Tag: Catalonia
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The Military Life of Bruno d’Ast … (I)
Dominique-Louis-Guillaume-Bruno d’Ast was born on 9 August 1790, in Brignemont. (1) He was the eldest son of Mr. Guillaume d’Ast and Madame Marie-Germaine-Sophie de Pérignon. (2) His godfather was Dominique Catherine de Pérignon, his uncle, an officer in the royal grenadiers in the Quercy Regiment, the future victor of Rosas and Figueras, ambassador of the…
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A narration of the siege of Saragossa, by André d’Audebard de Férussac …
From the camp in front of Saragossa, 1 January 1809. You will recall that in my first letter I told you that there was fighting raging when I arrived. In fact, from the moment I crossed the Ebro, I constantly heard cannon fire; no matter how hard I tried, I arrived too late. It was…
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More Peninsular War letters of the rank and file …
Jean GOERGEN or GERGEN, born at Troine (community of Wincrange, northern Luxembourg) on 29 May 1788, son of Jean Goergen and Thérèse Fink, conscripted in 1808, was found fit for military service at a first medical examination at Dickirch. A second medical examination revealed wounds on his face that appeared to have been caused by…
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A cavalry officer’s recollections of the battle of Vitoria, 1813 …
Charles Louis Constant, Count of Agoult (1790-1875), recalls his experiences set during the battle which is considered ‘the Waterloo of the Peninsula’. He was a captain serving in the 4th Dragoon Regiment. Our ‘fortunes’ in Spain were becoming more critical by the day. Reason had long been warning to withdraw behind the Ebro (river). Napoleon…