The siege of Aiguillon, an episode in the
Hundred Years' War
The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a series of armed conflicts between the kingdoms of Kingdom of England, England and Kingdom of France, France during the Late Middle Ages. It originated from disputed claims to the French Crown, ...
, began on 1 April 1346 when a French army commanded by
John, Duke of Normandy
John II (french: Jean II; 26 April 1319 – 8 April 1364), called John the Good (French: ''Jean le Bon''), was King of France from 1350 until his death in 1364. When he came to power, France faced several disasters: the Black Death, which killed ...
, laid siege to the
Gascon town of
Aiguillon. The town was defended by an
Anglo
Anglo is a prefix indicating a relation to, or descent from, the Angles, England, English culture, the English people or the English language, such as in the term '' Anglosphere''. It is often used alone, somewhat loosely, to refer to people ...
-Gascon army under
Ralph, Earl of Stafford.
In 1345
Henry, Earl of Lancaster, was sent to Gascony in south west France with 2,000 men and large financial resources. In 1346 the French focused their effort on the south west and, early in the campaigning season, an army of 15,000–20,000 men marched down the valley of the
Garonne
The Garonne (, also , ; Occitan, Catalan, Basque, and es, Garona, ; la, Garumna
or ) is a river of southwest France and northern Spain. It flows from the central Spanish Pyrenees to the Gironde estuary at the French port of Bordeaux – a ...
. Aiguillon commands both the Rivers Garonne and
Lot
Lot or LOT or The Lot or ''similar'' may refer to:
Common meanings Areas
* Land lot, an area of land
* Parking lot, for automobiles
*Backlot, in movie production
Sets of items
*Lot number, in batch production
*Lot, a set of goods for sale togethe ...
, and it was not possible to sustain an offensive further into Gascony unless the town was taken. Duke John, the son and
heir apparent
An heir apparent, often shortened to heir, is a person who is first in an order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person; a person who is first in the order of succession but can be displaced by the b ...
of
Philip VI, laid siege to the town. The garrison, some 900 men, sortied repeatedly to interrupt the French operations, while Lancaster concentrated the main Anglo-Gascon force at
La Réole
La Réole (; oc, La Rèula) is a commune in the Gironde department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine in southwestern France.
Geography
La Réole is located on the right bank of the Garonne, southeast of Bordeaux by rail. La Réole station has rail connecti ...
, some away, as a threat. Duke John was never able to fully
blockade
A blockade is the act of actively preventing a country or region from receiving or sending out food, supplies, weapons, or communications, and sometimes people, by military force.
A blockade differs from an embargo or sanction, which are le ...
the town, and found that his own supply lines were seriously harassed. On one occasion Lancaster used his main force to escort a large supply train into the town.
In July the main English army landed in northern France and moved towards Paris. Philip VI repeatedly ordered his son, Duke John, to break off the siege and bring his army north. Duke John, considering it a matter of honour, refused. By August, the French supply system had broken down, there was a
dysentery
Dysentery (UK pronunciation: , US: ), historically known as the bloody flux, is a type of gastroenteritis that results in bloody diarrhea. Other symptoms may include fever, abdominal pain, and a feeling of incomplete defecation. Complications ...
epidemic in their camp, desertion was rife and Philip VI's orders were becoming imperious. On 20 August the French abandoned the siege and their camp and marched away. Six days later the main French army was decisively beaten in the
Battle of Crécy
The Battle of Crécy took place on 26 August 1346 in northern France between a French army commanded by King PhilipVI and an English army led by King EdwardIII. The French attacked the English while they were traversing northern France du ...
with very heavy losses. Two weeks after this defeat, Duke John's army joined the French survivors.
Background
![Guyenne 1328-en](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/62/Guyenne_1328-en.svg)
Since the
Norman Conquest
The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Norman, Breton, Flemish, and French troops, all led by the Duke of Normandy, later styled William the Conque ...
of 1066, English monarchs had held
titles and lands within France, the possession of which made them
vassal
A vassal or liege subject is a person regarded as having a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch, in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. While the subordinate party is called a vassal, the dominant party is called a suzerain. W ...
s of the kings of France. Over the centuries, English holdings in France had varied in size, but by 1337 only
Gascony
Gascony (; french: Gascogne ; oc, Gasconha ; eu, Gaskoinia) was a province of the southwestern Kingdom of France that succeeded the Duchy of Gascony (602–1453). From the 17th century until the French Revolution (1789–1799), it was part o ...
in south western France and
Ponthieu
Ponthieu (, ) was one of six feudal counties that eventually merged to become part of the Province of Picardy, in northern France.Dunbabin.France in the Making. Ch.4. The Principalities 888-987 Its chief town is Abbeville.
