The American Sharpe Read online

  28th Got as far with the tide as Verdon roads,57 anchored.

  29th Got as far by the morning tide as Verdon roads where we anchored until a breeze springing up, we got under weigh & got out to sea.

  Probably a combination of sheer mental exhaustion and a boring monotonous passage led to a two week gap in James’ diary, which he then finished with a short overview of his time in the Peninsula.

  July

  9th After all the fatigues & dangers of three campaigns during an absence of 2 years & 8 months, I landed this day at Portsmouth.

  Chapter 13

  Napoleon Returns

  James rejoined his battalion at Dover barracks in the late autumn of 1814, where it was in garrison, having sailed back from France in the previous July. Some time in the late spring of 1815 James received a short letter from his father which betrays the time delays in their correspondence, referring to his injury at the Battle of Vitoria and hoping for his full recovery; but more importantly, emphatically insisting that James, having been born in America, could not under any circumstances fight with the British army against the Americans. It is an excellent illustration of the confused loyalties of many between the old and the new. The irony was that the letter did not arrive before the war with America ended and if the battalion had indeed been sent to America in the summer of 1814 it arrived too late to stop James fighting there.

  To Lieutenant J P Gairdner

  Shady Grove 6 November 18141

  My dear James,

  A very short time ago I received your favour of 23 March 1813, at [the] same time got accounts of your being wounded at the Battle of Vitoria, but getting better. I trust that I will soon have the pleasure of hearing from you. I find none of my letters have lately got to hand, the present will probably share the same fate, it is principally, as the war is likely to continue with this country, to say that you must on no account come here as a foe, it is your native country, you cannot fight against it. If the regiment is ordered out, you must resign if you cannot exchange into another that is not likely to be sent out. I was in great hopes that peace would have been concluded at Ghent and that I should soon have had the pleasure of seeing you here, for when the peace is general you could surely get leave of absence for a year at least. In hopes of hearing from you soon, I remain my dear boy, your most affectionate father, James Gairdner.

  Luckily James was not required to break this particular taboo, before something of much greater portent caused him to move in a new and completely unexpected direction. The Emperor Napoleon had arrived back in France and retaken his throne from King Louis XVIII.

  This news sent shock waves throughout Europe and it was not very long before the troops were ordered for Belgium to reinforce Wellington’s allied army.

  April 1815

  25th Embarked at Dover at 6 o’clock in the evening, got under weigh2 at about eleven and landed at Ostend this morning at about 6 o’clock [27th].

  27th From thence we marched about a mile and there embarked in barges for Ghent. Went as far as Bruges, where we arrived at about 8 o’clock, stayed there all night and slept in the barges. The country from Ostend here is very flat and principally swampy, pasture low, the peasants appear to be very poor and dirty and ill clad.

  28th Went on this morning at four o’clock and reached Ghent by six in the evening; got good billets. The country between Bruges and this place is one uninterrupted flat but exceedingly well cultivated and rich. It is however very swampy in some places, I did not see any good country house. The country is also well wooded.

  29th We are to stay here some days. We waited on the King of France this evening.3

  30th Ghent is exactly what I have always fancied a Flemish city to be, large irregularly built and clumsy, the houses for the most part very old but not ruinous. All the markets are abundantly supplied and very cheap. There are several churches here, I went to the cathedral this morning, there are some very fine pieces of sculpture in the chancel, the building itself is not handsome either within or without, even if it was it could not be seen as it is completely and closely surrounded by houses4, there are several pictures but I am no judge of them, none however struck me as being particularly fine. There are large working parties fortifying the city.

  I went to the theatre this evening, there is but one open now, it is for the French comic opera and farce. I found the performance much better than I expected, there is a Mr Huet5 who has a good voice, his wife also sings pretty well and acts in the second class of comedy admirably. Huet is a good actor in that way; the orchestra is good and the music in general pretty, the leader of the orchestra did not in general play any instrument himself but directed not only the orchestra but the singers with a stick he held in his right hand and by the motions of his left. There are no brilliant performances in the orchestra, but no bad ones.

  The house is in an oblong shape, there are three lines of boxes besides the upper ones, the pit is divided into the parterre and pagonel, the latter which is nearest the orchestra is genteel. It is like the theatres in France with one chandelier, besides the stage lamps, it is however sufficiently lighted.

  May

  1st Marshal Marmont is at Alost organising the deserters, parties of whom arrive here daily, the Duc de Beri6 is here.

  2nd Blank

  James sent a letter to his father from Ghent which he finally finished on 2nd May, but he had started it some ten days previously at Dover.

  To James Gairdner Esq, Shady Grove, Near Augusta, Georgia

  Dover, 23rd April 18157

  My dear father,

  This cursed war has knocked all my plans in the head; I thought a month ago that by this time I should have been on my way to see you, but this scoundrel Bonaparte to the astonishment of the world has as it were by magic revealed himself without spilling a drop of blood on that throne which it cost Europe just twelve months ago so much blood and treasure to pull him down from. Our regiment has received orders to embark for Flanders and we sail from this place the day after tomorrow. The campaign will doubtless be an active one but it ought not to be a long one; it is very fortunate that the peace is made with America.

