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Particulars of the SIEGE of SARA- vide resources for a siege, and also to

GOSSA.

(From Vaughan's Narrative.)

THE walls of Saragossa appear to have been constructed merely to facilitate the means of levying taxes upon every article brought into the town for sale: the gates, which are nine in number, are of the most simple construction, and the alignement between them is, in some places, preserved by the mud-wall of a garden, in others by buildings, or by the remains of an old Moorish wall, which have a slight parapet, but without any platform even for musketry.

The population of Saragossa may be estimated at about 60,000 souls; although the census taken in 1787 gives only 42,600.

At the commencement of Palafox's command on the 25th of May, the neighbouring provinces of Navarre and Catalonia were possessed by the French; the passes of the Pyrenees leading directly into this kingdom were open, and Murat, with the main body of the French forces, was stationed at Madrid. Thus surrounded by his enemy, the General mustered the regular troops quartered at Saragossa, and found that they amounted to 220 men, and that the public treasury of the province could furnish him only with a sum equal to 20%. 16s. 8d. The Arragonese had hastily planted some cannon before the gates of the city, and also in favourable positions without the town, particularly at the Torrero, and upon the height near to it.

On the 15th of June, the French sent a detachment against the outposts upon the canal, while their main body attempted to storm the city, by the gate called Portillo; but they were repulsed.

As soon as the French were repulsed, General Palafox set out in order to collect re-inforcements, and pro

place the rest of the kingdom in a state of defence, should the capital fall.

He soon found frum 12 to 1400

soldiers who had escaped from Madrid, and he united with them a small division of militia stationed at Calataynd. With this force, in compliance with the urgent desire of his soldiers, he resolved to attack the French; but he was defeated, and the wreck of this little force retired to Calataynd, and afterwards, with great difficulty, threw themselves into Saragossa.

About the last day of June, 2 powder magazine, a very strong ding in the heart of the city of Saragossa, blew up, and in a moment nearly a whole street was reduced to a heap of ruins: the inhabitants of Saragossa had scarcely recovered from their consternation at this fatal, and irreparable loss, and from the labour of extricating their fellow-citizens from the ruins of their houses, when the French, who had received mortars, howitzers, and cannon, (12 pounders, of sufficient calibre for the mudwalls of Saragossa) opened a destructive fire upon the city.

The attack of the enemy seemed to be directed principally against the gate called Portillo, and the castle near it without the walls, and which is nothing more than a square building made use of as a prison, and surrounded by a deep ditch. The sandbag battery before the gate of Portillo was gallantly defended by the Arragonese. It was several times destroyed, and as often re-constructed under the fire of the enemy. The carnage in this battery, throughout the day, was truly terrible. It was here, that an act of heroism was performed by a female, to which history scarcely affords a parallel. Augustina Zaragoza, about 22 years of age, a handsome woman, of the lower class of the people, whilst performing her duty of carrying refreshments to the

gates,

gates, arrived at the battery of the Portillo, at the very moment when the French fire had absolutely destroyed every person that was stationed in it. The citizens, and soldiers, for the moment hesitated to re-man the guns; Augustina rushed forward over the wounded and slain, snatched a match from the hand of a dead artil leryman, and fired off a 26-pounder, then jumping upon the gun, made a solemn vow never to quit it alive during the siege, and having stimulated her fellow-citizens by this daring intrepidity to fresh exertions, they instantly rushed to the battery, and again opened a tremendous fire upon the enemy. When the writer of these pages saw this heroine of Saragossa, she had a small shield of honour embroidered upon the sleeve of her gown, with "Saragossa," inscribed upon it, and was receiving a pension from the government and the daily pay of an artilleryman.

Defeated in various attacks, the enemy proceeded to invest the place still more closely. Having cut off the only communication by which the besieged could receive any supplies, either of provisions or ammunition, the active and intelligent General, in this critical situation, caused corn-mills, worked by horses, to be established in various parts of the city, and ordered the monks to be employed under skilful directors in manufacturing gunpowder. All the sulphur which the place afforded was put into immediate requisition, the earth of the streets was carefully washed in order to furnish saltpetre; and charcoal was made of the stalks of hemp, which, in that part of Spain, grows to a very unusual size; and on this simple foundation there has been formed since the siege a regular manufactory of gunpowder, which yields thirteen arrobas of Castile per day, or 325 pounds of twelve

ounces.

