The National Register. — London, England, 1812-02-09 00:00:00

THE NATIONAL REGISTER• FEB. 9. nkraßT FROM TIII4 MARSHAL COUNT SUCIIET TO HIS HIGH NESS THE PRINCE OF WAGRANI, &C. " Camp before Valencia, Jan. 8, 1812. " I omitted in my Report of the 29th Dec. to render your Excellency an account of the attempt made by Blake to retire in the night time from ValenCia, and regain the open country, for which purpose he showed himself with 12,000 men. They met a lisely reception from the brave Poles of the Ist regiment of the Vistula. Nearly the whole of this column was driven back through the town by the upper bridge; it was with great difficulty that two or 300:nien were able to gain the mountains by taking advantage of the obs:turity of the night ; more than 400 were either killed or drowned in the canals. ' From, this mo ment desertion hat made rapid strides among them ; within four days more than 1500 deserters have presented themselves at our out-posts. Between the 30th and 31st, the advanced guards of the 4th division advanced within a short distance of the place; 2000 Spaniards, with, two pieces of cannote made a sortie to repulse them. General Severoli immediately brought forward a battalion of the Ist Italian regiment of the line, who attacked them under the fire of the walls, repulsed them, and forced them to re-enter. The Chief of battalion, Pouti Provart, Aide-de-Camp to the Minister of War for Italy, and_Bouilly, Aide de-Camp to Gen. Severoli, have distinguished themselves; the last has been wounded in the leg. " On the e9:11 December the avant guard entered St. Philipe, fifteen leagues from Valencia, and half of the distance to Abeam, where it took a million of cartridges, and a great quantity of rice. -The Inhabitants of this town, which' contains 15,000 souls, came out to meet us, and conducted themselves wcll. I shall rouse Alcira, situate on the point of the island of Xucar, it being a very advantageous po sition for actual operations ' The troops' escaped from the •environs of Valencia are attempting toTaliy between Alicant and Alcoy. " In the night between the Ist •and 2d o'; January, the trenches were opened by a'ooo men, at eighty toises from the works of St. Vi cettte and Oliveto. The 'General Count Paunetier, who had on the same day arrived at the camp with his brigade, was, •by the rules of seniority, appointed to the command of the trenches, which were pushed with vigour, and would have been perfectly sticcesstul, had not Colonel Henri, of the Engineers, received a mortal wound.. This superior Officer is regretted by the whole army; in the space of two years he leis led on the attack at seven different sieges. Notwithstand ing the fire kept up by the anerny, our works continued duy andnight until five o'clock in. the morning. The artillery for raising of five bat teries, and for arming of two, within sixty toises of the works, are already arrived, whilst the. engineers had proceeded' within fifteen toises of the ditch. The rapid progress of these works, and the astonishing desertion sustained by the enemy, &tenni:led et eni on abandoning their lines, fortified as they were, at so much trouble %77 ., i expense. At break of day Colonel Beloti, Commander in the trenches, before Oli veto, caused the ditch to be passed, and soon threw three hundred gre nadiers into that fort, .where they found twenty pieces of cannon.— General Montmarie ado, ted the same measures against Sr. Vicente, by po,sasAng himself of the suburb, and pushing the enemy's posts back' into the city. " I made no delay in convincing myself of the whole importance of the vast works which- the enemy heti ebandoned te• ti. to'ether wi•a tielea-one tdeces of cannon, and immediately directed 6-enetal Palcea hike to possess himself of the Suburb de Quarte and to drive Lie enemy into the place, which was performed with the greatest promp titude. 1 wished to profit by the disorder which such an event ..youid cause in this great city, and ordered the • boelhaadreent to commence, which was accordingly dune, and was et a:eaged throughout the whole of the day. " On the morning of the 6th, I couthierine that an army -which had just abundoned works of such strength, mounted with eighty-one pieces of cannon, and the terrible effects of the bombardment on an im mense population, would have called upon Geueral Blake to capitulate, charged my First Aide-de-Camp, Colonel - Meyer; to be the 'bearer of Illy proposals, and to express ley desire of lav ing a great city from reit, ; but he was neither permitted to enter the city nor to see Genert. l I;:ake. At noon thi s day I received the reedy ; this General is - no longer the master, he is ()tinged to obey-tile detriona of a fanatical Junta, coineosed of seven persons ' five Of which are Franciscan Mbnits and the other two Butchers of Velencia, 'the saute who about three years ago ordered the massacre of 400 French families that were driven out of the country. " I therefore continue my o perations with. vigour against • the place, ' whith, at this ',resew moment, cetants a population of 200,00" souls; five ofethe pane:pal chiefs Of•.the tinsureents are now within its walls, with all their property, a nd whatever Spain possesses of fanatics or Madmen. ;he engineers will open their works under the walls, the artillery raises formidable batteries; and notwithstanding the rains, it; will, in a few days, be able to make a breach in the last enclosure. The army is waiting with impatience for the atta k; and it we should hate to make a storm of houses, as at Saragessa, it will be but short con • tinuance, by the ability and rapidity of out miners.