Next morning it was still raining, but by midday he entered a small town where he was able to get a hot meal. That evening he crossed the frontier into Spain. Again the country was mountainous and so sparsely inhabited that night came down before he could hope to reach a village; so he had to doss down in a charcoal burner's hut.
On his fifth day he entered another town, and there gave himself out to be a Portuguese from the region of the Douro. A good meal at an inn partially restored his spirits, and that night he was lucky, for he came upon a quite large country house surrounded by a sadly neglected estate. Its owner, an old gentleman, received him courteously accepted his statement that he was a Portuguese wine-shipper whose business had been ruined by Napoleon's embargo on trading with England and that he was on his way to his sister who had married a citizen of Seville then said he would be happy to have his company for supper.
Roger then learned that his host had sent his family into Seville, and was living in the house with a few servants only to protect it from being looted and occupied by bandits. Over the meal they talked of the miseries brought about by the war and both drank to the eternal damnation of Napoleon. That night Roger again enjoyed the luxury of sleeping between sheets.
Late on the afternoon of the sixth day he sighted a foraging party of French Hussars. All through his journey he had feared to encounter a band of brigands who would have robbed, stripped and probably killed him. Immensely relieved, he rode up to the troop and announced himself as Colonel le Comte de Breuc, carrying an urgent dispatch from the Prince of Essling to the Duke of Dalmatia, and asked to be at once conducted to Soult's headquarters. The officer detached his sergeant and two men as escort for him and, an hour later, Roger was riding into Seville.
There he found Soult's army in a very different state from Massena's. Groups of well turned out officers and men were strolling about the city, ogling the senoritas who did not appear to share the almost universal hatred of the Spanish for the French-or sitting drinking in the wine shops. Their Commander-in-Chief had taken over the splendid Alcazar Palace, and Roger was led through its courtyards, with their beautifully-carved Moorish arches, grilles and fountains, to the room of one of Soult's adjutants. An hour later, he was ushered in to the grey haired Marshal.
Roger explained his having arrived in Portugal by the same story he had told Massena, adding that, after spending a few days at the Prince's headquarters, he had volunteered to carry a dispatch to Seville. He then gave the news that hunger had forced Massena to fall back on country where his troops could obtain supplies, and handed the dispatch over.
Soult broke the seals, read the appeal for aid, casually tossed it on to a heap of papers and said, 'His Highness of Essling has my sympathy, but I fear there is no way in which I can assist him. Some months ago I received an order from the Emperor to co-operate with him by moving against Lisbon from the south. But His Majesty had no idea of conditions here, and his order was quite impractical. You know his temper, Breuc. He would become berserk with rage if I abandoned southern Spain, and deprive me of my command. Holding it down is no small commitment, and it was as much as I dared do to spare Mortier's corps for an advance into Estremadura. That, at least, was a valuable contribution, as we defeated a Spanish army there on February 19th, then laid siege to Badajoz, which fell a week ago today.'
Badajoz was the most important city between Seville and the Portuguese frontier, but many miles north-east of the direct route to Lisbon. Knowing Soult and Massena's dislike of each other, Roger guessed that the former had deliberately selected this diversion as an excuse not to go to the latter's assistance; but he smoothly remarked:
'My congratulations on this fine achievement, Marshal. No doubt you felt it essential to reduce that great fortress, before permitting the Due de Treviso to turn west and advance towards Lisbon.'
'Exactly. It would have been most rash to allow Mortier to march direct into Portugal, leaving Badajoz untaken on his flank. The big garrison there might have made a sortie and severed his communications with my main army. And now, Breuc, I take it you will remain here with us.'
It being impossible for Roger to reply that, having found out that Soult had no intention of going to Massena's aid, he himself wanted to get back to Lisbon as soon as he could, he appeared to hesitate as he said, 'I hardly know, Marshal; but I suppose that having delivered His Highness of Essling's despatch, I ought to endeavour to rejoin him.'
Soult put up a protesting hand. 'No, no, Breuc. I could not allow it. You have taken risk enough in making your way alone through hostile country all the way from Santarem. To expose yourself again to the risk of being killed and eaten by our barbarous enemies would be madness. And, if you did get back to the Prince, in his present plight you could do him no earthly good. Report to my Chief of Staff, du Maurier. He will have a uniform found for you and provide you with work suited to your considerable abilities. I shall be glad to have you on my staff.'
Having expected that he would have to remain for some time at Soult's headquarters, Roger reconciled himself to doing so and, after thanking the Marshal, went in search of his Chief of Staff. Du Maurier, a fat and pleasant man, took him to the Mess for a meal, then allocated to him a room on the upper floor of the Palace in which, tired out after his long day, he went early to bed.
Next morning a suitable uniform was brought to him, and du Maurier told him that, as he spoke Spanish, he was to sit on a tribunal that Soult had set up to hear complaints by the citizens of Seville against abuses by the troops.
His new work proved a revelation. Normally, all Napoleon's Marshals treated the people of conquered cities extremely ill, looting their houses and allowing the troops the greatest license in bullying the men and forcing the women. Soult was particularly notorious for this unscrupulous behaviour. He was known to be the greatest looter of them all, and had accumulated a collection of paintings, church ornaments and jewels said to be worth many millions. Yet, by his orders, the tribunal was heavily biased in favour of the Spaniards. Fines, imprisonment and demotions were freely inflicted on officers and men of his army.
Roger no longer wondered at having found the people of Seville so well disposed toward their French rulers, and he soon learned from his brother officers the reason for this new policy of appeasement. Unlike that of Suchet in Valencia, it was no disinterested move aimed at restoring order and justice in conquered territory. Apparently, after having butchered half the inhabitants of Oporto, and taken that city, Soult had nurtured the dream of turning northern Portugal into a kingdom for himself; but Wellington had driven him out of it. Now that he had become the overlord of southern Spain, in spite of the fact that Napoleon's brother, Joseph, was still in Madrid and, legally at least, King of Spain, the Marshal was planning to make himself King of Andalusia.
On capturing Seville, he had set about the business of confiscating works of art particularly Old Masters, which were his special delight with his usual gusto. But, recently, he had had second thoughts, for he had decided that the most satisfactory way of becoming a permanent ruler was to induce the people to ask him to become their King. With this in view, he had returned to the churches all the gold plate, reliquaries and chalices he had stolen, and instituted the tribunal as a means of winning popularity at no cost to himself.