Resuming its quarters at Junca, the regiment again furnished piquets before Almeida. An unusual noise during the night of the 11th of May occasioned the regiment to assemble at its alarm post, and march towards Almeida; the grenadier company advanced to the walls, and Captain Furnace discovered a chasm in the works, at which he entered and ascertained that the French garrison had blown up a great part of the works, and evacuated the fortress; when Major Coghlan ordered a guard of one hundred men to take possession of the town, which was found much injured by the explosions. Lord Wellington having undertaken the siege of Badajoz, Marshals Soult and Marmont marched the armies under their orders to the relief of that fortress, when the SIXTY-FIRST proceeded with their division to the Alemtejo, and were in position on the Caya. The French armies having separated, the regiment again traversed the country towards the Agueda; and in September the light company, under Captain Owen, distinguished itself by repulsing, by its steady fire, the attack of several squadrons of French dragoons, who had driven back a body of British cavalry near Ciudad Rodrigo, when Marshal Marmont relieved the blockade of that fortress. After retiring a few miles before the superior numbers of the enemy, the regiment went into winter quarters, where it received a draft of two hundred men from the second battalion. Colonel Saunders being promoted to the rank of major-general, Lieut.-Colonel Barlow arrived in Portugal to command the first battalion, and Lieut.-Colonel Coghlan proceeded to Ireland to command the second battalion. Lieut.-Colonel Coghlan had commanded the first battalion during two campaigns. [Sidenote: 1812] In January, 1812, the regiment was employed in covering the siege of _Ciudad Rodrigo_, which fortress was captured by assault during the night of the 19th of that month. The regiment afterwards traversed the country to the Alemtejo, from whence it advanced across the Guadiana, and was employed in Spanish Estremadura during the siege of Badajoz, which fortress was captured by assault on the 6th of April. After these brilliant enterprises were completed, the regiment returned to the northern frontiers of Portugal, and marched to sustain the troops which destroyed the French works at the bridge of Almarez.