140 rank and file, wounded; 1 serjeant, 7 drummers, 43 rank and file, missing.

General total-1 captain, 7 lieutenants, 1 ensign, 13 serjeants, 3 drummers, 173 rank and file, and 45 horses, killed; 2 general staff, 2 lieut. colonels, 4 majors, 15 captains, 23 lieutenants, 11 cornets, or ensigns, 2 staff, 61 serjeants, 4 drummers, 906 rank and file, and 95 horses, wounded; 1 lieut. colonel, 2 captains, 3 lieutenants, 1 ensign, 9 serjeants, 9 drummers, 269 rank and file, and 5 horses, missing.

London Gazette Extraordinary,

Monday, June 3.

Letter from Marshal Beresford to Lieutenant General Viscount Wellington.

Albuera, May 18, 1911. My Lord, I have infinite satisfaction in communicating to your lordship, that the allied army, united here under my orders, obtained on the 16th instant, after a most sanguinary contest, a complete victory over that of the enemy, commanded by Marshal Soult; and I shall proceed to relate to your lordship the circumstances.

In a former report I have informed your lordship of the advance of Marshal Soult from Seville, and I had in consequence judged it wise entirely to raise the siege of Badajoz, and prepare to meet him with our united forces, rather than, by looking to two objects at once, to risk the loss of both. Marshal Soult, it appears, had been long straining every nerve to collect a force which he thought fully sufficient to his object for the

relief of Badajoz ; and for this pur pose he had drawn considerable numbers from the corps of Marshal Victor and General Sebastiani, and also, I believe, from the French army of the centre. Hav ing thus completed his prepara tions, he marched from Seville on the 10th inst. with a corps then estimated at fifteen or sixteen thousand men, and was joined on descending into Estramadura by the corps under General Latour Maubourg, stated to be five thousand men. His Excellency Gen. Blake, as soon as he learnt the advance of Marshal Soult, in strict conformity to the plan proposed by your lordship, proceeded to form his junction with the corps under my orders, and arrived at Valverde in person on the 14th inst. where, having consulted with his Excellency and General Castanos, it was determined to meet the enemy, and to give him battle.

On finding the determination of the enemy to relieve Badajoz, I had broken up from before that place, and marched the infantry to the position in front of Valverde, except the division of the Hon. Major-General G. L. Cole, which, with 2000 Spanish troops, I left to cover the removal of our stores.

The cavalry, which had, according to orders, fallen back as the enemy advanced, was joined at Santa Martha by the cavalry of General Blake; that of General Castanos, under the Count de Penne Villamar, had been always with it.

As remaining at Valverde, though a stronger position, left Badajoz entirely open, I determined to take up a position (such as could be got

in this widely open country) at this place; thus standing directly between the enemy and Badajoz.

The army was therefore assembled here on the 15th inst. The corps of General Blake, though making a forced march to effect it, only joined in the night, and could not be placed in its position till the morning of the 16th inst. when General Cole's division, with the Spanish brigade under Don Carlos d'Espagne, also joined, and a little before the commencement of the action. Our cavalry had been forced on the morning of the 15th instant to retire from Santa Martha and joined here. In the afternoon of that day the enemy appeared in front of us. The next morning our disposition for receiving the enemy was made, being formed in two lines, nearly parallel to the river Albuera, on the ridge of the gradual ascent rising from that river, aud covering the roads to Badajoz and Valverde; though your lordship is aware, that the whole face of this country is every where passable for all arms. General Blake's corps was on the right, in two lines; its left, on the Valverde-road, joined the right of Major-General the Hon. William Stewart's division, the left of which reached the Badajoz-road; where commenced the right of Major-General Hamilton's division, which closed the left of the line. General Cole's division, with one brigade of General Hamilton's, formed the second line of the British and Portuguese army.

