The Battle of Meung-sur-Loire took place on 15 June 1429. It was one of

Joan of Arc Joan of Arc (french: link=yes, Jeanne d'Arc, translit= �an daʁk} ; 1412 – 30 May 1431) is a patron saint of France, honored as a defender of the French nation for her role in the siege of Orléans and her insistence on the coronat ...

's battles following relief of the siege at Orléans. This campaign was the second sustained French offensive in a generation in the Hundred Years' War.

Background

Meung-sur-Loire Meung-sur-Loire () is a commune in the Loiret department, north-central France. It was the site of the Battle of Meung-sur-Loire in 1429. Geography Meung-sur-Loire lies 15 km to the west of Orléans on the north bank of the river Loire ...

(now in

Loiret Loiret (; ) is a department in the Centre-Val de Loire region of north-central France. It takes its name from the river Loiret, which is contained wholly within the department. In 2019, Loiret had a population of 680,434.< ...

) was a small town on the northern bank of the

Loire The Loire (, also ; ; oc, Léger, ; la, Liger) is the longest river in France and the 171st longest in the world. With a length of , it drains , more than a fifth of France's land, while its average discharge is only half that of the Rhône ...

river in central France, slightly west of Orléans. It controlled a bridge of strategic significance during the latter part of the war. Captured by the English a few years earlier as a staging point for a planned invasion of southern France, the French offensive recaptured the bridge and hampered English movement south of the river during the campaign. The French Loire Campaign of 1429 consisted of five actions: :1. The Siege of Orléans. :2. The Battle of Jargeau. :3. The Battle of Meung-sur-Loire. :4. The Battle of Beaugency. :5. The

Battle of Patay The Battle of Patay, fought on 18 June 1429 during the Hundred Years' War, was the culmination of the Loire Campaign between the French and English in north-central France. In this engagement, the horsemen of the French vanguard inflicted heavy ...

. Virtually all of France north of the Loire had fallen to foreign occupation by the end of 1428. The bridge at Orléans had been destroyed shortly before the siege lifted. The French had lost control of all other river crossings. Three swift and numerically small battles at Jargeau, Meung-sur-Loire, and Beaugency demonstrated renewed French confidence and laid the groundwork for subsequent French offenses on

Rheims Reims ( , , ; also spelled Rheims in English) is the most populous city in the French department of Marne, and the 12th most populous city in France. The city lies northeast of Paris on the Vesle river, a tributary of the Aisne. Founded by ...

and Paris. The Loire campaign killed, captured, or disgraced a majority of the top tier of English commanders and decimated the numbers of the highly skilled English longbowmen.

Tactics

English defenses at Meung-sur-Loire consisted of three components: the walled town, the fortification at the bridge, and a large walled castle just outside the town. The castle served as headquarters to the English command of

John Talbot, 1st Earl of Shrewsbury John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

and Thomas Scales. Joan of Arc and Duke John II of Alençon controlled a force that included captains Jean d'Orléans, Gilles de Rais,

Jean Poton de Xaintrailles Jean Poton de Xaintrailles (, 1390? – 7 October 1461), a minor noble of Gascon origin, was one of the chief lieutenants of Joan of Arc. He served as master of the royal stables, as royal bailiff in Berry and as seneschal of Limousin. In ...

, and

La Hire Étienne de Vignolles, Sieur de Montmorillon, Chatelain de Longueville (), also known as La Hire (; 1390 – 11 January 1443), was a French military commander during the Hundred Years' War. Nickname One explanation for his nickname of La ...

. Estimates of numerical strength vary with the ''Journal du Siège d'Orléans'' citing 6,000 – 7,000 for the French. A number that large probably counts non-combatants. Bypassing the city and the castle, they staged a frontal assault on the bridge fortifications, conquered it in one day, and installed a garrison. This hampered English movement south of the Loire.

Bibliography

* Devries, Kelly. ''Joan of Arc: A Military Leader'' (Gloucestershire: Sutton Publishing, 1999). * Richey, Stephen W. ''Joan of Arc: The Warrior Saint.'' (Westport, CT: Praeger, 2003). * Allmand, C. ''The Hundred Years War: England and France at War c. 1300 – 1450.'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1988).

References

External links

Joan of Arc And The Loire Valley Campaign
history page
A Popular History of France from the Earliest Times
by François Pierre Guillaume Guizot, vol. 3 {{Use dmy dates, date=June 2017 1429 in England 1420s in France Meung-sur-Loire 1429 History of Loiret

Meung-sur-Loire 1429

Background

Tactics

Bibliography

See also

References

External links