1). It appears that large quantities of Regimental accoutrements and appointments, of Officers Baggage, and camp equipage, and of N.C.O.'s and men's necessaries, were left behind, or destroyed, at various times, and places, for want of the means of conveyance, the horses and mules having been so worn out with fatigue, want of forage, shoes as to be unable to proceed, and it consequently became necessary to destroy them.

Sir Robert Ker Porter would later recall that "Our draft animals and baggage mules having almost all perished, and no means of recruiting them arising, we were consequently obliged (dreadful necessity!) to relinquish many carts full of the sick and fatigued, as well as others laden with necessaries... ". Porter further recollected that at Corunna. ""Our cavalry and the artillery horses on entering the city were found in such a state of debility and irremediable lameness from want of shoes, that many fell dead in the streets, and more were obliged to be shot in mercy to their sufferings"

Blakeney of the 28th, on arriving at Villa Franca, saw that "The slaughter of the horses continued throughout the day...upon my inquiring of the men how it was that horses in apparently tolerable condition were incapable of at least proceeding quietly along, the invariable answer which I received was, that from the roughness of the road, hardened by continued frost, they cast their shoes, and that they had not a nail to fasten on those picked up, nor a shoe to replace those lost".)

That in the town of Lugo alone, not less than from 200 to 250 horses were shot under these circumstances. That in the case of one Regiment Äthe 15th Lt. DragoonsÄthen consisting of 700 men, not more than 300 men were mounted on the return of the Regt. to Corunna.

(William Green in the 95th observed that when the horses were taken lame and could not keep up with the army, "... the rider was ordered to dismount, throw his saddle bags on his shoulder, draw his pistol, and fire the ball through his horses head; leaving him with the saddle and all the other trappings, and the poor fellows would have to walk with knee boots and spurs, in the best manner they could to Corunna. We felt sorry for them, as they were not used to walking".)

That the horses were constantly falling down on the road, and their backs were so offensive, from being in a state of mortification, that the stench was frequently intolerable.

(Porter commented about this at Corunna, "The heavy rains have swollen and burst many of the carcasses and the infected air hovers so rancorously about our heads, that it is almost impossible to pass in any direction without feeling violent convulsions of stomach... ")

Natives Plunder

2). That in addition to the hardships which the army had to encounter, from these and other circumstances, the inhabitants in almost every part of the country through which the troops passed were continually watching opportunities to plunder both Officers and Men, so that no vigilance on the part of either, could protect them from depredations of this kind which appear to have been committed to a very great extent.

(This reason for the losses by the army is largely unfair to the Spanish people, particularly as the surviving evidence from memoirs points to British Troops as perpetuating most of the plundering.

Macfarlane of the 71st recalled, "I must say the people were very kind to me and to others also. But how could they continue to be kind? for when we left their houses in the morning, or at any time, there was something stolen away".

At right, 71st Highlanders on the march. During the retreat, they were brigaded with the 36th Regt and 92nd Highlanders in Craufurd's brigade.

Captain Gordon of the cavalry remembered, "...parties of drunken soldiers were committing all kinds of enormities, several houses were in flames. The gutters were ovefflowing with rum, a number of puncheons had been staved in the street and a promiscuous rabble were drinking and filling bottles in the street".

To this can be added the recollection of William Verner, 7th Hussars, "... for miles the men were scouring the country and plundering every house ". While Moore was to have at least one soldier hanged for plundering, the punishment handed out to the 71st for their antics was of a less terminal kind.

Macfarland wistfully recalled that "Some of the men had taken from the inhabitants honey and potatoes. The Colonel paid for them, and we had to pay for them afterwards, three halfpence each man".)

Verbal Orders

3). That verbal orders were at various times given by General and other Officers to destroy or throw away, accoutrements, Baggage, Camp equipage and necessaries, and to destroy horses.

(Porter wrote that "...Sir John Moore while we at Villafranca, to facilitate our march, had ordered whatever magazines and carriages which he considered as more cumoersome than useful to be destroyed".

Blakeney of the 28th also remembered the destruction at Villafranca, "The Whole Town seemed on fire. This conflagration was caused by the destruction of stores and provisions, and so tenacious were the Commissariat in preserving everything for the flames that they had guards posted around even the biscuits and salt meat to prevent the men as they passed from taking anything away... ". However, "...many of the men had the hardihood as they passed to stick their bayonets, and Sergeants their pikes into the salt pork which was actually being set fire to. Several hunks were thus taken away .. "

Earlier at Astorga, " .. there were a great many pairs of shoes destroyed Though a fourth of the army were in want of them, and I among the rest, yet they were consumed along with the other stores in the magazines " regretted a soldier of the 71st.

