Run Them Ashore (40 page)

In many ways the French army remained a more sophisticated machine than the British, and it was certainly more experienced, especially in large-scale operations. As one Guards officer put it – ‘For 360 days in the year, the Frenchman is a better soldier than an Englishman. Their movements compared to ours are as mail coaches to dung carts … But at fighting we beat them and they know it.’ At Barrosa the margin between success and failure was probably tiny, but the British somehow won, even when they were in a bad position and there was no Wellington to lead them. General Graham had turned his army round and showed inspirational courage. Yet in the end the battle was a series of fights won by the individual battalions and companies.

Sinclair is fictional, but Napoleon did maintain a green-coated Irish Legion and most of their officers were Irish, even if the rank and file were not. Parties went around trying to recruit redcoat prisoners and were not too fussy about soliciting Scots and English as well as the Irish. In the event there were few volunteers, and so they became a repository for all the army’s strays. Far more genuinely Irish was the 87th, which was granted the title of ‘the Prince of Wales’ own Irish’ after taking the eagle of the 8ième Ligne at Barrosa. It was the first taken in battle by any British soldiers and was paraded in London and made to dip before British Colours. Ensign Keogh was the first to take the standard, but was killed, and it was Sergeant Masterson of the Grenadier Company who took and held the eagle. He was rewarded with a commission, although in a foreign corps stationed in the unhealthy West Indies. The 8ième Ligne claimed for some time that the eagle had been knocked off by a cannonball and merely lost, but were eventually forced to admit its capture. Such reticence over lost symbols of pride is common enough in all armies, but Napoleon was especially sensitive to such things.

Barrosa was a tactical victory, but the subsequent withdrawal to Cadiz rendered it of little or no strategic value. The news
probably hurried Soult on his way south, but the loss of Badajoz far outbalanced any damage inflicted on the French cause by their defeat in what was a relatively small action. General Graham was disgusted by his Spanish allies, and especially a campaign fought out in the Cadiz press over what had happened. He was very glad to go and join Wellington in Portugal. Some of the troops from Barrosa went with him, and that is where the 106th will also soon go.

After I had finished the book it was pointed out to me that the word shrapnel was not used until the middle of the nineteenth century for the spherical case shot invented by an RA officer called Henry Shrapnell. For a while I wondered about changing the word, but in the end decided that it has too great a resonance and so it is used once or twice. I will try to prevent any of the characters using it in speech in any future stories, but suspect that I will not be able to resist including it in descriptions.

Finally, with the bicentenary of Waterloo coming in June 2015, I would recommend that anyone with an interest in Wellington’s men visit the website of Waterloo 200 –
http://www.waterloo200.org
– which has a lot of information about the planned commemorations.

CAST OF CHARACTERS

Names underlined are fictional characters.

The 106th Regiment of Foot

Captain Billy PRINGLE
– Born into a family with a long tradition of service in the Royal Navy, Pringle’s short-sightedness and severe seasickness led his father to send him to Oxford with a view to becoming a parson. Instead Pringle persuaded his parents to secure him a commission in the army. Plump, easygoing, and overfond of both drink and women, Pringle has found active service easier to deal with than the quiet routine and temptations of garrison duty in Britain. Through the battles in Portugal, and the arduous campaign in Spain, Billy Pringle has won promotion and found himself easing into his role as a leader. Part of a detachment whose ship was driven back to Portugal after being evacuated from Corunna, Pringle served in the 3rd Battalion of Detachments at Talavera and was wounded in the last moments of the battle. After a brief spell in Britain, he returned to Spain, serving at Ciudad Rodrigo and the River Côa in 1810.

Captain William HANLEY
– Illegitimate son of an actress and a banker, Hanley was raised by his grandmother and spent years in Madrid as an aspiring artist. His father’s death ended his allowance, and reluctantly Hanley took up a commission in the 106th purchased for him many years before. He served in Portugal in 1808, suffering a wound at Roliça. Since then his fluency in Spanish has led to periodic staff duties. Even so,
he was with Pringle and the Grenadier Company throughout the retreat to Corunna. Captured by the French, he escaped and has found himself involved in intelligence work. He was wounded at Talavera. In 1810 he was once again employed on detached service, gathering intelligence and often operating behind French lines.

Lieutenant Hamish WILLIAMS
– Williams joined the 106th as a Gentleman Volunteer, serving in the ranks and soon proving himself to be a natural soldier. He was commissioned as ensign following the Battle of Vimeiro. During the retreat to Corunna, he became cut off from the main army. Rallying a band of stragglers, he not only led them back to the main force, but thwarted a French column attempting to outflank the British Army. He was praised by Sir John Moore for his actions, and was beside the general when the latter was mortally wounded at Corunna. In 1809 he was promoted to lieutenant and commanded a company in the 3rd Battalion of Detachments and fought with distinction at Talavera. Returning to Spain, he was left in charge of a small party of redcoats and Spanish infantry when the French besieged the frontier town of Ciudad Rodrigo. He also saw action in several border skirmishes and at the River Côa. Fervently in love with Jane MacAndrews, Williams’ cause seems to be continually thwarted by her unpredictability and his clumsiness, and most recently by her acquisition of a considerable fortune.

