Greatest Battles
PICARDY, FRANCE, 26 AUGUST 1346
Why the longbow made the difference at Crecy
It is a summer’s day in northern France, and on a Picardy hillside tens of thousands of soldiers have assembled to engage in a battle of two kings. One is defending his kingdom while the other has come to claim it. Two other monarchs are also present, but common soldiers dominate this noticeably regal battle.
Genoese crossbowmen are ordered by the French king, Philip VI, to attack the positions of his English rival, Edward III. As they advance a thunderstorm breaks out, and when it clears deadly arrows replace the raindrops. The sun then shines into the crossbowmen’s eyes so that they are now blind as well as beleaguered. The Genoese flee.
This momentous engagement became known as the Battle of Crécy, and it was the first of three major English victories during the Hundred Years’
War. Although Agincourt became the most famous of the three, and Poitiers involved the capture of a French king, Crécy is arguably the most important.
“EXCESSES, REBELLIONS AND DISOBEDIENT ACTS”
Although the Hundred Years’ War (1337-1453) was a series of intermittent conflicts conducted over a very prolonged period, its root cause remained the same. The war was primarily conducted between the Plantagenet and Valois dynasties over the right to rule the kingdom of France, and it was Edward III who vigorously sparked the momentous conflict.
Familial ties to the French monarchy strengthened Edward’s ambitions in France. His mother Isabella was the sister of Charles IV, and as his nephew, Edward believed he had a strong claim to the French throne. His claim was declared in 1328 when Charles died without a direct male heir, and Isabella claimed the throne on behalf of her son. The French thought differently.
Edward’s claim was judged invalid by the French, who stated that ancient ‘Salic Law’ prevented women from claiming the throne for themselves or their children. The French chose Philip of Valois as their new king. Philip was a first cousin of Charles and he was duly crowned as Philip VI.
Edward did not contest Philip’s accession at first, but tensions grew over the following decade. He goaded the French by creating trade problems in Flanders, and in 1337 Philip confiscated Aquitaine from Edward.
In retaliation, Edward declared himself king of France three years later in 1340, and his longdesired conflict became an open war. The English won a crushing naval victory at Sluys in June
1340 and went on to conduct a destructive raiding invasion in northern France and the Low Countries. Nevertheless, it wasn’t until 1346 that Edward raised enough funds to launch a proper campaign in France and met his nemesis Philip in battle.
THE NORMANDY CHEVAUCHÉE
On 13 July 1346, Edward landed at Saint-vaast-lahougue with hundreds of ships that contained around 15,000 men. Edward’s army proceeded to wreak deliberately destructive havoc in Normandy. Known as a ‘chevauchée’, the violence was a policy of burning and pillaging in order to intimidate the local population and reduce the productivity of the region. For Edward, this form of war was designed
to strike at Philip through his subjects, and the results were devastating.
Many Norman towns, including Barfleur and Cherbourg, were burnt, along with the surrounding countryside, but it was Caen that suffered the most. When the garrison surrendered the English soldiers “were without mercy” and began to loot, rape and kill the inhabitants. After torching Normandy, Edward moved on to wreak destruction in the direction of Paris. Philip assembled as many troops as possible while sending reinforcements to Rouen.
BATTLE OF BLANCHETAQUE
Edward’s path was blocked again at the River Somme, and Philip was now in hot pursuit. Fortunately for the English, a passable ford was found at Blanchetaque near Abbeville. Nevertheless, a large force of French soldiers and Genoese crossbowmen in French service defended the opposite bank. English archers forced their way across in a “sore battle” on 24 August, but Philip simultaneously attacked Edward from the rear and even captured some of his baggage train. The Somme’s waters then rose and the French were prevented from crossing in pursuit.
The fighting at Blanchetaque is a historical footnote compared to the battle at Crécy two days later, but if the English had failed to cross the ford, then subsequent events would have turned out differently. By this time Edward’s men were exhausted from marching, and their food supplies were very low.
