146] ANNUAL REGISTER, 1819. 



however, having dispatched thi- 

 ther the division of La Marque, 

 with a party of the garrison of Bar- 

 celona, under the orders of General 

 Mathieu, the Spaniards were at- 

 tacked on the heights of Alta- 

 fouilla, January the 24th, and de- 

 feated, with considerable loss of 

 men, arms, and baggage, aud the 

 whole of their artillery. A dif- 

 ferent account was given of this 

 affair by the Spaniards; it is, how- 

 ever, certain, that the attempt on 

 Tarragona failed. 



After the capture of Valencia, 

 Marshal Suchet pursued his suc- 

 cess, and the French became mas- 

 ters of Alzira, St. Felipe, Gandia, 

 andDenia; Peniscola surrendered 

 soon after. Soult, with his corps of 

 observation, at this time occupied 

 the frontiers of Murcia, and had 

 pushed an advanced party as far as 

 the camp at Lorca. 



Lord Wellington remained some 

 time at Ciudad Rodrigo, in order 

 to repair the fortifications, aud put 

 it in a defensible state; and then, 

 placing it under the command of a 

 Spanisli Governor, he withdrew to 

 Freynada. Badajos was the next 

 object of his arms; and after 

 making due preparations, he moved 

 from Freynada on theGth of March, 

 and arrived at Elvas on the 11th. 

 At this time there were none of 

 the enemy's troops in the field 

 in Estremadura, except a part of 

 the 5th corps at Villa-Franca, and a 

 division under Gen. Darican, at La 

 Serena. On the 15th and IGth his 

 Lordship broke up the canton- 

 ments of the army, and invested 

 Badajos on both sices the Guadiana, 

 on the 16th. On the following 

 day he broke ground, and esta- 

 blished the first parallel. A sortie 

 was made by the garrison on the 



19th, which was presently repulsed 

 without having effected any thing. 

 At the time of the investment. 

 General Sir Thomas Graham cross- 

 ed the Guadiana, with a body of 

 troops, and directed his march to-, 

 wards Lierena; whilst Lieutenant- 

 General Sir Rowland Hill, who 

 had returned from Miranda to his 

 cantonments near Albuquerque, 

 marched again to that town. The 

 operations of the siege were car- 

 ried on without intermission, not- 

 withstanding the unfavourable wea- 

 ther, and the swelling of the Gua- 

 diana, which damaged the bridges 

 of communication ; and, on the 

 2.5th, a fire was opened from 28 

 ])ieces of ordnance, in six batteries. 

 On the evening of that day, a 

 strong out-work, called la Picu- 

 rina, was gallantly stormed by a 

 body of 500 men, who firmly es- 

 tablished themselves in it. On 

 March the 31st, a fire was opened 

 from 26 pieces of cannon, in the 

 second parallel, which was conti- 

 nued with great effect. A second 

 sortie was driven in with loss. At 

 this time the movements of Gene- 

 rals Sir Thomas Graham and Sir 

 Rowland Hill had obliged the ene- 

 my to retire towards Cordova ; but 

 intelligence had been received that 

 Marshal Soult had broke up from 

 before Cadiz on the 23d and 24th, 

 and marched upon Seville with «ll 

 the troops that were there, with 

 the exception of 4,000. The fur- 

 ther particulars of the siege will be 

 found in the dispatch copied from 

 the London Gazette, and a concise 

 narrative of the result will suffice 

 for an historical relation. Breaches 

 being made in the bastions of la 

 Trinidad and Santa Maria, Lord 

 Wellington determined to attack 

 the place on the night of April the 



6th. 



