Date: Wed, 15 Feb 2017 16:41:24 +1300
From: arthur carkeek <artcart65@gmail.com>
Subject: Drummer Boy II chapter 9

DRUMMER BOY
CHAPTER 9
THE ROAD NORTH
BOOK 2


CONTACT AUTHOR:
artcart65@gmail.com


When Thomas awoke a little later in the afternoon, the heat had eased
although the humidity was still high. Fairley had placed a cooling drink on
his bedside table for him and was waiting patiently with his clean clothes
as well as a message.

Thomas stifled a small groan as his shoulder ached a little from him
sleeping on it. Thomas knew that if Fairley heard him he would be given a
sharp look of censure from his batman. Thomas rolled off the bed and began
to re-button his shirt while Fairley lifted his jacket off the wooden coat
hook for him.

"Lieutenant Morgan wishes to talk with you Sir, when would you like to see
him?"

"Give me a few minutes please Fairley then call for him."

"Yes Sir, there is also Major Carterton waiting to see you as well."

"OK; tell Mister Carterton he can have some time after the Lieutenant. Do
you know what it's all about?"

"I'm only a Sergeant Sir that would be above my station."

"Fairley!"

"Yes Sir?"

"Stop the crap, now what do they want?"

"I believe that the Lieutenant has some news of your family from home Sir
and that the Major has a plan for the new armoury for you to look over
Sir."

"You could have just told me that to start with Fairley; I should make you
an Officer just so you have more to keep you busy."

"Thank you Sir but it would be unseemly for an Officer to be a batman; it
would create too much talk amongst the ranks Sir."

"And I suppose you would be the one to start the talk Fairley?"

"I would never do that Sir, after all it may put me in line for promotion
and that could be very upsetting Sir."

"Go and call Mister Morgan before I make you a Captain."

"Yes Sir, right away Sir."

Thomas hid his smile as he pulled his jacket on; he wondered what his days
would have been like without the young teen watching over him. It was a
thought he quickly pushed aside as he got ready for his visitors, once that
was done it would be time for the general meeting with all the troops in
their meeting place at the side of the valley.

Thomas carried the half full glass of cool fruit drink with him; he had
come to like the tart taste of the limes and water and it was refreshing
just when he needed it most. Thomas sat at the small round table under the
awning of the veranda and out of the direct sunlight while he watched Snot
Morgan come towards him with a wide smile on his young face.

"Good Afternoon Lieutenant, what do you have for me?"

"Good afternoon Sir, I have brought messages from home Sir and wish to
apologise for my tardiness in returning."

"Think nothing of it Lieutenant; I really had little idea how long your
assignment would take. Now what have you got in that pouch?"

Snot Morgan laid the leather message pouch on the small table and untied
the strap before taking out the first of the written messages and laying it
on the table for Thomas to see.

"This one is from the Captain of the Avante Sir; I presume it is to do with
his last cargo and capture."

"Thank you Lieutenant, now the next?"

"This one is from me Da Sir, tells all about the Shipping Company and what
he is doing with the new ship."

"New ship Lieutenant?"

"Message tells it all Sir but me Da has signed on a new ship to your
company; the message explains it all Sir."

"Well then what's left?"

"Just one more Sir, a letter from your own Da, wanted me to carry it to you
personal like Sir, right pleased he was when I went to visit and found out
you were back on your feet again."

"Sit down Snot and tell all about your visit. Are they all well and what of
my new little brother?"

"Thank you Sir."

Snot took the small chair opposite Thomas and began to tell him of his trip
back to England and his visit with Thomas's family. He told Thomas of his
ride to Lisbon and how he had found the ship to take him to England and
what had transpired on the docks and during the voyage.  Next he told the
story of when he finally got to London and how he had been riding his horse
one day when he got the idea of going in search of Thomas's family.

Snots story ended after he told Thomas about staying to help his father
with the farm work and having time to play with his little brother; it was
this that had kept him away later than intended but he felt the journey
well worth it to have news to bring back for Thomas.

When Snot had finished his report, Thomas thanked him for his
thoughtfulness in visiting his family and taking the time to wait for his
father to write a letter to him. With everything complete Snot stood back
up and saluted Thomas before saying one last thing; the twinkle in his eye
did not go unseen by Thomas, even though he had a small tear in his eye.

"That brother of yours Sir, little though he be he walks right funny at
times; just like a Jack Tar he is Sir."

Thomas could not help the laughter that burst from his lips as Snot turned
about and left Thomas alone just as Major Carterton appeared in the
distance and making his way towards where Thomas sat in the shade.

When Carterton had arrived at the table, Thomas told him to sit and show
his plans so they could discuss it and see if there were anything needed.

"So what have you got for me Major?"

"Here we are Sir, thought this might do us nicely if we can get a few
things not found here."

Thomas watched as the large roll was unfurled and laid open for him to see
the design of the new powder store. To Thomas it looked quite impressive
and the detail of the drawing left nothing to chance; Major Carterton must
have spent many long hours working on it.

"So explain to me what I'm looking at Major?"