Edward soon found a perfect position on rising ground near the small town of Crécy-en-ponthieu. Below them was an open space known as the ‘Valley of the Clerks’. Edward’s army was protected on all flanks: to his centre and right flank was the small River Maie, while large woods surrounded his force at a safe distance.
Edward established his command post and deployed his men in order of battle. His 16-year-old son and heir Edward, Prince of Wales, commanded his right flank and centre. The prince was inexperienced so he was to be supported by able veterans such as Sir John Chandos and Geoffrey d’harcourt. The earls of Northampton and Arundel commanded the king’s left flank, while Edward himself commanded a reserve division from a windmill. The mill offered commanding views over the battlefield, and the king could easily direct operations from there.
LONGBOWMEN, ‘KERN’ AND CANNONS
These soldiers, whose courage Edward appealed to, were not part of an ordinary medieval army – their composition and equipment were revolutionary in continental Europe. Edward’s slightly reduced force at Crécy consisted of approximately 2,000 menat-arms, 500 lancers, 1,500 spearmen and 7,000 archers. In an age when cavalry was prized and central to battles, the predominance of foot soldiers was astonishing in itself.
Edward’s archers formed the bulk of his army and carried the famous longbow. This unique bow revolutionised military tactics and was largely unknown outside of the British Isles in 1346. Longbows could measure between 1.7-1.9 metres (5ft 7in – 6ft 3in) in length, and despite becoming an English military icon they were actually Welsh in origin. Edward I had been impressed by its shooting ability during his conquest of Wales in the late-13th century.
Longbows were standardised by 1346, and each longbowman trained from an early age to loose 10 to 12 arrows per minute. This required great strength, as the bow required a draw-weight of 36-45kg (80-100lb), but the result was the equivalent of a medieval machine gun. The sky was known to darken under a heavy barrage from longbows, and each arrow had a fighting range of 135 metres (150 yards) and could pierce plate armour at 55 metres (60 yards). Each archer carried around 24 arrows as well as secondary weapons such as swords, axes, billhooks or mallets.
Longbows were not the only missile weapons in Edward’s arsenal. The English are reputed to have had guns on the Crécy campaign, which were primitive tubes mounted on a cart. Artillery had never been used on a European battlefield before, but their effectiveness would have been more psychological than practical. Their lethality was questionable, but they would have produced flames, smoke and, above all, previously unheard noise.
A “VERY MURDEROUS AND CRUEL” BATTLE
Despite the formidable equipment of the English army, their opponents were not to be underestimated. It was the English who were retreating in a poor condition, and Philip’s confidence was arguably not misplaced when he arrived on Saturday 26 August 1346. Estimates of his army vary between 20,000-40,000 men. This included men-at-arms who almost outnumbered the English on their own, as well as large numbers of Genoese crossbowmen.
As well as the Genoese, Philip was accompanied by nobles from across Europe, including the blind King John of Bohemia, James III of Majorca and the future Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV and Charles I of Monaco. Philip’s army at Crécy was the “Flower of France”, and for the French the only outcome could be glory.
Nevertheless, the French army was so large that it was impossible to control. The roads between Abbeville and Crécy were also jammed by local peasants, who were encouraging Philip’s force to kill the English. Philip ordered the Genoese to make the first attack through the disorder, and a line of crossbowmen advanced to within 135-180 metres (150-200 yards) of the English.
Under the circumstances, the Genoese were not the best troops to make the first attack. They had marched for kilometres carrying their heavy crossbows, and their slow loading time meant that they were vulnerable against the faster longbow arrows. Bad luck also dealt them a blow when a short, sharp thunderstorm drenched them as they advanced. By contrast, the English shrewdly
dismantled their bowstrings and covered them under their hats to keep them dry during the downpour. When the rain cleared they quickly restrung their bows, just as the evening sun began to shine in the eyes of the unfortunate Genoese.
