The Battle of Formigny, fought on 15 April 1450, took place towards the end of the

Hundred Years' War The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a conflict between the kingdoms of Kingdom of England, England and Kingdom of France, France and a civil war in France during the Late Middle Ages. It emerged from feudal disputes over the Duchy ...

between

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

and

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. It was a decisive French victory that destroyed the last significant English field army in

Normandy Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy. Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...

, and paved the way for the recapture of their remaining strongholds. Although

cannon A cannon is a large-caliber gun classified as a type of artillery, which usually launches a projectile using explosive chemical propellant. Gunpowder ("black powder") was the primary propellant before the invention of smokeless powder during th ...

had been employed in siege warfare since the early 14th century, Formigny is notable as one of the first recorded uses of

field artillery Field artillery is a category of mobile artillery used to support army, armies in the field. These weapons are specialized for mobility, tactical proficiency, short range, long range, and extremely long range target engagement. Until the ear ...

on a European battlefield.

Background

Charles VII of France Charles VII (22 February 1403 – 22 July 1461), called the Victorious () or the Well-Served (), was King of France from 1422 to his death in 1461. His reign saw the end of the Hundred Years' War and a ''de facto'' end of the English claims to ...

used the time afforded by the 1444 Treaty of Tours to reorganise and reinvigorate his armies. In contrast, the English were divided by the internal struggle for power that would lead to the

Wars of the Roses The Wars of the Roses, known at the time and in following centuries as the Civil Wars, were a series of armed confrontations, machinations, battles and campaigns fought over control of the English throne from 1455 to 1487. The conflict was fo ...

in 1455. Inability to agree a coherent strategy left their forces in Normandy scattered and dangerously weak. As a result, the French were in a much stronger position when they broke the truce in June 1449. By August, they had taken Pont-Audemer, Pont-L'Evêque and Lisieux, and by October had occupied much of

. Cutting north and east, the Bureau brothers captured

Rouen Rouen (, ; or ) is a city on the River Seine, in northwestern France. It is in the prefecture of Regions of France, region of Normandy (administrative region), Normandy and the Departments of France, department of Seine-Maritime. Formerly one ...

in October,

Harfleur Harfleur () is a Communes of France, commune in the Seine-Maritime Departments of France, department in the Normandy (administrative region), Normandy Regions of France, region of northern France. It was the principal seaport in north-western Fr ...

in December, then Honfleur and Fresnoy in January 1450, before investing

Caen Caen (; ; ) is a Communes of France, commune inland from the northwestern coast of France. It is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Calvados (department), Calvados. The city proper has 105,512 inha ...

. During the winter of 1449, the English assembled an expeditionary force in

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...

to relieve Caen. It was led by

Sir Thomas Kyriell Sir Thomas Kyriell (1396 – 18 February 1461) was an English soldier of the Hundred Years' War and the opening of the Wars of the Roses. He was executed after the Second Battle of St. Albans. Background The de Criol, Kyriel or Kyriell fami ...

, a relatively unknown commander who would be comprehensively out manoeuvred by his French opponents. Lack of money and supplies hampered recruiting and lowered morale; in January 1450 the troops lynched an official sent to negotiate with them over pay. On 15 March 1450, Kyriell and some 2,500 men landed in

Cherbourg Cherbourg is a former Communes of France, commune and Subprefectures in France, subprefecture located at the northern end of the Cotentin peninsula in the northwestern French departments of France, department of Manche. It was merged into the com ...

, where they were reinforced by another 1,800 collected by

Edmund Beaufort, 2nd Duke of Somerset Edmund Beaufort, 2nd Duke of Somerset, 4th Earl of Somerset, 1st Earl of Dorset, 1st Marquess of Dorset styled 1st Count of Mortain, (140622 May 1455), was an English nobleman and an important figure during the Hundred Years' War. His rivalry ...

, English commander in Normandy. He did so by taking them from English garrisons in

Bayeux Bayeux (, ; ) is a commune in the Calvados department in Normandy in northwestern France. Bayeux is the home of the Bayeux Tapestry, which depicts the events leading up to the Norman Conquest of England in 1066. It is also known as the fir ...

, Caen, and Vire, under Sir Matthew Gough, Sir Robert Vere and Sir Henry Norbury respectively.

Battle

Rather than immediately relieving Caen as originally planned, Kyriell attacked Valognes, whose possession allowed the French to isolate Cherbourg from the rest of the

Cotentin peninsula The Cotentin Peninsula (, ; ), also known as the Cherbourg Peninsula, is a peninsula in Normandy that forms part of the northwest coast of France. It extends north-westward into the English Channel, towards Great Britain. To its west lie the Gu ...

