(from the Journals of John MacDougal)The Pursuit of Diaz and The Battle of Pamplona, 1806
-------- Pamplona Battle Video, Part 1 **HERE**----------
I spent much of the time in late 1805 under the care of the camp surgeon. A wood splint thrown through the air in an explosion had entered my right thigh, and while it was immediately removed, it had become infected within weeks. This occurred during a minor battle, north of Madrid, a few weeks after the Spain capital was seized...a stray cannon shot to be sure, because I was far back from the front line. The infection was bad enough that the surgeon had designs to amputate. But after seeing too many men go through that grizzly experience, I begged him to hold off. Begrudgingly, and with the resigned experience of a man who had long given up arguing with a patient, he left me to my fate. Thankfully, the wound did heal, but it is that wound that left me with the pronounced limp I have today.
While I remained in hospital, Wellington's army had been cleaning up resistance throughout central Spain, going back as far as Gibraltar to chase down some stray Spanish regiments before they could threaten the southern ports. General Diaz had survived the battle of Toledo, and had retreated back across the Ebro River to the north-east so he could winter in the safe confines of Pamplona. He did not remain idle. He spent the winter traveling throughout northern Spain, raising militias and organizing his remaining regulars. He also continued to receive considerable help from France in both monies and supply.
Successful as he was in central Spain, Wellington knew that he could not lead an assault on Diaz in Pamplona without resupply and reinforcements from England. He sent word to London of his intent, and his plans for the summer campaign of the following year, along with his requests for men and goods. Over the next months, a steady stream of fresh troops and equipment was flowing from Gibraltar.
By January, my wound had almost completely healed, and I was able to resume the duties of my assignment. I spoke extensively with Wellington's senior officers, and they displayed incredible patience at my amateurish knowledge of warfare and what had to seem like naive questions on my part. First, I was unprepared for the slow speed at which armies move, learning over the campaign that without steady supply, an army is just a large gathering of bored and hungry men. The logistics these officers had to manage was staggering to me, with many of them providing the most up-to-date figures of men and supply in incredible detail. The exact location of every well in the region. The number of pigs and chickens on hand. The number of sick and precise knowledge of each soldiers state of recovery. It was during this time that I learned that warfare was about so much more than the battlefield, and eventually I understood a flippant remark I overheard from Wellington the previous year, that the battle is won or lost "long before we ever see the enemy".
In May, 1806, Wellington's massive force left Madrid and marched north to Zaragoza to cross the Ebro. I was heartened to be out of the city, but the heat was suffocating, and I did not yet have the stamina for long marches. Wellington met little resistance on the road to Zaragoza, and while his troops seemed encouraged by their relative ease of travel, the General knew better. His scouts, commanded by a dashing figure named Colonel Bertrand "Buck" Wilford, had been carefully monitoring Diaz's movements for months, and had kept Wellington appraised of a massive Spanish force rallying in Pampalona. Wellington knew that his ease of movement was attributed to Diaz's wish to hit our armies with a single massive blow. On June 2nd, the British army, over 3000 strong with 10 infantry regiments, 5 artillery battalions, and nearly 500 cavalry and dragoons, crossed the Ebro and turned west.
Diaz, well aware of our presence, was busy picking a spot along our route most suitable for his defense and most necessary for our travel. On the morning of July 3rd, Wellington's army was camped 4 miles from a village called Monreal, only 10 miles itself from Pamplona, when Wilford's scouts returned with word that they had spotted Diaz's army only 3 miles ahead. The officers were gathered, maps were examined, a plan was drafted, and by late morning, the army began the march out of camp to meet the enemy. The fate of Spain would be determined near that sleepy village, in what is now known as the Battle of Pamplona.
- Sir John MacDougal, 1859