Battles & Wars › Medieval wars › Hundred Years' War
Battle of Crécy
August 26, 1346· Battle· Europe
Well documentedSolid records, physical evidence or scientific consensus.
Edward III's outnumbered English army crushed the French royal army of Philip VI in northern France.
See it on the Battles & Wars map →What happened
Edward III had raided across Normandy and crossed the Somme when Philip VI's larger army caught up with him. He chose a slope near Crécy, dismounted his men-at-arms and placed his archers in strong positions. Genoese crossbowmen hired by France were outshot and fell back. French knights then charged uphill, again and again into the night, and were cut down. Heralds counted about 1,500 French lords and knights dead; English losses were light. The blind King John of Bohemia died there.
Why it matters
It made England's archers and tactics famous, let Edward go on to take Calais, and showed that disciplined infantry on good ground could beat charging knights.
How we know
Chronicles by Jean Froissart, Jean le Bel and Giovanni Villani, Edward III's own letters, and the heralds' count of the dead. Villani also mentions early English cannon.
Still debated
Army sizes are estimates (perhaps 10,000–15,000 English against 20,000–30,000 or more French), and the traditional battlefield location has been challenged.
Connections (3)
▸English longbow cut down French charges at Battle of CrécyWell documented
The connection
At Crécy perhaps 5,000 to 7,000 English and Welsh archers stood on a slope beside dismounted men-at-arms. They outshot the Genoese crossbowmen hired by France, who fell back. French knights rode through their own crossbowmen and charged uphill into the arrow storm, again and again into the night. Arrows brought down horses, and the English line held.
When and how
Crécy-en-Ponthieu, northern France, August 26, 1346; Edward III's army against Philip VI's French knights and Genoese crossbowmen.
How we know
Chroniclers such as Jean le Bel, Jean Froissart and Giovanni Villani stress the archers' role, and English reports list the French noble dead.
Debates and open questions
Archer numbers and the battlefield's exact location are disputed, and how many knights fell to arrows rather than hand-to-hand fighting is unknown.
▸Battle of Crécy was an early English victory in Hundred Years' WarWell documented
The connection
Crécy, nine years into the war, showed England could beat the larger French royal army in open battle. Edward III marched on to besiege Calais, which fell in 1347 and stayed English until 1558. Repeated at Poitiers in 1356, where the French king was captured, such victories forced the 1360 Treaty of Brétigny, giving Edward large parts of western France.
When and how
Northern France, August 1346, then Calais, 1346–47; Edward III and his son Edward the Black Prince against Philip VI of France.
How we know
Royal records document the siege of Calais and English rule there, and the treaty texts of 1360 survive.
Debates and open questions
Whether Edward sought battle at Crécy or was cornered, and how much it rather than Poitiers shaped the peace, are debated.
▸Crossbow lost to the English longbow at the Battle of CrécyWell documented
The connection
At Crécy, Genoese mercenary crossbowmen led the French attack against English longbowmen on higher ground. The longbows shot several times faster, and the Genoese reportedly lacked their large shields, left with the baggage. They fell back and were ridden down by impatient French knights.
When and how
Crécy, northern France, August 26, 1346: Edward III of England against Philip VI of France.
How we know
Chroniclers including Jean Froissart and Giovanni Villani describe the Genoese crossbowmen's failure.
Debates and open questions
Claims that rain soaked their bowstrings are debated, as are numbers: perhaps 2,000–6,000 Genoese. How big the longbow's real edge was is also argued.