The gallant British Legion, under General EVANS, aided by a
corps of Spaniards, have achieved a splendid victory over the Carlist forces, on the heights of St. Sebastian. For four months the insurgents had been incessantly occupied in constructing works, with a view to the capture of that important fortress. So strong and extensive were these fortifications, that some of the oldest officers in the Spanish service considered them impregnable: but on the morning of the 5th instant, they were stormed in every direction, after seven hours of almost incessant fighting. It was about one o'clock in the morning when 4500 soldiers of the Legion and 1500 Spaniards marched out of St. Sebastian under the command of General EVANS. As they approached the first lines, before it was light, the firing of the Carlists from behind their fortifications was terrific.
" The enemy (says a correspondent of the Courier) poured their shot through the loopholes and from behind the parapets like rain. One regiment, that had made a circuitous movement to get into the flank of these lines, came into the road right in front of some fortified houses, which presented to them nothing but a wall full of loopholes. The men faltered-the moment was most critical. The Lieutenant-General himself advanced, and placing himself on a rising ground, exposing himself for about two minutes to a very heavy fire, took off his hut, and waving it encouraged the soldiers. Men,' said he, we must dis- tinguish ourselves to-day, or thrleit our character as Englishmen ! ' It was enough : they advanced : and the enemy, afraid of being flanked, fell back on their second lines. Here they made a most resolute defence; and-two attempts to carry these lines proved uusuceessful-our men were driven back. Front a large house which they had strongly fortified they kept up a terrible fire."
At this critical time, (about ten o'clock,) Lord JOHN HAY ar- rived in the bay with the Phenix and Salamander steamers, and the Fourth and Eighth Regiments from Santander. The troops immediately landed • and Lord JOHN commenced a vigorous bombardment from his ships.
" Each was the precision of the vertical firing, such the effect of the shells thrown at a distance of 1:500 yards, that they tore (Iowa an epaulement of the enemy's works, and effected a breach, through which our men entered. In the mean time the Fourth and the Eighth Regiments had arrived on the ground. They were immediately formed in columns of attack by the Lieutenant-Gene. rat in person, when they advanced and carried the redoubt at the point of the bayonet. At this moment, the Lieutenant-General and his Staff, as he gal- loped up the steep. ascent, sets loudly cheered-the redoubt cartied-the co- lumns rushed down the road, carrying every thing before them ; while the Third, Sixth, and Rifles advanced from the right and centre, and morticed the works in their front, upon one of which the Carlists had hung out a red flag. Just as the last charge was made, the sun burst through the clouds ; and the whole population of St. Sebastian were seen congregated on the Castle hill, from whence they could behold every movement of the affair with as much flaky as a looker-on does the moves of a game of chess. When they saw the .effecta of the vertical firing, the precision with which the shells were thrown, observed the column of attack advancing up the height, and heard the wild hurrah floating above the din of battle, a shout of enthusiastic admiration, I have been told, burst from the assembled multitude."
The Spanish Generals confess that 20,000 Spaniards could not bave stormed these works. The gallantry of even the raw recruits was astonishing.
4' No one outdid another-all did as much as human strength and the coolest valour could accomplish. One of Colonel Harley's officers told me Barley said to the soldiers..., Now meth we'll have no nonsense, no firing at men behind walls. Fix bayonets—walk into them, and skewer the scoundrels behis& *heir wain.' The daerge was nide ; sads as they walked up to the lines, Colonel Harley laid bald of a maa's sliesdiller and leaned on him : all thought he was hit, but he was sick. lb Mead a moment or two, vomited a glass of wine off his stomach, which had mitred, not having tasted any thing else since the previous afternoon, and without saying one word continued the charge. " Among the troops who so gallantly distinguished themselves in this last charge, were many raw recruits. One of the officers who commanded them told me, they asked whether the ball or thepowder should be put into the mus- ket first. His answer was-' You've nothing to do with powder or balls ; fix your bayonet, hold fast your musket, and run it through every one that stands before you.' It made me remember the remark of our friend—, that a British soldier was fit to face the enemy whenever he could bite the end off a ball- cartridge."
The loss of the assailants was fearfully large; nearly 1000 killed and wounded, among whom are about 80 officers. The officers felt the necessity of exposing themselves with unusual hardihood, in order to encourage the troops ; for it must be re- membered, that thousands, who had never seen any thing more than a skirmish before, were now employed in the most danger- ous military service to which they could ever be subjected. One of the correspondents of the Courier says- ", Natalie and art had combined to render this position (that of the Carlists), which was moreover defended by five heavy pieces of artillery, which swept the ground in their front in every direction, extremely formidable. The fire kept up by the enemy was incessant, and made fearful ravages in our ranks; tt was, in fact, a complete battue. So incessant, so deadly was the fire, that it fairly beat back the head of the column, which thrice strove to penetrate the second line. How the Lieutenant-General escaped at this moment, is a miracle. He stood upon a barricade, amidst a shower of balls, urging on the troops : but all attempts to penetrate the enemy's position by that paint were fruitless."
The following brief account of this brilliant affair is given in a letter of General EVANS himself-
" I have only time to refer to the important success gained by her Majesty's forces this day. The whole of the enemy's works, which they hail been for four months incessantly constructing, have been carried, after a sharp struggle, by assault. They are now in our possession, with the artillery by which they were defended; and we shall in the course of a few days have levelled or de- stroyed them. I lament to say, this victory has not been gained without cow• sidetable loss. It has been as yet impossible to collect the list of casual- ties; but I am afraid it cannot be less in killed and wounded than 60 or 70 officers, and 600 or 700 men. The Spanish and British troops rivalled each other in their persevering gallantry; and the difficulties of the operation re- quired it. It is impossible fur me to describe the gallant and opportune coope- ration her Majesty's troops received front Commodore Lord John Hay, com- manding the British squadron on this station. His Lot dship came into the bay at daybreak ; and a few moments aft er the action commenced, having with him the steamer fligate Mauna, the Srlamander, and Comet, and bringing two regiments of tire Legion, the Fourth and Eighth, under Lieutenant -Colonel Godofrey and Major Harley, which immediately afterwards rendered valuable services. The British ships opened a most cffictive cannonade against the enemy's last entrenchments; and the exactness with which the shells were thrown from the Phoenix at 1300 yards was quite extraordinary. Some of these struck the enemy's works, and made a hi each through them, which our troops entered. The enemy defended themselves with more than usual obsti- nacy; but were eventually, on all the points of their line, put completely to the rout."
The loss of' the Carlists is not ascertained ; but it must be very heavy. Among the killed, is a Guerilla chieftain of celebrity, SEGASTIBELZA.
It remains to be seen what effect this victory will have on the general fate of the war : it will probably be decisive : but what- ever may be its results, none can 'deny that these " raga-
muffin mercenaries "—these " drunken dragoons diseased and cowardly wretches ''—as the Carlist prints in London and the Csrlist Peers in Parliament have termed them, have fought with a coolness, gallantry, and success, which would add honour to WELLINGTON'S victories.
Previous page
