the army.

During the day, as the enemy attempted to gain the road leading to Ciudad Rodrigo, his left wing was separated, during a complicated manœuvre, from the remainder of his army; Lord Wellington was watching the movements of his opponents from the summit of a rock, and, detecting the fault, ordered his divisions to attack. Thus the two armies came in contact under circumstances which proved the superior abilities of the British commander; the Royal Fusiliers, under Major John Walwin Beatty, were soon hotly engaged, and they steadily gained ground on the French forces opposed to them, driving their opponents from one height to another. Eventually a numerous body of French made a determined stand against the fourth division; but after a severe contest they were obliged to give way. An eminence in the centre of the enemy's position, on which he had planted thirty pieces of artillery, was carried by the Fusilier Brigade with the most distinguished gallantry. Finally the French were overthrown and driven from the field with great loss; and they were indebted to the darkness of the night, the advantage of a thick wood, and other circumstances, for the safety of those who escaped the field of battle.

List of Officers of the Royal Fusiliers at the Battle of Salamanca.

The distinguished bravery of the regiment on this occasion was subsequently rewarded with the royal authority to bear the word "Salamanca" inscribed on its colours; and Major Beatty was presented with a gold medal.

Following up the advantages gained on the plains of Salamanca, the army advanced boldly into the heart of Spain, and the French were driven from Madrid, at which city Lord Wellington arrived on the 12th of August amidst the joyful acclamations of the people. The Royal Fusiliers were stationed at Madrid, and afterwards occupied quarters for about eight weeks at the fine palace of the Escurial, about twenty-two miles from Madrid, from whence they were removed in the early part of October to Val de Moro and Campo; meanwhile the siege of Burgos had been undertaken by the main body of the allied army. The concentration of the enemy's forces having given him so great a superiority of numbers that a retrograde movement was necessary on the part of the British commander, the Royal Fusiliers quitted Val de Moro and Campo, and the troops retired on Salamanca. The army went into position; but on the enemy menacing the communication with Ciudad Rodrigo, the allies withdrew to the Agueda, the soldiers suffering extreme hardship from the want of food and inclement weather. The fourth division moved to St. Joā de Pisquiera, where the Royal Fusiliers remained until the beginning of the following year.[22]

On the 1st of January, 1813, the battalion mustered upwards of twelve hundred men, including about three hundred in hospital from wounds, &c. On the 3rd of that month sixteen serjeants and three hundred and eleven rank and file joined from England; on the 7th the battalion moved to Arvidiza, and in February to Castello Melhor on the right bank of the Coa, where it remained until the army took the field in May.

Advancing from the banks of the Coa towards the interior of Spain, the Royal Fusiliers once more confronted the legions of Napoleon; the battalion was strong in numbers, bringing into the field a fine body of men on whose natural strength and valour the qualities of order, subordination, and discipline had been engrafted, which rendered them fit for any service.

By a daring advance the French were once more driven from Salamanca; by combinations evincing consummate skill, and by efforts of an extraordinary character, the enemy's positions on the Douro were turned; the field was then clear for the shock of battle, and the British commander, seeing the way of victory open, ordered forward his divisions; but the French evaded the torrent of war, and withdrew behind the Pisuerga, and afterwards behind the Ebro. Pressing onward with a conquering violence, the allied army traversed rocks and mountains, and marched through regions deemed impracticable for an army, and the French were forced back upon Vittoria, where they prepared for a determined effort to stem the tide of war.

Arriving at the Bayas on the 19th of June, the British found a division of the French army posted behind the river, and an action was commenced. The Royal Fusiliers were directed to attack the village of Montevite. Approaching this rural seclusion through a rocky mountainous country, abounding with trees, the foliage of which concealed their advance, they arrived close to the village unperceived; a few musket-shots alarmed the French, who instantly fled, leaving their cooking utensils and dinner on the fire, and some arms and accoutrements. The Royal Fusiliers pursued, some skirmishing took place, and several men fell in the conflict. The loss of the Seventh was limited to three wounded. The enemy was driven from the position on the Bayas, and forced back upon the Zadora.