Captain TRUSCOTT
– A close friend of Pringle, Hanley and Williams, the slightly stiff-mannered Truscott was wounded at Vimeiro and suffered the loss of his left arm. A slow recovery kept him from participating in the Corunna campaign. He served in the 3rd Battalion of Detachments and by the end of the Battle of Talavera was its commander.

Major Alastair MACANDREWS
– Now aged fifty, MacAndrews first saw service as a young ensign in the American War of Independence. A gifted and experienced soldier, his lack of connections or wealth have kept his career slow. Raised to
major after decades spent as a captain, he took charge of the 106th at Roliça, and led the battalion throughout the retreat to Corunna. Given the temporary local rank of lieutenant colonel, he led a training mission sent to Spain and became involved in the border fighting in 1810, fighting with distinction at the River Côa. He has now returned to the battalion as a major and its second-in-command.

Lieutenant Colonel FITZWILLIAM
– The new commander of the 106th, fresh from the Guards. He has some connection with Wickham, although the two do not seem close.

Lieutenant BLACK
– Subaltern in the Light Company, and its acting commander in the absence of Wickham. Black was promoted from ensign when he transferred from the militia and brought thirty recruits with him.

Ensign DERRYCK
– Senior ensign in the battalion, he served in Portugal and Spain in 1808–09.

Sergeant DOBSON
– Veteran soldier who was Williams’ ‘front rank man’ and took the volunteer under his wing. The relationship between Dobson and the young officer remains quietly paternal. However, at Roliça he displayed a ruthless streak when he killed an ensign who was having an affair with his daughter Jenny. Repeatedly promoted and broken for drunken misbehaviour, he has reformed following the accidental death of his first wife and his remarriage to the prim Mrs Rawson. He was wounded at Talavera, and served with Williams in Ciudad Rodrigo and at the River Côa.

Ensign DOWLING
– Eighteen-year old subaltern in the Grenadier Company.

Sergeant Tom EVANS
– NCO in the Light Company, Evans is an experienced but somewhat surly soldier.

Private FLATTERY
– Young soldier in the Grenadier Company.

Private KELLY
– Soldier in the Light Company.

Sergeant MURPHY
– A capable soldier, Murphy and his wife suffered a dreadful blow when their child died during the retreat to Corunna. He fought at Corunna, and was with Williams in Ciudad Rodrigo and at the Côa.

Lieutenant HATCH
– Former lover of Jenny Dobson, the frequently drunk Hatch was a close friend of Ensign Redman, the officer Dobson murdered at Roliça. Hatch falsely believes that Williams was the killer and has done everything he can to blacken Williams’ reputation. Wounded in the face at Talavera, he remained in Spain when the other members of the 106th returned to England. After briefly rejoining the battalion, he transferred to a newly raised foreign corps and was promoted to lieutenant.

Private PRYCE
– Welsh soldier in the Light Company and intimate of Sergeant Evans.

Lieutenant RICHARDSON
– Twenty-year-old but boyish subaltern in the Grenadier Company.

Private RYAN
– A veteran soldier in the Light Company.

Corporal THOMAS
– Experienced NCO serving in Truscott’s company.

Brevet Major WICKHAM
– Handsome, plausible and well connected, Wickham continues to rise in rank and spends as little time with the 106th as possible, preferring staff appointments. Williams and many others have come to doubt his honour, honesty and courage.

Their families

Jenny DOBSON
– Older daughter from Dobson’s first marriage, Jenny has ambitions beyond following the drum and flirted
with and let herself be seduced by several of the young officers. During the retreat to Corunna she abandoned her newborn son to the care of Williams and Miss MacAndrews and left in search of a better life. She is currently the mistress of a French officer.

Mrs DOBSON
– Herself the widow of a sergeant in the Grenadier Company, the very proper Annie Rawson carried her lapdog in a basket throughout the retreat to Corunna. The marriage to Dobson has done much to reform his conduct.

Jacob HANKS
– Son of Dobson’s daughter Jenny. His father killed and his mother run off to seek her fortune, the baby was protected by Williams and Jane. He is now being raised by Major MacAndrews’ family.

Clara PRINGLE
– The wife of Billy Pringle’s brother Edward, Clara has recently died soon after giving birth to a baby who also perished.

Mrs Esther MACANDREWS
– American wife of Major MacAndrews, Esther MacAndrews is a bold, unconventional character who has followed him to garrisons around the world. More recently, she managed to sneak out to Portugal, bringing her daughter with her, and the pair endured the horrors of the retreat to Corunna. In 1810 they once again travelled to Spain in the hope of joining her husband and the battalion.

