The Hundred Years War: Battles and Rulers

Outline

The Hundred Years war were a series of chevauchees (plundering raids), sieges and naval battles interspersed with truces and uneasy peace. Below is a list of the major battles of the Hundred Years War.

Individual Battles

• 1337 Battle of Cadsand initiates hostilities. The Flemish defenders of the island were thrown into disorder by the first use of the English longbow on Continental soil
• 1340 Battle of Sluys June 24. Edward III destroys the Franco-Genoese fleet of Philip VI of France off the coast of Flanders ensuring England will not be invaded and that the majority of the war will be fought in France. Details: In June of 1340, the English decided to attack the French fleet at Sluys in order to pre-empt a French invasion. After a nine hour battle, that featured both archer attacks and hand-to-hand combat, the English fleet of 200 ships destroyed the French forces; close to 16,000 men died (mostly French). The major outcome of the battle was that it permanently stopped all ideas of a French invasion of England and determined that the majority of the warfare would be conducted in France.
• 1345 Longbow victory by Henry, Earl of Derby against a French army at Auberoche in Gascony
• 1346 Battle of Crécy August 26. English longbowmen soundly defeat French cavalry at Abbeville. Details: Crécy was one of history's most decisive battles. After the battle of Sluys, Edward III landed in Normandy in July 1346 with about 10,000 men. The French pursued. Edward III decided to halt near Crecy in Normandy and to prepare for battle the next day. However, the French vanguard made contact and started to attack without the benefit of a plan. The French made as many as 15 attacks and the English checked each one in turn mainly because of the English longbowmen. At the end, the French were decimated and the English had a decisive victory.
• 1346-1347 Siege of Calais
• 1350 Les Espagnols sur Mer English fleet defeats Castilian fleet in a close fight.
• 1351 Combat of the Thirty: Thirty French Knights from Chateau Josselin under Beaumanoir call out and defeat thirty English Knights under Pembroke and Brambaugh
• French army under De Nesle defeated by English under Bentley at Mauron in Brittany, De Nesle killed
• 1356 Battle of Poitiers Edward the Black Prince captures King John II of France, France plunges into chaos. Details: After a break of six years, warfare erupted again when the Edward the Black Prince, son of King Edward III, raided France in 1356. King John II of France pursued Edward. Outside of Poiters the forces met and the French dismounted and attacked. The attack almost succeeded but Edward was able to counterattack and break the French line. King John and about 2000 other men were captured.
• 1364 Battle of Auray September 29. End of Breton War of Succession (French defeat), Du Gueschlin captured -- The battle of Auray centered around control of the duchy of Brittany. English forces under John Chandos besieged the town or Auray. French troops were sent to break the siege. On September 29, 1364 the French attacked the English; the attack was repulsed and the town surrendered. The leader of the French army, Bertrand du Guesclin, was captured and later ransomed.
• 1367 Battle of Nájera (Navarette) Black Prince defeats a Castilian/French army at Nájera in Spain
• 1372 Battle of La Rochelle Castilian-French fleet defeats the English fleet, leading to loss of dominance at sea and French piracy and coastal raids
• 1415 Battle of Agincourt October 25 English longbowmen under Henry V defeat French under Charles d'Albert. Details: After the successful siege at Harfleur, Henry marched his force of about 6000 knights, archers and men-at-arms towards Calais. During his march the French army of 20,000 was able to position itself between Henry and Calais. Henry used a narrow front channeled by woodland to give his heavily outnumbered force a chance. The French deployed in three lines. The first line attacked and was repulsed by the English longbowmen. The second line attacked and was beaten back. The third line moved to engage but loss heart when they crossed the field covered with French dead; they soon retreated. Henry was left with control of the battlefield and a decisive victory. He soon resumed his march to Calais. (French Leadership: Charles d'Albret and Jean Bouciquaut II)
• 1416 English defeat numerically greater French army at Valmont near Harfleur
• 1417 Naval victory in the River Seine under Bedford
• 1418 Siege of Rouen (July 31 ? January 19, 1419) Henry V of England gains a foothold in Normandy.
• 1419 Battle of La Rochelle (1419) Castilian fleet defeats Anglo-Hanseatic fleet
