The 2nd Division, left behind near Abrantes, had about 6,100 of all ranks. Hamilton’s Portuguese Division about 4,200, Fane’s British (13th Lt. Dragoons) and Portuguese cavalry was about 1,000 sabres, artillery of both nations for the Army of Estremadura about 500. The 7th Division, now being formed at Lisbon, was composed of 2,800 British and 2,300 Portuguese. There were two battalions not belonging to the 7th Division marching up with it, with 1,300 bayonets (2/52nd, 2/88th). If Ney were to be joined by Junot and Loison, as now seemed probable, in the direction of Pombal, it would take one full day for the 3rd Division to join the vanguard, two full days for the rest of the army to come up. It would not be till the 11th that a mass of combatants would be collected sufficient to attack the enemy, if he held the Pombal position. And this concentration had to be carried out for safety’s sake; it would have been insane to bid the Light Division and Pack, the only troops immediately available, to fall upon Ney and Junot and their 35,000 men. Accordingly Wellington directed the 3rd and 5th Divisions to close up rapidly upon the vanguard along the _chaussée_, while the mass of troops around Thomar was to follow the Chão de Maçans road in Junot’s track and unite with the other column in front of Pombal on the 11th. Only Nightingale’s brigade of the 1st Division was detached, with one squadron of dragoons, to follow Reynier on his ‘eccentric’ line of retreat, along the rough mountain road to Espinhal. Forty-three thousand men out of the 46,000 which formed the disposable total of Wellington’s army were sent in pursuit of Masséna’s main body.