History
Ponthieu play ...
in northern France were left. The independent minded Gascons had their own customs and claimed to have a separate
language
Language is a structured system of communication. The structure of a language is its grammar and the free components are its vocabulary. Languages are the primary means by which humans communicate, and may be conveyed through a variety of met ...
. They preferred their relationship with a distant English king who left them alone to one with a French king who would interfere in their affairs. Following a series of disagreements between
Philip VI of France
Philip VI (french: Philippe; 1293 – 22 August 1350), called the Fortunate (french: le Fortuné, link=no) or the Catholic (french: le Catholique, link=no) and of Valois, was the first king of France from the House of Valois, reigning from 1328 ...
and
Edward III of England
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 ro ...
, on 24 May 1337 Philip's
Great Council in Paris agreed that the
Duchy of Aquitaine
The Duchy of Aquitaine ( oc, Ducat d'Aquitània, ; french: Duché d'Aquitaine, ) was a historical fiefdom in western, central, and southern areas of present-day France to the south of the river Loire, although its extent, as well as its name, fluc ...
, effectively
Gascony
Gascony (; french: Gascogne ; oc, Gasconha ; eu, Gaskoinia) was a province of the southwestern Kingdom of France that succeeded the Duchy of Gascony (602–1453). From the 17th century until the French Revolution (1789–1799), it was part o ...
, should be taken back into Philip's hands on the grounds that Edward was in breach of his obligations as a vassal. This marked the start of the
Hundred Years' War
The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a series of armed conflicts between the kingdoms of Kingdom of England, England and Kingdom of France, France during the Late Middle Ages. It originated from disputed claims to the French Crown, ...
, which was to last one hundred and sixteen years.
Gascony
Before the war commenced at least 1,000 ships a year departed Gascony. Among their cargoes were over 80,000
tuns of locally produced wine. The duty collected by the English Crown on wine from
Bordeaux
Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefectur ...
exceeded all other customs duties combined and was by far the largest source of state income. Bordeaux, the capital of Gascony, had a population of over 50,000, greater than London's, and Bordeaux was possibly richer. However, by this time English Gascony had become so truncated by French encroachments that it relied on imports of food, largely from England. Any interruptions to regular shipping were liable to starve Gascony and financially cripple England; the French were well aware of this.
Although Gascony was the cause of the war, Edward was able to spare few resources for it and whenever an English army campaigned on the continent it had operated in northern France. In most campaigning seasons the Gascons had had to rely on their own resources and had been hard-pressed by the French. In 1339, the French besieged Bordeaux, the capital of Gascony, even breaking into the city with a large force before they were repulsed. Typically the Gascons could field 3,000–6,000 men, the large majority infantry, although up to two-thirds of them would be tied down in garrisons.
![Nouvelle-Aquitaine in France 2016](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1e/Nouvelle-Aquitaine_in_France_2016.svg)
The border between English and French territory in Gascony was extremely unclear, to the extent that the idea of a "border" is anachronistic. Many landholders owned a patchwork of widely separated estates, perhaps owing
fealty
An oath of fealty, from the Latin ''fidelitas'' (faithfulness), is a pledge of allegiance of one person to another.
Definition
In medieval Europe, the swearing of fealty took the form of an oath made by a vassal, or subordinate, to his lord. "Fea ...
to a different overlord for each. Each small estate was likely to have a
fortified tower
A fortified tower (also defensive tower or castle tower or, in context, just tower) is one of the defensive structures used in fortifications, such as castles, along with curtain walls. Castle towers can have a variety of different shapes and ful ...
or
keep
A keep (from the Middle English ''kype'') is a type of fortified tower built within castles during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars have debated the scope of the word ''keep'', but usually consider it to refer to large towers in c ...
, and larger estates had castles.