Finally on arrival at Corunna, the Third Hussars of the K.G.L. had the heart breaking task of shooting their horses which had carried them faithfully throughout the retreat. The reason for this sad act was the difficulty and delay in trying to embark the horses whilst pressed by the enemy and "...to prevent them falling into the hands of the French, where their sufferings would have been protracted... Two hundred and ninety horses of the Legion were thus disposed of... ".)

Of Necessity

4). That Baggage was sometimes left behind from the necessity of employing the horses and mules on services of greater importance.

(The Treasury of Moore's army was carried in two cans pulled by oxen. However the retreat proved too much for the oxen and the army's rear guard eventually caught up with the carts. This led to a somewhat one-sided conversation between the Paymaster-General and General Paget gleefully recorded by Blakeney, "The treasure of the army Sir, is close in the rear, and the bullocks being jaded are unable to proceed; I therefore want fresh animals to draw it forward" said the Paymaster.

Paget's response was to give the unfortunate clerk a right dressing down, concluding with the phrase, "...ought to be hanged". This had the desired effect of stimulating the oxen to further efforts. But all to no avail.

The rearguard soon caught up with the carts again and this time the army's coinage was, "...rolled down the precipice, their silvery notes were accompanied by a noble bass, for two guns were thundering their applause into Soult's dark brown column". No recorded attempt was made to use either horses or oxen from other army transport to even save the army's treasury. Though the Hussars of the K. G. L. using their own initiative managed to save some of the money, it was in the main abandoned to the elements, French, locals, and a few voracious characters.)

Hurry and Confusion

5). That from the hurry and confusion which prevailed on the reembarkation of the Army at Corunna, as well as from the want of Boats to convey accoutrements, baggage, etc, on board the transports, very considerable losses were sustained.

(The History of the K. G. L. records that "... the men were hurried off to the ships with little regard to regiments or vessels, and many transports were overloaded, while others had not half their compliment the baggage also could not be entirely brought off, and the German hussars were among the other suffers in this particular.

Macfarlane of the 71st, upon reaching Corunna beach in the dark, was rowed out to sea, where, "... the next thing was to find out the ship where the regiment was in. They had the sailors rowed from one ship to another, but could not find it out. We got orders to get into any ship... we had now a good company of men belonging to five or six regiments. We had an Officer with about eight or nine of our regiment".

Another member of the 71st also encountered the same confusion, "There was no regularity in our taking the boats. The transport that I got to had part of seven regiments on board". Green of the 95th wrote later of having members of 29 different regiments aboard his particular ship.)

No Baggage

6). That many articles of various descriptions were lost in consequence of Regiments not embarking in the same transport with their baggage, which upon their arrival in England, was found to be in a very deficient state.

(Blakeney of the 28th lamented, "Scarcely a regiment got on board the vessel which contained their baggage, and the consequence was, that on quitting our ships we presented an appearance of much dirt and misery".)

Hospital Destruction

7). It appears also from the testimony of, and from Documents produced by, the Military Superintendent of Hospitals that considerable quantities of clothing and necessaries belonging to sick men of different Regiments, were destroyed in the several Hospitals upon their landing in England, to prevent infection, and that a very considerable loss of accoutrements was likewise sustained from the same and other causes.

(Edward Costello, who had just enlisted into the 95th, watched the arrival of his new regiment at the barracks, "The appearance of the men was squalid and miserable in the extreme. There was scarcely a man amongst them, who had not lost some of his appointments, and many, owing to the horrors of that celebrated retreat, were even without riles. Their clothing too was in tatters, and in such an absolute state of filth as to swarm with vermin. New clothing was immediately served out and the old ordered to be burned, which order was put into execution at the back of our barracks... ".

Green also of the 95th remembered of his return to England, "Such a lot of rag-a-muffins never landed at Portsmouth before. We were so filthy with vermin...on arrival at Hythe barracks, our new clothing was served out, and then a fire was made in the barrack square, and all our clothing, shirts and flannels we burned, and all the livestock they contained! ")

The Decisions of the Board