Battle of Caen (1346) 1346
Recorded location from Wikidata; battle sites are often approximate.
Key facts
| Year | 1346 | Wikidata P580 (start time) |
|---|---|---|
| Era | Medieval (500–1499) | derived from year |
| Location | France | Natural Earth (modern borders) |
| Continent | Europe | Natural Earth |
| War / conflict | Hundred Years' War | Wikidata P361 |
| Coordinates | 49.1822, -0.3706 | Wikidata P625 |
About the battle
The Battle of Caen was an assault conducted on 26 July 1346 by forces from the Kingdom of England, led by King Edward III, on the French-held town of Caen and Normandy as a part of the Hundred Years' War.
The assault was part of the Chevauchée of Edward III, which had started a month earlier when the English landed in Normandy. The French failed to intercept the English transports at sea and were taken by surprise, with their main army of more than 15,000 men in Gascony. The English were virtually unopposed and devastated much of Normandy before assaulting Caen. Part of the English army, which consisted of 12,000–15,000, commanded by the Earls of Warwick and Northampton, prematurely attacked Caen. It was garrisoned by 1,000–1,500 soldiers, who were supplemented by an unknown, large number of armed townsmen, and commanded by Raoul, the Count of Eu, the Grand Constable of France. The town was captured in the first assault. More than 5,000 of the ordinary soldiers and townspeople were killed, and a few nobles were taken prisoner. The town was sacked for five days.
Five days after storming the city the English marched to the River Seine. By 12 August they were 20 miles (32 kilometres) from Paris. After turning north they heavily defeated the French at the Battle of Crécy on 26 August.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Battle of Caen (1346) (revision 1377402667), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; shortened by selecting paragraphs and trimming at a sentence boundary; formatting and citations removed. No text added.
Nearby battles
- Siege of Caen (1450) 1450 · 0 km
- Siege of Caen (1417) 1417 · 0 km
- Battle for Caen 1944 · 1 km
- Battle of Verrières Ridge 1944 · 8 km
- Battle of Douvres Radar Station 1944 · 12 km
- Battle of Le Mesnil-Patry 1944 · 13 km
Other battles of the Hundred Years' War
- Battle of Saint-Omer 1340
- Battle of Sluys 1340
- Siege of Tournai (1340) 1340
- Battle of Auberoche 1345
- Battle of Bergerac 1345
- Battle of Blanchetaque 1346
- Battle of Crécy 1346
- Battle of Neville's Cross 1346
- Siege of Aiguillon 1346
- Siege of Calais (1346–1347) 1346
All 63 battles of the Hundred Years' War →
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