IN SPAIN

i Nous voici arrivés. — The time is November 1808, four months after the humiliations of Baylen and Cintra. Angry at the bungling of his lieutenants, Napoléon was now invading the Peninsula in person at the head of a great army. Of the character of the struggle that he had entered upon in Spain he was wholly unconscious. Hitherto he had fought against Governments. Now, for the first time, he had got below the surface, and was at war with the passionate feelings of a whole people. And the spirit that stirred the Spaniards was infectious. No doubt, for the moment, the league with Alexander, renewed as it had just been at Erfurt, seemed to make Napoleon's position secure. But the tide had turned. Only once more would he sign a peace as conqueror.

King Joseph and the French in Spain had been thrown back to the Ebro, as the resuit of Dupont's disaster. Napoléon crossed the Pyrénées early in November. He himself, in the centre, swept away ail opposition along the great highroad to Vittoria and Burgos ; while, on the right, the Spanish army under Blake was overthrown by Victor and Lefebvre at Espinosa (November 10) ; and, on the left, Castauos and Palafox were defeated by Lannes at Tudela (November 23). The movement by which Ney was to intercept the retreating army from Tudela failed. On the day of the battle Ney was at Soria, but, for some unexplained reason, did not march again for three days. This allowed Castanos to escape by Calatayud towards Madrid, while Palafox withdrew to Saragossa.

Augereau had not yet recovered from his wounds at Eylau. So Captain Marbot, after temporary service on Murat's staff, had now become aide de camp to Lannes. Marbot's experi-

chap. iv.] IN SPAIX 175

ence in attempting to carry the despatch to Napoléon is an example of what such duties meant during the Spanish war.

3 une grande victoire. — The corps that won the battle of Tudela was Moucey's, who had been rather abruptly put nnder the orders of a marshal junior to himself.

36 qui croyait Ney peu éloigné. — Some writers hâve attributed Ney's dilatory movements to jealousy of Lannes. "A hetter explanatiou," says Napier, "may he found in the peculiar disposition of this extraordinary man, who was careless and unlearned in the abstract science of war, and seemed apathetic until some imminent danger aroused the marvellous energy and fortitude of his nature."

73 commandant Saint- Mars. — Major Saint-Mars was also on the staff of Lannes, and a friend of Marbot ; he rose to be General of brigade.

96 Chamborant. — The name may corne from a colonel of the régiment in the old proprietary days.

110 chose horrible à dire! — The Spanish patriots certainly showed the vices of their virtues. Amongst an ignorant and bigoted peasantry horrors such as that in the text were, under the circumstances, sure to occur. Nor was the cruelty ail on one side. There are some just remarks on the subject in Fezensac's Souvenirs militaires — the more creditable to the writer as he was himself at this time going in péril of his life with despatches from Ney to Napoléon. After speaking of the excesses committed by the French marauders and of the reprisais by the Spaniards, sanctioned by their religion, he adds, "Aussi existait-il entre eux et nous une émulation de cruauté dont les détails feraient frémir." — Souvenirs, p. 202.

140 un Capucin. — "J'ai trouvé dans un catéchisme l'article suivant : ' Est-il permis de tuer les Français ? — Non, excepté ceux qui sont sous les drapeaux de Napoléon.'" — Fezensac, loc. cit.

217 mon malheureux frère. — Félix Marbot haddied from a wound received in an amateur duel at the French Sandhurst.

325 qui étaient à ma droite. — He means, of course, the bouses that had been on his right hand up to the moment when he had faced round towards the corporal.

176 NOTES [chap. iv.

536 bien que malade. — Shortly before he was sent by Napoléon to fight at Tudela, Lannes had been badly huit by a fall from his horse. The famous Larrey had extemporised a cure by wrapping him in the skin of a fresh killed sheep. He was now ill again, from the fall or the remedy.

