Abercromby anticipated a night attack, so on 21 March, the British slept in position under arms. At 3:30 a.m., the French attacked and drove the British outposts. Moving forward rapidly with great gallantry from the left, Lanusse launched the attack with Valentin's brigade in column along the seashore, and to their right Silly's brigade against the British entrenchments around the Roman ruins. The brunt of the attack fell upon Moore's command, and in particular upon the
28th (North Gloucestershire) Regiment of Foot. The British repulsed this first assault, during which both Silly and Lanusse were hit. "General Lanusse saw that General Valentin had left the seashore, and was within the re-entering angle of the redoubt and the Roman camp, where the cross fire of the enemy held him back. General Lanusse marched to this spot, encouraged the men, and made them advance. The worthy general was hit in the thigh by a ball from a gunboat; four grenadiers tried to carry him off, but a second ball killed two of these brave fellows". Soon Rampon's command in the centre was engaged, and despite disorientation in the dark, penetrated between the front and rear wings of the
42nd Regiment of Foot. A confused fight ensued in the ruins, in which the French troops were all either killed or captured, with the 42nd taking their
colour. Other British regiments engaged were the
23rd Regiment of Foot,
40th (the 2nd Somersetshire) Regiment of Foot and
58th (Rutlandshire) Regiment of Foot, together with Stuart's
Minorca Regiment. During this time, Menou had devolved command to his subordinates, and was seen gesticulating wildly at the rear "more as if he were a spectator than the commander in chief". However he now ordered his reserve cavalry forward in an unsupported charge. The commander, Cézar Antoine Roize remonstrated in vain; the Republican cavalry nevertheless was able to penetrate as far as the British camp and Abercromby's headquarters, inflicting severe losses on the 42nd Foot before a combination of dug fortifications and musketry ended this effort. "Turning to his brave men, General Roize says, 'Friends, they are sending us to glory and death! March!' The charge was terrible... Brave General Roize, seeing his first line driven back, advanced with the second, made a desperate charge, and penetrated to the camp of the second English line, sabring and overthrowing all in his road. The terrified English threw themselves on their faces on the ground; others fled to their tents; but this obstacle stopped the terrible rush of our cavalry and caused our ruin. The English had dug wolf-pits in their camp, and strewn caltrops about, plentifully. The horses fell into these pits, or were entangled amongst the cords and tent pegs. The brave and unfortunate General Roize, finding there was no chance of escaping from such a position, dismounted, fought like a lion, and was killed, as were also his men." The front and rear ranks of the 28th Foot were simultaneously engaged on both their front and rear, the soldiers receiving the order "Front rank stay as you are, rear rank about turn". In commemoration, the regiment later adopted a second
cap badge, the 'Back Number,' worn at the back of their head-dress. During the attack of Roize's second line, Sir Ralph Abercromby was briefly captured by French
dragoons, but was quickly rescued by a highlander of the 42nd. About this time, he received a bullet wound to the thigh which would eventually prove fatal, though he remained on the field and in command to the end. Rampon's renewed infantry attack on the centre was repulsed by the Guards brigade, supported by Coote's brigade, and the left wing maintained its position with ease, but the French cavalry for the second time, came to close quarters with the reserve. About half-past eight, the combat began to wane, and the last shots were fired at ten. Most of the attacks had been pressed home on the British right. The ''History of the
Queen's Royal West Surrey Regiment'' praises the regiment's reserve, saying that "the determined attack would have been successful against almost any other troops." Technically, the details of the action show that, while not markedly better in a melee than the war-seasoned French, the British
infantry had in its volleys a power that no other troops then existing possessed, and it was these volleys that decided the day even more than the individual stubbornness of the men. The 42nd, twice charged by cavalry, had but 13 men wounded by the
sabre. Part of the French losses were caused by the gunboats which lay close inshore and cannonaded the left flank of the French columns, and by a heavy naval gun which was placed in battery near the position of the 28th Foot. ==Aftermath==