knowledgments to Brigadier-general. Long, Brigadier general Loy (commanding the Spanish cavalry), Brigadier-general Madden, Colonel De Grey, Colonel Otway, Colonel Lord Edward Somerset, and to Captain Le fevre.] The advantage gained will not only, in some degree, lessen the enemy's superior cavalry, but will, I trust, still further tend to render him fearful and timid in all his I am, &c. movements. W. LUMLEY, Major-general. FRANCE. On the 16th instant, Bonaparte opened the Legislative Body in a Speech as follows: to Gentlemen Depwiies of Departments the Legislative Body,-The peace concluded with the Emperor of Austria has been since cemented by the happy alliance I have contracted: the birth of the King of Rome has fulfilled my wishes, and satisfies my people The affairs of with to the future. respect religion have been too often mixed and sacrificed to the interests of a state of the 3d order. If half Europe has separated from the Church of Rome, we may attribute it especially to the contradiction which has never ceased to exist between the truths and the principles of religion which belong to the whole universe, and the pretensions and interests which regarded only a very small corner of Italy. I have put an end to this scandal for ever. I have united Rome to the Empire. I have given palaces to the popes at Rome and at Paris: if they have at heart the interests of religion, they will often sojourn in the centre of the affairs of christianity. It was thus that St. Peter preferred Rome to an abode even in the Holy Land. Holland has been united to the Empires she is but an emanation of it: without her the Empire would not be complete. "The principles adopted by the English government not to recognize the neutrality of any flag, have obliged me to possess myself of the mouths of the Ems, the Weser, and the Elbe; and have rendered an interior com munication with the Baltic indispensable to me. It is not my territory that I wished to increase, but my maritime means. America is making efforts to cause the freedom of her fig to be recognized; I will second her The King of Spain is come to assist at this last solemnity. I have given him all that was necessary and proper to unite the interests and hearts of the different people of his provinces. Since 1800, the greater part of the strong places in Spain have been taken after memorable sieges. The insurgents have been beat in a great number of pitched battles. England has felt that this was approaching its termination, and that intrigues and gold were no longer sufficient to nourish it: she found GREAT BRITAIN. On the 10th instant the Prince Regent reviewed. the' olunteers of the metro.. polis, 20,000 in number, and nearly 10,000 regulars, on Wimbledon Com mon. On the 19th the Prince Regent gave a magnificent fête to 3000 persons at Carlton House, in honour of his father's birth day. It had been deferred from the 4th on account of increased symptoms of his disorder, in which, however, the King is somewhat amended. In the Houses of Parliament, interesting debates have taken place, relative to many subjects of the deepest interest to the rights and liberties of the people. A temporary Insolvent Bill has been carried by the great exertions of the Earl of Moira; but various important motions relative to parliamentary reform, special juries, severe sentences, military flogging, and capital punishments, moved and argued by Sir Samuel Romilly, Sir Francis Burdett, Lord Folkestone, Mr. Brand, and Mr. Whitbread, with extraordinary eloquence, have been rejected by large ministerial majorities. The times continue to be distinguished by the most poignant sufferings of ruined merchants, manufacturers, and workmen, of almost every description, and the periodical number of bankruptcies seems now permanently to quadruple what was ever experienced in any former period. Still money has been barrowed by Government on easy terms, and the minister assures the Parliament that the country is in a flouribing condition! 1 NATIONAL STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL DEBT. Amount of the capital of the Funded Debt, on the 5th of January, 1811. Great Britain £742,239,101 19 5 Unredeemed. £653,387,707 19 91 Total of the public debt unredeemed An account of the Reduction of the National Debt from the 1st of August, 1786, to the 1st of May, 1811. Redeemed by the sinking fund Transferred by land tax redeemed Ditto by annuities purchased On account of Great Britain Ditto of Ireland £175,542,305 23,782,945 1,380,562 200,705,812 8,054,000 2 Total 1,162,116 67,205 £209,989,133 The sum to be expended in the ensuing quarter is £3,276,230 4s. 118, Dispatches of which the following are extracts, have been this day received by the Earl of Liverpool, addressed to his Lordship by Lieutenant-general Viscount Wellington, dated Elvas, May 22, 1811. On the night of the 15th instant, I received from Marshal Sir William Beresford, letters of the 12th and 13th instant, which reported Marshal Soult had broken up from Seville about the 10th, and had advanced towards Estremadura, notwithstanding the rewhich had been previously received that ports he was busily occupied in strengthening Seville, and the approaches to that city by works; and that all his measures indicated. an intention to remain on the defensive in Andalusia. I therefore set out on the following morning from Villa Fermosa; and, having received further information of the 14th, from Sir ..William Beresford, of the enemy's movements, hastened my progress, and arrived here on the 19th, and found that Sir William Beresford had raised the siege of Badajoz, without the loss of ordnance or stores of any description; and collected