"Well Sir, I propose we put the new store down yonder at the far end of the
valley and well out of the way of the rest of the camp. The walls will be
built double thickness with rocks and mortar and I am told there is a
plentiful supply of tiles at the works in Vimeiro for us to roof it. Inside
it will be divided into stalls with the fine pistol and musket powder to
the front and the course powder for the guns at the rear. I suggest Sir we
put a single large wooden door with a heavy padlock on it facing into the
valley; it can be made by the carpenter in the village I am told. If we use
this just for the powder then the extra weapons we have can stay in the
original store along with your coin chests. If anything happens and the
powder store goes up then the rest of the valley should stay safe."

Thomas looked at the fine detail of the plan and thought for a few minutes
before saying.

"How long to put it all together Major?"

"If you let most of the men work on it then not long at all Sir. Six to
seven hundred men carrying a rock each doesn't take long to have good
strong walls built, the only concern for me is the supply of mortar; it
will take a good supply to complete the work Sir."

"What's mortar Major?"

"It's a mixture of sand and quick lime Sir, the sand is easy to get but the
quick lime may be a little more difficult but it is needed for a good tight
seal and to hold the stones tight."

"What do you suggest Major?"

"I was thinking perhaps that young Lieutenant you have purchasing the
cattle and sheep; he may know where to get the lime from as it is used
quite frequently in the construction of their own homes and buildings."

"A good idea Major. When you leave here send word for Lieutenant De Silva
and ask him to keep watch for you, when you are ready to build then you can
have all the men you need, it will keep them busy until we go out against
the French once again in May, I want to have a go at them again after
Wellington begins his push towards Salamanca in April."

"Yes Sir, I will personally guarantee that it will be well completed long
before then Sir."

"Thank you Major, now if there is nothing more I have some very important
letters to get to; please tell the men there will be a general meeting in
two hours."

"Yes Sir."

Thomas waited until Major Carterton was on his way before turning back to
the leather pouch with his mail inside; he barely noticed the slight shake
in his hand as he searched for the one from his father. Once he had the
letter in his hand, Thomas hesitated before breaking the seal and opening
the single page, the unsteady scrawl of his father's hand was easily
discerned and Thomas had to sniff to stop the sudden need for tears as the
symbol of his far off home and family sat in his hand.

Thomas reached into his sleeve and took out one of his knives to break the
simple candle wax seal. Next he slowly unfolded the cheap paper and laid it
flat on the table before starting to read. The familiar unsteady scrawl now
seemed almost foreign as he had got used to the precise and explicit
messages of the army Officers but the personality of his father was
undeniable in the roughly written and worded letter.

Cromwell Marking Sgt.

27th Feb 1812

Sun.

Both yor mutha and me is rite prowd that yoo is ower sun and am better off
nown you is back on yoor feat agin after wot them frencheys don to ye. I is
also rite prowd wot you don to save colors of the King and savd the
repatashun of all them toff ofisas but to sea wot they don to yoo afta
batal at that plase in Spanish land wos not rite atal. I got no blaim for
yoo goin to Spanish army ware they seems to laik yoo mor. Yung snot don
told me you now had lands aplenty an ar no longa party to nob ofisas of
British army, I says gud for yoo and stik to yor guns and maik us prowd
wuns mor. Tom yoo been a gud sun and no mistaik an I kan walk with hed hye
nown yoo will do rite by all. Mutha has tiars for you but i says for she to
stop as yoo is not a lital lad no mor. Yoor brutha be in gud helth an is
rite chip of old blok, wen he nows of his brathas advejur i be sur he wil
be rite prowd also.

Sun be of gud helth and woch over sholder for we wants you bak in gud
order.

Yoor Da

Cromwell Marking Sgt.

Thomas felt another tear slip down his cheek as he finished his Fathers
letter; there were times he did not think he would ever see them again but
this single sheet of roughly written words gave him more hope than ever
before. Thomas grunted as he determined that there was not a Frenchman in
Spain that would stop him from going home once the war was done with; the
fact of him staying there was another matter as he now also had other
duties to the people of Spain and Portugal but that was for another time
and place.

For the next few weeks Thomas watched as the new powder store grew quickly
under the directions of Major Carterton. It seemed to Thomas, that every
time he looked out into the valley there was a long line of men carrying
large stones towards the building site as well as a number of wagons coming
from further afield with more stones and two had been covered to keep the
quick lime from blowing away while not in use.

The new powder store had double thick stone walls and was forty feet long
and twenty feet wide, there was a large opening left for the single solid
wooden door to be fitted into once the Vimeiro carpenter had it made. All
the heavy beams and rafters had been hewed from trees outside of Vimeiro
and carried back to the valley in a number of wagons.

Off to one side lay long piles of red clay tiles for the roof; it had taken
almost every tile that had been made in Vimeiro at that time to fulfil the
needs of the high roof. Everyone Thomas saw seemed pleased with the work
and the break from normal military duties as they worked day after day on
their new addition but it would soon be time to get back to what they were
there for and the French waited them at Molina.

