Yes, although Igor was scared to death last night, out of loyalty to his fellow villagers, he disregarded Tarrent’s “discouragement” and risked returning to the village to report the matter to the most respected Lord Bameluo.
Of course, what they encountered last night were not villagers from Huca Village, but “actors” from the Security Bureau.
As for the buried bodies, they were the Anglo-Portuguese Army killed by Juno on the north bank of the Mondego River some time ago. The bullet holes on the bodies can be explained as “shot by the British soldiers supervising the village relocation.”
A few hours later, the people sent by Bameluo and Callova carefully dug up the bodies Igor mentioned, which turned out to be four people disguised as farmers.
That afternoon, more than a dozen of the most prominent people from Nehabe Village gathered at Bameluo’s house, each with a somber expression.
“That’s the situation,” Bameluo said. “Obviously, the rumors are true.
“Now the problem isn’t whether we can get compensation after arriving in Lisbon, but whether we can reach Lisbon alive.”
Over a month ago, the Security Bureau began spreading the news that “the British want to destroy Portugal.” Small nobles like Bameluo had heard some of the rumors.
Then it was validated by what had happened before their eyes.
A gentleman nervously asked, “So what should we do now?”
“In any case, we cannot leave the village,” Bameluo gritted his teeth and said. “And we definitely must not burn it down. Without the village, the British can do whatever they want with us.”
“But Lord Matos has brought soldiers…”
Igor recalled the words of the “Huca Village villagers” last night and shouted, “We have guns, we can drive them away!”
Everyone in the room looked at him in surprise.
Bameluo pondered and said, “It’s not to that extent yet, but… Mr. Callova, you can have everyone prepare their guns.
“We spread the news here, and people in other villages definitely won’t want to relocate either. That way, the officials won’t be able to target only us.”
Actually, he was not worried about the army brought by the officials – only 5 soldiers had come to their village, and even without guns, they had ways to deal with them.
And Portugal is full of mountains, almost every village has a lot of guns for hunting.
Although most are old-fashioned matchlock guns, they can overwhelm those 5 soldiers with numbers.
With the efforts of Bameluo and others, the relocation of Nehabe Village was halted, and on the day scheduled for the southward move, not a single farmer arrived at the designated gathering point outside the village.
Moreover, the fuel intended for burning the village was stolen by someone last night, leaving Matos to angrily scold the village chief without any recourse.
Two days later, the people sent to contact other villages returned one by one, bringing back more astonishing news.
At least five or six villages witnessed the British brutalizing relocated villagers – this time the Security Bureau mobilized almost all the Spaniard spies operating in Portugal, most villages had a similar “script” to that performed by Tarrent.
More and more evidence emerged, making the people of Nehabe Village even more convinced that “leaving the village means death.”
Meanwhile, other villages agreed with Bameluo’s suggestion to jointly “oppose relocation.” For a time, Wellesley’s scorched earth plan came to a complete halt.
Of course, there were also smart people in these villages, just like Bameluo.
He suggested sending someone to Lisbon to investigate the situation, to see if it’s truly as bad as the rumors suggest.
And this was within Joseph’s expectations.
With Portugal’s administrative capability, how could it possibly properly resettle hundreds of thousands of relocated people?
Being able to allocate a piece of land for you to set up a tent is considered very good, and relief food is barely available. After all, nobles of this era didn’t view peasants as people.
The people who had initially relocated from around Porto to Lisbon could barely survive, but they must have been living miserably. At this point, any questions about whether they regretted leaving their village would undoubtedly elicit curses against the British and nobles.
Especially since those pamphlets brought from France have begun to circulate among the “immigrants,”
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Napoleon decided to dispatch an army into Portugal to enforce a blockade and integrate it into the strategic system of the French Empire.
Napoleon’s plan was not without obstacles. Spain, as another major power on the Iberian Peninsula, was wary of France’s intentions. To appease Spain, Napoleon promised to use its territory only as a passage to Portugal, but in reality, he had more far-reaching calculations – to bring the entire Iberian Peninsula under his rule. The Spanish royal family’s hesitation and internal strife provided Napoleon with an opportunity, and eventually, King Charlie IV of Spain tacitly allowed the French army’s passage.
As Napoleon’s army approached Lisbon, Portugal faced an unprecedented crisis. To avoid a bloody conflict, Portugal’s Regent John VI made a difficult decision: to lead members of the Royal Family and many nobles and wealthy merchants to flee their homeland and take refuge in Brazil. Although this move temporarily ensured the safety of the Portuguese Royal Family, it plunged the country into a state of anarchy, sowing the seeds for subsequent social unrest.
Occupying Portugal was merely the first step in Napoleon’s grand ambitions. Next, he turned his attention to Spain, intending to completely control the Iberian Peninsula. However, things did not go as planned; Napoleon encountered unprecedented resistance on the Iberian Peninsula, leading to the outbreak of the Peninsular War. The fierce resistance of the Spanish people, combined with the support of the British Expeditionary Force, caused Napoleon to expend significant military and financial resources during this war, ultimately failing to achieve complete conquest.
Napoleon’s march into Portugal was a bold and risky move in his quest to dominate Europe. Although it achieved temporary control over Portugal, this step triggered a long-lasting Peninsular War, consuming the empire’s valuable resources and exacerbating domestic and international discontent. In the long run, this military action, while showcasing Napoleon’s power for a time, also planted the seeds for the empire’s decline, demonstrating that any attempt to go against the will of the people and forcibly alter a nation’s destiny will inevitably pay a heavy price.
The story of Napoleon’s invasion of Portugal is not just a segment of 19th-century European history but also a parable about the struggle between the desire for power and national will. It reminds us that no matter how powerful a force may be, it cannot easily erase a country’s or nation’s cultural identity and survival spirit. In the flow of history, behind every military conquest lies more complex and far-reaching effects that merit deep exploration and reflection.
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