the troops under his command, and had formed a junction with Generals Castanos and Blake at Albuera, in the course of the 15th instant. He was attacked there on the 16th by the French army under the command of Marshal Soult; and, after a most severe engagement, in which all the troops conducted themselves in the most gallant manner, Sir William Beresford gained the victory. The enemy retired in the night of the 17th, leaving be tween 900 and 1000 wounded on the ground. Sir William Beresford sent the allied cavalry alter them; and on the 19th, in the morning, reinvested Badajoz. I enclose reports of Sir William Beresford, of the 16th and 18th instant, on the opera tions of the siege to the moment of raising it, and on the battle at Albuera; and I beg to draw your lordship's attention to the abi lity lity, the firmness, and the gallantry, mani- All has remained quiet in Castile since I The battalions of the 9th corps, belonging to regiments serving in the corps d'Armée in Andalusia, had marched from Satamanca on or about the 15th, and went towards Avila, and were to come by Madrid. I send this dispatch by Major Lieutenantcolonel Arbuthnot, the Secretary of Marshal Sir William Beresford, who was present in the battle of Albuera, and can give your lordship any further information you can require; and I beg leave to recommend him to your lordship. Extract of a letter from Marshal Beresford to Lord Wellington, dated Albuera, May 16, 1811. IN conformity to your lordship's instruc tions given to me on the 24th ultimo, in con. sequence of the then state of the weather,, and our means of communication across the Guadiana having been destroyed by the sudden flooding of that river, and leaving my cavalry in Zafra, Los Santos, and Villa Franca, I placed the infantry with its head at Almendralejo, Azuechal, and Villa Alva, where, were the divisions of Major-general the Hon. William Stewart, and Major-general Hamilton; and the Hon. Major general Cole's division with Brigadier geners Madden's brigade of cavalry in Merida, the infantry brigade of it commanded by Brigadier-general Kemmis, and that was intended for the attack of Fort Saint Cristoval, at Montejo, and the light brigade German Legion under Majorgeneral Baron Alten, at Talavera Real, leaving the light battalion L. L. Legion in Olivenca, during the period of waiting the fall of the water of the Guadiana, and the reestablishment of our bridge, it being of considerable importance to push the enemy from us as far as possible during the siege, as he had on our obliging him to retire from Llerena to Guadalcanal held the latter place. I directed a small column of 2000 men, composed of the 1st brigade 2d division, under the command of Lieutenant colonel Colborne, with two squadrons of cavalry and two Spanish four-pounders, to proceed from Almendralejo by Ribera and Maquilla, to Azuaga, to threaten his right, sending at the same time four squadrons of cavalry from Brigadier-general Long, at Villa Franca, to Llerena, to support the Count de Penne Villamur, who was then with the Spanish cavalry of General Castano's corps, to make him fear an attack in front, and General Ballasteros went from Monasterio to Montemolin to threaten his left. These manœuvres had the desired effect; as soon as the enemy saw the advance of Lieutenant-colonel Colborne, near Azuaga, where he had 500 infantry and 500 cavalry, he abandoned pre. cipitately the place, and retired to Guadalcanal, which place the General Latour Maubourg, with the 5th corps, quitted in two hours after the arrival of this detachment, and at eleven o'clock at night, retired near to Constantino. Lieutenant-colonel Colborne performed this service in a most judicious and handsome manner. The weather having been some time fine, and the waters of the Guadiana having subsided, and our preparations having by Lieutenant colonel· Fletcher's activity-been nearly completed for the siege of Badajoz, on the 3d of May I six-pounders, and two squadrons of cavalry, sent three brigades of infantry, a brigade of under the orders of Major-general the Hon. William Stewart, to invest more close Badajoz, on the south of the river, which he performed, with his usual zeal and attention, on the 4th. On the 6th instant, I directed the march of the reinaining divisions on Badajoz, one by Albuera, the other by Talavera, leaving the cavalry as before placed. On the 7th I came before Badajoz with these divisions. General Castanos furnished also to co-operate in the siege 2000 men, under the command of Brigadier Don Carlos D'Espagne. On the 8th I directed the brigade of Brigadier general Kemmis, which had been previously placed on the Chebora, to proceed to the Torre of St. Ingracia, about two miles from Badajoz, on the Campo Major Road, and to be joined there by the 17th Portuguese regiment, two squadrons of cavalry, and four six-pounders from Elvas; the force to meet at three o'clock in the morning, and the whole to be placed under the orders of the Hon. Major general Lumley, to invest the north side, and to attack Fort St. Cristoval. By some accident to the bearer of the orders to Brigadier-general Kemmis, the officer did not arrive at his post till nine o'clock, the Hon. Major-general Lumley on the approacha of the light companies of the brigade, advancing towards the town, with the force he brought from Elvas, the garrison made a sor tie upon it, but was immediately drove back, and the grenadiers of the 17th regiment particularly distinguished themselves by charging the enemy, headed by Colonel Turner. On the 8th, Lieutenant-colonel Fletcher, to protect the further approaches, constructed batceries against the Pardalleiras and Piquerino, on