On the 8th of April, Thomas got a message that Wellington had beaten the
French at Badajoz only days before and was even now turning his army back
north to attack Salamanca. It was almost time for Thomas to once again lead
his men against the French even though the way forward would be even more
dangerous now the French knew that El Toro was again in the field.

On the 10th of April the last tile was laid on the roof and the men now
turned to the onerous task of man handling each and every keg of powder
from the old store to the new one, with the knowledge that they would soon
be going out against the French at Molina, the men set to work with a new
will and the powder was finally stored in only two days in its new home; it
was time for Thomas and his men to make plans for the coming attacks in
May.

The problem that arose for Thomas was being able to get so far inland to
Molina. The French would still be on full alert for any large movement of
troops and he did not want to take the chance of once again losing his guns
to the French. Molina was a large town and had a heavy French presence; he
would not be able to attack them without his guns. There had to be another
way to get there without crossing so much of Spain and leaving open an
opportunity for the French patrols to not only find them but to form up a
large counter attack.

Thomas and his Colonels were standing around the large table with the map
of Spain open upon it. It was not one of the finely detailed maps of Major
Smithson but it did show all of Spain with most rivers and land masses
shown; it also showed the major tracks and roads on the Peninsular.

The four men studied the map for over an hour before Estaban pointed to an
area of coast between Almenara and San Carlos de la Rapita. The two centres
were widely spread apart and there looked to be very little in between
them.

"Here Patron, we could land the full army here on the beaches, there are
many small coves along this coast. I know it well as my family often
travelled to Valencia; all we need is the ships to carry the men, guns and
horses. If we timed our landing for the hours of darkness we could be well
inland before anyone was aware of us. From there it is only a matter of
days and we can come on Molina from the east and south. It would be the
last place the French would be watching for us."

The four friends looked at the map for a long time and considered Estaban's
plan; it was both daring and dangerous but the first thought that came into
Thomas's mind was if they could find enough ships for the daring attempt;
there was only one thing for it; he had to make contact with Mister Percy
to see what help was available.

The four friends stayed and planned in the hope they could somehow make it
work, if it came off it would be a real feather in their cap and add even
more confusion to the French forces. The biggest problem they could
immediately see was the need for their ships to go into French held waters
to unload and that was the main stumbling block to the plan; it would all
depend on what and if Mister Percy could help them.

An hour later and Thomas was at his small table writing letters, one would
have to go to his agent in Oporto to make contact with his own ships to
clear their holds and meet him at Toro Bay and the other was to be sent to
Colonel Lewis by one of his boys and then be delivered on to Mister
Percy. It was the only way Thomas had to contact his old friend. He would
send Sergio as his messenger as he had been advised not to show his face
too often in Lisbon while English Officers were still there in numbers.

With Sergio on his way to find Colonel Lewis, Thomas and his friends
settled back to working out their proposed plan for the future. It took
another week before he had his replies from Oporto and Mister Percy but the
results were very favourable. .The agent in Oporto reported that all of his
four ships would be made available when he wanted them; Thomas did not miss
the reference to four ships instead of the three he thought he had.

Mister Percy had done even better; it would remain only for Thomas to tell
him the date of his departure from Vimeiro and Mister Percy would see that
he had a naval escort for the ships when they entered French waters, He did
not mention how or with what but the result was more than Thomas could have
expected.

On the 25th of April Thomas had decided it was time to make their move
towards Molina. The four ships of the Marking Shipping Company had reported
that they were at anchor on the 23rd and awaiting his orders. With the
final decision made, Thomas sent off a message for Mister Percy to tell him
when they expected to be sailing into French waters west of Cartagena.

Thomas had not been told what sort of escort they would get but he hoped it
would be enough to discourage any French ships in the area from attacking
his small convoy carrying his troops and guns. On the arrival of his small
army on the shores of Toro bay, Thomas saw what he had to deal with.

While Thomas knew he had an extra ship under contract and another small
Sloop captured from the French, he was surprised to see a large Brigantine
also anchored there with the others. Both the Brig and the Sloop had
obvious evidence of new repairs as well as a number of gun ports not
normally seen on this type of ship; it appeared the Council had once again
come to his aide.

Once Thomas had met with all four Captains, he set about getting his men
and guns loaded. With the extra space on the Brig it was decided that the
guns and caissons would be carried by her which left the Sloop to act as
powder ship for their munitions and a full Corps of Infantry. The Avante
and the Beatrice Graves would carry the horses for the Officers and the
balance of the personnel; it would be a tight squeeze but they were
prepared to make any sacrifices needed to get a jump on the French.

As there was limited space on the four ships, Pablo had volunteered to use
his Cavalry troop to take most of the horses overland and meet the convoy
in the agreed landing place. While the trip was long it was still far
easier and safer now the French had been pushed back by Wellington's latest
victory and they should be able to make the landing place in good time with
safety.

The small convoy left Toro bay on the 28th of April and turned their bows
towards the French held waters off Cartagena; it would be a trip of four
days as long as the wind stayed in their favour. It was in the very early
hours of the 5th of May when the topman spied the faint outline of ships
masts in the slowly brightening light of the morning.

