The Sun. — London, England, 1807-01-28 00:00:00

thi? o f. Ere' his the De rew ival ity, rich tel ;00 at orn' fa oti iog Downing : Street, Jan. 27, 1807. 1- a ii LS iS. Pro m tl¢ LOYDON GAZETTE, Jan, 27, 1807. L biwatches, of which the following are Copies, iuve been r ece i ve d by th e Ri g ht Honourable ZVii 'll/1 Windham, one of His Majesty's .pfincipal t i retaries of St a t e , f rom Li eutenan t Colonel_Back nrouse, com man di ng a D etac h ment o f His ;Majesty's ‘ 411 (.1 Forces in the River de la Plata. Royal Charlotte (Transport), of Monte Video, 05lober 13, 1804. 1 Understanding th a t a Ve s sel is to sail itrimediate -7 for England, I do myself the honour to transmit you,a Copy of a Letter -addressed to Lieutenant eoeral Sir David Baird, in obedience to whose or (rs I sailed on the 29th of August last, with Ist 'att. 47th Regiment, for the purpose of joining Ma 'jor General Beresford in South America. " Royal Charlotte (Transport), off Monte • " SIR, Video, 00ober I'3, 1806 " I have the honour to acquaint your Excellency, that, on my arrival here, I had the mortification to the City of Buenos Ayres recaptured, and that illtnjor General Beresford, with the Forces under his c)rnmand (after a most able and gallant defence)', , 4+d been made Prisoners of War, so far back as the I4th of August last. " Having arrived last night, I am not at this inii- Nent, sufficiently,acquainted with the particulars to enable me to detail them, though "presume due and full info'rmation of this unfortunate and important e vent must have been transmitted to you soon after its occurrence. ou are aware, Sir, that the command :6f His Majesty's Land Farces, at present in this River, de . - lves upon me, with which, in co-operation with t!)e Squadron under Sir Home POpham, it is 'my in tention to occupy a favourable position, until 'a Re itifircernent shall arrive, or i may be 'honoured with your' urther instructions •; and trust that, by an early 9PkirtuDity, I shall be able to afford 'yeti a satisfac- N'y report of my arrangements and operatiOs iu )ca.rrying your designs into execution. And am," &c. " To Lieutenant General Sir D. tec The immodiate departure of the Ship for England, ,and The situation in . Which I find myself unexpe&— ‘ dry ylaced, prevent any further corninonication wily What, is contained in the preceding Letter. I have the honour, to be, Sm. '(Signed) T. 3. BACKHOUSE, • Col. commanding 4 7 7th Reit. The Itight ..tion - o . rable William kindham, &c. &c. tee. Of a Dispatch from Lietttenant-Colonel Back house to the Right Hon. Win. Wihdham, dated - Waldwiizela, - Olz the River 'de la Plata, ,?.1 4 .st .OEI. 1806. ti . I'4 s leAcr :tif the 13th inst. I had 'the honour Y.O transmit a copy of ,my letttr of the saine date, I,FO HIS Excellency Lieutenant-General Sit David 04,aird; apprising him at my arrival in the River of my intention to ciCtetipy a peSition on ihore; to await his further orders. I,.in consequepce, homes:Lately reconnoitred', from one of the Frigates, which tarried the sufficiently (lose ift shore for the ptirpoe; the works of the Dace, and the positions and defetim in the vicinity Video,' freni which I formed, as the most ° l gible mode of attack, the Idea of being able .to tarry the town and Citadel by assault, on the south L edging on the Water., in co=operation with the of the Bquacirciti under Commodore Sir Home ° Pham, which were to silence the batteries on that so as to enable the troops to land and enter,--, 4 -be attempt' was' acddrdingly Commenced on the 28 th by the. Navy btit the water proving too Shal •64e tO admit Of the ShipS coming • suillciently near to cannonade it *ith etfeet, a further effort was n ecessarily given up. Upon this t deemed it advisable, with the co °Perative -concurrence of Sir florbc Poriharn, to take Possession of the town of Maldonado, as a favour !ble position for the purpose Of refreshing the troops, niouriting niy cavalry, and tirrying on-such other arrangenients as Might thereafter appear most necessary. NOt a monient Wis lost ; and, accordingly on the evening of the 29th, I lauded with about 400 men, c:lrripesed principally of a part of the 38th silegi ,*l, eat; under Colonel Vassal, and advanced against b ine town, which seemed to be occupied by