LIEUT.-GENERAL THOMAS DYNELEY, C.B., B.A. 449 
advancing, they got four guns up, but our fire obliged them to retire 
before they had fired four rounds. Our infantry, two Portuguese 
regiments, then stormed the hill which the French let them get to the 
top of before they opened ‘much musketry. Then they did pepper 
them most dreadfully and beat them down again, and notwithstanding 
the fire we had upon them, they advanced within range of our canister 
which, however, it was impossible for them to stand, and they fell by 
hundreds. The enemy had a party without arms in their rear for the 
purpose of stripping and plundering our wounded, which I saw them 
do; for they had the poor fellows naked before they had been down 
two minutes. Poor Cole then went and carried the hill in most 
beautiful style, but accounts were soon brought of his death. 
When firing had ceased I went out mounted with Reed, furnished 
with a pickaxe and shovel to bury him. I was out nearly two hours 
by moonlight examining every body, but returned without being able 
to find him. The next morning, I heard he had been carried to the 
_ rear very badly wounded, but this morning I am sorry to say I have 
heard a report of his having died last night at Salamanca; still I am 
in hopes I may be misinformed.!. The moment before he left the hill 
he paid me a very pretty compliment. He had left the command for 
about half-an-hour and on his return, Downman whispered to him that 
four guns had opened their fire on us, but that we soon dismounted 
some and obliged the rest to retire. Cole then turned to me and said, 
“That was no more than I expected from Dyneley; I have seen him 
serve them that trick before.” We had in action at least 100 pieces 
of cannon playing at the same time. 
I scarce know what I have written, I am certain I have not told you 
half I should have done had I written yesterday, but since then I have 
been terribly annoyed by the loss of “Old Maida.” I was obliged 
to have a pistol put to her head last night, in consequence of her 
hind leg being broken all to pieces by one of our carriages running 
over her. It happened on the march, on the very spot where the 
heavy dragoons charged the rear-guard of the enemy.” I carried her 
on till we halted and buried her on the field of battle in a grave six 
feet deep and filled it up with broken bottles to prevent the wolves 
from scratching her up. 
Bob Douglas is now with me in my tent and desires to be kindly 
remembered to all. He went into action with one of the finest 
divisions, the 3rd, commanded by General Packenham, and his pieces 
did cut the fellows up in form. He had some extraordinary escapes, 
two shots passed under his horse’s legs; he got a lick with a stone in 
the eye (but it did not stop his winking); he is looking remarkably 
well and is in good health. You can form no idea of the fatigue our 
i Lieut.-General the Hon. Lowry Cole recovered from his wound and commanded the 4th division 
to the end of the war.—Ed. 
2 On the morning of July 23rd, Anson’s light cavalry brigade, and that of the heavy dragoons 
of the King’s German Legion, under Major-General von Bock, attacked the rear-guard of the 
French army near the village of Garcia Hernandez. The attack was both brilliant and successful, 
von Bock’s men breaking a square and taking prisoners three battalions of the enemy’s infantry. 
The order from Lord Wellington for the attack was taken by Captain May, R.A., who joined in 
the charge and was severely wounded,—Ed. 
61 
