Storming of St. Sebastian—Lord Wellington calls for volunteers from the first fourth and light divisions—The place is assaulted and taken—The town burned—The castle is bombarded and surrenders—Observations 197 CHAP. III. Soult’s views and positions during the siege described—He endeavours to succour the place—Attacks lord Wellington—Combats of San Marcial and Vera—The French are repulsed the same day that San Sebastian is stormed—Soult resolves to adopt a defensive system—Observations 218 CHAP. IV. The duke of Berri proposes to invade France promising the aid of twenty thousand insurgents—Lord Wellington’s views on this subject—His personal acrimony against Napoleon—That monarch’s policy and character defended—Dangerous state of affairs in Catalonia—Lord Wellington designs to go there himself, but at the desire of the allied sovereigns and the English government resolves to establish a part of his army in France—His plans retarded by accidents and bad weather—Soult unable to divine his project—Passage of the Bidassoa—Second combat of Vera—Colonel Colborne’s great presence of mind—Gallant action of lieutenant Havelock—The French lose the redoubt of Sarre and abandon the great Rhune—Observations 239 CHAP. V. Soult retakes the redoubt of Sarre—Wellington organizes the army in three great divisions under sir Rowland Hill, marshal Beresford, and sir John Hope—Disinterested conduct of the last-named officer—Soult’s immense entrenchments described—His correspondence with Suchet—Proposes to retake the offensive and unite their armies in Aragon—Suchet will not accede to his views and makes inaccurate statements—Lord Wellington, hearing of advantages gained by the allied sovereigns in Germany, resolves to invade France—Blockade and fall of Pampeluna—Lord Wellington organizes a brigade under lord Aylmer to besiege Santona, but afterwards changes his design 271 CHAP. VI. Political state of Portugal—Violence, ingratitude, and folly of the government of that country—Political state of Spain—Various factions described, their violence, insolence, and folly—Scandalous scenes at Cadiz—Several Spanish generals desire a revolution—Lord Wellington describes the miserable state of the country—Anticipates the necessity of putting down the Cortez by force—Resigns his command of the Spanish armies—The English ministers propose to remove him to Germany—The new Cortez reinstate him as generalissimo on his own terms—He expresses his fears that the cause will finally fail and advises the English ministers to withdraw the British army 295 BOOK XXIII. CHAP. I.