about " 00 Regulars and Militia, mostly mounted, with rle howitzer, and oue. long'4- pounder., -riiece, D o th brass. Notwithstanding we were without ani - artillery, I enemy were soon dispersed, with the loss of 'their guns, and about 5,0 men killed atid•wounded. The loss on our side was two killed and four wound ed, of His Majesty's. 38th Regiment. To the cool intrepidity of our little column on . t his occasion, much praise is due, as it advanced with the utmost steadiness and alacrity, and without fir ih a shot, until suiliciently near to. make a ger , taint gy of Carrying both the guns and the town, , which was principally done by the bayonet, not u'lthstanding- the advance was made under heavy discharges of grape and musketry. To the well-k no wn gallantry and ability of Colo hel Vassal 1 feel myself much indebted; and the 65 hddat of every other Otficer'in the field has com hlanded my thanks. • At day-break yesterday morning I detached Colo nel Vassal to take possession of the heavy batteries bit th e beach al the harbour, and on the peninsula, ,which precluded any communication for the 4nemy - °etwoen the main land and the strong island and Post of. Gorreti, situated in, and much commanding 9 1 e Bay of Maldonado, and which, in consequence, 1 " the course of the day, surrendered at discretion to a Summons sent from Sir Home Popham, and there , preverted the necessity of carrying it by storm, and the consequent bloodshed that might have en filled. During yesterday and this morning the chief part of the remainder of the troops have been landed, 'd I have already contrived to mount nearly one half of my CaValry. The Wellington Transport being direeted to sail r nmernately t o En g l an d, I h ave t a k en th e l i b er ty o f 7 ir ddr e ssing thi s s h ort account o f my procee di ngs di l'_ ctlY to you, Si r H o rn e P op h am h av i n g re p resen ted ed e t! me his inabili ty to di spatc h a V esse l at t hi s t i me the Cape of Good Hope, precluding me the power trt MZ'Oilllg my report through the regular channel of tentenant-General Sir David Baird. 7 ought not tO omit to mention the v . ery steady and praise-worthy cc ndua of a small party of NI - rines and armed Seamen, sent on shore by Ski-. Flothe Popham, who joined 'and compoSed part cifourct) . - lUfun on its way into the town, and occupied . suseh positions as were alldtted to them duringtk,i , :i44( in such a_correa manner as to redea - rlie . i;4'-7:0..!•.t credit both on the Officers that comtnarideir and•their own zeal and discipline. • I should also be -wanting in justice' to my oWti feelings if I closed my Dispatch Without acknow ledging the services I have received from Lieutenant- Colonel Brow'nrigg, Deputy Quarter-Master Gene ral, and Major Trotter, of the 83d 'Regiment, actin; Deputy Adjutint,General to' the Forces at present under my commanch And I also beg leave tO ac knowledge the assistance afforded me 'by Major Tatter, olthe 72d Regiment, who by permission of Lieutenant-General Sir David Baird is with me on this occasion, and acting in the capacity of Military Secretary, I here With have the honour to incline/lie Return of such Ordnance, Ammunition, and Stores as have yet been dficovered. I ave the 'honour to be, Scc. J. T. BACKHOT_ISE, 'Lieut. Col. 47th Reg. Return of 'Killed and Wounded of the Troops tinder the 'Command of Lieutenant-Colonel Backhouse. in the At. tack of Maldonado, on the n th ofodober, '1836. , 38th Regimeht=i rank and file killed, 4 rank andlile wound. ed. (Signed) W. R. TROTTER, • Major 83d Reg. Ading Dep. Actsj Gen. ;leturn 'of Ordnance, AmMunition, and Stores, `,Stc. taken 'from 'the Enemy in the Town and Vicintiy of Maldonado * and Island of Gorreti, on the 29th et October, 4866. BRASS ORbNANCE. Six.inch Howitzer, with ten rounds of Ammunition, Sa-potinder, With ten rounds of (tato. _ • IRON ORDNANtE. 12 Twinv.six -pounder,. ut Sta Batzerk i s. xo Twenty •tour-pouiiders on the islaail of Corrett , . 700 D 4 usk.ts. 200 PiStOlt. 300 Swords. la Barrels of Powder. (Signed) A. WATSON, Capt. R. M. Artillery. N.B. the above is the mbst correct Return I have yet been able to cclle&. .(Signed) \Y. R. 