—l am, with respect, " Marshal Come SUCHET." REPORT OF COUNT SUCHET TO THE PRINCE OF NEUFCHA- TS[, AND WAGRAM. cc " Head-quarters, Valencia, Jan. 12, 1812. Mo N*E;GINEIIII--1 bet your Serent highness to a:ln to hi* vla jesty the Emperor, that his orders have been executed—Valencia has submitted to his arms. - " The rapid movement 'of the 26th December forced the enemy to retire into their fortified lines ; the pursuit of the troops which escaped. from Valencia to St. Philipe deprived Blake of all . hope of succour. The investment was finished with perseverance. The army, thirsting for glory, sought dangers, and with the greatest valour re. pulsed three sortils. 44 The boldness of the engineers, who, in the night of the Ist and 241 Jan. opened trenches within front 70 to Si toises of the enemy's works, and who in four days and four nights carried their mines within SO toises of the foss& ; the surprising efforts of the Artillery, who erected batteries at 60 wises, and which they succeeded in arming notwithstand ing the rains anti dreadful roads • the constancy of the infanntry in sharing all these labours, caused the abandonment of the enemy's lines, defended by SO pieces of cannon. "These lines are 6000 toises in extent ; Valencia expended 12,000,000 of reals, and employed some thousands of men for two years in erect ing them. On the sth I commenced the bombardment, and on the 6th offered a capitulation, which being refused, I redoubled our fire and in three days and three nights, 2700 bombs were thrown into the city, causing great explosiOns, and several vast fires. " The artillery, by a praiseworthy emulation, succeeded in erecting two batteries. manned with ten 24-pounders each, ready to make a breach in the interior defence. The engineers, with their usual activity, had effectel a lodgment in the last houses of the suburbs , and placed mines under two of the principal gates of the town, when General Blake f, acing the terrible and near approaches of an assault, accepted the followint, capitulation, which places in the power (4 the Emperor the city of Valencia, 374 pieces of artillery, 180,001bs. of powder, 3,000,000 of cartridges, - 16,131 prisoners of the line, according to the accompany ing statement, delivered by.the General in Chief of the Spanish Staff, and 1950 sick in the hospitals of Valencia and Valdigna, 1800 cavalry and artillery horses, 21 stand of colours, 893 o ffi cers, 22 General or Brigadiers ; among which are sayas and Lardizabel, commanding the expeditionary divisions; 'Miranda, Marco del -Ponte. Command_r of the Valenriau army • Sea, Commandant of the cavalry,. the Marquis of Rocca, &c.; eour lieutenant-Generals, six Field Marshals, and a great number of Colonels, the General in Chief O'Donnel,and Captain . tkelleral lilak " On this occasion the Insurgents have experienced an irreparable lass; lost fifty good artillery officers, formed in the school of Sego. via, 333. miners and sappers, and 1400 old artillerymen, among which are four fine companies of horse artillery the disarming of the militia is proceeded in and will soon he oomple:ed. 44 Vow Serene Highness will perceive by reading the 4th Article of the capitulation, that I lirrve seized occasion to ft:!fil the beneficent wislics of the Eniperor in obtaining the speedy return to the army of 2000 French or allies prisoners, and the hope of a still more consider able exchange.-1 am, with respect, &c. 44 SUCHET." CAPITULATION. - - - --- The principal article.; arc—The army shall march out with the hof nours of %var by Gate Seranos, and lay down their arms beyond the bridge, upon the left bank of the ,Guadalaviar. The Officers shall pre :4erve their swords, as well as their horses and equipages, and the sol diers their knapsacks. •The whole to be prEaners o. war. Art. 4. The General in Chief - , Blake, offering to give up the French, i.)r . Affies of iirance, prisoners in Majorca, Alicalt, and Carthagena, an equal ntifriber of Spaniards shall remain in places in the power of the Freneh, till . this exchange shall Le effected, man for Man, and rank for rank. • IMPORT OF COUNT SU.: TO THE PRINCE OF' WAGRAM. Head-quarters, Valencia, lan. 13. " MoNsitics:sua—On I.oth, in the r.orning, the insurgent army, shut up in Valencia, defiled before the French eagles; its march lasted till night. " General Blake, Chief of the insurrection, and six of his Aides. I , lve 8:!t out, escorted by Colonel Pech; I have ordered them to Pau. General Count Panni•ur has set out with the first column of 7,0". X) prisone: - S, by the route of Terruel. A similar column takes the route of '1 ortosa. I have sent to St. Philipe a column of 2,000 prisoners, in order to exchange all the French prisoners in Majorca and Cadiz. . " The disarming of the militia proceei's with the greatest activity, and tranquillity has already been established in fine Province. " I have appcinted General Robert Commandr!t of the town. Gem r:1 Harispe, with his .livision, occupic: St. Philipe pushes his parties towilrus Alicant. " We daily discover new magazines of arms and clothing furnblied by the English. Their soi-disant Consul, nipper, was the firebra:ol of insurrection; he spared neither gold, nor promises, nor libels to tate 11104 3 $ minds. Ihe Spaniards bitterly complain. of bein c t incer santly im-gilled to desperate measures by the English, and afterw..ids finding them ,elves abandoned by them. " What is to me a particular object of the utmost satisfaction is, tit: t so considerable a result has occasioned no losses. " I am w ith respect, Count SITCHE V." PARIS, JAN. 26.—8 y a Decree, of the 24th Jinuory, the Frtt:t Epapel - Jr 11..5 : , 3tr.td Count Sucher to he Doke ut Albufer:l. J I