Touring the Peninsula With Matt
Salamanca
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We
arrived at the massive battle site after spending the previous day
visiting the ancient and beautiful city.
When
I say massive, it really is. The entire battlefield is almost 5
miles (8km) across, and about 3 miles (5km) wide, and the 2 imposing
'Arapiles' are massive, steep-faced ridges with steep sided slopes
covered with shingle and rocks.
After
turning off the N360, which lead out of Salamanca in the direction
of the battlefield, the seemingly endless scorched plains lay out
ahead, scattered with rocks, which made the landscape look like
sandpaper.
After
turning off the worn, dusty tarmac road we turned on to an even
dustier-looking dirt track spattered with rocks and shingle, and
with the two huge Arapiles hills towering to our left and right.
This
was the scene of one of Wellington's greatest victories, and one
of the most decisive in the Napoleonic Wars.
As
we drove carefully down this humble dirt track that immediately
dissected the battlefield, it was hard to imagine the scale of the
battle fought.
The
Arapiles were huge, but they only served as a single area of the
battlefield, and with the front over 5 miles across, Wellington
must truly have been a great general if he new how to coordinate
men over such a wide radius.
These
were my thoughts as we followed the road around the back of the
Greater Arapiles, and parked on an even smaller (and dustier!) dirt
track that spiralled up to the top of it.
We
parked, and climbed towards the top, the view of the entire battlefield
becoming much clearer the higher you were raised above ground level,
until finally (after a race to the top between me, Derek, Sara,
and Judith) we ascended the summit, and stared literally in awe
at the vast expanse of the battlefield.
I
gazed northwards, and could just about imagine the assembled troops
of Wellington's army about a half mile away, facing towards me,
with a handful of shining bronze cannons glinting on top of the
lesser Arapiles, and Wellington, on horseback, staring back, surrounded
by his ADCs.
We
were standing where the French army was ''assembled'' I say this
because they were not entirely ready for battle. Wellington and
Marmont had been trying to outmanoeuvre each other for weeks previous,
with the French trying to get around Wellingtons right (southern)
flank with the allies cutting corners to prevent him.
However
Wellington had held a slight advantage by being in the centre of
a ''circle'' (Salamanca), whilst the French army were moving around
its ''circumference''.
However, this slight advantage was countermanded by the French,
who levelled the playing field by having the ability to march 12
miles a day compared to the allied 10.
These
two sides marched inexplicably for 100s of miles during these weeks,
endlessly trying to gain a strategic benefit, often within cannon
range of each other, and sometimes parallel to each other!
The
manoeuvrings came to an end as the French crossed the great bend
in the Tormes as they headed southwest, hoping to threaten allied
communications with Ciudad Rodrigo.
Wellington,
who was prepared to abandon Salamanca to safeguard the lifeline
of Ciudad Rodrigo, had already sent his baggage train westwards,
ready to retreat into Portugal.
The
battle began by skirmishing between the French and the British.
This involved a scramble by 7th Cacadores and the 4th Division to
get control of the Greater Arapiles, however Marmont beat back both
Divisions, and gained the higher and larger hill.
You
can only imagine the hell it must have been for the advancing Portuguese
and British to ascend this great hill, in all their gear and with
their muskets under heavy fire.
Wellington
quickly occupied the Lesser, and started to position a few cannons
on his hill.
Both
Arapiles acted as excellent gun-platforms, and Marmont held a clear
advantage with the larger hill, sending cursing and sweating gunners
up with Napoleon's ''daughters'' (his cannons) to the top of this
Greater Arapiles.
The
rest of the morning was spent by the armies adjusting their positions,
with the French continuing their march south-westwards, and the
Allies matching each move. The British 3rd Division were a part
of this manoeuvring, stretched far across in a 2-mile column from
Santa Marta, through Carbadjos, and heading for Aldea Tejada.
Wellington
spent much of the morning gazing towards Marmont's marching 40,000
men, but as the sun started to beat down he retired to the farm
where he divulged in some lunch.
Whilst
eating he turned towards the enemy, took a long look, and exclaimed:
''By God! That will do!'' and rode up the slippery slope of the
Lesser Arapiles for a better viewpoint.
What
Wellington was so excited about was the fact that the French were
advancing, and as they did so they extended their left, and began
to open a gap between their left and centre.
Marmont
had inadvertently swung the battle in Wellington's favour, and by
doing this had stretched his line so thinly that Wellington's large
concentrated force were in the pivot of his advance, and so had
the huge strategic advantage of being able to strike at any point
in his line with a large force without weakening themselves.
Wellington
immediately ordered a general advance of the 3rd Division, under
the leadership of Sir Edward (Ned) Pakenham, telling him: ''Ned,
move on with the 3rd Division; take the heights on your front; and
drive everything before you.'' To these short but clear instructions,
Pakenham responded: ''I will, my lord, if you will give me your
hand.''
The
two gravely shook hands. So began the battle of Salamanca.
From
our viewpoint over the valley from the top of what was Marmont's
Greater Arapiles, we could not really see where Pakenham's 3rd Division
crashed into, and routed, Thomière's division, however, we knew
it was to our left, and it was not hard to imagine an entire division,
7 battalions, or around 2800 men, marching across this now barren
plain that was previously cornfields.
One
hour after the meeting with Wellington, Pakenham's 3rd division
smashed into the head of Thomière's division, sending his men routing
from the field, and winning the battle in minutes.
However,
a brave but vain counter-attack by Clausel in the centre, pushed
back the 4th division for a while, but Wellington had clearly won
one of his greatest, and (I think) one of the greatest battles in
history.
Marmont
had being fatally caught off key and, by 7pm, he had fallen back
towards the Alba de Tormes Bridge, having suffered 6000 casualties,
lost 6000 men as prisoners, and suffering the loss of 3 and the
wounding of 3 generals. On the other hand the British army gained
11 Guns, 2 Eagles, and 6 standards to name a few of their trophies.
It
was an incredibly brief, but chaotic, battle. A French general later
commented that Wellington ''defeated 40,000 men in 40 minutes.''
This was an exaggeration, but was not far off the truth.
Having
being filled with awe over the massive battlefield, we clambered
down considerably less burdened than the Portuguese infantry, towards
the car, and headed off down the dusty dirt track towards Segovia.
- Matt
Mahabadi
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