When the duke of Bedford had gained the town and castle of Ivry, he appointed a knight of Wales, renowned in arms, governor, with a sufficient garrison to defend them. He detached the earl of Suffolk in pursuit of the French, who had advanced to within three leagues for its relief, and went with the rest of his army to Evreux. He there received intelligence that the French had won Verneuil by stratagem, and were with their whole force within it. He instantly dislodged, and marched for Verneuil; but the French, having had information thereof, made all haste to prepare for his reception, and drew their men up in battle-array without the town, ready for the combat. They only formed one grand division, without any advanced guard,--and ordered the Lombards, with others, to remain on horseback, under the command of the borgne Cameran, du Rousin, Poton, and La Hire, to break the ranks of the enemy on their flanks and rear. The grand battalion of the French was on foot,--which being observed by the duke of Bedford, he ordered his army to be formed in the same manner, without any vanguard, and not having any party on horseback. The archers were posted in front, each having a sharp-pointed stake stuck in the ground before him; and the stoutest of these men were placed at the two ends of the battalion, by way of wings. Behind the men at arms were the pages, the horses, and such as were unfit for the combat. The archers tied the horses together by their collar-pieces and tails, that the enemy might not surprise and carry them off. The duke of Bedford ordered two thousand archers to guard them and the baggage. Very many new knights were now created on both sides; and when all was ready, these two powerful armies met in battle, about three o'clock in the afternoon, on the 16th day of August, The English, as usual, set up a grand shout as they advanced, which alarmed the French much; and the conflict raged with the utmost violence for three quarters of an hour,--and it was not in the memory of man that such armies had been so long and warmly engaged without victory declaring for either of them. That division of the French which had been ordered to remain mounted to attack the rear of the English, while the combat was going on, came to the horses and baggage of the enemy, but could make no impression from the resistance of the guard of archers: they, however, seized some of the cavalry and baggage with which they fled, leaving their army fighting on foot. The archers then, finding themselves thus disembarrassed from the enemy, were fresh to join their companions in the front, which they did with loud shouts.