About midnight
Nicholas was mortally wounded , and the intrepid Shaw stood alone ! With inexpressible coolness he looked at his watch , and saying it was too late to carry the reaches , rejoined the masses at the other attack . After this no further effort was made at any point , and the troops remained passive but unflinching beneath the enemy 's shot , which streamed without intermission ; for , of the riflemen on the glacis many leaped early into the ditch and joined in the assault , and the rest , raked by a cross-fire of grape from the distant bastions , baffled in their aim by the smoke and flames from the explosions , and too few in number , entirely failed to quell the French musketry . About midnight , when two thousand brave men had fallen , Wellington , who was on a height close to the quarries , ordered the remainder to retire and re-form for a second assault ; he had heard the castle was taken , but thinking the enemy would still resist in the town , was resolved to assail the breaches again . This retreat from the ditch was not effected without further carnage and confusion . The French fire never slackened . A cry arose that the enemy was making a sally from the distant flanks , and there was a rush towards the ladders .