Battle of Bergerac The Battle of Bergerac was fought in August 1345 . An Anglo - Gascon Army commanded by Henry of Grosmont , Earl of Derby , defeated a French force under Henri de Montigny , Seneschal of Périgord , outside the walls of Bergerac , leading to the loss of the town . Along with the Battle of Auberoche later in the year , it marked in change in military balance of power in the region and was the first of a series of victories which would lead to Henry of Grosmont being called " one of the best warriors in the world " by a contemporary chronicler The Campaign . Edward III had determined early in 1345 to attack France on three fronts . The Earl of Northampton would lead a small force to Brittany , a slightly larger force would proceed to Gascony under the command of the Earl of Derby and the main force would accompany Edward to France or Flanders . Henry of Grosmont was appointed the King ' s Lieutenant in Gascony on 13th . March 1345 and received a contract to raise a force of 2000 men in England , plus further troops in Gascony itself . While circumstances would dictate that the main army never reached the continent , Derby ' s force embarked at Southampton at the end of May . Due to bad weather , his fleet was forced to shelter in Falmouth for several weeks en route , finally departing on 23rd . July and arriving in Bordeaux on 9th . August , 1345 . Derby had with him 500 men - at - arms , 500 mounted archers and 1000 English and Welsh foot archers . There was already a small English force in the Duchy , commanded by the Earl of Stafford , Seneschal of Gascony , and the somewhat larger forces of the Gascon Lords . Derby marched his force to rendezvous with Stafford at the siege of Langdon , where he took command of the combined force . Stafford had to this point pursued a cautious strategy of small scale sieges . Derby ' s intention was quite different . After a council of war , it was decided to strike at the major town of Bergerac , where there was an important bridge over the Dordogne River . The capture of the town , which had good river supply links to Bordeaux , would provide the Anglo - Gascon army with a forward base to carry the war to the French . It would also force the lifting of the siege of the nearby allied castle of Montcuq and sever communications between French forces north and south of the Dordogne . The battle . Derby ' s army moved fast and took the French forces round Bergerac by surprise . Exactly where the battle took place is unknown . Rogers makes the case for the road between St . Aubin - de - Langais and St . Nexans . Fowler believes it was on the road from Montcuq to Bergerac . The French , either lured from Bergerac by a ruse or in the process of withdrawing from Montcuq , were caught on the road by the Anglo - Gascon army . They were subject to a barrage of English archery and struck by a charge by the Anglo - Gascon cavalry . The French were routed and a running fight now took place as they fled toward the St . Madeleine suburb of Bergerac , at the south end of the bridge . Because the pursuit was so close , it was impossible to close the gates on the Barbican at the south end of the bridge and it was overrun . The pursuers pressed on to the bridge , which was jammed with fleeing Frenchmen , now taking casualties from the English archers on the river bank . Attempts to drop the portcullis on the Barbican on the north end of the bridge were thwarted by a wounded horse falling in the gateway and the Anglo - Gascons pressed on to attack the town itself . The garrison had by this time got the gates shut , although this trapped a number of their comrades outside , to be captured or killed . The Anglo - Gascons launched an attack on the gate and damaged it by fire . It would appear they failed to carry the town immediately , though they remained in control of the bridge . The Anglo - Gascon army camped in St . Madeleine , feasting on captured food and wine The Aftermath . Although the town was not carried immediately , its fate was sealed . Its defences were weak and old - fashioned and its main riverside defenses were seriously compromised . Within days of the battle , the town fell to a new assault . The battle and subsequent capture of Bergerac were a major victory . Prisoners included Henri de Montingny , ten other noblemen and a large number of lesser men . Henry of Grosmont ' s share of the ransoms and the loot from the town was estimated at £34 , 000 , approximately four times his annual income from his lands . Strategically , the Anglo - Gascon army had secured an important base for further operations . Politically , Henry of Grosmont had shown local lords who had been undecided in their allegiance that the English were again a force to be reckoned with in Gascony .