  I saw Mr Moodie when I was in London a few days ago, he I suppose will go out immediately8. I am very sorry that affairs have so turned out that I cannot accompany him. We are all very busy in making preparations for our departure, as soon as we get on the other side of the water I will finish this and tell you all the news. My aunt and her family have been very unfortunate in the season of the year they chose for their removal so far north, they have all been ill since they went there9. I hope that this business will soon be over and that I shall be able to accomplish my visit by the next autumn.

  Ghent, 29th April 1815

  We have at last arrived here, we embarked at Dover the 25th, arrived at Ostend the 27th, and from thence we came up to this place in boats by the canal, we arrived here last night. We shall stay here two or three days and from hence proceed to join the army, which is cantoned along the frontier of France. Hostilities have not yet commenced, but will I should think soon. The King of France Louis XVIII is here, with the principal part of those who are attached to his cause, there are deserters from France coming in here from time to time, a party came in today. The King of Holland10 is at Brussels as also Lord Wellington. The people of this country say that they wish well to the cause, but of their sincerity I am not yet able to judge, they are generally accused of preferring the French to the Dutch. They are of course sorry for the war and annoyed at the prospect of having their country made a thoroughfare for troops. They hate both Russians and Prussians and seem only [to] like the English so far as that they consider them somewhat better than the others. When you say that England is at a great expense, they say that at present she must lay out a great deal of money, but that she will end by being the gainer, in fact they seem to dislike their own situation and to distrust every nation. The country as far as we have seen it is an uninterrupted flat, but extremely well culti
vated and plentiful. Living is cheap here, except where large bodies of troops are or have been stationed, but the country in being flat has no beauty or variety and must I think in winter be very unhealthy as it is very swampy. This is a lame irregularly built, clumsy looking city, exactly what I [had] fancied a Flemish city to be, the inhabitants appear to [live comfort]tably and are very civil and obliging. They say that they [feel] that with the exception of the army the whole nation is for the king, but that with the exception of Louis and the Duchess d’Angouleme, not one of the Bourbon family are beloved.

  30th April

  We waited on the King of France yesterday afternoon, he appeared pleased with the attention, but he is very unwieldy and infirm, and it seems to be a great effort to him to move about. He is really to be pitied at his time of life and in his state of health, to have such a set to deal with, he is too good a man to be a king of France, they are a set that require to be ruled with a rod of iron, Bonaparte has so demoralised the nation that until the present generation are killed off, they will not be worth anything, but will be like a hornet’s nest in the middle of Europe. It is a most extraordinary age this we live in, the preparations for war are going on here with wonderful activity and the French papers wish to persuade the nation, that all the world are delighted with the return of Bonaparte to the throne.

  2nd May 1815

  We have stayed here much longer than we expected and there is still no talk of our leaving this. We may very likely stay a week or ten days longer. The post goes off tonight, therefore I must close this, I will write to you frequently and as the communication is open now I shall hope to hear from you often.

  Believe me my dearest father, your dutiful & affectionate son J P Gairdner.

  3rd Went this morning to the church of Saint Michael11 and stayed there during the whole service, I was very much pleased with the orchestra and the service which was not at all like church music in general, but much lighter and more tasty. The orchestra consisted of six violins, one bass violin, one serpent, 2 French horns & I think two clarinets. The leader who was the principal singer governed the whole with the motions of the staff as at the theatre, he had a good voice, and his singing is pleasing. There were about half a dozen other singers among whom was one boy with a good voice. There is besides an organ rather small, which took a part in the service now and then. There were one or two good paintings, one of the crucifixion by Van Dyck12 and one which pleased me much of the finding of the cross, a fete of which this day is the celebration, it is by Mr Paelinck13 of this place, an historical and portrait painter who is now painting the royal family of Holland14.

  4th Went to the theatre tonight, Madamoiselle Le Clerc from the Theatre Feydeau of Paris15 made her 1st appearance tonight, she sings well but is not so good an actress I think as Madame, the music of the farce, Le Tableau Parlant16 is very pretty. Madame Catalani is to be here on Monday.

  5th There is in this place on the tower of the prison a set of canalus, a kind of music for which this country is celebrated and I believe there only.

  6th Blank

  7th Lord Wellington who came from Brussels last night reviewed our regiment this morning, he went away again today.

  8th Madame Catalani17 had a concert this evening in the Salle de la Sodalite18. I went there and was delighted, her singing is really astonishing. The song Son Regina Del Cor fine, with variations which was heavenly, Della Trous and Via Senza fion il pinto a duo with Madame Pucitta and the song and chorus of Viva Enrico and finished with God Save the King, which was enthusiastically received. A Mr Georges played two concertos on the violin very finely. The room was very well filled though the people here thought nine francs an immense sum to pay.