578 pour aller rejoindre l'Empereur. — Lannes reached the Emperor at Madrid, and took part in the winter passage of the Guadarrama during the attempt to eut off Sir John Moore. At Astorga Napoléon received news that Austria was arming. The further pursuit of the English, who had now practically made good their escape, was left to Soult; while Napoléon, in the third week of the new year, started in haste for Paris. Lannes was ordered to take over the siège of Saragossa, and to follow Napoléon as soon as the town was captured. After its historié résistance the remnants of Saragossa surrendered on February 20th.

CHAPTER V RATISBON

i Le prince Charles. — The Austrian campaign of 1809 wa> unlike anything that Napoléon had yet experienced in his Gerniau wars. Botli Prussia and Austria had been stirred by the résistance of Spain. lu Prussia especially, adversity was proving a wonderful school for new and nobler thoughts. Patriotism and the sensé of nationality were growing apace, where before they had hardly existed. It was useless for Napoléon to proscribe such ideas in the person of Stein ; the spirit of Stein was beyond his reach, and was everywhere présent. But Prussia's time had not yet corne. The oppressor's hold was too strong ; her own king's heart too faint. With bitter reluctauce the North German patriots found theniselves obliged to leave the struggle to Austria.

Tlie foremost statesman in Austria, since the Peace of Presburg, was Count Stadion, a man who may fairly be compared with the best of the Prussians. With him, though without his hopefulness, was the Archduke Charles, working hard to bring to efficiency the largest levies that Austria had yet raised. Passionate appeals were made to the soldiers to rid Germany of the foreign tyrant And for once Napoléon' s enemy had got the start of him in préparation.

The main Austrian army had this time been collected in Bohemia, in the hope of a risiug among the Xorth Germans. The hope proved vain, but there was a golden opportunitv of securing a great advantage at the outset of the war. An invasion of Bavaria froni Xorth-AV'est Bohemia, such as had been at first intended, could hardly hâve failed to eut off Davout's coi-ps, which lay about Ratisbon, far out of reach of any support. But at the critical moment the Austrian Government decided to revert to the orthodox method of

178 NOTES [chap. v.

advance by the right bank of the Danube. By the time the Archduke had reached the Isar, in obédience to the new orders, Napoléon liimself was at the front, and ail was changed. On the left, Davout had been called in from his false position ; on the right, Masséna had been brought up from Augsburg ; both were in touch with Napoléon in the centre. Charles was now swiftly attacked. On April 20th his straggling line was eut in two at Abensberg ; the left was driven across the Isar at Landshut ; he himself, with the right, was defeated at Eckmùhl on the 22nd, and had no other escape but through Ratisbon. This is the point at which the chapter opens.

48 dite de Straubing. — Straubing is the next town below Ratisbon on the right bank.

60 une immense grange. — If the glacis had been properly maintained there would hâve been no such shelter.

72 dont se servent les Tyroliens. — On the déclaration of the présent war the Tyrolese, readily answering to the appeal of Austria, had risen against their new masters, the Bavarians, and driven them out in the most spirited manner. When the war was over Austria neglected to make proper ternis for the Tyrolese. The gallant Hofer was shot at Mantua in February 1810, by spécial order of Napoléon.

76 la blessure était fort légère. — This, and a slight injury at Toulon, were the only wounds that Napoléon received. In his earlier campaigns he was often much exposed and had several narrow escapes.

113 au pont d'Arcole. — Are the old soldier's battles in chronological order?

140 remontait sur le monticule. — See Browning's 'Incident of the French Camp.'

269 Labédoyère. — Charles Labedoyère, well known as the first officer of colonel's rank to déclare for Napoléon, when he returned from Elba. After Waterloo he was arreeted and shot.

549 le gros des ennemis. — The Archduke had fallen back into Bohemia. After reaching Budweis he turned sont h and made for the bridge at Mauthausen below Lintz, but was too late. He then tried to cross at Krems, but was again anticipated by the French.