♦SUCHET’S MEASURES AFTER THE BATTLE OF VITTORIA.♦
On landing at Alicante, Lord William received intelligence of the battle of Vittoria. Suchet had apprehended no such tidings. Buonaparte seems to have entertained till the last a blind persuasion that his schemes of ambition in Spain and every where else must finally be successful, and the instructions which he had sent to the Marshal were that he should endeavour to gain time, and lose no ground, till the affairs of the north should be finished, when, if it were then necessary, dispositions would be made in favour of the armies in Spain. The Marshal, however, knew that he must lose no time in retiring from Valencia; that province therefore was delivered by the battle of Vittoria, as Andalusia had been by the battle of Salamanca. He thought to retain upon it a hold which would enable him at any time to return by leaving a garrison of 1200 men in Murviedro, stored for twelve months, the place having been materially strengthened during the eighteen months which had elapsed since the French obtained possession of it: 500 men were also left in Peñiscola, 120 in Denia, and as many in Morella, that little fort commanding a mountain-road, by which a corps of infantry without cannon could at any time re-enter Valencia from Aragon. Looking forward therefore to the probable resumption of their conquests, with the hopefulness which characterizes the French character, and with the confidence which he might justly feel in his own ability of improving all circumstances to the best advantage, he commenced his retreat with the less reluctance because Clausel apprized him that he had arrived at Zaragoza with 14,000 men, and would establish himself ♦SUCHET’S MÉMOIRES, 2, 310–324.♦ upon the Gallego, in readiness either to co-operate with the army of Aragon, or with the Intruder, if the army on that side should resume the offensive.
♦LORD WELLINGTON UNDERTAKES THE SIEGE OF ST. SEBASTIAN.♦
A junction between Clausel and Suchet was what Lord Wellington apprehended as soon as he heard that the expedition against Tarragona had failed, and that consideration made him at once give up his intention of laying siege to Pamplona. Unwelcome as the tidings were, this change of purpose may have compensated for the failure, ... Pamplona ♦JULY.♦ being so much stronger than it was at that time supposed to be by the allies, and the British army still so defective in its engineer’s department, that the siege might probably have proved unsuccessful. Resorting therefore to the surer method of blockading a city, which there was reason to believe was not provided for a long siege, he intrusted that service to the Spaniards, and ordered works to be thrown up on every side, to prevent the escape of the garrison, and to cut them off from all supplies; and he determined to besiege St. Sebastian’s, where farther means of attack could be obtained by sea. The service was intrusted to Sir Thomas Graham, with 10,000 men.