The enemy, on the morning of the 16th, did not long delay his attack; at eight o'clock he was observed to be in movement, and

his cavalry was seen passing the rivulet of Albuera, considerably above our right; and shortly after he marched out of the wood opposite to us a strong force of cavalry, and two heavy columns of infantry, pointing them to our front, as if to attack the village and bridge of Albuera: during this time, under cover of his vastly superior cavalry, he was filing the principal body of his infantry over the river beyond our right, and it was not long before his intention appeared to be to turn us by that flank, and cut us off from Valverde. MajorGeneral Cole's division was therefore ordered to form an oblique line to the rear of our right, with his own right thrown back, and the intention of the enemy to attack our right becoming evident, I requested General Blake to form part of his first line, and all his second, to that front, which was done.

he

The enemy commenced his attack at nine o'clock, not ceasing at the same time to menace our left; and after a strong and gallant resistance of the Spanish troops, gained the heights upon which they had been formed: meanwhile the division of the Honourable Major-general William Stewart had been brought up to support them; and that of Major-general Hamilton brought to the left of the Spanish line, and formed in. contiguous close columns of battalions, to be movable in any direction. The Portuguese brigade of cavalry, under Brigadier-general Orway, remained at some distance on the left of this, to check any attempt of the enemy below the village.

As the heights the enemy had gained raked and entirely com manded

manded our whole position, it became necessary to make every effort to retake and maintain them; and a noble one was made by the division of General Stewart, headed by that gallant officer. Nearly at the beginning of the enemy's attack, a heavy storm of rain came on, which, with the smoke from the firing, rendered it impossible to discern any thing distinctly. This, with the nature of the ground, had been extremely favourable to the enemy in forming his columns, and in his subsequent attack.

The right brigade of General Stewart's division, under Lieutenant-colonel Colborne, first came into action, and behaved in the most gallant manner; and finding that the enemy's column could not be shaken by fire, proceeded to attack it with the bayonet; and, while in the act of charging a body of Polish lances (cavalry) which the thickness of the atmosphere and the nature of the ground had concealed, (and which was, besides, mistaken by those of the brigade, when discovered, for Spanish cavalry, and therefore not fired upon), turned it; and being thus attacked unexpectedly in the rear was unfortunately broken, and suffered immensely. The 31st regiment, being the left one of the brigade, alone escaped this charge, and under the command of Major L'Estrange kept its ground, until the arrival of the 3d brigade, under Major-general Hoghton. The conduct of this brigade was most conspicuously gallant; and that of the 2d brigade, under the command of the Honourable Lieute nant-colonel Abercrombie was not less so: Major general Hoghton,

cheering on his brigade to the charge, fell pierced by wounds. Though the enemy's principal attack was on this point of the right, he also made a continual attempt upon that part of our original front at the village and bridge, which were defended in the most gallant manner by Major-general Baron Alten and the light infantry brigade of the German legion, whose conduct was, in every point of view, conspicuously good. This point now formed our left, and Major-general Hamilton's division had been brought up there; and he was left to direct the defence of that point, whilst the enemy's attack continued on our right, a considerable proportion of the Spanish troops supporting the defence of this place. The enemy's cavalry, on his infantry attempting to force our right, had endeavoured to turn it; but by the able manœuvres of Major-general the Honourable William Lumley, commanding the allied cavalry, though vastly inferior to that of the enemy in number, his endeavours were foiled. Major-general Cole, seeing the attack of the enemy, very judiciously bringing up his left a little, marched in line to attack the enemy's left, and arrived most opportunely to contribute, with the charges of the brigades of General Stewart's division, to force the enemy to aban. don his situation, and retire precipitately, and to take refuge under his reserve;-here the Fuzileer brigade particularly distinguished itself. He was pursued by the allies to a considerable distance, and as far as I thought it prudent, with his immense superiority of cavalry; and I contented myself

with seeing him driven across the Albuera.

I have every reason to speak favourably of the manner in which our artillery was served, and fought; and Major Hartman conmanding the British, and Major Dickson commanding the Portu guese, and the officers and men, are entitled to my thanks. The four guns of the horse-artillery, commanded by Captain Lefebure, did great execution on the enemy's cavalry; and one brigade of Spanish artillery (the only one in the field) I saw equally gallantly and well served: we lost in the misfortune which occurred to the brigade commanded by Lieutenantcolonel Colborne (whom General Stewart reports to have acted, and was then acting, in a most noble manner, leading on the brigade in admirable order) one howitzer, which the enemy, before the arrival of the gallant General Hoghton's brigade, had time to carry off, with two hundred or three hundred prisoners of that brigade. After he had been beaten from this his principal attack, he still continued that near the village, on which he never could make any impression, or cross the rivulet, though I had been obliged to bring a very great proportion of the troops from it, to support the principal point of attack; but the enemy seeing his main attack defeated, relaxed in his attempt there also. The Portuguese division of Major general Hamilton, in every instance evinced the utmost steadiness and courage, and manoeuvred equally well with the British. Brigadier-general Harvey's Portuguese brigade, belonging to General Cole's division, had an op

