A history of the Peninsular War, Vol. 4, Dec. 1810-Dec. 1811 : $b Massena's retreat, Fuentes de Oñoro, Albuera, TarragonaOman, Charles
History
A history of the Peninsular War, Vol. 4, Dec. 1810-Dec. 1811 : $b Massena's retreat, Fuentes de Oñoro, Albuera, Tarragona
Oman, Charles
Peninsular War, 1807-1814
Putting together the movement of Zayas, and the fact that some at least
of the allied army was now on the Vejer road, the Marshal came to the
correct conclusion that the army in the field was intending to get
into communication with Cadiz and its garrison. Accordingly he made a
new plan to suit this hypothesis: of his three divisions one, that of
Villatte, was to block the neck of the peninsula along which the track
from Vejer and Conil leads to the Santi Petri creek and the Isle of
Leon. The other two, concentrated at Chiclana, were to wait till the
allied force had found itself blocked in front by Villatte, and then to
fall upon its flank, in the space of three miles that lies between the
hill of Barrosa and the position where Villatte had been posted. This
plan would place the intercepting division in obvious danger, since,
while attacked in front by the head of the allied army, it might find
Zayas attempting once more to lay his bridge, and to take it in the
rear. Such a movement by the garrison could not be stopped, because
the end of the peninsula, by the bridge-place, was under the guns of
several heavy batteries. But Victor directed Villatte not to fight to
the last, but to be contented with holding the Allies in check long
enough to enable the main body to fall on their flank. The sound of his
guns would be the signal for the two striking divisions to move out
from the wood of Chiclana, and dash at the long column whose head would
be engaged with Villatte, while its tail would still be coming along
the coast many miles to the rear. For 14,000 men had only the single
line of communication along which to move.
[Illustration: THE BARROSA CAMPAIGN]
Meanwhile Cassagne, at Medina Sidonia, was sent orders to find out
exactly what was in front of him, and if there was no solid force, to
march to join the main body on the morning of the 5th. He must have
received the order to do so somewhere in the afternoon of the 4th.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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