Thomas and his Officers were soon on deck to watch the approach of what was
quickly becoming three large English forty gun Frigates; it appeared Mister
Percy still had a lot of pull in naval circles.

The sun was just breaking in the east when the three towering Frigates took
station around the four smaller ships; a signal was run up the mainmast of
the leading Frigate to ask permission to send an Officer to meet with
General Thomasino de Toro. Permission was granted quickly and Thomas and
his friends watched as a long boat was lowered over the side and six
heavily built seaman and one Officer quickly scrambled into it and began to
pull towards the Avante.

All of the ships had furled sails to the minimum and they were barely
making two knots as the long boat drew closer to the Avante. When the long
boat was alongside, Thomas stepped close to the gunnel to wait for the
Officer to climb the rope ladder and step onto the deck.

It was plainly obvious to Thomas that the Officer; a man in his mid
twenties; was not expecting such a young man to be the General he was
seeking. The youngish Officer stepped onto the deck and was astute enough
to note that Thomas was the Senior Officer by the fact that the others on
deck were apparently deferring to him. The Officer stood to attention and;
after introducing himself, asked Thomas.

"Lieutenant Bellamy Sir, are you General Thomasino de Toro Sir?"

The surprised look on the Lieutenants face when Thomas replied with a heavy
London accent nearly caused Thomas to giggle.

"Yes Lieutenant, what can I do for you?"

The surprise was still on the Lieutenants face as he almost spluttered as
he tried to relay his message.

"Captain Selkirk's compliments Sir; he would like to know your final
destination so he can organise the escort. I am told he has orders to stand
off the beach to guard you while your ships unload; all he needs now is for
your course and final destination Sir."

"Thank you Lieutenant, please pass on my thanks to Captain Selkirk and if
you would follow me below to the Captain's cabin I will show you what we
have in mind."

"Thank you Sir."

Less than thirty minutes later and Thomas was watching the Lieutenant
rowing back towards the waiting Frigate; it was not long before the signals
went up on the lead Frigate and all the ships unfurled all their sails to
take advantage of the favourable wind. Thomas's little convoy was now under
the protection of the three heavily armed English Frigates; how Mister
Percy had pulled it off he would never know but he was very thankful as
they entered into French waters.

Captain Selkirk led the convoy out into deeper water so they would be less
likely to meet too many other ships; the course he set was to take them
through the narrow channel between Iviza and Majorca and then make a direct
run into the beaches and bays of their intended landing place. Once
Thomas's ships had been unloaded they would then return to English
protected waters with the escort and return to their normal business while
Thomas had the men of the Regiment prepare for their attack on Molina.

It was a further two days for the small convoy to finally reach the
selected bay. The beach was a coarse shingle and the landing of the army
and its equipment would not be without its difficulties. Thomas's biggest
fears were for the guns and caissons; with only four long boats and three
dory's it looked as though it was going to take a long time to unload, it
was time for a meeting with the Captains.

The final decision for the equipment surprised Thomas when Captain Bowden
suggested they run the sloop ashore at high tide and unload the powder and
shot stores. Being the smallest of the four ships it was deemed that the
other three could assist in pulling it off the beach on the next high tide,
they would then do the same with the brig although it was suggested they
ask for help from one of the Frigates as the brig was larger and heavier.

Lorenco would take his sharpshooter scouts ashore first and set a perimeter
about a half mile inland, as yet there was no sign of Pablo and the horses
so the guns would have to be manhandled up the shingle beach in pieces. The
barrels would be removed and carried by the gunners once the ship was
beached and then the carriages would be followed by the empty caissons
which would be filled with the ammunition once they were high and dry.

The Officer's horses would be swum ashore behind the dory's with some of
the men holding the lead ropes as they were rowed ashore. Thomas had time
to take note that the three large Frigates had taken the station of line
astern and began to patrol the seaward side of the bay about a half mile
out and running from north east until just past the end of the bay before
turning about and setting course south west where they would again turn
about to follow the same pattern.

The last Frigate in line would just disappear as the first in line once
again came into sight on its return track; Thomas found it a comforting
thought to have the three forty gunners watching to seaward while they set
to unloading. All Thomas now had to concern himself with was the
whereabouts of the army's horses; he could only pray that Pablo had not run
into any trouble before getting to them.

Inside the bay the water was calm and there was barely a ripple on the
beach as the first long boats arrived with Lorenco and his men. Quickly
jumping from the boats, Lorenco led his men outward to set his lines as the
long boats returned for the next part of the unloading. They had just
missed the high tide and so had twelve hours before they could beach the
Sloop, the time was to be spent getting most of the army ashore in
preparation for the heavier equipment to be unloaded.

The first bit of good news came in the middle of the afternoon, just as the
Sloop was preparing to raise anchor and ready for high tide. At the far end
of the bay Thomas saw the first signs of the awaited horses. Pablo had some
of his men riding on the outer edges as guards while the main part of the
troop were leading the horses on the end of a rope; there were about ten
horses to a rope and all seemed to be in good condition after the long
ride.

