The Sun.
London, England, 1810-06-30 00:00:00

PAPERS
RELATIVE TO THE CAMPAIGN IN POIVI CC M. AND

SPANISH ~-1211TR1C.4.

Extract 'Of a Letter, dated St. Thomas's, 15th
May,. tE3 10.--" A vessel from Porto Cabello has
arrived this morning, which brings accounts attic
Spanish Main having declared them Selves iudepen
1 .
dent: the truth of this can be relied on."
7.- M. de
,Garay and his Government possess
Extract of a Leiter from a Gentleman in Caraccas,.
abundam proof of the severe and urgent Mistress of
dated Lriguayra, May 7, Ii 110.—" On the
,18th the British army, and they know (accoreling to M.
I went up to Santiago de.Leon ; on the day
de
.Garay's repeated admission in his conferences ~ April,
following, the long-projected 'revolution:took ;lace;
wits' me) that Sir .4. Wellesley, • with the gallant
' army under his cammand, was animated :by the it was etfeaed 'without bloodshed, as the principals
•
most ardent zeal for the completion of his glo:. had gained over the troops to their interest. All the
.'
persons in power were laid bold of.and shipped off.
nous succ,sses, and 'that tic never would have fallen
back upon the resources of Portugal, while any pros-
I was arrested iii the morning; however, on my.
pea remained of obtaining subsistence in Spain.
obtaining a personal audience with the Junta, I was
released, and obtained a pass to come down here a
8. But a strict observation of• the proceedings of
few days ago. Several murders have been c;‘rnm t.
the Junta„and of its officers, has convinced we that -
I had formed :too sanguine an expettation . of, their ted, and no punishment has ensued. My situation
is critical in the extreme,:,in case of the business
exertions, and too favourable an opinion of their
sincerity. ~ -
being 'to be decided by force of arms. .The Creoles,
-
9.Thi, Government is conscious of the real causes or native Americans, claim all the places of.tnist in
of the distresses of. our troops; public opinion has, the new GOvernMent : the European. Spaniardsop.
pose that measure; and, as they are the con-nntrcial loudly, and I fear too jitstly„ imputed 'this calamity
part of this country, c6nsequently have the monieS"
to the weakness or negligence ,of the Executive
Power in Spain, no insinuations therefore, have-been amongst their bands„ which will always procure
Cheat assistance. The Supreme Junta, established
discountenanced. by the Government, which might
tend to avert from themselves the indignation ge-
hi St: Jago de Leon, have sent agents to several of
nerally excited by the unfavourable issue of a cam-
the islands; and to-morrow will send one .to Ad-
miral Cochrane, praying the protection of the mother
paign commenced with such auspicious hopes.
10. On the 20th and gist instant, the opinions country. 'The.Luropean part of the community are
of Al. de Garay, of this Government, and of the confident that Great Britain cannot countenance this.
Public within these provinces, Certainly tended to
business, however much for ber.interesti in consi-
'
' deration of our atlual state with thatcountry. „What
establish a generil apprehension of immediate din- I most dread is an insurreCtion amongst the coloured
ger to this quarter of Spain, from the French forces,
in the event of the retreat of the British army .to peOple here, there being,at least two hundred Co.
Portugal. The judgment iff.Sir-A. Wellesley, how-
loured forgone white inhabitant ; and as it is a- land
of liberty arid. equality' that they have established, it
ever, did not confirm this apprehension. He thought
is impossible to calculate to what length things may
it improbable that the enemy would; venture with
be carried. Every kind 'of business is completely at
'his present .force to advance into Andalusia ; and, as
'
far as the designs of-the enemy could be conjectured a stand. I ata the only British subject in the
i.., •
r
from recent move.ments, it. did not appear to be his rot iota,
•
immediate objed to pursue of&nsive operations in
the Southern provinces.

SPAIN.

Dii'patch frau the Marquis Wellesley to M r. Secretary Can-
lung, (concluded ,from i?ur Paper CI Tuesday.)

f i . But,' although these opinions of the inten-
tions_ and power of the enemy miy trove Just and
rational, they have not calmed the popular appie-
hension, and the prevalent sentiment (not dis-
couraged by the Government) appears to be, that
the British army: without necessity, is.about to re-
linqnisli the protection uf, Spain, in a. crisis of imnai-
nent danger.

THE CHALLLNGE.

12. In this distraeled state of the publiC mind,
and in the confusion and c'nsternatiOn of the Go-
vernment, it appeared to me to be my duty, to en-
deavour to suggest some plan,' which might check
the rising apirit.pf discontent and alarm, and might
confirm the pi inciples of the British alliance, wi, bout
exposing our army to further peril.
13.. Accordingly, on the 2lst'inst;-eit, I addresed
to M. de Garay the notes •of which I -have the ho-
nour t.oinclo,ie copies ; and on the 2.2,d, I forwarded
to Sir Arthur Wellesley a dispatch, of which also a
copy is inclosed.

