It is September 1808 and Wellesley is marching his force East along the river Tagus to confront the French army of Marshal Victor before it reaches Madrid. Wellesley has sent General cuts with Brigadiers Sir Geoffrey Barck and Fitsmashel in command of the 54th norfolks, 42nd highlanders, 16th Bedfords, 65th yorkshire and two artillery pieces.
Opposing them was Marshal Victor's rearguard commanded by Brigadier Raymond Dubreton and Colonel Ludwig von Brandenburg with the old guard, 8th fusiliers and three artillery pieces. Also in the French force was a squadron of Bavarian dragoons and Prussian Landwehr.
It was dawn and the French rearguard was pushing fast down the banks of the Tagus straight on towards where General Cuts' Vanguard was marching through the scrubland. With his artillery unlimbered Brigadier Dubreton ordered the charge!
The French charge thundered across the parched earth of the Spanish river bank. One of the fusilier companies charged, in attack column, straight into the ranks of the 42nd grenadier company. The other fusiliers and both companies of old guard drew themselves up into an impressive firing line less than a dozen feet from the enemy whilst the Prussian column advanced on the Bedfords. The Bavarian dragoons suffered from and inept aide de camps and suddenly found themselves ordered to charge the British guns much later than they should have been.
The firing lines of French and Britishmen were so close that the bayonets of the men could almost touch those of their opponents.
The fusilier charge on the highlanders was met with some dimay from the Britsih commanders who had been relying on devestating highland charges to break the French flanks.
The old guard on the french right dealt out a hefty volley of punishing point blank fire straight into the ranks of the Norfolkmen, disordering them and inflicting maximum casualties.
But the Norfolkmen were lucky in comparison to the bedfords who suffered two volleys from the old guard and 8th fusiliers, followed by a bombardment from the french artillery and a salvo form the Prussian column.
In the end the Bedfords broke ranks and scattered, those who had not been killed by the artillery blasts or close range volleys, fleeing from the field. The Norfolkmen kept their ground in the face of the old guard and the highlanders fought with great glory! The fusiliers taking far more casualties than the scots who they had charged.
It was now that Colonel von Brandenburg began to roll up the British right flank with his Prussian Landwehr and French infantry.
In the ensuing moves of the battle the British reacted to the French charge by counter charging the thundering dragoons with a company of redcoasts and moving the other two companies of Highlanders to bolster their lines.
However a sucessful comeback was not to be for the British and their counter charge of the Bavarian cavalry was quickly seen off before the horse proceeded to attack the Britsih artillery with minimal casulaties. On the British right too their was defeat and the scottish grenadiers lost their nerve, fleeing from the field, the french fusiliers in their wake.
The British artillery and Norfolkmen also failed to make much of an impact on the line of old guardsmen infront of them, inflicting servere casualties but failing to send the guardsmen into a rout and with two shouts of vive l'emperuer the Old guard were atop them once again.
The Bavarian cavalry charged the British artillery on the right whilst the Old guard lines clashed in bitter bayonet combat with the Norfolkmen and the other British artillery pieces. On the very far flank the Prussians charged towards the Yorkshiremen but failed to make it and let Fitsmashel escape the fusilier's charge that was intended to capture the brgadier.
The ensuing battle phase of the battle was bloody in the extreme and saw both artillery pieces taken out by the French and their lines chipped away at even more. However the most awful event for the British was when the French artillery battery opened up on the Yorks and one cannon ball caught Fitsmashel direct in the leg, the blast killing him right out.
The First action for the British in the Campaign along the river Tagus had ended in defeat with the French masters of the field. It was a decisive victory for Brigadier Dubreton and one which maintained Marshal Victor's security for the time being.
The first phase of the battle had seen a fast French advance over harsh terrain, supported by an artillery barrage. This had scattered the Bedford infantry that held the British centre.
The second phase had seen a counter charge by the British which had been bravely seen off by the stoical Guardsmen and Fusiliers and whats more it had also seen the British right flank collapse.
The Third phase had been decisive with the French pushing their advantage on the right flank whilst moving the main part of their force into the very midst of the British right flank and tearing it apart. In this last part of the battle Fitsmashel had been killed and the British artillery had been lost to the oncommers.
Had phase two gone better for the British or had General Cuts acted before Marshal Dubreton it is possible to suppose that the outcome may have been different...
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