• 1421 Battle of Bauge 22 March. The French and Scottish forces of Charles VII commanded by the Earl of Buchan defeat an outmanoeuvered English force commanded by the Duke of Clarence, the first English loss in a land battle of the Wars. Details: Beauge was one of the first defeats for the English during the Hundred Years War. French and Scottish forces combine to raid the English possessions in Normandy. Thomas, the duke of Clarence, (Henry V's brother) attempted to intercept the allied forces. During the interception Thomas' cavalry outdistanced his infantry and the French and Scottish forces decimated the English and Thomas was killed. (English Leadership: Thomas, duke of Clarence; French Leadership: John Stewart, earl of Buchan)
• 1423 Battle of Cravant 31 July. The French army is defeated at Cravant on the banks of the river Yonne.
• 1424 Battle of Vernuil 17 August. The Scots forces are decisively defeated. Details: In one last attempt to dislodge the English from Normandy, about 15,000 French and Scottish forces attacked the English army of 9,000 commanded by John, duke of Bedford 50 miles west of Paris. In the initial moments of the engagement, Lombardian knights, hired by the French, charged the English archers before they could put their stakes down. Having crashed through the English ranks, the Lombardians attacked the baggage train, thereby taking them out of the remainder of the battle. In turn, the English regained the upper hand, and pushed the remainder of the French and Scottish forces back. About half the of the French/Scottish army were lost; the rest retreated. The result of the battle was that the Scots were removed as a major aid to the French cause. English Leadership: John, duke of Bedford French Leadership: John Stewart, earl of Buchan
• 1426 March 6 French besieging army under Richemont dispersed by a small force under Sir Thomas Rempstone in "The Rout of St James" in Brittany
• 1429 Battle of the Herrings 12 February. English force under Sir John Fastolf defeats French army.
• 1428-29 Siege of Orléans 12 October - 8 May 1429. English forces commanded by the Earl of Salisbury, the Earl of Suffolk, and Talbot (Earl of Shrewsbury) lay siege to Orleans, and are forced to withdraw after a relief army accompanied by Joan of Arc arrives at the city. Details: The siege of Orleans was the turning point of the Hundred Years War. After over 80 years of warfare the French finally gained the upper hand with the decisive victory at Orleans. Thomas de Montacute and 5000 English troops begin the siege of Orleans, the largest fortified position held by Charles of France, on October 23, 1428. William de la Pole, duke of Suffolk, succeeded Montecute in November after he was slain by a cannon ball. The siege continued for months. At around this same time, Joan of Arc appears at the court of Charles. Charles allows Joan to lead a relief force in April. In May, Joan attacked the English in unison with a force from Orleans and drove the English from their positions. The next day they abonded the siege; momentum now lay with the French. English Leadership: Thomas de Montacute and William de la Pole French Leadership: Joan of Arc
• 1429 Battle of Patay 17 July. A French army under La Hire, Richemont, Joan of Arc, and other commanders break through English archers under Lord Talbot and then pursue and mop up the other sections of the English army, killing or capturing about half (2,200) of their troops. The Earl of Shrewsbury (Talbot) and Hungerford are captured.
• 1435 Battle of Gerbevoy. La Hire defeats an English force under Arundel
• 1436 John Talbot, 1st Earl of Shrewsbury routs a larger French force under La Hire and Xantrailles at Ry near Rouen
• 1437 John Talbot defeats the Burgundians at Crotoy
• 1439 John Talbot disperses a French army of 6000 under the Constable Richemont at Avranches in Normandy.
• 1440 John Talbot takes Harfleur
• 1450 Battle of Formigny. Two French armies under the Count of Clermont and the Earl of Richmond defeat the English under Kyriell. Detail: After their victory at Rouen in October 1449, Charles VII continued the French offensive and pressed the English back into the town of Formigny. French artillary blasted out the most of the English army and the English were badly defeated losing more than 4000 men out of a force of 5000. Formigny marked the end of the fighting in Northern France. (English Leadership: Thomas Kyriel and Matthew Gough; French Leadership: Compte de Clermont)
• 1453 Battle of Castillon. The Valois use cannon to defeat the Lancastrians and end the Hundred Years' War. The 70-year old Talbot is killed while trying to rally his fleeing troops. Detail: Castillon was the final engagement of the Hundred Years War. After being driven out of Northern France the previous few years, Henry VI sent a new army to Bordeaux in Southwestern France in attempt to maintain at least some territory in France. In July 1453 the English forces attacked a French force that was besieging the town of Castillon. The attack was repulsed, the English were routed and Shrewsbury was killed. Bordeaux became French territory and the final English survivors sailed for home. (English Leadership: John Talbot, earl of Shrewsbury)

Rulers During the Hundred Years War

The Kings of England

The Kings of France

The Dukes of Burgundy