It was perfect timing for the English, who gave a great shout, stepped forward and rained arrows down on the crossbowmen. The Genoese dropped their crossbows and retreated. French men-at-arms began a disorganised charge and trampled over the crossbowmen, while the English continued to loose volley after volley.
In the rear of the French army, the cries of the Genoese were mistaken for the English being killed, and so they also pressed forward. This created a confused mob that was being decimated by accurate longbow marksmanship. The French cavalry were “sumptuously equipped” but it made no difference against the archers. It was at this point that Edward’s guns were used, and they reportedly terrified the already traumatised horses.
Despite the carnage, some of the French, including Alençon, managed to reach the English lines. They hit the Prince of Wales’s division particularly hard and he was knocked down. His standard-bearer Richard de Beaumont successfully defended the prince until he could stand, and appeals were sent to the king for reinforcements.
Alençon was killed in the fighting, and soon another noble, the blind King John of Bohemia also lost his life. John was informed how the battle was proceeding, and when he heard his son was fighting he said to his attendants, “As I am blind, I request of you to lead me so far into the engagement that I may strike one stroke with my sword.” The Bohemian retinue’s horses were tied together with an insistent John at the head. The king rode into the English and “made good use of his sword; for he and his companions fought most gallantly”. The Bohemians rode until they were killed and their bodies, including John’s, were found tied together the next morning. Only two of his retinue lived to tell the tale, and Prince Edward was
so moved that he reputedly adopted John’s crest and motto ‘Ich Dien’ (‘I Serve’) as his own. It is still the official heraldic badge of the Prince of Wales.
The French army charged against the English 15 times during the battle, and each charge was cut down by the longbowmen. The attacks continued until nightfall, when Philip (who had been wounded in the neck by an arrow and unhorsed at least once) led a futile charge of 60 men-at-arms. He was saved from death when the count of Hainault persuaded him to leave and win another day. Philip rode to the nearest chateau with only five attendants and famously shouted outside the gate, “Open your gate quickly, for this is the fortune of France!” After briefly resting, the king then rode on at night to safety at Amiens, but his defeat was calamitous.
ONWARDS TO CALAIS
The battle did not finally end until nightfall, and the English remained in their positions and slept on the ground. Even when dawn broke there was a thick fog that initially obscured the battlefield. After the earl of Northampton fought off a final French force of militia and Norman knights, Edward was finally able to observe the scale of his victory and ordered the dead to be counted.
The result was shocking. As well as John of Bohemia, the French had lost many of their senior nobles – the duke of Lorraine, Alençon and around ten other counts, including those of Flanders, Blois and Auxerre. Over 1,000 lords and knights were killed and at least 10,000 ‘common’ soldiers died, although the true figure will never be known.
While the French dead were counted, the kern went across the battlefield and gruesomely murdered the enemy wounded and pillaged them, only sparing the ones that were deemed worthy of ransom. By contrast, Edward reputedly lost only around 100 men, although chroniclers may have downplayed his actual losses.
What is not in doubt is that Crécy was one of the most crushing victories of the 14th century. English soldiers had previously been poorly regarded in Europe, but the battle was an unexpected triumph of ‘firepower’ over armour, and as such it was something of a military revolution. Although Edward was in no position to take Paris afterwards, he proceeded to attack Calais in a siege that lasted from September 1346 to August 1347. Throughout this time Philip was reluctant to relieve the siege because he feared a repeat of Crécy. Once the port had fallen it became a key English base for the rest of the Hundred Years’ War, and was held by the English until 1558.
Despite many more victories and territorial gains, Edward III never succeeded in becoming king of France, but Crécy still left a terrible legacy. Bloody though it was, the battle and subsequent capture of Calais was the true beginning of England’s brutally confident and often successful campaigns in France. It ensured that the English would only continue to press their royal claims even harder, and the result was a brutal conflict that cost countless dead and lasted for 116 years.