With the arrival of the horses it would now be easier to get the guns off
the beach along with the three heavy wagons for the powder stores and other
essentials. Thomas watched as the Captain on the Sloop lined his small ship
up with the beach; as he neared the point where he would beach, the Captain
dropped two stern anchors to assist in winching himself off the beach once
unloaded. The other three ships would also act when the time came to pull
the Sloop back into deeper water which should be a little easier as it
would be riding high and empty.

From the high tide they would have twelve hours to unload their supplies
before the tide would be good enough to refloat the Sloop. It had been
decided that, should the Sloop prove to be easy to handle this way then
they would also then beach the Brigantine and do the same for the guns,
caissons and three wagons. It was an hour later and the Sloop was well
beached and the unloading had begun; Thomas left the Avante and went in one
the dory's to the beach, it was time to start to organise for the final
move inland in a few days time.

With the Sloop clear of the beach, the Brigantine set itself on the beach
at the same place; the unloading of its heavier equipment would take far
longer than the supplies of the Sloop. As the Brigantine could only be
unloaded from the bow until the water lowered further to low tide, it was
decided to remove the barrels of the guns and manhandle them over the side
four at a time.

On the beach below the bow stood most of the gunners, they had divided up
into six man teams and had two long poles with canvas slings attached. The
barrel would be placed on the sling and the men would carry them up the
shingle beach; it was hoped they would be able to get all the barrels off
the ship in short order, and so it proved.

Within an hour all the barrels were lined up neatly on the harder ground
above the beach and now all they had to wait for were the gun carriages and
the Caissons. It was decided to unload the empty Caissons first as they
were lighter and would be easier to man handle; it was hoped they would be
able to use the horses to pull the gun carriages up the beach so the men
could rest before reassembling them.

As the ship now had to use its foremast for a winch, as they could only
land one Caisson or gun carriage at a time it was going to take time. Once
the equipment was ashore they would then have to rearm the Caissons and set
the barrels, there was also the reloading of the wagons with their supplies
that were now under canvas to protect them.

It took a further five days to finally finish unloading the ships and
refloat the Brigantine while those ashore readied the wagons with all the
stores and equipment so that the ships could now leave and Thomas's little
army would be on their own. The two Infantry Corps had taken over the guard
duties although they only worked one at a time with the other helping on
the beach until their turn came to protect their friends.

Lorenco had taken his men deeper into the countryside to make sure the bay
was well protected and they would not encounter any unwanted surprises. On
the 14th of May the small army of El Toro was ready to make its move on
Molina but before that happened they had to cover the distance without
being seen by the French or any of their spies; it was going to be night
moves once again.

Thomas would again send Lorenco and his men out ahead of them to not only
keep them unseen and safe but also to look out for camping places for the
daytime bivouacs; it was to be a trip of ten days and nights, mainly nights
and they had the added need to skirt around the smaller towns along their
route and stay close to the mountains. If all went well they would come in
on Molina from the east; what they hoped would be the last direction the
French would expect them to come from.

Thomas's biggest concern was how close they would come to the smaller towns
of Tortosa, Fleix, and Alcaniz; one mistake and they could easily be
discovered. From Alcaniz they would cut into the mountains and work their
way west through the passes until they came in sight of Molina on the
plains below them. It was difficult at best to get the guns and wagons
through the confines of the narrow pass but it was the only way they could
hope to take the town of Molina totally by surprise.

As before, Thomas and his army would divide once through the mountains; he
would lead the guns and two Corps of Infantry through to Molina while
Estaban would take his three Cavalry troops on towards Villaviciosa where
he would try to time his own attack to that of Thomas's. The attacks were
timed for around the 26th of May and it was hoped that would give them both
time to form a plan of attack before they had to take action.

Once again Major Smithson's maps came into their own; his detailed work and
fine drawing had given Thomas and his men a great advantage on planning
their route through the mountains and almost to the back door of Molina
with two full days to spare.

It was to be a tough two days as they needed to keep a quiet bivouac so
close to a well held French position and the need to keep any fires small
and low only for cooking meant the nights were chilly as they were still in
the mountains even though it was summer. During the next two days, Thomas
and his men kept a sharp vigil on the town below as they worked on
developing a plan of attack.

Molina was positioned at the northern end of the mountain range and close
in to the foot of the high mountains, it would not be an easy nut to crack
and Thomas also had the added problem of his own escape route out of the
area once the fighting was done. To the east of Molina was a large open
plain which Thomas hoped would be to their advantage.

The final plan was laid out and Thomas and his Infantry and guns would take
position out on the plains to the east of Molina and let the guns do most
of the work with the two Infantry Corps acting as close in protection with
Lorenco further out as a screen. Thomas and his watchers had noticed one
thing that may be too their advantage. The French in Molina had no Cavalry;
it appeared to be an Infantry staging post and supply depot.

The town and nearby French encampment would be bombarded by the guns and
when Thomas thought they had done enough damage he would lead the men north
over the plain and through the narrow pass north of Villaviciosa which
would once again lead them past the entrance to Somosiera. Once past the
Somosiera pass they would continue towards their final destination of the
Guadarrama pass for their final attack on Escorial.