'TROTTER, Actuig Dep. Adj. Ge-ra: Admiralty Office, Jan. 27. Dispatches, of which the folloviitig• are Copies-, have been received at thii Office frool Commodore Sir Home Pophau, addressed to Wilham Marsden, Esq. gm, His Majesty's Ship Diadem, de la Plata, Aikgust . 25, 11306. When the iverit's of war cease 'to b'e 'favourable to any armatneirt, I consider' it the duty of Command ing Officers to state all the tircuthstances under their knowledge or information with clearness and per sPicOlty, which', either progressively or sUddenly, led to a reve'r'se of fortune. • in pursuing course, .1 fdel confident I shall be t.ble to satisfy the Lords Ceintnissioner of the Ad— rniralty, that the liberal and beneficent principles upon which the Government of General Peresford Was 'cOndn'aed do [bore honour : to his Majesty's Arms', and the clitht - ter of Great Britain, than if Ile had yesortta ti'expedient§ coinpletely within his power, which would have . effednally annihilated all the etforts of the Enertiy, and wrested, pro baaly for bVer, theie CotintrieS from the erciwti of Spain. . Puerklon, one of the Mhnicipality, appeari to have been the greatest organ of the Revolution: He himself with great art and anclress in pre paring the peOple fora gerieralinsurreetion. The arms in the - . town *ere secreted, ready. fo'r the moment of action, _the discontented assembled every night, and attended to his instrictions, arid he raised all the :rabble ,of the country by the ample Supplies-of money: with Which-he furnibed '66 t h e horth • side of. the river. :.C.0106e1 Li:lick ) , a French alicer in the Spanish service, and on his parole, successfully employed himself in colleding people at coloriia. Terror was established, anctevery person who-re fused to tontribute.his assistance to thiS conspiracy Was threatened . With immediate death. • • • I have traced this from very unquestionable au. thority, and so rapid was the progress of the Revo lution, when it first sheaved itself; that it was not till the 41st July that I learnt, by a dispatch froth the Genefai; whicli,r6ached nie.at Ensenada; on My re turn front Monte Video, that he was apprehensive, from the informatiOn' he-received, ati insurrection would shortly be made. ' heard at the saute time from Captain Thomson that seventeen of the 'Enemy's Vessels had just ar rived at .Colonia, and as it was reported !icit force , was still to be increased from, Monte Video, I seat orders thr the Diomede to be brought to Ensenada; and for Captain King, of the Diadem, to Come up with the remaining few ‘ Marines, the two compa nies of :Blues, and as many other men as could in any degree be spared from- the Ships,' for the pur— pose of arming some Vessels to attack the Enemy at Colonia,; as it was imposSible to prevent his cross ing from the north shore' whenever the wind was Enr., On the ist of August,.in the afternoon, the Leda anchored off Buenos Ayres; about twelve milesdis tont, and on my lauding on the 2d, which I did as soon as the weather would admit of a Boat getting on shore, I found the General had just made a very successful attack on about fifteen hundred Spaniards tinder Pueridon, five leagues from the town, with five hundred men, in which he took all the Enemy's cannon (I think nine pieces) and several ptisoners. On the ad I attempted to return to the Leda, in the Encounter, which Captain Honyman brought within a few miles of the shore for this purpose, as. it blew very strong : but the wind freshened sown ! . • siderably from the Eastward that we could not get to windward. On the 4th, in the morning, it was very thitk weather, and the gale increased so much that it was impossible to weigh. • About noon Captain King arrived in a Galivat with one handred and fifty men from the Diadem, for the purpose of arming and commanding the few small Vessels we had collected in the harbour ; but he was not able to get there till the folloWing day. On the sth, in the morning, it moderated, and r reached the Leda, when I received a report Irma • • , ;41 t Captain Thom;on„ that, In the gale of the preeed . ing 'day, the Enemy had,crossed from Colonia to tally „Unobserved, ny. any of.our Ships, ekcept i the Schooner under ; the Command of Lieutenant Her rick, who Nr'riS Eying in the narrow gut leading to '`Conchas and 'St. Isidro.; . but the easterly wind had tilrown so liiluch Wat4i; - in the river that the Enemy :were ei..ni)l4.d to . cross dyer any part of the , Patmas the.neceSsity of making - a greater de tour hyitoing higher . 