For the following aiticie we are lO,debledjo
ACKERMA N'S " REPOSITOR Y Ol', ,RTS,. LIT ER AT UR E,
COMMERCE, &C. SCC."-•-•T!ie Chdratter Of TURENNE,
iS so ditferent from that .of: the modern race. of
French Generals, who.miglit. be st,pi)owd. to have
been raised by a
.7vorlive c4priee.ofTortune, if their
condutt'were n7-)t so inueli.at war with the-rights of
',unkind, and the bappineas of.the.sotial state, that
we feel, great. pleasure in giving adniisslon to any
thing tending to vindicate hisylemgry.

4

14. •In the notes aldressed to M. de Garay, I en-
deavoured to explain the -nature and causes of the
distress- of our troops; to suggest to this Govern-
ment a plan for better securing the supply and move-
ment of our army in Spain ; and (under the condi-
tion ...hat this plan sh,uld be immediately carried
. into execution with celerity ,and vigour, and in the
:belief that sufficient exertion had already been made
'.for the intermediate relief of the British army) I,
prOpoied to submit to Sir A. Wellesley the expecii-
ency of occupying a position in Spain, from which
he might communicate wiih Portugal, and at the
.same time, might try the result ot the promised
,etkiti.of this. Government-for the subsistence of ifis
tCoops.

1.6. The dispatch to Sir ,Arthur 'Wellesley sub-
mits these several plans to his consideration, without
attempting to press
them upon his judgment beyond
the limits of hikovin opinion.
M: de Gal*, and this Government, eagerly
.AdqAelttliat part of the...plan", which suggested the
detention" of the British army in Spain, and repeated
the most poSiiiire assurances of the exertions al-
fieady 'Made, and those intended, for the seasonable
supply .of the army. • But, in the mean while, my
confidence In_thoie aSsuranCes wa3 diminished by the
COrnibunications-ivhich I received from .Sir Arthur
Wellesley, whose letters (of which' copies are in-
closed) of the 21st and .22d instant, announced to
me, not only the increasing distress of his troops,
but the proceedings of M..•de Calvo, (a Member of
the Junta especially commissioned to superintend
the, supplies of our army), tending to aggravate the
increasing distress, and even to cast suspicion on the
sincerity of -the- Spanish Government.

J 7. I take the liberty of recommending the
Whole of Sir Arthur Wellesley's ciirrespondence to
your partic.ilar attention. It contains a • tull - and
detailed statement of the extent and causes of his
distress; and exhibits. a view of the state of the
country-, anti of the temper and conduct of the Spa-
nish Civil and .Military authorities, which cannot tail
to be useful in forming any plan of future operations
in Spain.

18. During the per;od of my residence at Seville,
I have received, several notes trotn M..de Garay,
containing, by order of the Supreme Central Junta,
the most strenuous exhortations for the iinnie,iiate
advance of the' British troll ag'inst the 'enemy ;
and, in our conferences, he has adviied the expul-
sion of the French beyond the Pyienees. I have in-
.crosed translations -of these notes according to the
order of their dates.

While the Briiish troops remained destitute of the
means of transport, and of the molt important ar-
ticles of supply, it was at least superfluous to pro-
pose active operations ; and ti,e'let Lets of Sir Arthur
Wellesley afford surficiefit evidence of the degree -of
assistance which' our troups might have expected
-from the Spanish Generals and armies, in au) ter-
ward movement.

I have nor attempted to expostulate with M. de
Garay pn these unplea•atit topics, although 1 have
represented to him, in the most unreserved inannet,
the inability of Our army to execute the projects te-
commended by the-Junta. 111. de Garay, however,
is compelled by the orders 3f the Junta, to repeat to
•
me, in the course of every day, the same exhorta-
tions expressed nearly in the same worth.
(Signed) Wt,LLESLEY.
The. Right pan. G. Caltnitsi;, &c.