Their largest problem once free of Molina would be getting past Segovia and
San Ildefonso without alerting the French to their plans for the
area. Estaban would meet up with them near the narrow pass to the north of
Villaviciosa and from then on it would all be night marches along the foot
of the mountains to their final destination of the Guadarrama pass and
Escorial.

After their attacks it was decided to head south and bivouac in the high
ranges near Batuecas where the French had been pushed out earlier by the
English and the country side was safer than staying around to wait for the
English advance later in the year.

To cover his withdrawal from Molina Thomas decided on a bold plan. Calling
for Lieutenant Wright of the 5th battery, Thomas asked the young Lieutenant
if he would be prepared to be their rearguard. Lieutenant Wright did not
hesitate as he replied in the affirmative and then sat with Thomas to
discuss how it would be done.

Thomas was glad the young Lieutenant was prepared to hold the line while
the heavier guns and the Infantry made their escape. The 5th battery were
now old hands at setting up their rockets and then breaking them down for
transport; Lieutenant Wright almost boasted that he and his men could have
the rocket battery ready to move in less than two minutes if needs be.

The sixteen launchers were carried four to a horse with another six horses
carrying the actual rockets, the twenty man team of rocketeers were also
mounted and Lieutenant Wright swore they would be well clear of any
retaliation before the French could close with them and cause harm.

Thomas took the young Lieutenant at his word and began to lay out what he
had in mind for their eventual withdrawal. The plan was again simple in its
set up; during the initial bombardment, Lieutenant Wright would not make
use of his rocket battery but stay back behind the line of guns and wait
for the last salvo and the hooking up of the guns before he would ready his
own battery.

It was assumed that the French would be in a turmoil from the bombardment
and this should work to Lieutenant Wright's advantage. With the withdrawal
of the guns and the two corps of Infantry running alongside as a protective
screen, Lieutenant Wright would open fire on the already confused camp with
what they hoped would be four more salvoes of rockets and then pack up and
ride towards the pass and rejoin Thomas and the others.

With the French having no Cavalry close by they should easily make the far
off pass well before anyone could come after them. The attack was timed for
an hour before dawn on the 26th, Thomas guessed that they could make the
pass by the evening of the 26th if they pushed hard and had no problems
along the way.

On the night of the 25th Thomas went from gun to gun and checked that every
piece of loose harness or metal had been bound in sacking to stop any
squeaks or rattles as they moved into position for the morning bombardment;
silence and stealth was more vital now than at any other time but Thomas
had also prepared a rude wake up call for the French garrison.

Thomas called for the last seventy six Originals and told them his plan for
the French; he was not surprised at the wide smiles that he saw on his
longest serving men and boys, they were all ready and willing to carry out
his cheeky plan.

As they had planned to move the guns into position only five miles from
where they had been hiding; Thomas estimated they could easily make it in
good time without having to make the horses and guns move at more than
walking pace; it would keep any stray noise to a minimum and the chances of
discovery were cut down considerably and so it proved.

With more than an hour of darkness to spare, Major Morgan had his twenty
guns lined up in a single long line at nine hundred yards and ready to open
fire on Thomas's command. Half of the 1st Corps of Infantry stood ready at
each end of the long line of guns while the 2nd Corps was in a double line
just behind.

At the front of the 2nd Corps stood the seventy six originals with their
drums at the front and sticks at the ready. The drums had been always
carried on the wagons, even if they were never used but it had just become
habitual. Thomas would call the order for the drummers when he saw the
first faint hint of the dawn light.

To the rear of the 2nd Corps of Infantry stood the 5th battery, once those
in front had cleared the field they would open fire into the French lines
in the hope of causing more than enough confusion for the others to make a
clean escape. Beside each rocket stand were laid out eight rockets, once
they were fired the 5th battery would also pack up and pull out after the
others.

With their observations of the last two days Thomas knew that nearly all of
the French Officers were billeted inside the town in various homes of the
Spanish residents and only the NCO's and troops were bivouacked in the tent
lines to the east of the town. With no Officers present in the tent lines
to give orders, Thomas and his men had a distinct advantage.

Thomas stood alone in front of the Originals; his drum was at the ready as
he watched the sky in the east; General he maybe but he was also still a
drummer and he was not going to miss the opportunity to discourage the
French whenever possible.

The first faint hint of greyness showed in the eastern sky when Thomas
raised his drum sticks above his head in the signal for the drummers to
stand ready. With the certainty of long practice, Thomas lowered his sticks
and began the first drum roll of the De La Guerra; it was time to awaken
the French.

The order for Major Morgan to open fire was the silence of the drums at the
end of the last drum roll, his men stood ready at the lanyards and the
order of fire would be a count of three between each gun just as they would
have done with a full broadside at sea. The order of munitions was to be
three solid shot followed next by two canister and then back to solid, the
last salvo would be two of canister and then they would hitch the guns and
retreat to the pass with the 5th battery holding the line for them.

