HISTORY OF EUROPE. 



11 



brought 



in recommending to the inhabi- 

 tants submission to the conqueror, 

 who was at the gates of Madrid,* 

 a dispatch, dated at Madrid, 

 Dec. 2, 1808, and signed by the 

 Prince of Castel Franco and Tho- 

 mas Morla, was sent off to his 

 Excellency Sir John Moore, Com- 

 mander of the Army of his Britan- 

 nic Majesty, professing to be " a 

 true and just representation of 

 affairs at that moment ; — General 

 Castanos's army ( it stated) amount- 

 ing to about 35,000, was fall- 

 ing back upon Madrid in the 

 greatest haste, to unite with its 

 garrison. And the force which 

 was at Somo-Sierra of 10,000, 

 was also coming for the same pur- 

 pose to that city, where nearly 

 40,000 men would join them. 

 With this number of troops, the 

 enemy's army, which had pre- 

 sented itself, was not to be feared. 

 But the Junta still apprehending 

 an increase of the enemy's force 

 to unite with that at hand, hoped 

 that his Excellency, if no force 

 was immediately opposed to him, 

 would be able to fall back to unite 

 with their army, or to take the 

 direction to fall on the rear of the 

 enemy. And the Junta could not 

 doubt that the rapidity of his Ex- 

 cellency's movements would be 

 such as the interests of both coun- 

 tries required." 



While Sir J. Moore was employ- 

 ed in taking into consideration this 

 paper, which was delivered to him 

 Dec.5,Col.CharmillytarriTedwith 



dispatches 



between the combined British and 

 Spanish armies, and " accelerating 

 their combined movements, and 

 avoiding all delays, so contrary to 

 the noble and important cause of 

 the two nations." The two Spa- 

 nish generals corroborated the 

 flattering statements which the 

 British commander had before re- 

 ceived. They were rather sur- 

 prised when Sir J. Moore intro- 

 duced to them colonel Graham, 

 who had, the night before, supped 

 with St. Juan in his way from Ma- 

 >drid; whom they had represented 

 as in possession of the pass of 

 Somo-Sierra. St. Juan's corps, 

 had been charged by a body of 

 French cavalry, and completely 

 routed, as related in our last vo- 

 lume. And there was not a doubt, 

 Colonel Graham stated, that the 

 French army was in full march for 

 Madrid. 



Such contradictory reports may 

 well be supposed to have deter- 

 mined Sir J. Moore to revert to 

 liis first resolution, rather than to 

 induce hira to trust himself to 

 allies, whose defective information 

 exhibited proofs, if not of their 

 treachery, at least of ignorance 

 scarcely less culpable. 



The letter which was 

 by the Spanish officers from the 

 Supreme Central Junta, as their 

 credentials to Sir J. Moore, was 

 dated at Aranjuez, 28th Novem- 

 ber. A few days thereafter, while 

 Morla, who had begun to capitu- 

 late to the French, was employed 



" Hist. Europe, p. 224. 



■|- Formerly a colonel in the French service ; at present in the pay of this coun- 

 try. Through his means a great part of the French colony of St. Domingo, m 

 1793, had been delivered to the British army, without any fighting or extraordinary 

 expense. He has ever since maniiested zeal in the cause ot Britain. The suspicion 

 of his having been in concert with IMorla is entirely groimdless. He never saw, or 

 had any correspondence with Morla. ' 



