es resting upon a strong fortress. In the first of
these attacks, he surprised and nearly succeeded in overwhelming the
British left, under Hope, now Sir John, before Wellington could bring
other divisions to its support. In the second, he fell suddenly on the
same troops, exhausted by fatigue, and still more or less isolated, but
they were rallied by Hope and Wellington in person, and remained masters
of the field. In the third he concentrated his whole strength upon the
British right under Hill, aided by a thick mist, and by a flood upon the
Nive, which swept away a bridge of boats, and separated Hill from the
rest of the army. Nevertheless, that able general, emulating the noble
example of Hope in the earlier encounters, succeeded in repelling
assault after assault, until Wellington himself appeared with
reinforcements of imposing strength, and converted a stubborn defence
into a victory.

The loss of the allies since crossing the Nive had exceeded 5,000; that
of the French was 6,000, besides 2,400 Germans who deserted to the
British during the night of the 9th in obedience to orders from home.
Ever since he assumed the command Soult had shown military ability of a
rare order. Bayonne, the base of all his operations, was indefensible
before he fortified it. A great proportion of his troops were raw
conscripts, or demoralised by defeat, before he inspired them with his
own courage and vigour. He was practically dependent for subsistence in
his own country on the very system of pillage which had roused a
patriotic frenzy of resentment in Spain and other lands ravaged by
French armies. He now stood at bay in the south of France, as Wellington
had so long stood at bay in Portugal, and continued there during the
early part of 1814 a defensive campaign not unworthy of comparison with
the prodigious exploits of Napoleon himself against the invaders of his
eastern provinces.

[Pageheading: _THE INVESTMENT OF BAYONNE._]

A respite of two months succeeded the battles on the Nive. During this
interval Wellington's difficulty in paying his troops was great, owing
to the enormous drain of specie from England into Central Europe. He was
further embarrassed by the appearance of the Duke of Angouleme, elder
son of Charles, Count of Artois, afterwards Charles X., at his
headquarters. The British government was by no means committed to a
restoration of the Bourbons, and Wellington deprecated the duke's
appearance as at least premat