On the night of the 2d of August, and on the following day, the

French bombarded Saragossa from their batteries opposite the gate of the Carmen. A foundling hospital, which contained the sick and wounded, who, from time to time, had been conveyed there during the siege, unfortunately caught fire, and was rapidly consumed During this dreadful calamity, the exertions of every description of people were almost unparalleled; all attention to private property was instantly abandoned, and every body was seen hastening to the relief of the sick and helpless children who occupied the building; but in this act of humanity none were more conspicuous than the women, who persisted in their humane exertions, equally undaunted by the shot and shells of the enemy, and the flames of the building before them.

On the 4th of August, the French opened a tremendous fire upon this quarter of the city, and in an instant the mud-walls opposite to their batteries vanished, and the splendid convent of the Santa Engracia was on fire, and tottering in ruins.

The French columns immediate. ly availed themselves of this entrance, to rush into the city; and after a severe and sanguinary conflict, penetrating to the Calle de Cozo, nearly in the centre of the town, were in possession, before the day closed, of one half of Saragossa. The French General immediately demanded the capitulation in the following note :Quarter General-Santa Engracia.

The Capitulation.

The answer immediately returned

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French prisoners, with a rope attached to them, amidst the dead and dying, to remove the bodies of their countrymen, and bring them in for burial. The batteries of the contending parties were so close to each other, that, in one instance, a Spaniard crept from his own side, and insinuating himself under the intermediate bodies, of the dead, attached a rope to one of the French cannon; in the struggle which ensued, the rope broke, and the Arragonese were deprived of their prize, at the very moment that they thought themselves secure of it.

A council of war, that was held on the 8th, came to the following ever- memorable resolves that those

quarters of the city in which the Arragonese yet maintained themselves, should continue to be defended with the same firmness which had hitherto been so conspicuous: should the enemy at last prevail, the people were immediately to retire by the bridge over the Ebro into the suburbs, and having destroyed the bridge, to defend the suburbs till they perished.' This resolution of the General and his Officers was received by the people with the loudest acclamations.

For eleven successive days, the most: sanguinary conflict was continued from street to street, from house to house, and from room to room, (the enraged populace always gaining by degrees upon the disciplined troops of the French) until the space occupied by the enemy was gradually reduced to about one-eighth part of the city.

The spirit displayed by the men was se conded in the most admirable manner by the women of Saragossa; the Countess Burita, a lady of great rank in that country, formed a corps of woinen for the relief of the wounded, and for the purpose of carrying provisions and wine to the soldiers. Many persons of the most unquestionable veracity in Saragossa, declare, that they have frequently seen this

young, delicate, and beautiful woman, coolly attending to the duties she had prescribed to herself, in the midst of the most tremendous fire of shot and shells; nor were they even able to perceive, from the first moment, that she entered into these novel scenes, that the idea of personal danger could produce upon her the slightest effect, or bend her from her benevolent and patriotic purpose. The loss of women and boys during the siege was very great, and fully proportionate to that of men; in fact, they were always the most forward; and the difficulty was to teach them a prudent and proper sense of their danger.

During the night of the 13th of August the French fire was particularly destructive, and when their batteries ceased, flames were observed to burst out in many parts of the buildings in their possession; and on the morning of the 14th, to the great surprise of the Arragonese, their columns were seen at a distance retreating. over the plain, on the road to Pampelona.

It is a very singular fact to add, that though the writer of these few pages saw in Saragossa many a parent who had lost his children, and many a man reduced from competence to poverty, he literally did not meet with one human being who uttered the slightest complaint: every feeling seemed to be swallowed up in the memory of what they had recently done, and in a just hatred of the French.

This narrative contains other interesting particulars, which recommend it to general perusal. Our readers are aware, that there has been a subsequent siege of Saragossa, and that its former successful defence has been almost eclipsed by the glories of its fall, A subscription, we believe, has been opened in London for the relief of the sufferers in the siege,

Memoirs

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(Concluded from p. 88.)

CORSICA was now in the hands of the British; and the AdjutantGeneral, soon after quitting the island, was succeeded by Colonel Moore, at the recommendation of the commander in chief, who about the same time also left the island, to the great regret of every one, and of none more than the subject of these memoirs. Colonel Moore had, by his great personal courage, and zealous conduct in the service, excited the admiration of the natives; by his affability and engaging manners, he now procured their esteem. But, happening to give umbrage to the Governor, (then Sir Gilbert Elliot, now Lord Minto,) he was recalled from a situation, which his valour had, in a great measure, procured, and to which his subsequent meritorious conduct had given him the most indubitable claim. The subsequent organization of Corsica could not fail to incur the just reprehension of those officers, who, from experience, best understood the dispositions of the natives, and by what methods they were to be reconciled to the British government. The result of the plan adopted by the governor is now sufficiently known; a plan which ultimately expelled the British from the island, without realizing any of those expectations which had, at first, been entertained.