Miss Jane MACANDREWS
– Their daughter and sole surviving child, the beautiful Jane has a complicated relationship with Williams. During the retreat to Corunna, she was cut off from the main army and rescued by him, becoming involved in the desperate fight he and a band of stragglers fought to defend a vital bridge against the French under Dalmas.

Miss Ann WILLIAMS
– Oldest of Williams’ three sisters, Anne is an intelligent and prudent young woman.

Mrs Kitty GARLAND (née WILLIAMS)
– The middle sister, Kitty is bright but impulsive, and her marriage to the light
dragoon Garland occurred only after Pringle had fought the cavalryman in a duel. Garland has subsequently died of wounds received in the summer of 1810.

The (Royal) Navy
(This phrase was rarely used at the time and it was more often known as the Navy)

BENNETT
– Captain Pringle’s coxswain on HMS
Sparrowhawk
.

Captain Sir George BURLTON – The experienced captain of HMS
Rodney
.

Thomas CLEGG
– Able seaman and a topman on HMS
Sparrowhawk
.

Mr CASSIDY
– Master’s mate and acting lieutenant on HMS
Sparrowhawk
.

DICKINSON
– Sailor aboard HMS
Sparrowhawk
.

Captain HALL – Commander of the six gunboats sent from Cadiz to join the expedition to Malaga.

Captain Henry HOPE – Son of a Royal Navy captain, Henry Hope went to sea at the age of eleven and was a captain by the time he was twenty-one. He took command of HMS
Topaze
in 1809 and has already led several successful raids and cutting-out expeditions. In later years he would win fame and a knighthood during the war with the USA.

Lieutenant JONES
– The Royal Marine officer commanding the detachment of marines on board HMS
Topaze
.

John JULIUS CAESAR
– Able seaman and topman aboard HMS
Sparrowhawk
, the experienced Caesar is of West Indian or African origins.

Rear Admiral Sir Richard KEATS – Took command of the squadron based at Cadiz in July 1810. Aged fifty-three, he had
been in the Navy for forty years and seen extensive service in the American War of Independence and in the more recent wars with France.

MACLEAN
– Sailor aboard HMS
Sparrowhawk
.

Corporal MILNE
– Royal Marine NCO serving aboard HMS
Sparrowhawk
.

Mr PRENTICE
– An elderly and hard-of-hearing warrant officer, he is the gunner of HMS
Sparrowhawk
.

Captain Edward PRINGLE
– Master and commander of HMS
Sparrowhawk
, Edward is Billy Pringle’s older brother and has followed the family tradition of going to sea. Smaller than his brother, and more sober in his manner, he has risen to command his own vessel by the age of twenty-eight. However, professional success has been marred by personal tragedy and a few months ago his wife died in childbirth.

Lieutenant REYNOLDS
– The only other officer currently on board HMS
Sparrowhawk
, Reynolds is middle-aged and experienced, but unlikely to rise higher in rank.

Midshipman TREADWELL
– A young midshipman on HMS
Sparrowhawk
.

The British

Mr Ezekiel BAYNES
– A merchant with long experience of the Peninsula, now serving as an adviser and agent of the government.

Lieutenant BRAMWELL
– A subaltern in the 82nd Foot, currently serving as adjutant to MacAndrews in the Flank Battalion.

Corporal BRANDT
– Polish deserter serving with the rifle armed company of the Chasseurs.

Lieutenant General Colin CAMPBELL – Appointed governor of Gibraltar in 1810. He also sent a garrison to Tarifa and helped to inspire the attempt to take Malaga.

Major General William DILKES – One of the brigade commanders in Graham’s division.

Captain DOUGLAS
– Company commander from the 82nd Foot serving in the Flank Battalion.

Major DUNCAN – Officer in the Royal Artillery commanding the guns with Graham’s division.

Major GOUGH – Acting commander of the 2/87th Foot.

Lieutenant General Thomas GRAHAM – Born in 1748, Graham became a soldier in his forties after the coffin carrying his late wife was desecrated by French revolutionaries claiming to search for weapons. He served as a volunteer at Toulon in 1793, raised a regiment at his own expense – the 90th Foot – and saw considerable service, notably in Egypt in 1801. A close friend of Sir John Moore, he served on the latter’s staff in Spain. He has recently been appointed to command the British and Portuguese troops at Cadiz.

Major GRANT – Commander of the detachment from the 2/89th Foot forming part of the landing at Fuengirola.

Captain HARDING – The senior engineer in the force landed at Fuengirola.

Richard HENEGAN – An officer in the commissariat currently serving in Cadiz. He later wrote a lively account of his service in the Peninsular War and at Waterloo.

Private JORGESEN
– Danish deserter serving in the rifle company of the Chasseurs. He is a close comrade of Brandt.

Captain KEITH
– Company commander in the 2/89th.