. It fell on 27 March after a short siege, and Kyriell continued onto French-held Carentan, which he reached on 12 April. Despite a number of small skirmishes, Clermont, the local French commander, refused to give battle, so Kyriell instead marched for Bayeux. He stopped near Formigny on 14 April, closely followed by 3,000 men from Carentan under Clermont. On the same day, the

Constable of France The Constable of France (, from Latin for 'count of the stables') was lieutenant to the King of France, the first of the original five Great Officers of the Crown (along with seneschal, chamberlain, butler, and chancellor) and the commander-in ...

, Arthur de Richemont, arrived in

Saint-Lô Saint-Lô (, ; ) is a Communes of France, commune in northwest France, the capital of the Manche department in the region of Normandy (administrative region), Normandy.Breton force of 2,000, split between 1,200 cavalry and 800 infantry. Having made contact, Clermont urged him to move on Formigny as soon as possible. On 15 April, the English sighted Clermont, and the armies took up positions facing each other on the Carentan-Bayeux road, near a small tributary of the Aure. Now totalling somewhat less than 4,000 men, of whom 2,900 were archers, the English assembled in two main "battles" across the road to Carentan, with their backs to the stream. Although they did not have time to construct the usual defence works of sharpened stakes, Kyriell was confident since he outnumbered Clermont, and was unaware of Richemont's proximity. Pausing to assess the situation, in the early afternoon Clermont ordered his dismounted men at arms to attack the English position. These assaults were repulsed, as were two French cavalry probes of their flanks, and Clermont then instructed his two

culverin A culverin was initially an ancestor of the hand-held arquebus, but the term was later used to describe a type of medieval and Renaissance cannon. The word is derived from the antiquated "culuering" and the French (from " grass snake", follo ...

s to open fire. Since the guns were out of bowshot range, the English archers were unable to respond, and left their positions in an attempt to capture them. Around 7:00 pm, Richemont and his 1,200 cavalry arrived from the south, crossing the Aure and threatening the English flank. Encouraged by the presence of the French king's most influential advisor, Pierre de Brézé, Clermont's forces stood their ground. With many of his men busy dragging the captured guns back to their lines, Kyriell shifted forces to the left to face the new threat, while Clermont responded by renewing his attack. The English were caught in the open by the Breton cavalry, then enveloped by French troops under Clermont and Brézé. Attacked from both sides, they were split into small groups and suffered heavy casualties. The vast majority were either killed or captured, including Kyriell, although Sir Matthew Gough and a small party escaped to Bayeux. Contemporary chronicles suggest that despite protestations from their commanders, after the battle French infantrymen massacred about 500 captured English archers. Their corpses were reportedly buried in a nearby field, later dubbed "The English Tomb".

Aftermath

Kyriell's army was effectively destroyed, the vast majority either killed or taken prisoner. Contemporary French records claim 3,744 bodies were buried, although this seems to have included casualties from both sides. The same sources suggest another 1,200 to 1,400 were taken prisoner, while other historians suggest 2,500 killed and 900 captured. Estimates of French and Breton losses vary from "less than a thousand", to "about 500", or "a handful". The victors quickly recaptured the whole of Normandy, Caen falling on 12 June, and Cherbourg on 12 August. Vigiles du roi Charles VII 32

Prior to 1450, artillery had largely been employed in siege warfare, with Formigny perhaps the first engagement when cannon are recorded as being used on the battlefield. Unlike the better known

Battle of Castillon The Battle of Castillon was a battle between the forces of England and France which took place on 17 July 1453 in Gascony near the town of Castillon-sur-Dordogne (later Castillon-la-Bataille). On the day of the battle, the English commande ...

, contemporary accounts are unclear on how effective they were. The arrival of the Breton cavalry was arguably more decisive in forcing the English to leave their prepared defensive positions, although the French guns also played a role. Most significantly, the noise of their firing alerted Richemont to the fact that a battle was taking place and its rough location, so causing his appearance on the field. One of Clermont's captains claimed that if Richemont had not arrived when he did, their army would have suffered "irreparable damage".

Images

File:1450 Formigny.jpg, ''Bataille de Formigny, 18 avril 1450'', oil on canvas by Prosper Lafaye, 1837,

Palace of Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; ) is a former royal residence commissioned by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, Yvelines, Versailles, about west of Paris, in the Yvelines, Yvelines Department of Île-de-France, Île-de-France region in Franc ...

File:1450 Bataille de Formigny 2.jpg, ''Bataille de Formigny'', oil on canvas by Rémy-Eugène Julien File:Formigny bataille02.png, Monument to the Battle of Formigny Image:Formigny_III.jpg, A Memorial marks the Battlefield Image:FormignyIV.jpg, The chapel that Clermont had constructed in 1486 to commemorate the victory

Notes

References

Sources

* * * * * * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Formigny 1450 1450 in England 1450s in France Battles of the Hundred Years' War Military history of Calvados (department) Conflicts in 1450 Hundred Years' War, 1415–1453