402 ANNUAL REGISTER, 1809. 



his rear-guard, or some portion of 

 it. The news which I acquired of 

 his route, apprized me that he had 

 proceeded in two columns by Santa 

 Olalla, and CeboUa, and in conse- 

 quence, I divided my army so as to 

 follow him in both directions. — 

 Notwithstanding the forced march 

 of my army, who made their day's 

 progress without fatigue, we could 

 not accomplish our object, as the 

 enemy had early commenced his re- 

 treat, and had proceeded with great 

 rapidity. On the S^th, having post- 

 ed myself in Santa Olalla, I order- 

 ed the troops which had taken the 

 road of Cebolla to join me, with 

 the exception of the 5th corps, 

 which I left there to watch the dis- 

 trict, placing the vanguard in the 

 neighbourhood of Alcabon, from 

 whence the piquets of the enemy 

 were dislodged, and pursued to 

 Tonijos, where a considerable part 

 of the army of the enemy was sta- 

 tioned. 



The whole of the 25th was en- 

 gaged in giving repose to the troops 

 and in apportioning the rations, 

 which were extremely deficient. — 

 Parties of the French during the 

 day were employed either in endea- 

 vouring to dislodge us from our 

 post, or to reconnoitre our situation, 

 but in both attempts they were dis- 

 appointed by the valour of the offi- 

 cers commanding the skirmishing 

 parties, who attacked them on all 

 sides, and prevented their approach. 

 At nine o'clock at night, of the 

 same day, I Iiad information that 

 the enemy was advancing upon Tor- 

 rijos, and that his whole army was 

 in movement, but my advices did 

 not instruct me to which point the 

 greater part was proceeding. On 

 hearing this, I apprized the generals 

 and dispatched an officer to general 



Weliesley. In consequence of his 

 determination and direction, and on 

 finding my vanguard powerfully at- 

 tacked on the morning of the 26th, 

 by a very superior force, and the 

 enemy indicatingadesign of making 

 a general attack, I resolved to make 

 a retrograde movement upon the 

 Alberche, to re-unite with the Eng- 

 lish, which I effected on the evening 

 of the same day. The dispatches 

 of brigadier-general Don Josef de 

 Zayas, and of lieutenant-general 

 the duke of Alburquerque, No. 2 

 and 3, explain the particulars of the 

 action on the morning of that day, 

 and in which the corps there men- 

 tioned acquired great credit for 

 their firmness, and valour, &c. 



Thus the evening of the 26th con- 

 cluded ; and after having conferred 

 with general Weliesley that night 

 on our situation, I resolved to re- 

 pass the Alberche on the morning 

 of the following day, when we 

 agreed that the right line should be 

 taken by the Spanish, and the left 

 by the English army. The English 

 vanguard remained during that 

 night in Casalegas, and on the 

 heights near it, under lieutenant-ge- 

 neral Sherbrooke,with orders to re- 

 tire to the opposite side of the river, 

 which were obeyed on the morning 

 of the 27th. 



I must now observe, that at dawn 

 on the 24th, marshal Victor had 

 withdrawn from the post he occu- 

 pied on the shores of the Alberche, 

 in order to avoid the attack meditat- 

 ed on that day by the alhed armies; 

 and he afterwards united himself in 

 the neighbourhood of Toledo, with 

 the forces under general Sebastiani, 

 and with 8,000 men, composing the 

 guard of the royal impostor, who 

 took the command of the whole, 

 thus congregated, assisted by mar- 

 shals 



