Siege of Calais (1346–1347) 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 | 50.9580, 1.8530 | Wikidata P625 |
About the battle
The siege of Calais (4 September 1346 – 3 August 1347) occurred at the conclusion of the Crécy campaign, when an English army under the command of King Edward III of England successfully besieged the French town of Calais during the Edwardian phase of the Hundred Years' War.
The English army of some 10,000 men had landed in northern Normandy on 12 July 1346. They embarked on a large-scale raid, or chevauchée, devastating large parts of northern France. On 26 August 1346, fighting on ground of their own choosing, the English inflicted a heavy defeat on a large French army led by their king Philip VI at the Battle of Crécy. A week later the English invested the well-fortified port of Calais, which had a strong garrison under the command of Jean de Vienne. Edward made several unsuccessful attempts to breach the walls or to take the town by assault, either from the land or seaward sides. During the winter and spring the French were able to run in supplies and reinforcements by sea, but in late April the English established a fortification which enabled them to command the entrance to the harbour and cut off the further flow of supplies.
On 25 June Jean de Vienne wrote to Philip stating that their food was exhausted. On 17 July Philip marched north with an army estimated at between 15,000 and 20,000 men.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Siege of Calais (1346–1347) (revision 1377405442), 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
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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 Caen (1346) 1346
- Battle of Crécy 1346
- Battle of Neville's Cross 1346
- Siege of Aiguillon 1346
All 63 battles of the Hundred Years' War →
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