The Battle of Mons-en-Pévèle (or Pevelenberg) was fought on 18 August 1304 between the French and the

Flemish Flemish may refer to: * Flemish, adjective for Flanders, Belgium * Flemish region, one of the three regions of Belgium *Flemish Community, one of the three constitutionally defined language communities of Belgium * Flemish dialects, a Dutch dialec ...

. The French were led by their king, Philip IV.

Prelude

The French king wanted revenge for the defeat in

Battle of the Golden Spurs The Battle of the Golden Spurs (; ) or 1302 Battle of Courtrai was a military confrontation between the royal army of Kingdom of France, France and rebellious forces of the County of Flanders on 11 July 1302 during the 1297–1305 Franco-Flem ...

in 1302 after which the Flemish retook

Douai Douai ( , , ; ; ; formerly spelled Douay or Doway in English) is a city in the Nord (French department), Nord département in northern France. It is a Subprefectures in France, sub-prefecture of the department. Located on the river Scarpe (rive ...

and

Lille Lille (, ; ; ; ; ) is a city in the northern part of France, within French Flanders. Positioned along the Deûle river, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Prefectures in F ...

. By early 1304, the French king was ready to attack the Flemish rebels. The French army, led by the king himself and by

Foulques du Merle Foulques or Foucaud du Merle (died 1314) was a Marshal of France. He was French nobility, Seigneur of Gacé and Bellou-en-Houlme, and Baron of Le Merlerault, Briouze and Messei. Du Merle was the son of Guillaume VI du Merle and Marie de Nollent. ...

, marched north to attack William of Julich's force, and the French navy sailed to

Zeeland Zeeland (; ), historically known in English by the Endonym and exonym, exonym Zealand, is the westernmost and least populous province of the Netherlands. The province, located in the southwest of the country, borders North Brabant to the east ...

to unite with the army of Hainault and Holland. It was the combined northern force in Zeeland that struck the first blow on 10–11 August, when it soundly defeated Guy of Namur's army and navy at the

Battle of Zierikzee The battle of Zierikzee was a naval battle between a Flemish fleet and an allied Franco-Hollandic fleet which took place on 10 and 11 August 1304. The battle, fought near the town of Zierikzee, ended in a Franco-Dutch victory. The battle is part ...

. Guy was captured, and the Flemish conquest of Holland was halted. Philip of Chieti, son of

Guy, Count of Flanders Guy of Dampierre (; ) ( – 7 March 1305, Compiègne) was the Count of Flanders (1251–1305) and List of rulers of Namur, Marquis of Namur (1264–1305). He was a prisoner of the French when his Flemings defeated the latter at the Battle of ...

, had gathered a strong Flemish army to stop the French invasion and taken up positions on

Mons-en-Pévèle Mons-en-Pévèle () is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. Population Heraldry See also *Communes of the Nord department The following is a list of the 647 communes of the Nord department of the French Republic. T ...

Battle

After a day of fighting, the outcome was undecided and negotiations were opened between 17:00 and 18:30. When a French force, under Guy de Saint-Pol, tried to surround the Flemish, it was pushed back. The furious Flemish then decided to launch a frontal attack and surprised the French, who thought that the battle was over for the day. The Flemish had reached the royal tent and attacked Philip IV. He escaped only because some knights around him covered his flight and paid with their lives for the act. Assisted with mounting his horse, Philip counterattacked but had his horse killed under him. By then,

William of Jülich William of Jülich, called the Younger (Dutch: ''Willem van Gulik de Jongere''; died August 18, 1304), was one of the Flemish noblemen that opposed the annexation policies of the French king Philip IV, together with Pieter de Coninck. He was a ...

had been killed in a counterattack that Philip had managed to launch. As only the Flemish right wing had attacked, and the left wing under

John I, Marquis of Namur John I (1267 – 31 January 1330) was the count of Namur from 1305 to 1330. He was a member of the House of Dampierre, the son of Guy of Dampierre, Count of Flanders and Marquis of Namur, and his second wife Isabelle of Luxembourg. John was th ...

was already leaving the battlefield, the Flemish right wing also withdrew. The French chose not to pursue the Flemish. During the Flemish attack on Philip, the

oriflamme The Oriflamme (from Latin ''aurea flamma'', "golden flame"), a pointed, blood-red banner flown from a gilded lance, was the sacred battle standard of the King of France and a symbol of divine intervention on the battlefield from God and Saint ...

, a hugely symbolic and significant flag, was lost.

Aftermath

Both sides claimed victory but the French had remained in possession of the battlefield, while the Flemish marched back to Lille. The French also captured

and

Orchies Orchies (; ) is a commune in the department of Nord in the Hauts-de-France region of French Flanders, northern France. Its inhabitants are called Orchésiens. Orchies is the biggest town of the Pévèle. It is especially known for its ''Mus� ...

and burned down

Seclin Seclin () is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. It is part of the Métropole Européenne de Lille. Population Notable residents * Adrien Fourmaux, rally driver *André Ayew, Ghana national football team footballer *Séba ...

. After further minor engagements, the

Treaty of Athis-sur-Orge The Treaty of Athis-sur-Orge was a peace treaty signed on 23 June 1305 between King Philip IV of France and Robert III of Flanders. The treaty was signed at Athis-sur-Orge after the Battle of Mons-en-Pévèle and concluded the Franco-Flemish W ...

was eventually signed on 23 June 1305 which recognized Flemish independence within the kingdom at the cost of the cities of

and

Béthune Béthune ( ; archaic and ''Bethwyn'' historically in English) is a town in northern France, Subprefectures in France, sub-prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais Departments of France, department. Geography Béthune is located in the Provinces of Fran ...

, which were annexed by to the

French royal domain The crown lands, crown estate, royal domain or (in French) ''domaine royal'' (from demesne) of France were the lands, fiefs and rights directly possessed by the kings of France. While the term eventually came to refer to a territorial unit, the ...

, as well as the payment of exorbitant fines to King Philip IV.

Notes

References

* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mons-en-Pévèle 1304 Battles of the Franco-Flemish War 1304 in Europe 1300s in France Conflicts in 1304 14th century in the county of Flanders Military history of Nord (French department)