42p the river. On the Gth . and 7th it blew 'hurricane; the Ledawas iyiok in ,flaur fathoms, mil; two anchors 'dowiv, and her yards and topmasts struck. On the 4 Clth I heard from Captain King that five of oar Gun -boats had foundered at their 'anchors ; 'that the Walker had lost her rudder, and that the Launches and large CuttCfs of the Diadem and Leda were lost. I‘. The torrents of rain that fell daiing the 6th, 7th, and Bth, • hkd fenqered - lhe roads totally lmpraai- Cable fin .any, but 'Cavalry, 'and consequently General Beresford was most seriously disappointed in his dete'rtnination to attack .the Enmity at a dis tance 'from the toml ; in which, had it taken place, I entertain no doubt that his Army would have add, ed another "trait of its invincible spirit under his dis positions. The Enemy, however, by his inexhaustible sup ply of horses, suffered little iilcoifvenience from the stafe of the roads, and he was Therefore enabled to approach the toVvii, by several direaions, out giving the Britih Army any opportunity, to at tack him. On the :10th, the evening, the Castle was. stfrumOn'ed, and. on the following day I landed, while our remaining Vessels were firing on the Spa nish posts ; and I learnt that, exclusive of the Spanish 'Army, which ‘.vas - divided into many colanans,- oc cupying the vaii-ous avenues of the town, the inha bitants were all armed, and sheltered on the tops of 'the' houses and - churches, with a design of carrying On a war of ambush. Under these circurnstances, and the manifest dis position of the Enemy to prevent an. engagement, it • was xleterrnined to embark the wounded' that night, and cross the Rio .`hello, for the purpose of moving towards 'Ensenada; but this measure was in a'zgreat degree frustrated. by, the weather, which be came very violent dUring the night, and conse quently retarded the progress of embarkation, though the Enemy added a considerable number of men to the houses and churches' near thrf Castle, and advanced by All the streets not under the influ ence of its fire ; in short, Sir, his obje& was to avoid by every means a general a6tion, aid to place his men in such a situation that they could fire at our troops while they rein:lined in perfect security themselves. • On the 12th, at day-light, I. understand a smart fire began . from the Enemy's advanced posts, but was. Soon returned with great effea from our artil lery, which was p!aated towards the principal streets leading to the great square, and for a short time the Euctrry by his initticuse nuMbers strewed a greater degree of tirmnes than on any. other occa sibli, and o.lolkt-forward with three pieces of and.. lery, which Colonel rack of the 7lst soon charged and took: from him. During thin time, however; reinforcements crow - I:led the tops of all :the houses comthandit;g the great square from the back streets, acrd our people were soon considerably annoyed by People they could not get at. The Enemy com manded the Castle in thte same way, with the addf tional adiialitag4 of a gun at the tip of one of the churches, which I consider an indelible stigma Against the character of the Bishop, not only from his situation, but from the professions he made. I can, easily conceive how the 'feelings of General Beresford must, at this tnomei)t, have been on . the rack; disappointed in his last eiforts to induce the enemy to a general 'engagement in the great Square, his gallant little army falling fist by shuts from in visible persons, and the only alternative which could Present itselt - to:save the useless effusion of so ,much valuable blood was a flag of truce, which was hoist ed at the castle about tine o'clAck... • In instant there were near 10,000 men in the great square, pressing tUrward hi the most out rageous manner to get into the Fort, and even firing at -our men on the ramparts, so much so that it w as with extreme dia . :lenity the British troops were pre vented revenging this' insult; indeed the . General wa,s obliged to tell.the Spanish OfficerS, if their men . did„ not retire in the codrse of one . Minute,' he must, as the . Onl7 Measure of haiil down the flag of