Fortifications
A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...
were also constructed at transport
choke point
In military strategy, a choke point (or chokepoint) is a geographical feature on land such as a valley, defile or bridge, or maritime passage through a critical waterway such as a strait, which an armed force is forced to pass through in ord ...
s, to collect tolls and to restrict military passage; fortified towns grew up alongside all bridges and most
fords over the many rivers in the region. Military forces could support themselves by foraging so long as they moved on at frequent intervals. If they wished to remain in one place for any length of time, as was necessary to besiege a castle, then access to water transport was essential for supplies of food and fodder and desirable for such items as siege equipment. Warfare was usually a struggle for possession of castles and other fortified points, and for the mutable loyalty of the local nobility; the region had been in a state of flux for centuries and many local lords served whichever country was stronger, regardless of national ties.
By 1345, after eight years of war, English-controlled territory mostly consisted of a coastal strip from Bordeaux to
Bayonne
Bayonne (; eu, Baiona ; oc, label= Gascon, Baiona ; es, Bayona) is a city in Southwestern France near the Spanish border. It is a commune and one of two subprefectures in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department, in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine re ...
, with isolated strongholds further inland. During 1345,
Henry, Duke of Lancaster
Henry of Grosmont, Duke of Lancaster (– 23 March 1361) was an English statesman, diplomat, soldier, and Christian writer. The owner of Bolingbroke Castle in Lincolnshire, Grosmont was a member of the House of Plantagenet, which was ruling ov ...
,
[During the 1345 campaign he was known as the Earl of Derby, but his father died in September 1345 and he became the Earl of Lancaster. ] had led a
whirlwind campaign at the head of an Anglo-Gascon army. He had smashed two large French armies at the battles of
Bergerac and
Auberoche, captured French towns and fortifications in much of
Périgord
Périgord ( , ; ; oc, Peiregòrd / ) is a natural region and former province of France, which corresponds roughly to the current Dordogne department, now forming the northern part of the administrative region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. It is div ...
and most of
Agenais
Agenais (), or Agenois (), was an ancient region that became a county (Old French: ''conté'' or ''cunté'') of France, south of Périgord.Mish, Frederick C., Editor in Chief. "Agenais". '' Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary''. 9th ed. Sprin ...
and given the English possessions in Gascony strategic depth. During the winter following this successful campaign Lancaster's second in command,
Ralph, Earl of Stafford, had marched on the vitally important town of Aiguillon, which commanded the junction of the Rivers
Garonne
The Garonne (, also , ; Occitan, Catalan, Basque, and es, Garona, ; la, Garumna
or ) is a river of southwest France and northern Spain. It flows from the central Spanish Pyrenees to the Gironde estuary at the French port of Bordeaux – a ...
and
Lot
Lot or LOT or The Lot or ''similar'' may refer to:
Common meanings Areas
* Land lot, an area of land
* Parking lot, for automobiles
*Backlot, in movie production
Sets of items
*Lot number, in batch production
*Lot, a set of goods for sale togethe ...
. The town's inhabitants had attacked the garrison and opened the gates to the English.
Prelude
John, Duke of Normandy
John II (french: Jean II; 26 April 1319 – 8 April 1364), called John the Good (French: ''Jean le Bon''), was King of France from 1350 until his death in 1364. When he came to power, France faced several disasters: the Black Death, which killed ...
, the son and
heir apparent
An heir apparent, often shortened to heir, is a person who is first in an order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person; a person who is first in the order of succession but can be displaced by the b ...
of Philip VI, was placed in charge of all French forces in south west France, as he had been the previous autumn. He assembled at
Orléans
Orléans (;["Orleans"](_blank)
(US) and [Languedoc
The Province of Languedoc (; , ; oc, Lengadòc ) is a former province of France.
Most of its territory is now contained in the modern-day region of Occitanie in Southern France. Its capital city was Toulouse. It had an area of approximately ...]
; it included a
siege train
A siege engine is a device that is designed to break or circumvent heavy castle doors, thick city walls and other fortifications in siege warfare. Some are immobile, constructed in place to attack enemy fortifications from a distance, while other ...
and five
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 ...
. Duke John planned to march on and besiege the large, strongly fortified town of
La Réole
La Réole (; oc, La Rèula) is a commune in the Gironde department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine in southwestern France.
