six o'clock
I understood -LRB- not , of course , by direct word of mouth -RRB- that disquieting messages had poured in ahead of me from the allied commanders scattered in the north , who reported Ciudad Rodrigo in imminent peril ; that my news brought great relief of mind ; but that in any case our army now stood committed to reduce Badajos before Soult came to its relief . Our iron guns had worked fast and well , and already three breaches on the eastern side of the town were nearly practicable . Badajos once secured , Wellington would press northward again to teach Marmont manners ; but for the moment our weak troops opposing him must even do the best they could to gain time and protect the magazines and stores . At six o'clock then in the evening of the 4th , on a fresh mount , I turned my back on the doomed fortress , and crossing the Guadiana by the horse ferry above Elvas , struck into the Alemtejo . On the 6th I reached Castello Branco and found the position of the Allies sufficiently serious . Victor Alten 's German cavalry were in the town -- 600 of them -- having fallen back before Marmont without striking a blow , and leaving the whole country four good marches from Rodrigo exposed to the French marauders . They reported that Rodrigo itself had fallen -LRB- which I knew to be false , and , as it turned out , Marmont had left but one division to blockade the place -RRB- ; they spoke openly of a further retreat upon Vilha Velha .