truce,,. and re-commence hostilities; this firmness had the desired . effect, and he then sent his condi tions to the Spanish General, and they were instantly acceded to. . I. _inclose a copy of the Capitulation, and I trust the. high and independent language in which it is couched, and the terms - di&ated by Gen. Beresford to an, Officer at the head of myriads of people, will do hiin infinite honciui in England, and obtain for him His :Majesty's most gracious approbation of his Condud. , I havb received, and annex, aileturn of the killed, wounded, and tnissing, by which - it. appears, that there are 2 officers, - 2 serjeants, 1 drumther, 43 sank and file killed ; 8 officers, 7 serjeants, 92 rank and file wounded, and 9 missing ; making a total of 05 ; and scarce any of those misfortunes : Were occasioned except from .the inhabitants .on the tops of the houses and the churehes. The EneMy confesses to have lost about 700 kill ed and wounded in the short a:mai& in the streets ; and if it had not been for the inhabitants I have little doubt that 'the Spanish troops would have been corn- . pletely defeated, although seven times the number of the British fortes. • ' • Nothing is More diffiCult than to give their Lord ships an idea-of the number of men in' arms ; but from the best accounts we can obtain it is thought Pueridon, and the other people engag ed in this plot, had colleted from 8 to 10,000 men ; that Liniers may have brought over from 800 to 1000 ; and the town furnished, armed in various ways, about ten thousand, under the secret arrangement Of the Ma gistrates: When every Vessel that could escape from Buenos Ayres had joined, I proceeded towards Ensenada, to retire the detachment of Marines ; Lieut. Groves, of the Diadem, was obliged to quit the Balem Schooner, as she would not work out; one Gun-boat and a Settee, a prize, were also left' in the harbour, with the Justina, a small English Mer Chant Ship that had followed the Expeditit n from St: Helena, Capt, Thomson, of the Neptune, who was in the C-16/10, •• Tea 4 made prisoner, ant Lieut. Burgh, Of the Raison able, with Mr. Ramsay; a Midshipman and 7 men, who were in the Sette as ,her boats could not, hold them. Lieut. Herric"z, in , the Dolores, the other armed SchoOner, work3d out in . a manner Which, coupled. with his condu6 on the whole of the busi ness; doeshiM great creoc., On the 13th, in the m )rning, the deochMent of • .Marines,. under the come ind of Lient..S`ivaile, was 'embarked from Ensenada, and his.' two Spanish field-pieces Spiked and thrown into _the river: 011 be 14th -I sailed for. this aachoragc,f where 1 arrived.the fallowing day, and imnsedkltely a ldressed "'the Governor of Monte yideo on the suhjea of our tops. . . On, the iGth, in consegnence of receivingt Liniers's Aid-de-camp a letter from Genera y ; ford„.l dispatched t‘yo of the Transports to %trios Ayres, where one arrived on the l7th, but from the preVarication of the Governor of Monte Video in the first instance, and his subsequent dishonourabl* conduct, no troops have yet ,beeueinbarked'. Whilst I had the . honour of betng on board the Leda IJiad every reason to be satisfied with the zeal ous attention of Captain Honyman, his Officers, and Ship's :Company ; and I cannot but express n'iy treme opprobatton.of the coquet of all the Officeri and Seamen, who. were constantly employed in the small Vessels and Boa,.i.me,er almost every 1 - iva 7 , tion, in the very severe and trying weather we ex perienced the last ten days. I most sincerely regret, hewever, that my situa, tion has imposed on me the painfill duty of making this Report to their lf,ordships, especially as it is"done principally by materialS collected from did - erent people, which they prObably in many instances de duced from vague and uncertain conclusions : itr however,.it should hereafter appear-that I have. hit ed in any instance to do ample keitice to the conana,'' energy, and prowess of General Beres - flad, and the Officers and soldiers under his command, it has been' owing to the limited scale of my conununications since the leth, from the extreme jealousy Of the Enemy, 'and net froni any in lispo,ition to aPpre 7 • ciate rti . eir merits in the most liberal manner ; r 2 sen 'titnetlt which I have held on every occasion,. and.. publicly marked it in all my tormer Dispatches.. I have the honour to be, &c. . HOME POPHA AC . [Here follow the Articles of Capitulation, and List or Killed and Wounded, as given.ia our Paper yesterday.] SIR, Diadem, Rio dela Plata, 00. 