Geography
La Réole is located on the right bank of the Garonne, southeast of Bordeaux by rail. La Réole station has rail connecti ...
on the north bank of the Garonne river, only from Bordeaux, which Lancaster had captured the previous year. Aiguillon commanded both the Lot and the Garonne and its possession was essential to supply any army around La Réole.
Lancaster understood that no French offensive could have a permanent effect so long as Aiguillon, described by the modern historian Kenneth Fowler as "the key to the Gascon plain", was held, so he garrisoned it very strongly: 300
men-at-arms
A man-at-arms was a soldier of the High Medieval to Renaissance periods who was typically well-versed in the use of arms and served as a fully-armoured heavy cavalryman. A man-at-arms could be a knight, or other nobleman, a member of a knig ...
and 600
archers
Archery is the sport, practice, or skill of using a bow to shoot arrows.Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 17 The word comes from the Latin ''arcus'', meaning bow. Historically, archery has been used for hunting and combat. In mo ...
commanded by Stafford. The town was well stocked with supplies and materiel, although the physical defences were in a poor state. The main wall, long, was modern but incomplete – gaps were filled with improvised defences. A bridge over the River Lot was fortified and had a
barbican
A barbican (from fro, barbacane) is a fortified outpost or fortified gateway, such as at an outer fortifications, defense perimeter of a city or castle, or any tower situated over a gate or bridge which was used for defensive purposes.
Europe ...
gate, but it was centuries old and poorly maintained. There were two small forts within the town, both overlooking the Garonne. The northern wall of the town was protected by the Lot and the western by the Garonne, while the southern and eastern walls were more easily approached. Lancaster based himself in La Réole, on the Garonne downstream, throughout the siege.
Siege
Investment
![Stafford 1430](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/00/Stafford_1430.jpg)
The French armies assembled and marched unusually early in the campaigning season. By March they were both in the province of
Quercy
Quercy (; oc, Carcin , locally ) is a former province of France located in the country's southwest, bounded on the north by Limousin, on the west by Périgord and Agenais, on the south by Gascony and Languedoc, and on the east by Rouergue and Au ...
. The size of the French forces at this point is not recorded, but it has been estimated that later in the campaign they numbered between 15,000 and 20,000; modern historians have described the French army as a "huge force" and as "enormously superior" to any force the Anglo-Gascons could field. The army marched down the valley of the Garonne from Agen, reaching Aiguillon on 1 April. On 2 April the ''
arrière-ban In medieval and early modern France, the arrière-ban (Latin ''retrobannum'') was a general proclamation whereby the king (or duke) summoned to war all the vassals of his vassals.. The term is a folk-etymological correction of Old French ''herban'' ...
'', the formal call to arms for all able-bodied males, was announced for the south of France.
Isolating the town presented a problem for the French. The junction of the two rivers created three different areas, each of which would need to be interdicted. But separating their army into three divisions was inviting
defeat in detail
Defeat in detail, or divide and conquer, is a military tactic of bringing a large portion of one's own force to bear on small enemy units in sequence, rather than engaging the bulk of the enemy force all at once. This exposes one's own units to m ...
. They needed to be able to rapidly combine their forces if one part was threatened. A bridge over the Lot, from Aiguillon, was easily taken, but it was necessary to construct a new bridge over the Garonne. Duke John employed over 300 carpenters in its construction, escorted by 1,400 crossbowmen and an unknown but significant number of men-at-arms. The garrison sortied repeatedly against this work, sometimes several times a day. They twice broke it up, but it was completed by the end of May. The three parts of the French army each dug impressive earthworks, to protect themselves both from sorties by the garrison and from Lancaster's main army.
Operations
![Aiguillon - Structures antiques -1](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/Aiguillon_-_Structures_antiques_-1.jpg)
As was normal, within a matter of days the large French army had swept the surrounding area clear of supplies and was entirely dependent on the rivers for its logistics. The Anglo-Gascon army based in La Réole harassed the French foragers, intercepted their supplies and kept them in a constant state of alarm.