As the first light of dawn showed in the east, the French picket guards
rubbed bleary eyes and yawned widely; they would all be glad to get back to
their beds when their replacements arrived in another hour. Molina was
considered to be a backwater, all the reports they had received told of the
English well to their west and south; even the knowledge that the rebel El
Toro was believed to have resurfaced around Salamanca held little fear for
them; it was a long way from their little part of Spain.

The Brigade of twelve hundred men, mostly old hands or new recruits were
quite happy to spend their time in the peace and quiet of Molina; it was
far better than facing an advancing English army that seemed to be finding
victory with ease.

At first it was surprise but that was soon joined by concern as the sleepy
picket guards heard the far off sound of a growing drum roll; while none of
them had ever heard the sound of El Toro's drums, the rumours had told them
all about it and the fear it could instil when heard for the first
time. The rumour had also told of the meaning behind the drums; the guards
could stand, fight and die or they could run and save their own lives; they
were never given the chance to make the decision.

As Molina came awake to the echoing sound of the early morning drums; the
still sleepy and tired guards began to make out dark shapes through the
growing mist of early dawn, their fear now became a palpable thing as they
realised what they were seeing in the distance. There was no sight of the
drummers that had now caused concern among those who were trying to awaken
from their nights slumber; the early morning mist was distorting everything
in the grey light of dawn and only the dark outline of the long row of guns
could be made out.

After almost three minutes of the terrible rattle of the early morning
drums, they suddenly stopped just as quickly as they had started; it was
then the picket guards realised it was too late to run as the sound of
massed cannon began to open fire well out of range of anything the guards
could do.

Major Morgan stood to the left of number one gun and waited for Thomas to
play the final drum roll; on its completion he would give the fire
order. Craven waited patiently as he looked at the town some nine hundred
yards away, it would not be long before he would change its appearance on
the landscape.

Craven watched as Thomas finished the last drum roll, with his voice almost
echoing over the silent and empty plain outside Molina; Craven shouted his
order.

"On my order all guns will fire at the count of three. Number one
gun...FIRE."

Craven watched with the eyes of a hawk as the guns fired one after the
other with a count of three between each gun; for those watching it was
like a rolling broadside as the dark barrels belched out smoke and flame
and the whistling sound of the twelve pound balls were sent flying towards
the unsuspecting and vulnerable town ahead of them.

After the first shot, Craven watched as the gun Captain went about his
duties for the next firing. As the gun crew swabbed out the hot barrel and
then gave space for the young powder monkey to insert the cotton bag
containing the powder charge into the barrel; the next man could ram it
home tightly and then the man carrying the black cast iron ball would place
it also in the mouth of the cannon to once again be rammed tightly home.

The gun Captain was at the breach, he had to wait for the powder monkey to
lay the charge before he could take the primer pick, push it through the
primer hole so that some of the powder fell through into the flash pan to
charge the frisson. The gun Captain would then inspect the flint and pull
the hammer to full cock before stepping back with the lanyard firmly
grasped in his hand; he would wait there until his gun crew were standing
just behind him while he waited for the order to fire.

Craven checked that his guns had been reloaded and then called the next
order.

"All guns up a quarter; on my orders to the count of three, number one gun
prepare to fire...FIRE."

While the gun Captains had been preparing the gun to fire, Craven Morgan
had been watching the fall of shot; most times he could actually see the
shot in the air as it flew towards its target. The results were pleasing to
Craven's eye as he saw some of the shot send great gouts of earth, canvas
and what could have been body parts high into the air and the first sounds
of screams from the wounded echoed across the distance to where he stood.

Not all the shot landed the same; some hit solid pieces of buried rock and
careened off at a tangent or bounced along the ground carrying all before
it. The burning fagots of the breakfast fires were scattered like flaming
brands and the first fires started to set alight the dry canvas tents;
often with men still inside them. Craven was not a man to smile at such
destruction but he did give a faint grunt of satisfaction as he turned to
give the next firing order.

For the French Brigade in Molina it was as though the very end of the earth
had arrived; the drums had awoken most of them but they were still in the
throes of trying to awaken when the first loud sounds of the massed guns
opened fire, the resulting carnage only caused more panic and the call for
Officers was almost drowned out by the thunder of the guns which seemed to
be surrounding them.

Partially dressed Officers ran from their billets and began to shout orders
to try to bring some order out of the chaos as ordinary soldiers looked
around with stunned looks on their faces. The sudden attack by so many
massed guns so early in the morning had caught everyone by total surprise;
they also had little answer to the mayhem that was starting to appear
around them.

The next fall of shot was even deeper into the camp and supply depot; as
the targets of the guns were closer together the damage and mayhem was even
higher than the first barrage. The French were now almost into a stage of
panic as they could not find any answer to the sudden attack and were
totally unprepared for the early morning disaster that was now showering
down on them from the massed guns in the distance.

Before the Officers could command order and try to figure out a plan of
defence they all heard the rumble in the distance as the third barrage was
sent their way; again it landed deeper into their bivouac and once again
caused death and destruction as the heavy hot balls of metal landed in
great gouts of earth and other less recognisable things.

