Alexandria daily gazette, commercial & political. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1808-1812, 1811-12-27

Tn the course OF these operations, Ding a'i.
General Campbell's brigade OF Portuguese He
iantrv, Joined US from Casa de Don Antenio'
where it had made an halt the night before,
and as soon as Judged that they were no
longer necessary In the scene OF action, de-
t,ched them with the brigade composed OF the
5oth, 7lst, and e2d regiments, and MAJOR.
Ger raj Longs brigade of cavalry, to Meri-
da; they arrived at San Pedro that night, and
entered Merida this morning. The enemy
had, in the course of the night retired thence
to Almendralejo in great CONSERVATION. The
Count de Penne formed the van with his ca
valry, and had entered the city before the En-
glish arrived.
1t is unnecessary to point out to your excel
lency the final consequences OF these opera
tons, their immediate result has been the Cap
ture of one general of horse, (Brun) one colo
mel of horse. the Prince dArenbers, one
Lieutenant Colonel, chief of the staff, one aid
de-camp of General Girard, Lieutenant CO.
lonels, Commissary Of war, 50 Captains and
Subaltern Officers, and upwards of 1000 infe-
rior officers and soldiers whom | have sent
with AN escort to Portalegre. All the enc
my's artillery, baggage commissariat, some
magazines Of bread that they had collected at
Gaceres and Merida, and contributions of mo-
ney that they had levied upon the former OF
these cities, besides the total dispersion of the
corps of General Girard. The loss of the
enemy in killed must also he great, while ours
was comparatively Insignificant, as appears
from the accompanying list. in which your OK
celency will regret to see the name of Lieut.
Strenwitz, aid-de-camp to Lieutenant General
Sir William Erskine, whose great bravery
led him into the midst of the enemy's cavalry,
by whom he was taken prisoner.
Thus terminated an expedition which tho
it has not afforded an opportunity of fully dis
playing the bravery and spirit of those who
were engaged, l trust merits your exce!cn-
cy's appreciation. No colnmendation of mine
is sufficient 10 do Justice to the admirable con.
duct, patience and zeal that all classes exhi-
bited during the forced marches in the worst
of weather, to their strict attention to the or
ders they received, to the precision with
which they marched to the attack, and to their
obedience to orders during the action; in
word, the manner lii which every one did his
duty from the commencement of the operation
deserves my very best thanks, and am GER
tain, will not escape your excellency's obser-
yation. l must declare my obligation to 1t.
General Sir William Erskine for his assist
ance and advice on every occasion.
am particularly obliged TO Major General
Howard who placed himself at the head of his
troops i'll the most difficult ascent of the Sier-
"a, and throughout the action led his column
with much ability and to Maior-Gen. Long
for his operations at the head of his brigade
must also acknowledge my obligations to
Col Wilson, Col. Ashworth, and Lieut. Col.
Stewart, commandants of brigades, for the iu-
dicious manner in which they led them.
Here the officers and corps, who distin-
guishcd themselves, are particularly men
toned.
Having now fulfilled, as hope, the object
that your exceiency desired, with the troops
under my command, shall give them. days
rest in this city, and shall afterwards return
to the frontiers of Portugal, to put them again
in environments.
This despatch will be delivered to your ex-
cellency by captain Hill, my first aid -de-camp;
and beg leave to refer your excellency to
him for any information that YOU may desire.
l have the honor to be, sc. Sc
(Signed) r. HILL,
Lieutenant General.
P. S. Since writing the above despatch,
considerable number of prisoners has been
made, and | doubt not but that the whole a.
mount is l3 or l4oO.
Brig. gen. Morilo has just returned from
pursuing the fugitives whom he followed for
the space of 8 leagues. He affirms that there
were found in the skirts Of the me antains a.
bove 600 dead bodies
Gen. Girard escaped in the direction of the
Sierra with 200 or 300 men, many of them
without arms, and it is said that his own aid
dc camp is wounded
List of the killed, wounded and missing
from corps of the army commanded by his
eScellcncy general lord viscount WELLINGTON,
knight of the bath, commander in chief, un-
der the immediate orders of lieutenant general
r. Hill, in an action with the French, at the
foot of Arroyo de Moinos on the 2Sth Octo-
Der 1911.
Total of the English loss, corporals and
soldiers, and horses, killed Eai,t colo,.I