9, t th3l3. On the sth instant, off Lobes, we fell in with, the Rollo, having a detachment of the 38th. on board; she sailed from the Cape in company with the Met. lantho, which,was to die - Westward of her. I too.k. the troops out of the Rollo, and cent her to Rio " Grande, for the purpose of purchasing any flour or bisciait,„ and ascertaining whether any 4tiantiiy of the latter could be baked there. ~On the tith, we returned to this anchorage, v lire, we fonnd the Protcaor, with iho Adautan and.(7o - Transports, having on b4)arol Litlachnt.uts . of theth e_3Btii, and the,Piadein ViLtqati!.:r. lhiit do time in ordering, all the Men of .Jr t i coinplete their provisions to tim,e months, for fear, of any•ae ei , lent happening to the Vitt~aallcr. On the 7th, in the evening, the Medusa joined with four of thp Lancaster's Convoy; and Captain' Bouverie reported, that the Lancaster to the Eastward with the remaining two Shipq, having the preceding night parted their cables. The Leda joined the 'same evening, and Captain Honyman reported, that he had detained a Danis3'h Ship, bound to Monte Video, having on board the Governor of Valdivia. I intended to hav o c dispatched the Wellington. this evening„ but Colonel Vassal particularly requested I would detain her till the arrival' of the Lancnster., as Colonel Backhokisci was a senior Lieutenant-Colo nA to himself, and; succeoding adventitiously to the command of the army, . he would naturally be de: sirous of making a report td 'the Duke . of Ydrk of the state of his force, and the arrangements he had made. . The weather was so hazy,. and the current so strong to the Southward, that the Lancaster did. not join till the 12th, in. the evening ; on the following day, as it appeared to me that the Commanding Officer of the troops intended to make his first at tempt on Monte Video, and was anxious to see that plae,- I diretied Captain' Bewley to take all the Transports to Flores Bay, and proceeded on the 14th off Monte Video, and then to Flores, where we ar rived on the 15th, in the morning - . From the to the 27tli it blew so hard, that nothing could be attempted :. on the 28th, in the morning, the wind was Easterly, and every cir cumstance as 'favourable as possible to try the expe4 riment ; and as the .Pilots assured us a flat run off from the .rocks of the town for a mile, making precisely the same water 'alongside of them as at that distance, I ordered Captain ,Edmonds, who very handsomely requested to remain, till the experi ment was tried, and to command theleading Trans port, not to attend to the ostensibte orders of lead ing ddwn in , three Fathom, but to haul in till he bad small auarterlless Three, to ascertain whether the Flat really run,otf as described or not. Captain Edmonds will explain the circumstance fully to their Lordships : he borrowed as near the 'shore as he could for the safety bf the Frigatos, and then was only within random shot, and therefore I would pot let the Leda go down a second time, for unless the Ships could have got well within point-blank shot,. there was no chance of making a breach for the Army to land in. the town. Although the Ene- My fired for more than an hour upon our Ships, in consequence of there being but little wind, 1 am happy to inform you that only one man was wounded. .As I now saw it was impossible to get close enough in to wake any breach in the South Wall with the Men of Wat', I proposed to Colonel Back house to take Maldonado, which I should have at tempted early in the winter if the Marines had not been left at J3nenOs Ayres. Maldonado is an excellent harbour, where the Fleet can water, and get bullocks, - which stow really becomes necessary to recruit our :nen. The Island Gorreti, which fortnB the harbour of Maldonado, is very strong, and after the troops ore landed to take the village, and the batteries on the sea coast in reverse, I shall prose . to take the Island, provided it does not surreaer to my mu llions. • I have the honour to he, Bcd. HOME POPHAM,