But the important services Colonel Moore had rendered to his country did not pass unrewarded by the commander in chief; by whom, upon his return, he was appointed to an important command in the expedition destined to act against the French West India islands, under Sir Ralph Abercrombie. Immediately before his departure, (Dec. 1795,) he was raised March 1809.

from the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the 51st, to that of Brigadier-General, and embarking with the troops, he arrived in the West Indies in the beginning of the following year. Af ter taking Demerary, Issequibo, and Berbice, a considerable part of the army was dispatched to St Lucia, one of the strongest islands in the possession of the French. The enemy had retired to Morne Chamot, a place of considerable strength, and it was therefore necessary to dislodge them before any farther operations could take place. General Moore, with a considerable force, marched a circuitous route, while Colonel J. Hope, who had afterwards to perform the melancholy duty of paying a tribute to the talents and the virtues of his friend, was sent a more direct road, to form a junction before the walls, and to cooperate with him. By some unaccountable mistakes of the guides, his troops fell in with an advanced picquet of the enemy, and, an alarm being thus given, by a masterly and decisive movement, he stormed the place before Colonel Hope could arrive.

After taking Morne Chamot, a formal attack was made by all the forces upon Morne Fortune; but, from some unfortunate circumstances, the plan failed, and the troops were obliged to retire, without effecting their purpose. In the next attack, however, they were more successful, for they were so fortunate as to lodge a considerable body of troops, which, under Gen. Moore, repulsed a sally of the enemy with great loss; and erecting a battery within 500 yards of the fort, they attacked it with spirit and vigour. The French desired a suspension of hostilities, and, next day, (May 25th 1796,) the garrison, to the number of 2000, surrendered themselves prisoners of war. After the surrender of St Lucia, St Vincent, with several small islands, surrendered to the British; and, in February following, we find General

Moore

Moore present at the taking of Trinidad. In the end of the same year he returned to Britain, along with Sir Ralph Abercrombie,

*

In June 1798, he was raised to the rank of Major-General, and, about the same time, represented a district of Scots boroughs in Parliament; but he does not appear to have taken any active part in political discussions, unwilling, perhaps, to allow them to interfere with his favourite pursuit.

An officer of General Moore's professional talents could not long remain unemployed. No sooner was the attack upon Holland planned, than he was appointed to a command in that unfortunate expedition. The British fleet, for the first, time, appeared off Holland, on the 19th August 1799; but, owing to contrary winds, a landing was not effected till the 26th. The enemy, in the mean time, had assembled in great numbers, under the command of General Daendels, and commenced an engagement, which, after being maintained for upwards of ten hours, terminated at last in favour of the British. They immediately pursued their march to the Helder, which, for some time, continued to hold out, until a detachment, under the command of General Moore, and Lord (now Marquis of) Huntly, succeeded in driving them from it, and the British forces entered without farther opposition. He was shortly after wounded, and in the great battle of the 2d of October he was shot thro' the thigh, which, however, did not prevent him from continuing the engagement, till a second wound obliged him, reluctantly, to leave the ranks. In this battle, his brigade had so eminently signalized itself, that the Duke of York, in his dispatches, stated, that, by his abilities and personal exertions, he had very materially contributed to the success of the column;

* Selkirk, Peebles, Linlithgow and Lanark..

and although severely wounded, continued in action for nearly two hours, until a second wound in the face obliged him to quit the field +."

But notwithstanding the success that had hitherto attended the British. arms, the French were only waiting for a favourable opportunity to counteract all the advantages their enemies had yet gained. Such an opportunity soon afterwards presented itself; and General Brune, by a masterly movement in one engagement, retrieved all the losses his troops had sustained since the arrival of the British. The issue of the disastrous campaign is but too well known. Neither the talents of Abercrombie, nor of the other Generals, could prevent the calamities to which the army was reduced; and after a campaign, fraught with disasters, misfortunes, and deaths, the wretched remains returned home the miserable victims of an expedition that had terminated, in a manner, most disgraceful and ruinous to the British nation,

But a more extensive field was soon after opened for the farther developement of those talents which had already been so eminently displayed.-By serving in two campaigns with Sir Ralph Abercombie, an officer no less distinguished for his just appreciation of merit, than for his readiness to patronize it, he had gained the approbation of that consummate General; and no sooner was he appointed commander in chief of the expedition to Egypt, than General Moore was chosen to accompany him. On arriving at the harbour of Marmorice, on the coast of Caramania, in Oct. 1800, it was judged requisite, that the arrangements for the future destination of the troops should here be made, and that proper measures should be adopted for receiving the supplies which the Turks had promised, and which they now seemed

† Duke of York's dispatches,

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