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By the middle of 1811, Brigadier General Robert Craufurd's Light
Division was emerging as the elite of the Peninsular Army and
Wellington was seeking opportunities to go over to the offensive,
following the expulsion of Marshal Mass na from Portugal. After a
period of outpost duty for the Light Division on the familiar
ground of the Spanish borders, Wellington seized the keys to Spain'
in the epic sieges of Ciudad Rodrigo and Badajoz. Still reeling
from the loss of General Craufurd, The Division' led the army
against Marshal Marmont and after a protracted period of marching
and counter marching, the French were finally brought to battle at
Salamanca. As a result of King Joseph being driven out of Madrid,
the French marshals united and in the autumn of 1812, the British
were driven back to Ciudad Rodrigo in another gruelling retreat.
With news of Napoleon's disaster in Russia and with reinforcements
from Britain, Wellington prepared his army to drive the French from
the Peninsular. A lightening march across Spain to cut the Great
Road found King Joseph and Marshal Jourdan at Vitoria and the
resulting battle, in which the Light Division fought their way into
the heart of the French position, was a triumph of arms for
Wellington's light troops. The pursuit into the Pyrenees, had a
sting in the tail when Marshal Soult mounted counter offensives in
an attempt to relieve San Sebastian and Pamplona. Having thrown the
French back and with the Sixth Coalition intact, the Light Division
fought their way through the mountains and into Napoleon's France.
With the allies closing in on all sides, the French fought on into
1814 and the Light Bobs had further fighting before the spoils of
peace in a war-weary France could be enjoyed.
By the middle of 1811, Brigadier General Robert Craufurd's Light
Division was emerging as the elite of the Peninsular Army and
Wellington was seeking opportunities to go over to the offensive,
following the expulsion of Marshal Mass na from Portugal. After a
period of outpost duty for the Light Division on the familiar
ground of the Spanish borders, Wellington seized the keys to Spain'
in the epic sieges of Ciudad Rodrigo and Badajoz. Still reeling
from the loss of General Craufurd, The Division' led the army
against Marshal Marmont and after a protracted period of marching
and counter marching, the French were finally brought to battle at
Salamanca. As a result of King Joseph being driven out of Madrid,
the French marshals united and in the autumn of 1812, the British
were driven back to Ciudad Rodrigo in another gruelling retreat.
With news of Napoleon's disaster in Russia and with reinforcements
from Britain, Wellington prepared his army to drive the French from
the Peninsular. A lightening march across Spain to cut the Great
Road found King Joseph and Marshal Jourdan at Vitoria and the
resulting battle, in which the Light Division fought their way into
the heart of the French position, was a triumph of arms for
Wellington's light troops. The pursuit into the Pyrenees, had a
sting in the tail when Marshal Soult mounted counter offensives in
an attempt to relieve San Sebastian and Pamplona. Having thrown the
French back and with the Sixth Coalition intact, the Light Division
fought their way through the mountains and into Napoleon's France.
With the allies closing in on all sides, the French fought on into
1814 and the Light Bobs had further fighting before the spoils of
peace in a war-weary France could be enjoyed.
Histories of the Light Division have tended to be incomplete, being
based on memoirs of a few well known diarists, principally from the
95th Rifles. The authors of this book, the first volume of two,
have sought memoirs from across the division, including the
artillery, the King's German Hussars and others to complete a
broader history of Wellington's elite division. Light infantry was
not new a concept in 1803, but at Shorncliffe Camp Sir John Moore
developed a progressive ethos, set of tactics and training for the
newly converted light infantry regiments. With the 95th Rifles they
were melded into a brigade that was to form the basis of the
incomparable Light Division. From the outset of the Peninsular
campaigns in 1808 they delivered results way beyond their scant
numbers, but it was during the epic winter retreat to La Corunna
that they showed their metal. Returning to the Peninsular months
later, the irascible Brigadier Craufurd led the Light Brigade in
terrible march to reach Wellington at Talavera; heavily laden and
in the heat of summer. Over the winter of 1809/10, Craufurd,s
battalions, now elevated to the status of a division, provided the
army's outposts. This was work that Craufurd excelled in and
actions abounded, including the Combat on the C a, where the
division fought hard to escape Marshal Ney's trap. In 1810, with
Wellington withdrawing to the Lines of Torres Vedra, the Light
Division played a significant part in the battle of Bu aco Ridge,
while the following year they drove Marshal Massena's army back
into Spain having fought almost daily actions en route. This
history of the Light Division is not simply a series of set piece
battles but provides a wider picture of campaigning and what it was
to be a light infantry soldier.
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