From the banks of the Bayas the allied army advanced on the morning of the 21st of June, to fight the French under Joseph Buonaparte in position in front of Vittoria. The Royal Fusiliers formed part of the force destined for the attack of the enemy's centre under the immediate direction of Lord Wellington. They moved from Montevite down by Olabarre, along the valley in the centre. The Royal Fusiliers advanced in line under fire, through fields of corn more than breast high, the French retreating before them; and they overcame numerous obstructions and difficulties with a regularity which excited great admiration. Arriving at the Zadora, they were posted opposite the bridge of Nanclares; and when ordered to cross the bridge they sprang forward with cheerful alacrity and perfect order. The French were eventually driven from the field with the loss of their artillery, baggage, and an immense quantity of treasure. Many soldiers of different corps quitted their ranks to plunder; but it was observed that, when the Royal Fusiliers, pursuing the enemy, passed the French baggage and treasure-waggons, they were so impressed with a sense of the necessity of preserving order, so accustomed to perfect obedience, and jealous of the honour of their corps, that they refrained from irregularities, and followed the enemy with unbroken ranks. A decisive victory was gained: and the excellent conduct of the regiment was rewarded with the honour of bearing the word "Vittoria" on its colours. Lieutenant-Colonel Blakeney was also rewarded with an honorary distinction. The loss of the battalion was only two men killed and two wounded.

The Royal Fusiliers pursued the French army in the direction of Pampeluna, and when the enemy had effected his escape through the Pyrenean mountains, they were employed in the blockade of Pampeluna, a fortress of great strength, and provided with an efficient garrison. They were, however, soon relieved from this duty, and detached against a French division under General Clausel, which was at Logroño when the battle of Vittoria was fought; after a forced march of six days the Fusiliers halted;—the enemy having effected his escape by the pass of Jaca. The regiment afterwards returned to the vicinity of Pampeluna, where it remained a few days, and subsequently penetrated the Pyrenean mountains; the fourth division taking post at Viscayret, in the valley of Urroz, and the Royal Fusiliers being at Espinal, two miles in advance.

Thus the British army, after years of toil and conflict, endured to procure liberty for the oppressed inhabitants of the Peninsula, had forced the intrusive monarch of Spain from his throne, and stood triumphant on the lofty pinnacles of the Pyrenees; but another mighty struggle was at hand, in which the innate valour and hardihood of the British soldiers were about to be tested. The French army had been re-organized by Marshal Soult, who pushed his divisions boldly forward to drive the British from the mountains. The enemy having made a demonstration of an attack on the front posts, two companies of the Royal Fusiliers advanced on the 24th of July to a height westward of Roncesvalles, where they were joined by the remainder of the battalion during the night; on the following morning the enemy attacked Major-General Byng's post in Roncesvalles, and the fourth division was ordered to advance. A detachment of the twentieth regiment evinced signal gallantry in its attacks on the head of a French column; but was forced back by superior numbers. Some sharp fighting occurred during the day, and the Royal Fusiliers had Lieutenant Knowles and six men killed; one serjeant and twenty-three rank and file wounded. The British maintained their positions during the day; but being opposed to very superior numbers, they withdrew after sunset: the Fusilier Brigade being in the rear of the column, under Major-General Ross, the Seventh underwent a night of incessant toil and intense anxiety among the mountains. At day-light they fell in with posts of Major-General Byng's brigade, and the retrograde movement was continued, with short intermissions, until the allies gained a position in front of Pampeluna, where a determined stand was made.

Posted on the heights in front of the village of Villalba, the Royal Fusiliers awaited the approach of their opponents, resolving to perform their duty to their King and country in whatever circumstances they might be placed. Privations, and violent rains soaking the bleak hills, on which the soldiers were posted without any shelter, did not damp their courage, and on the 28th of June they witnessed the approach of the massy columns of the enemy without dismay. The heights occupied by the fourth division were attacked with great fury: the Royal Fusiliers were hotly engaged, and sternly, and with sanguinary tenacity, was the ground contested. Appalling shouts smote the ears of the French soldiers as they stormed the position, and the next moment ranks of British bayonets met them in mid-onset, and in the shock of steel the French soldiers were forced back with a horrid carnage. Four times the Royal Fusiliers precipitated themselves on the hosts of opponents which assailed their post, and on every occasion they proved victorious. The Marquis of Wellington observed in his despatch:—"In the course of this contest the gallant fourth division, which has so frequently been distinguished in this army, surpassed their former good conduct. Every regiment charged with the bayonet,—the fortieth, the Seventh, twentieth, and twenty-third, four different times. Their officers set them an example; and Major-General Ross had two horses killed under him." The battle was renewed on the 29th and 30th of July, and the French commander, being foiled in every attempt by superior skill and unconquerable valour, retired towards France, closely pursued by the victorious allied army.

Officers present at the battle of the 28th of July.