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Battle of Verneuil
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Battle of Verneuil
The Battle of Verneuil was a battle of the Hundred Years' War, fought on 17 August 1424 near Verneuil-sur-Avre in Normandy between an English army and a combined Franco-Scottish force, augmented by Milanese heavy cavalry. The battle was a significant English victory, and was described by them as a second Agincourt.
The battle started with a short archery exchange between English longbowmen and Scottish archers, after which the force of 2,000 Milanese heavy cavalry charged the English, brushed aside an ineffective English arrow barrage and wooden archer's stakes, penetrated the formation of English men-at-arms and routed one wing of their longbowmen. The Milanese pursued the fleeing English off the field and went on to capture and loot the English baggage train. Meanwhile, the well-armoured English and Franco-Scottish men-at-arms clashed on foot in a ferocious hand-to-hand melee that went on for about 45 minutes. Many of the English longbowmen rallied and joined the struggle. The French men-at-arms eventually routed, leaving the Scots alone in a last stand where they received no quarter from the English. The Milanese cavalry returned to the field at the end of the battle but fled upon discovering the fate of the Franco-Scottish force.
Altogether some 6,000 French and Scottish were killed and 200 taken prisoner. The Burgundian chronicler Jean de Wavrin, who fought in the battle, estimated 1,600 English killed, although the English commander, John, Duke of Bedford, claimed to have lost only two men-at-arms and "a very few archers". The Scots army, led by the earls of Douglas and Buchan (both of whom were killed in the battle), was almost destroyed. Many French nobles were taken prisoner, among them the Duke of Alençon and the Marshal de La Fayette. After Verneuil, the English were able to consolidate their position in Normandy. The Army of Scotland as a distinct unit ceased to play a significant part in the Hundred Years' War, although many Scots remained in French service.
In 1424, France was still recovering from the 1415 disaster at Agincourt, and the northern provinces were in the hands of the English following Henry V's conquest of Normandy. The Dauphin (heir to the French throne) Charles had been disinherited according to the terms of the 1420 Treaty of Troyes and, upon the death of his father Charles VI in October 1422, his status as King of France was recognised only in the regions still not occupied by the English, namely the south of the country (less the province of Guyenne in the southwest). The civil war between the pro-Dauphin Armagnacs and the pro-English Burgundians showed no sign of ending.[citation needed]
The death of Henry V in August 1422, two months before that of Charles VI, brought no relief to the French, as the continuing English war effort was managed by Henry's brother Bedford, acting as regent for the nine-month-old Henry VI. The Dauphin desperately needed soldiers, and looked to Scotland, France's old ally, to provide essential military aid.
The first large contingent of Scots troops came to France in the autumn of 1419, some 6,000 men under the command of John Stewart, Earl of Buchan. These men, strengthened from time to time by fresh volunteers, soon became an integral part of the French war effort, and by the summer of 1420 the "Army of Scotland" was a distinct force in the French royal service. They proved their worth the following year, playing a large part in the victory at the Battle of Baugé, the first serious setback experienced by the English. The mood of optimism this engendered collapsed in 1423, when many of Buchan's men fell at the Battle of Cravant.[citation needed]
At the beginning of 1424, Buchan brought with him a further 6,500 men. He was accompanied by Archibald, Earl of Douglas, one of the most powerful noblemen of Scotland. On 24 April, the army, comprising 2,500 men-at-arms and 4,000 archers, entered Bourges, the Dauphin's headquarters, helping to raise Charles' spirits. A body of 2,000 heavy cavalry was hired from Filippo Maria Visconti, the Duke of Milan, after a treaty of alliance on 17 February. These men-at-arms were led by the Frenchman le Borgne-Caqueran and clad in complete suits of tempered steel plate armour, and rode barded horses. A smaller Milanese cavalry force had been decisive against the Burgundians at La Buissière in September 1423.
The victory at La Buissière and an English defeat by the French under the Count of Aumale at the Battle of La Brossinière on 26 September 1423 improved the Dauphin's strategic situation. The outflanking and destruction of a body of English longbowmen at La Brossinière convinced the French that it would be possible to destroy a large English army in a decisive battle. A plan was devised – the main English army would be sought out and crushed, after which Charles VII would be crowned as king in Reims.
