Gibraltar by Roy Adkins & Lesley Adkins

Author:Roy Adkins & Lesley Adkins
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
Published: 2018-03-13T04:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

SURRENDER

The siege was affecting the wildlife, not just the domesticated horses and dogs that had to be culled. Gibraltar is important for birds migrating across the Straits, and although they may not have been deterred, on a local level the constant firing and the destruction of habitats were having an impact: ‘A 13-inch shell fell in the picquet yard after day-going [dusk] near some poplar trees, and by the explosion killed a great number of sparrows that were in the trees at roost. 150 were taken up, but it is thought that there must have been 300 killed at least.’ The firing continued to be indiscriminate, and a week later: ‘A favourite cat ... belonging to the Artillery on Willis’s district, came out of the casemate in the night to air herself, but unlucky for poor puss, she sat upon a large rock, when a Spanish ball came and cut off poor puss’s head and left her body behind ... The above cat was a great favourite, which gave her a military burying (thrown into a hole and covered over).’1

What proved unexpected in July 1781 was a reduction in the amount of firing from the Spanish Lines, but a great deal was changing in their camp, with tents taken down, troops marching off, others replacing them, and huge numbers of gabions and fascines being loaded on boats. Nobody knew where the men and equipment were heading, but many militia troops had replaced the regular ones. The main focus of their work was now on repairing and improving all their fortifications, and Captain Price wrote: ‘the Spaniards did not fire above half a dozen shells in 24 hours. Oh wonderful!’2 Horsbrugh also mentioned this lack of firing: ‘The enemy have been unusually moderate in their fire through the night and all this morning except from 7 to 8 o’clock when being teased with some shot and shells from our upper batteries, they fired pretty briskly and threw some long shells, one of which fell and exploded on the New Mole Parade opposite Prince William’s Battery, and is reckoned the longest they have yet thrown from San Carlos.’ Two days later he said: ‘from twelve o’clock yesterday until twelve this day they only threw seven shells, five from the Mill Battery [St Carlos] and two from the first mortar battery to the east of Fort [St] Philip.’3

Nobody realised that the numerous troops besieging the Rock had actually been withdrawn to take part in a combined French-Spanish expedition to Minorca. In Britain, though, the early warning signs were misinterpreted, because when the huge combined fleet left Cadiz, it initially sailed westwards in order to make it appear they were off to America or even planning a new invasion of England. After successfully reaching the Mediterranean unopposed, the fleet ran into bad weather and was delayed, giving time for reports to reach London, which were then sent to Minorca. On Gibraltar, the news was received on 10 August: ‘They say by reports from England .

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