Something more than a: century Ago, it was .still
customary to believe, that a general blasted his lan-.
rely, if he behaved withcruelty to tlie.innocent in-
habitants.of. a hostile country. This prejudice, in-
deed, we have long relinquished ; but the great
Turenne, was for many years reproached in the bit-
terest manner, with,having-,..in,.tbe year 1674, .re-
ceived and executed the order to, convert the states
of the- Eleetor Palatine into a: heap of ruins. The
Chevalier Beaurain, the_ historian of his campaigns,
'successfully vindicates him against this imputation,
the justice of which had before been universally cre-
dited. " Historians says, he, confound dates, .
:and place the devastation of the .Palatinate in the'
year :1674, though it did not take place till. t 688,
consequently thirteen : years after the Marshai's-
death. A simple recital of the occurrence will ex-
punge. from his memory this unmerited stain.
Turenne.judging, :that if The allies called in all
their detachments, they would, by their superiority,
.drive, him back across the Rhine, resolved to .:de-
.pr,ve them,- of the means .Of • subsistence on the
right bank of that river. To this end, he ender-,
ed all the corn and forage to be carried WI. or
;destroyed. This is. the usage of war. The pea.
.sants, of the Palatiliate, exposed to the horrors of
famine, wreaked their, vengeance on some soldiers
who fell into their hands, and whose mutilated car-
cases were found by their comrades. This was pep-
.feelly natural. The French,' however,- -were of
opinion, as they probably may be sometimes at the
present day, that the peaiants ought to haVe.st?iwzd
with murmuring; and, without any command...from
trheirgeneral,. set fire to several villages: _No sootier
was Turenne intorMed of the circumstance, ;than,
as might be expeEted from -•his,•welkkitown
~hum-
anity, he forbade the repetitionJ;if these excesses
upon pain of the severest punishments. Had Louis
XIV. actually commanded him to lay- waste the
Palatinate, he would have duly notitiedthe receipt of
this order, of which; WI. the .contrary, not . a trace
is to be found among his. papers./ What he, says in
one of his letters to the, king relates
.otily to the
scarcity of provisions among,tbe inhabitattts of the
Palatinate, whom he strove to relieve -as -much as
possible, permitting thecomMisKities to supply their
necessities. as well as those of his own troops. , .
Turenne must appear perfettly juatiftecl, when it
is' known, that lielcsunished the Instigators of the
conflagration with death. The •,French historian
likewise endeavours ;to sindiCate• the-honour of his
countrymen, by asserting, that three- English regi-
ments which werg in the army had chtely..contri-
buted to revolt the peasants of the Vititinate by their
cruelly. He farther declares, that %A. hatever has
been written on. the subje,:,t 10, the,prejqdiee of th,-;
Marshal, is founded- only on the accounts of the
Dutch gazetteers, whose interest at that, time it was
to tender the French name as odious as possible
throughout all Europe.
A member of the Academy of Man beim has-fallen
into a twofold error on this head. In the.fitst place
he positively asserts, that part of the Palatinate was
laid in ashes by,Turenne's order ; and in. the • se-
cond, be declares the celebrated challenge sent by
the Elector Palatine to the. Marshal,.to be a.fictith,
gut this challenge, this noble monument .of the
love of a pi i nce. tor his -people, .nettrilly took place;
and
,the C,,evalter Beattrain gives a copy of it from
the original, together with Turenne's answer, both
of which were found among his. papers.

" Friedrichsburgh, July x 5, c 674.
" The burning of my towns and viliagts,, wtucli
according. to a letier.troin one .of you: servants, and
from other inbtortriation, took place by your order,
is bo extraordinary a circutn,tance, and Ki unworthy
a man like you, that I can scarcely conceive the
grounds of Wei/ a proceeding. Every body is the
mote astonished at it, as, previous to your eonver-

sion, you did not behave-thus in several umpaignsi
even to enemies who .were noi.of the, same relijal
with yourself. I ought not indeed to be:surprise-4
at s.lch con,luct; Ater all-the excesses Comnitled by
your troops last: year, %O en they. p ,ssed Oncog:ft
the country..air triend, f .but yet I, cautrot conceal
my amazed), tit at a prOceduro so contrary to the
laws of war adopteJ attiOug and to 3!oui
forme' asstirarices'•ot friendship. Ac.ording•lo.irj
rappreheust.4l,- it i.,.usual,to burn ot! ilace.s.as
. refuse topay.contribtnioni; now you well know,
that you in,-ver dernatided any of the tillages that
have been d ,Stroyel. "Mitny'uf- yo it prisoners as-
stile rue, that it 0 as.done to levenge titeaturcier'nf
some soldiers upon
,my peasants.. 11;t. as: no such
cruelties on the part of my.leasanti Vvere ever he .rd
Of, the fault probably- lies with these 'whom jot
have yourself. brought: from .Strasburgh and- Spires,
and who, fierhaps wil t plea ore, thrinshecl you.with
this pretext fur revenge. But .1; even my subjects
were in fault, I cannot thihk; that on account of a
few culpiit.i, whom,siJ complaint had been made to
me, 1 would have 'scyerely Jhaslised, )ou.ouglitlo
have ruined so many innocent families, and to,hare
destroyed the churches of your own 'religion!
Adions so incon,•istent with the growth in grace,
of which you boast since your cotAersi,in, lead, me
to suppose that you Lberi4a in the bottom some Ina•.
lice against, nee but it Would have been easier to
have obtained satisla,-.lion of tree in a . manntr in-re
common with men of .Ldo,,ibt nut tivit Ins •-
most Christain Majesty %t ill alioW you leisure
.snfl
ficientto revenge Yoursdi. on 'me in a more gentle.