Spring, 1811: Quartered in a crumbling Portuguese fort, Richard Sharpe and his men are attacked by an elite French unit led by an old enemy of Sharpe's, and suffer heavy losses. Once more Sharpe's career is on the line; the army's high command blame Sharpe for the disaster and his career seems to be ruined. His only hope is to redeem himself by leading his men to glory in the narrow streets of Fuentes de Oñoro.