portunity of distinguishing itself when marching in line across the plain, by repulsing with the utmost steadiness a charge of the enemy's cavalry.

It is impossible to enumerate every instance of discipline and valour shewn on this severely contested day: but never were troops that more valiantly or more gloriously maintained the honour of their respective countries. I have not been able to particularize the Spanish divisions, brigades, or regiments that were particularly en. gaged, because I am not acquainted with their denominations or names; but I have great pleasure in saying that their behaviour was most gallant and honourable; and though, from the superior number and weight of the enemy's force, that part of them that were in the position attacked were obliged to cede the ground, it was after a gallant resistance, and they continued in good order to support their allies; and I doubt not, his Excellency General Blake will do ample justice on this head, by making honourable mention of the deserving.

The battle commenced at nine o'clock, and continued without interruption, till two in the afternoon, when the enemy having been driven over the Albuera, for the remainder of the day there was but cannonading and skir mishing.

It is impossible by any description to do justice to the distinguished gallantry of the troops, but every individual most nobly did his duty, and which will be well proved by the great loss we have suffered, though repulsing the enemy; and it was observed, that

our

our dead, particularly the 57th re giment, were lying, as they had fought, in ranks, and every wound was in the front.

The Honourable Major-general William Stewart most particularly distinguished himself, and conduced much to the bonour of the day; he received two contusions, but would not quit the field. Major-general the Hon. G. L. Cole is also entitled to every praise; and I have to regret being deprived for some time of his services, by the wound he has received. The Hon. Lieut-colonel Abercrombie, commanding the 2d brigade, 2d division, and Major L'Estrange, 31st regiment, deserve to be particularly mentioned; and nothing could exceed the conduct and gallantry of Colonel Inglis, at the head of his regiment. To the Honourable Major-general William Lumley, for the very able manner in which he opposed the numerous cavalry of the enemy, and foiled him in his object, I am particularly indebted. To Major-general Hamilton, who commanded on the left, during the severe attack upon our right, I am also much indebted; and the Portuguese brigade of Brigadier-generals Fonseca and Archibald Campbell deserve to be mentioned. To Major-general Alten, and to the excellent brigade under his orders, I have much praise to give; and it is with great pleasure I as sure your lordship, that the good and gallant conduct of every corps, and of every person, was in proportion to the opportunity that offered for distinguishing themselves. I know not an individual who did not do his duty.

I have, I fear, to regret the loss

to the service of Colonel Collins, commanding a Portuguese brigade, his leg having been carried off by a cannon shot. He is an officer of great merit; and I deeply lament the death of Major-general Hoghton, and of those two promising officers Lieutenant-col. Sir William Myers and Lieutenant-Col. Duckworth.

It is most pleasing to me to inform your lordship, not only. of the steady and gallant conduct of our allies, the Spanish troops, under his Excellency General Blake, but also to assure you that the most perfect harmony has subsisted between us; and that General Blake not only conformed in all things to the general line proposed by your lordship, but in the details, and in whatever I suggested to his Excellency, I received the most immediate and cordial assent and co-operation; and nothing was omitted on his part, to ensure the success of our united efforts; and during the battle, he most essentially, by his experience, knowledge, and zeal, contributed to its fortunate result.

His Excellency the Captain-general Castanos, who had united the few troops he had in a state to be brought into the field, to those of General Blake, and placed them under his orders, assisted in person in the field; and not only on this, but on all occasions, I am much indebted to General Castanos, who is ever beforehand in giving whatever can be beneficial to the success of the common

cause.

Though I unfortunately cannot point out the corps, or many of the individuals of the Spanish troops, that distinguished them

selves,