Westerman felt that it would be useless to pursue them; his soldiers, moreover, were already flying without orders.

He had not the least idea what was the number of the enemy with whom he was engaged, what was their means of carrying on the battle, or on what side of him the greater number of them were situated; he therefore determined to retreat, and led back the whole of his army over the still burning ashes of the miserable village which he had destroyed that morning.

The greater portion of the men were forced to go back as far as Parthenay, but he himself remained with a small detachment in the neighbourhood of Amaillou.

He was determined, if possible, to be revenged that same night for the defeat which he had experienced.
The two cousins were at Clisson when they first heard that Westerman was actually on his road towards Bressuire, and they had lost no time in taking the best measures in their power to stop his progress, but they had not even hoped that their effort would have been so successful as it proved.

The tocsin had been rung in the three neighbouring parishes, and about seven hundred men had been collected.