  My landlord introduced me today to a reading room which belongs to the Societe Litterate of their place, so that I can now go there when I choose. The people of this place pride themselves much on their cotton manufactories, it seems that until within the last ten years they did not know how to spin cotton but that an inhabitant of Ghent smuggled a set of apparatus from England (for which had he been caught he would have been hung) and taught the art here, which was much encouraged by Bonaparte, the man might have been rich but was very extravagant. They also make a vast quantity of linen, the country too grows more grain than the inhabitants can consume. This place is very badly lighted indeed.

  9th I have not seen a pretty woman since I left England.

  10th Marched this morning at 8 o’clock to Alost19 5 leagues, when we came there [we] were obliged to turn off to the village called Welle20, in consequence of Alost being full of French emigrants. Welle is a straggling village, a commune, the people are poor, the farm houses not very clean, but even here all the necessaries of life are plentiful and cheap. There is a great quantity of hops grown here, the country from Ghent [to] here is perfectly flat & cultivated, the road very good and nearly a straight line, it is shaded on both sides with trees, principally beech. The ground about this village is in some places very swampy, there is a good deal of grass and clover grown hereabouts, and there [are] a great many cows &c in the meadows, but I have seen very few sheep since I have been in the country. Very few of the peasants hereabouts talk French. There is a great deal of rye grown in this country for what reason I cannot tell as the soil seems rich enough for anything.

  James encountered men being balloted for the militia of the new Netherlands army at the rate of 1 in 12 of the men of eligible age.

  11th Halted all day, the inhabitants of this commune drew for the militia today, there are 134 men of the age to serve in the commune where of 11 fall. That is at the rate of 1/12, those who fall to serve do not seem at all to mind it but get drunk on their bounty & sing. I rode into Alost this evening, it is a small but clean town. Marmont resides there21.

  12th Marched at 3 o’clock this morning to Brussels 5 leagues, passed through the small town of Asche22 half way. The road the same as from Ghent, paved in the middle, these roads they call the paves, the cross roads are merely cut, not made and must be very bad in winter. The country about Brussels is more uneven rather, but is still a very low country, and is not what can be called hilly.

  13th Brussels is a very large city, larger than Ghent & more populous, this contains about 90,000, Ghent about 60,000 souls. The streets generally speaking are built in the same irregular un-uniform way as at Ghent, the Place Royale however is a very beautiful square and the coup d’oleil is the church23 which forms the centre of one of the sides as you ascend is very good, there is near it the park, a very nice promenade lead out in different walks, very well shaded. The King and Prince of Orange, Lord Wellington & the British Ambassador live in the neighbourhood of the park. There [are] a great number of English people here and they are the prettiest women here, they live principally in a row of houses looking on the park; I saw the Hanoverian regiments relieve the Guards today, they are dressed completely like British soldiers except that the officers wear a yellow sash.

  The band was very good, much softer than our English bands are, when they played God Save the King at the presenting of arms, all the officers who were standing by put their hands to their caps until the tune was finished. While listening to the band a inhabitant of this place accosted me and we took a turn together in the park, he complained much of the king being surrounded by ministers in the French interest, he raged that the minister of justice is the only man among them that has the good of his country at heart, that the king is a good well meaning man but weak, that the prince is liked and that those of the Belgians who are not inclined to France are delighted at Lord Wellington being here, and place their hopes in him, he says he distrusts all Frenchmen and does not like the émigrés and those who desert to Louis, being so near the frontier. Whilst talking to me in the way, he always stopped if anyone was passing. I believe from what little I have seen and heard, that the Belgians would sooner be united to France than to our nation and I think it very natural. There are a great number of beggars here, not only in the city but in
the vicinity.

  The draft horses in this country are very good and sell for about 25 or 30 Napoleons. They also use for the draft of small burthens such as bales, parcels, barrels etc, dogs and goats & I have seen them draw very heavy weights sometimes. The inhabitants are obliged by law to feed the soldiers billeted on them as well their own countrymen as foreigners (excepting of course British soldiers) for which government allows 6 sols a day per man. A part of the inhabitants of this city, even the poorest, talk French even among themselves, another part talk Flemish and can talk French. There is plenty of coal in this country which is more conveniently used than wood; they burn it in stoves, it comes from the country about Thons.24

  Two of the officers of our Second Battalion came in here today, they came in a cabriolet the price of which was 24 francs for about 36 miles English. They are quartered about 3 or four miles from the frontier, the French are about the same distance on their side, the frontier is watched by patroles [sic] of cavalry, the French shot a German the other day for going the short way over the frontier.

  14th I went today into the cathedral during the morning service, the music was very pretty, it was principally the great organ which appeared as surely the softest of its size I ever heard, there were no good singers. The interior of the buildings is handsome & some of the painted glass very fine, there is a chapel to the left looking to the altar which is beautiful, the windows are fine and the carved wood of the shafts that divide them rich & light. There was a great deal of confession going on, which I can never look at without laughing. There was a school of charity children at the service.

  I was also in that church in the Place Royale, it is a modern building both inside and outside. The Maison de Ville is a fine building, there is a spire in the centre of very great height and very beautiful architecture. The poorer sort of women here wear a scarf of black silk exactly like the Spanish mantilla, it has a good effect.