History of the Peninsular War, Volume 3 (of 6)Southey, Robert
History
History of the Peninsular War, Volume 3 (of 6)
Southey, Robert
Peninsular War, 1807-1814
manly courage with the sword, and not by bombarding it; but that the
Zaragozans knew their duty, and would not surrender.
♦THE FRENCH ENTER THE CITY, BUT WITH GREAT LOSS.
JAN. 26.♦
All the outworks had now been taken except the Castle of the
Inquisition, which had never been seriously attacked, because its
possession was of no importance to the enemy. The batteries against
the city itself were completed, and on the day after the summons fifty
pieces opened their fire upon the wall, and on the morrow three
practicable breaches were made. One was by an oil-mill, a building
standing alone, without the walls, and close to them; the enemy had
established themselves in it during the night. The second was to the
left of this, immediately opposite S. Joseph’s; the third in the
monastery of S. Engracia. All these were attacked. A column issuing
from the oil-mill presently reached the first, and the explosion of
two fougades at the foot of the breach scarcely appeared to impede
their progress. But they found an inner intrenchment, well constructed
and mounted with two guns; and when they attempted to carry this the
bell of the Torre Nueva rang, the inhabitants manned the adjacent
houses, and a fire was opened from roofs and windows which it was
neither possible to return nor to withstand. Profiting, however, by
the cover which the exploded fougades afforded them, they succeeded
in lodging themselves upon the breach. On the left they were more
successful; after gaining the ramparts, they made their way into the
opposite house, which the artillery had breached, and into the two
adjoining ones; their progress was then stopped, but they established
themselves within the walls, and repaired and lengthened for their own
use a double caponier, by which the besieged used to communicate with
S. Joseph’s. The attack upon the third breach was more formidable.
After a severe struggle the enemy entered the convent of S. Engracia,
obtained possession of its ruins and of the nunnery of S. Joseph, which
stood near, and of which little more than the mere shell was remaining.
Piercing the walls of this, they enfiladed the curtain from S. Engracia
to the bridge of the Huerba, and taking the _tête-de-pont_ in reverse,
became masters of the bridge, over which fresh troops joined them to
follow up their success. They pushed on to the Capuchin convent of La
Trinidad, which made part of the line; forty artillerymen, who were
stationed there without support, as a place not in danger of attack,
were cut to pieces at their guns, and the convent was taken. It was
recovered by the Spaniards; but two battalions came to support the
assailants, who took it a second time, and maintained their conquest,
though at a dear price. The greater part of the French who occupied
the curtain fell under the fire from the houses. They suffered also
considerably in a vain attempt to possess themselves of a single house
which defended an imperfect breach to the right of all their other
attacks.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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