the heights, commanding them, though at a considerable distance; and Captain Squire, whom the lieutenant-colonel had sent to superintend the works intended to be erected against Saint Cristoval, began his operations on the 8th. The breaking ground on that side immediately caused great jealousy to the enemy, and he opposed it by a most heavy fire of shot and shell, and, on the morning morning of the 10th, he made a sortie against the battery constructing, with about 1200 men, being within 500 yards of the place. He soon reached the battery, and, it having of the covering party allotted to it, only one light infantry company in it, the enemy got possession of it, but had it not for two mimutes, as the whole of the covering party that was close to the battery on the slope of the hill, immediately seized their arms, and drove the enemy back with considerable loss to him, but I regret to say ours on this occasion must have been considerably greater, from our troops having exposed themselves to the shot and shell of the town and Fort of Saint Cris. toval, and the musquetry from this latter. On the 12th I received information from General Blake, that Marshal Soult had left Seville on the 10th, and with the avowed intention of coming to Badajoz, his force stated to be 15000 men; and General Latour Maubourg had already again moved upon and occupied Guadalcana! and Llerena, from which places the Count de Penne Villamur had been obliged to retire. As General Blake had come down to Frejenal, and General Ballasteros from Monasterio had pushed his advances within a league of Seville, I could not judge if this advance of Marshal Soult was merely to oblige these generals to retire, and leave him undisturbed in Seville, or really as it was given out to be, against me, and with the object of raising the siege of Badajoz, and therefore continued my operations against the place, until the further advance of Soult should more clearly determine this point; but in the middle of the night I received information from General Blake and other quarters, of the rapid advance of Marshal Soult, and which left no doubt as to his intentions. I immediately sent to suspend operations against Badajoz, and to commence to remove to Elvas our guns and stores, which unfortunately had been nearly completed to what would have been wanted for the siege By great exertions of Lieutenant-colonel Fletcher, of the royal engineers, and Major Dixon of the artillery, every thing was removed on the evening of the 15th. To Lieutenant general Leité's (the governor of the Province of Alemtejo) zeal and unwearied activity in whatever regards the service and welfare of his country, it is but just to say we are on all occasions much indebted; and particularly on this, in the getting together the transports necessary to us, and in furnishing and forwarding whatever else could be useful. I seize with pleasure this opportunity of giving to General Leité that praise which he has ever so fully merited. I had been obliged, to cover the removal of the stores, &c. to leave the division of Major-general the Hon. G. L. Cole before Bada. ja. Major general Cole marched from before Badajoz to join the army here at two o'clock on the morning of the 16th, and arrived about half an hour before the enemy made his attack. 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, 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 purpose 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. Having thus completed his preparations, he marched from Seville on the 10th instant, with a corps then estimated at 15 or 16,000 men, and was joined on descending into Estremadura by the corps under General Latour Maubourg, stated to be 5,000 men. His excellency General Blake, as soon as be 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 instant, where, having consulted with his excellency and General Castanos, it was determined to meet the enemy and 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 2,000 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 Sauta Martha by the cavalry of General Blake; that of General Castaños under the Count de Penne Villamur, had been always with it. As remaining at Valverde, though a stranger position, left Badajoz entirely open, I deter mined 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 о L The on the 15th instant. The corps of General The enemy, on the morning of the 16th, 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, he gained the heights upon which they had been formed; meanwhile the division of the Hon. 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 moveable in any direction. The Portuguese brigade of cavalry, under Brigadier-general Otway, remained at some MONTHLY MAG. Nu, 214. distance on the left of this, to check any at tempt of the enemy below the village. As the heights the enemy had gained, raked and entirely commanded 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 Pólish lancers (cavalry) which the thickness of the atmosphere, and the nature of the ground, had concealed, (and which was, besides, mis taken 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 unfor tunately broken and suffered immensely. The 81st 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 gal-. laut, and that 2d brigade, under the command of the Hon. Lieutenant-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 Majorgeneral 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 detence of this place. The enemy's cavalry, on his infantry attempting to force our right, had endeavoured to turn it; but by the able ma nœuvres of Majur-general the Hon. 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 con4 E tribute |