The Battle of Cadzand was an early skirmish of the
Hundred Years' War fought in 1337. It consisted of a raid on the
Flemish
Flemish (''Vlaams'') is a Low Franconian dialect cluster of the Dutch language. It is sometimes referred to as Flemish Dutch (), Belgian Dutch ( ), or Southern Dutch (). Flemish is native to Flanders, a historical region in northern Belgium; ...
island of
Cadzand
Cadzand is a village in the Dutch province of Zeeland. It is located in the municipality of Sluis, about 8 km northwest of Oostburg. The village contains 790 inhabitants (2010). Better known to many visitors is the nearby beach at Cadzand- ...
, designed to provoke a reaction and battle from the local garrison and so improve morale in
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
and amongst
King Edward III
Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377), also known as Edward of Windsor before his accession, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from January 1327 until his death in 1377. He is noted for his military success and for restoring ...
's continental allies by providing his army with an easy victory. On 9 November
Sir Walter Manny, with the advance troops for Edward III's continental invasion, made an attempt to take the city of Sluys, but was driven off.
Background
For Edward, the war had not progressed as well as had been hoped at the start of the year as vacillation by allies in the Low Countries and Germany had prevented an invasion of
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
from progressing as intended and setbacks in the Gascon theatre had prevented any advance there either. Edward's fleet was unprepared for the crossing with the main body of his army and his finances were in a parlous state owing to his having been forced to pay large stipends to European forces. Thus he required some symbol of his intentions against the French and a demonstration of what his forces could achieve. To this end he ordered Sir
Walter Manny
Walter Manny (or Mauny), 1st Baron Manny, KG (c. 1310 – 14 or 15 January 1372), soldier of fortune and founder of the Charterhouse, was from Masny in Hainault, from whose counts he claimed descent. He was a patron and friend of Froissart ...
, leader of his vanguard which was already stationed in
Hainaut to take a small fleet and raid the island of Cadzand, now part of the mainland
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
and then part of
Flanders
Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to cultu ...
, a semi-autonomous region of France.
Cadzand
Cadzand was a poor, marshy island populated by fishing villages with little in the way of plunder or importance except that it was close to the wealthy Flemish port of
Sluys and thus could be used as bait for the garrison of that town.
[Cadzand has since become part of the Dutch mainland in ]Zeeland
, nl, Ik worstel en kom boven("I struggle and emerge")
, anthem = "Zeeuws volkslied"("Zeelandic Anthem")
, image_map = Zeeland in the Netherlands.svg
, map_alt =
, m ...
province due to the silting of the channels surrounding it. A village in the old island's location still bears the name. Manny understood this well, and after an initial probe against the town failed on 9 November, he retired his 3,700 sailors and soldiers to Cadzand and unleashed them on the local population resulting in several days of feverish looting, raping and pillaging of the isolated villages in the manner of a miniature
chevauchée.
The garrison of Sluys, led by Sir Guy de Rickenbourg, the illegitimate son of
Louis, Count of Nevers, could not let such acts occur so close to them without responding and so crossed the channel between Sluys and the island a few days later and attempted to confront Manny. The English commander was prepared for this and had his men formed up on the island in an ideal defensive position which allowed him to attack and destroy the Flemish force in a short, sharp action probably enabled by use of the
longbow
A longbow (known as warbow in its time, in contrast to a hunting bow) is a type of tall bow that makes a fairly long draw possible. A longbow is not significantly recurved. Its limbs are relatively narrow and are circular or D-shaped in cross ...
although no accounts of the fighting survive. Only a handful of the Flemish force were able to retreat across the channel, Guy of Flanders being captured with the other noblemen whilst the rank and file were all put to the sword. English losses were minimal.
Aftermath
The battle had few longer-lasting effects, as Manny abandoned the island to its surviving inhabitants shortly after the victory. The allies were suitably impressed by the show of strength and the border regions of Flanders were intimidated.
King Philip VI was also greatly affected by this development, assuming that traitors amongst the Flemings had caused the defeat and responding by a wave of terror and executions which continued for the remainder of his reign and served to alienate many of his allies and supporters. Ten years after the battle, when England and Flanders had become allies following an uprising in the latter, Edward III was forced to apologize and make symbolic reparations for ordering this action. Sluys was later the scene of a highly significant
naval battle in 1340.
References
*
Sumption, Jonathan, ''The Hundred Years War, Vol 1, Trial by Battle'', 1990,
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cadzand
Battles involving Flanders
Battles of the Hundred Years' War
1337 in Europe
Conflicts in 1337
Battle of Cadzand
The Battle of Cadzand was an early skirmish of the Hundred Years' War fought in 1337. It consisted of a raid on the Flemish island of Cadzand, designed to provoke a reaction and battle from the local garrison and so improve morale in England ...
Naval battles of the Hundred Years' War
Battle of Cadzand
The Battle of Cadzand was an early skirmish of the Hundred Years' War fought in 1337. It consisted of a raid on the Flemish island of Cadzand, designed to provoke a reaction and battle from the local garrison and so improve morale in England ...
14th century in the county of Flanders