Feb 2nd, 2009 |
By Garry |
Category: AD 1346 Crecy
Medieval wargamers and rules writers have continually over-emphasised the value of the full frontal assault by deep ranks of pike during the Hundred Years War. That tactic belongs to the period before Christ and after Henry VIII. Between those times, the long spear was used for infantry clashes, whilst the pike was used to finish-off opponents, without getting within reach of their dying sword swing.
Tags: AD 1346 Crecy, army lists, Edward III, Geoffrey d'Harcourt, mounted longbow, Philippe de Valois, rules, tactics and use, wargames, wargaming, Welsh pike
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Jan 26th, 2009 |
By Garry |
Category: AD 1346 Crecy
The feudal Frenchmen, having never encountered the longbow before, were staggered by the vast numbers of casualties caused by an enemy who was still so far away as to be out of crossbow range. They stood and watched clouds of arrows rising into the sky and then plunging into their ranks hitting them in the thighs and shoulders at steep angles. The peasantry and militia turned and ran leaving the wounded to the mercy of the pikemen, and the nobility to face the blades of their English counterparts.
Tags: AD 1346 Crecy, baggage train, Battle of Abbeville 1346, Battle of Blanquetaque Ford 1346, Battle of Oisemont 1346, deployment, Earl of Northampton, Earl of Warwick, Edward III, English longbowmen, feudal French, French knights, Geoffrey d'Harcourt, Godemars du Fay, Jean de Cange, Jean de Picquigny, Jean Froissart, Lavissier, men-at-arms, Michael of Northburg, mounted longbow, Philippe de Valois, Sire of Caumont, tactics, Welsh pike
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Jan 19th, 2009 |
By Garry |
Category: AD 1346 Crecy
The key statement in contemporary descriptions of the battle is that the French “advanced” on the English. This would imply that potentially they did not give the English army any time to deploy into line. Factoring this into your game plan could make for an interesting scenario – reversing the normal situation of French columns advancing into an arc of fire from a steady English line.
Tags: Abbeville, AD 1346 Crecy, Battle of Oisemont 1346, Earl of Northampton, Edward III, English yeomanry, John Chandos, Philippe de Valois, Sire de Boubers, Welsh pike
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Jan 12th, 2009 |
By Garry |
Category: AD 1346 Crecy
That the English were trounced at Abbeville and chased from the field, therefore indicates they used the longbow from horseback and lost all advantage from the weapon. It could also be that the town had artillery in use, that was not recorded in chronicles. The combined effects, of poor weapon deployment on horses being made skittery by artillery, could explain their losing this battle.
Tags: AD 1346 Crecy, Airaines, artillery, baggage, Battle of Abbeville, Caubert Hill, causeway roads, city walls, Colart de Ver, council of war, Earl of Warwick, Eward III, flank guards, garrison, Geoffrey d'Harcourt, loot, men-at-arms, mounted longbow, Philippe de Valois, Ponthieu, retainers, Somme, wargames, wargaming, William the Conqueror
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Jan 5th, 2009 |
By Garry |
Category: AD 1346 Crecy
Having marched through France, even to the gates of Paris, Edward IIIs army met their first real resistance and defeats on the River Somme. A greedy peasant, and traitors in the French camp, allowed him to evade a massive opposing army.
Tags: AD 1346 Crecy, Airaines coat of arms, baggage train, Battle of Abbeville, Battle of Blanquetaque Ford, Battle of Oisemont, captives, Edward III, feudal militiamen, Geoffrey d'Harcourt, marching orders, men-at-arms, mounted longbow, Philippe de Valois, River Somme
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Dec 29th, 2008 |
By Garry |
Category: AD 1346 Crecy
Before long, the raiding army gained a reputation for terror, pillage, rape, murder, and arson, which then preceded their route. It was this reputation that led to the immediate and uncontested surrender of Barfleur and then Cherbourg. Only the pleading of d’Harcourt prevented the complete destruction of Caen.
Tags: AD 1346 Crecy, Battle of Caen 1346, Battle of St Just August 1346, Compte d'Eu, Earl of Northampton, Earl of Warwick, Edward III, Edward Prince of Wales, Geoffrey d'Harcourt, Jean de Normandie, Philippe de Valois, Siege of Aguillon
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Dec 22nd, 2008 |
By Garry |
Category: AD 1346 Crecy
The primary build up to the battle of Crecy began over 100 years before the battle, in the early 13th century, when Philippe Auguste threw King John of England out of Normandy. Some would say that it dates back to the times of William the Conqueror and subsequent disputes over the crowns of France and England. The French siege of Aguillon, an English town in France, was the trigger for this campaign.
Tags: 1346, Aguillon, archers, Battle of Blanquetaque Ford, Battle of Crecy, Battle of Sluys, battlefield, Charles IV of France, Edward III, England, France, French Salic Law, Genoese Mercenaries, Guienne, Hundred Years War, HYW, Jean Duke of Normandy, knights, longbow, maps, men-at-arms, Miniature Wargames Magazine, Normandy, Philippe Auguste, Philippe de Valois, Ponthieu, Somme, William the Conqueror
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