Dysentery
Dysentery (UK pronunciation: , US: ), historically known as the bloody flux, is a type of gastroenteritis that results in bloody diarrhea. Other symptoms may include fever, abdominal pain, and a feeling of incomplete defecation. Complications ...
soon broke out in the French camps. In mid-June the French attempted to pass two large supply barges down the Lot to their contingent west of the Garonne. They needed to pass under the fortified bridge held by the garrison. The garrison sortied from the bridge's barbican, through the French lines, and captured the barges; bringing them into the town. Fierce fighting broke out as the sortie party attempted to retreat to the barbican, which after several hours was lost to the French. The garrison closed the gates and secured the town at the cost of trapping most of this party outside; the survivors were taken prisoner.
The French were unable to effectively isolate the town. Throughout the siege the Anglo-Gascons were able to run the blockade at will with small quantities of supplies and reinforcements. In July a larger force fought its way through with a greater quantity of supplies. From the start of the siege the French had concentrated their efforts against the southern side of the defences. At least twelve large siege engines, probably
trebuchet
A trebuchet (french: trébuchet) is a type of catapult that uses a long arm to throw a projectile. It was a common powerful siege engine until the advent of gunpowder. The design of a trebuchet allows it to launch projectiles of greater weigh ...
s, carried out a round-the-clock area bombardment. The results were considered unsatisfactory. In July an attack was attempted from the north, across the Lot, using three
siege towers
A Roman siege tower or breaching tower (or in the Middle Ages, a belfry''Castle: Stephen Biesty's Cross-Sections''. Dorling Kindersley Pub (T); 1st American edition (September 1994). Siege towers were invented in 300 BC. ) is a specialized siege ...
mounted on large barges. As they were being manoeuvred across the river one was hit by a missile from an English trebuchet, capsizing it with heavy loss. The attack was abandoned.
The siege became an end in itself for Duke John. Having laid siege to Aiguillon it was a matter of knightly honour not to retreat before it fell. At one point he solemnly vowed not to abandon the siege until he had occupied the town. By July the French were drawing supplies from over away, a distance barely sustainable with 14th-century overland transportation. In early 1346 the English captured the castle of
Bajamont
Bajamont () is a commune in the Lot-et-Garonne department in southwestern France.
Population
See also
*Communes of the Lot-et-Garonne department
The following is a list of the 319 communes of the French department of Lot-et-Garonne.
The com ...
, from
Agen
The communes of France, commune of Agen (, ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Lot-et-Garonne Departments of France, department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, southwestern France. It lies on the river Garonne southeast of Bordeaux.
...
, the capital of Agenais, on the Garonne. This was one of several strongholds from which the English carried out raids on the French lines of communication. In late July a French force of 2,000 men marched against it. The small English garrison under
Galhart de Durfort attacked the French, defeated them, and captured their commander, Robert de Houdetot, the
Seneschal of the Agenais
The Seneschal of the Agenais was an officer carrying out and managing the domestic affairs of the lord of the former county and district of Agenais. During the course of the twelfth century, the seneschalship, also became an office of military com ...
. The French army began to starve; horses died for lack of fodder; the dysentery epidemic worsened; cases of desertion, increasingly to the English, mounted.
French withdrawal
![JeanIIdFrance](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1d/JeanIIdFrance.jpg)
In 1345 Edward III had sent expeditionary forces to Gascony and Brittany and had assembled his main army for action in northern France or Flanders. It had sailed but never landed, after the fleet was scattered in a storm. Knowledge of Edward III's intent had kept French focus on the north until late in the campaigning season. In 1346 Edward III again gathered a large army, and the French once again became aware of this. The French assumed that Edward would sail for Gascony, where Lancaster was heavily outnumbered. To guard against any possibility of an English landing in northern France, Philip VI relied on his powerful navy.
This reliance was misplaced given the naval technology of the time and on 12 July an English army of 7,000–10,000 landed near
Saint-Vaast-la-Hougue
Saint-Vaast-la-Hougue is a commune in the Manche department in Normandy in north-western France.
Toponymy
Saint-Vaast is the Norman name of Saint Vedast and Hougue is a Norman language word meaning a "mound" or "loaf" and comes from the Old Norse ...
in north west
Normandy
Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...
