To cover his rear Suchet was forced to set aside one whole division, that of Frère, thirteen battalions strong[5], and mustering over 7,000 men, and immense detachments of the three other French divisions of the Army of Aragon. The units told off for the field army left no less than 6,800 able-bodied men (besides sick and convalescents) behind them, while they took 22,000 to the front. Frère’s division remained on the side of Western Catalonia, holding Lerida and Tortosa in force, and the intermediate places with small posts. The detachments from Musnier’s, Harispe’s, and Habert’s French, and from Palombini’s Italian divisions, took charge of Southern Aragon, leaving a company here and a battalion there. But the Marshal selected with great care the men who were to march on the Valencian expedition: each regiment drafted its most effective soldiers into the marching units, and left the recruits and the old or sickly men in the garrisons. Thus the battalions used in the oncoming campaign were rather weak, averaging not much over 450 men, but were composed entirely of selected veterans. The only doubtful element taken forward was the so-called ‘Neapolitan Division’ of General Compère, which was only 1,500 strong--in reality a weak brigade--and had no great reputation. But what was left of this corps was its best part--the numerous men who wanted to desert had already done so, and its weaklings were dead by this time. Of his cavalry Suchet took forward almost the whole, leaving behind only two squadrons of the 4th Hussars for the service between the garrisons, and of the other regiments only the weakly men and horses[6]. Practically all his horse and field artillery also went forward with him. [5] Composed at this time of the 14th and 42nd and 115th Line, and the 1st Léger, the first two and last each three battalions strong, the other (115th) with four. [6] The 24th Dragoons left about 140 men behind, the 13th Cuirassiers 50 only, the Italian ‘Dragoons of Napoleon’ 124, but the 4th Hussars about 500, much more than half their force.