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Battle of Verneuil
The Battle of Verneuil was a battle of the Hundred Years' War, fought on 17 August 1424 near Verneuil-sur-Avre in Normandy between an English army and a combined Franco-Scottish force, augmented by Milanese heavy cavalry. The battle was a significant English victory, and was described by them as a second Agincourt.
The battle started with a short archery exchange between English longbowmen and Scottish archers, after which the force of 2,000 Milanese heavy cavalry charged the English, brushed aside an ineffective English arrow barrage and wooden archer's stakes, penetrated the formation of English men-at-arms and routed one wing of their longbowmen. The Milanese pursued the fleeing English off the field and went on to capture and loot the English baggage train. Meanwhile, the well-armoured English and Franco-Scottish men-at-arms clashed on foot in a ferocious hand-to-hand melee that went on for about 45 minutes. Many of the English longbowmen rallied and joined the struggle. The French men-at-arms eventually routed, leaving the Scots alone in a last stand where they received no quarter from the English. The Milanese cavalry returned to the field at the end of the battle but fled upon discovering the fate of the Franco-Scottish force.
Altogether some 6,000 French and Scottish were killed and 200 taken prisoner. The Burgundian chronicler Jean de Wavrin, who fought in the battle, estimated 1,600 English killed, although the English commander, John, Duke of Bedford, claimed to have lost only two men-at-arms and "a very few archers". The Scots army, led by the earls of Douglas and Buchan (both of whom were killed in the battle), was almost destroyed. Many French nobles were taken prisoner, among them the Duke of Alençon and the Marshal de La Fayette. After Verneuil, the English were able to consolidate their position in Normandy. The Army of Scotland as a distinct unit ceased to play a significant part in the Hundred Years' War, although many Scots remained in French service.
In 1424, France was still recovering from the 1415 disaster at Agincourt, and the northern provinces were in the hands of the English following Henry V's conquest of Normandy. The Dauphin (heir to the French throne) Charles had been disinherited according to the terms of the 1420 Treaty of Troyes and, upon the death of his father Charles VI in October 1422, his status as King of France was recognised only in the regions still not occupied by the English, namely the south of the country (less the province of Guyenne in the southwest). The civil war between the pro-Dauphin Armagnacs and the pro-English Burgundians showed no sign of ending.[citation needed]
The death of Henry V in August 1422, two months before that of Charles VI, brought no relief to the French, as the continuing English war effort was managed by Henry's brother Bedford, acting as regent for the nine-month-old Henry VI. The Dauphin desperately needed soldiers, and looked to Scotland, France's old ally, to provide essential military aid.
The first large contingent of Scots troops came to France in the autumn of 1419, some 6,000 men under the command of John Stewart, Earl of Buchan. These men, strengthened from time to time by fresh volunteers, soon became an integral part of the French war effort, and by the summer of 1420 the "Army of Scotland" was a distinct force in the French royal service. They proved their worth the following year, playing a large part in the victory at the Battle of Baugé, the first serious setback experienced by the English. The mood of optimism this engendered collapsed in 1423, when many of Buchan's men fell at the Battle of Cravant.[citation needed]
At the beginning of 1424, Buchan brought with him a further 6,500 men. He was accompanied by Archibald, Earl of Douglas, one of the most powerful noblemen of Scotland. On 24 April, the army, comprising 2,500 men-at-arms and 4,000 archers, entered Bourges, the Dauphin's headquarters, helping to raise Charles' spirits. A body of 2,000 heavy cavalry was hired from Filippo Maria Visconti, the Duke of Milan, after a treaty of alliance on 17 February. These men-at-arms were led by the Frenchman le Borgne-Caqueran and clad in complete suits of tempered steel plate armour, and rode barded horses. A smaller Milanese cavalry force had been decisive against the Burgundians at La Buissière in September 1423.
The victory at La Buissière and an English defeat by the French under the Count of Aumale at the Battle of La Brossinière on 26 September 1423 improved the Dauphin's strategic situation. The outflanking and destruction of a body of English longbowmen at La Brossinière convinced the French that it would be possible to destroy a large English army in a decisive battle. A plan was devised – the main English army would be sought out and crushed, after which Charles VII would be crowned as king in Reims.
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