. This force pillaged its way across the richest parts of France, capturing and
sacking every town in its path. The English fleet paralleled its march, devastating everything up to five miles inland and destroying most of the French navy in its ports. Philip VI recalled his main army, under Duke John, from Gascony. After a furious argument with his advisers, and according to some accounts his father's messenger, Duke John refused to move until his honour was satisfied. On 29 July Philip VI called an ''arrière-ban'' for northern France at
Rouen
Rouen (, ; or ) is a city on the River Seine in northern France. It is the prefecture of the Regions of France, region of Normandy (administrative region), Normandy and the Departments of France, department of Seine-Maritime. Formerly one of ...
. On 7 August the English reached the
Seine
)
, mouth_location = Le Havre/Honfleur
, mouth_coordinates =
, mouth_elevation =
, progression =
, river_system = Seine basin
, basin_size =
, tributaries_left = Yonne, Loing, Eure, Risle
, tributarie ...
. Philip VI sent orders to Duke John insisting that he abandon the siege of Aiguillon and march his army north. Edward III marched south east and on 12 August his army was from Paris.
On 14 August, Duke John attempted to arrange a local truce. Lancaster, well aware of the situation in the north and in the French camps around Aiguillon, refused. On 20 August, after over five months, the French abandoned the siege and marched away in considerable haste and disorder. The French camps were left under the guard of
local levies, who promptly deserted. The entire equipment of the French army was captured: supplies, materiel, siege engines and many horses. In at least the early stages of their retreat, discipline amongst the French was poor; there are accounts of men being jostled off the bridge over the Garonne and drowned. Stafford's garrison and other local Anglo-Gascon forces pursued closely. Part of Duke John's personal baggage was captured. French castles and minor fortifications along the Lot upstream from Aiguillon were mopped up, as were French positions between the Lot and the
Dordogne
Dordogne ( , or ; ; oc, Dordonha ) is a large rural department in Southwestern France, with its prefecture in Périgueux. Located in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region roughly half-way between the Loire Valley and the Pyrenees, it is named af ...
.
Aftermath
![Aiguillon - Tour de Tourasse -1](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c7/Aiguillon_-_Tour_de_Tourasse_-1.JPG)
Duke John and his army made contact with Philip VI on, or shortly after, 7 September, two weeks after the French army of the north, 20,000–25,000 strong, had been decisively beaten at the
Battle of Crécy
The Battle of Crécy took place on 26 August 1346 in northern France between a French army commanded by King PhilipVI and an English army led by King EdwardIII. The French attacked the English while they were traversing northern France du ...
with very heavy losses. After Crécy the French stripped their garrisons in the south west to build-up a new army to face the main English threat in the north east. The areas facing Lancaster were effectively defenceless.
He launched three separate offensives between September and November. Local Gascon forces besieged the few major strongholds in the
Bazadais
Bazas (; oc-gsc, Vasats) is a commune in the Gironde department in southwestern France.
Geography
Bazas stands on a narrow promontory above the Beuve valley 60 km/37 mi southeast of Bordeaux and 40 km/25 mi southwest of M ...
region still held by the French; they were all taken, including the town of Bazas. Further Gascon forces raided to the east, deep into Quercy, penetrating over ; the modern historian Jonathan Sumption describes this as "dislocating the royal administration in central and southern France for three months". Meanwhile, Lancaster himself took a small force, 1,000 men-at-arms and an unknown number of archers (possibly 1,000), to the north on a
grand ''chevauchée'', a great mounted raid, during which he captured the rich provincial capital of
Poitiers
Poitiers (, , , ; Poitevin: ''Poetàe'') is a city on the River Clain in west-central France. It is a commune and the capital of the Vienne department and the historical centre of Poitou. In 2017 it had a population of 88,291. Its agglomerat ...
, and many towns and castles throughout Saintonge and
Aunis
Aunis () is a historical province of France, situated in the north-west of the department of Charente-Maritime. Its historic capital is La Rochelle, which took over from Castrum Allionis (Châtelaillon) the historic capital which gives its name ...
. With these offensives, Lancaster moved the focus of the fighting from the heart of Gascony to 50 miles or more beyond its borders.
Notes, citations and sources
Notes
Citations
Sources
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{{refend
1346 in England
1346 in France
Aiguillon
14th-century military history of the Kingdom of England
Aiguillon
Aiguillon
Aiguillon
Aiguillon
History of Lot-et-Garonne