Slowly the Officers began to gain some semblance of order as they tried to
yell above the sound of the screams and cries of the wounded. NCO's ran
about physically pushing young troops into battle order, the older hands
already knew what to do even though the fall of shot was almost
continuous. Already the French had lost fifty men to the guns but that was
little consequence where the total number of troops were concerned.

Many of the troops had not even had time to dress properly and only had
time to grasp their muskets and powder and run to form ranks in preparation
for an advance on the enemy; something they were not entirely happy to do
over such open ground but if they wanted to live through the day they would
have to stop the guns from destroying their encampment.

As the French formed ranks and prepared to advance; Craven Morgan held back
the order to fire, he wanted them fully out in the open for the next two
barrages; both of which were canister; his order was crisp and clear in the
early morning silence.

"All guns load canister, lower guns by a half and prepare to fire on my
order at the three count."

Craven waited and watched as the French brigade formed ranks and prepared
to attack the guns over the open ground. The third salvo had caused even
more terror and damage to the encampment and town but now the French were
getting organised; he knew they may very well not get too many more salvos
off once the French had advanced enough to get within range.

As he watched, Craven could hear Thomas giving orders for the two Infantry
Corps to prepare to protect the guns; Craven also decided to change the
fire order for the munitions.

"All guns will stay with canister, on the third salvo all guns will fire at
will and lower a quarter at range."

With the ceasing of fire from the distant guns, the French suddenly felt
they had a chance to take them; all they had to do was cover the nine
hundred yards in good order and not falter in their endeavour; the loudly
shouted orders of the Officers and NCO's had the troops ready and willing;
their ranks stood straight and ready as the order was given to advance.

Craven held his fire order as he watched the French Brigade begin their
advance; it appeared as though they were growing in confidence with each
step they took closer to the waiting guns. The French did not even think it
strange that the guns had stopped and were even now not making any attempt
to withdraw while they had the chance. Had the Officers or men been front
line troops they may have realised that it was not normal for guns to not
fire at such a range advantage.

The French had now gained a hundred yards and still there had been no shots
fired from the waiting guns. More experienced Officers would have
immediately known something was wrong with the situation ahead of them but
lacking that vital experience they continued to push their troops to
advance. They were soon to learn the error of their ways as the troops
stepped past the one hundred yard mark. They never heard the order from
Major Morgan but they did feel the results.

"All guns on the three count...FIRE."

The loud blast of the salvo rang out over the open plain as the guns fired
one after the other with only a three count between them. As the last gun
fired the first was almost ready to continue as the loud voice of Major
Morgan rang out over the noise of the last guns in the line.

"All guns down an eighth, fire on count...FIRE."

On the open plain ahead of them the first canisters began to explode above
the massed ranks of French troops, the results were devastating as one
after the other the canisters did their deadly work on the massed
ranks. Great holes appeared in the ranks as the dead and wounded fell
screaming to the ground while those around them broke step and began to
look for a safer place; it was only the cajoling and threats from the NCO's
and Officers that finally got the inexperienced troops moving forward once
again.

The second salvo of canister again took a massive toll on the troops and
once again they faltered in their advance. The ground was now becoming a
charnel house as those troops behind the front rank stumbled on their
fallen comrades; if they hoped for any relief it was short lived as they
heard the sound of the guns once again but this time they were firing
independently and the plain became a scene of chaos as Officers fell along
with many NCO's and the orderly advance stumbled as the Canister continued
its devastating savagery.

The French had pushed and stumbled another three hundred yards but the
large holes in their ranks were now very noticeable and there was less
heart in their advance, the guns however never seemed to cease and there
were those that had already turned and run from the death plains.

Craven looked at the French troops now some five hundred yards away. Craven
reached into his jacket pocket and withdrew a silver boatswain's whistle;
giving a long loud blast on the whistle to attract the attention of the
gunners he called out his next order.

"All guns cease fire and prepare to withdraw."

At that order the sound of fast moving horse were soon heard as the guns
were made ready to retire; Thomas led his Infantry to the front of the guns
to protect them while they were hitched up, it was time for Lieutenant
Wright to make himself known to the confused and scared French out on the
plain.

When Craven finally had all his guns hooked up he gave the order to move
out at the trot, Thomas and his Infantry took up station on either side of
the long train of guns and worked as close in protection while Lorenco had
his men take station well out to either side and the van to make sure the
way ahead was clear.

As they moved off Thomas heard the first salvo of rockets take to the air
as Lieutenant Wright fulfilled his position as rear guard, the quieter
whooshing of the rockets filled the morning air above the far off cries of
the French; they were to be even more concerned when the rockets exploded
above their head sending small flaming balls of fire into their ranks.

Thomas was never to know how much damage and death they caused that day but
the French report that was sent back to their superiors had counted the
dead at more than four hundred and the total destruction of the supply
depot; Molina would never again be the same place that French had thought
of as a back water. El Toro's raid had made it clear that there was no
place in Spain that was safe from his attacks or reach.

TBC.