Siege of La Roche-aux-Moines 1214
Recorded location from Wikidata; battle sites are often approximate.
Key facts
| Year | 1214 | Wikidata P585 (point in time) |
|---|---|---|
| Era | Medieval (500–1499) | derived from year |
| Location | France | Natural Earth (modern borders) |
| Continent | Europe | Natural Earth |
| War / conflict | Anglo-French War of 1213–14 | Wikidata P361 |
| Participants | Kingdom of England, Kingdom of France | Wikidata P710 |
| Coordinates | 47.3839, -0.6564 | Wikidata P625 |
About the battle
The siege of La Roche-aux-Moines was an engagement of the Anglo-French War (1213-1214). King John of England besieged the castle but had to retreat in the face of King Philip Augustus' son, Prince Louis.
King John did not want to engage the French army in battle and had opted for a diversionary approach. His goal was to draw the French king and the bulk of his forces south to facilitate the main Imperial-led allied invasion of France from the northeast. The endeavour was initially successful, as King Philip marched to check the English incursion but suddenly decided to return north with the bulk of his troops, which left his son with the task of halting the English king's advance.
Destroying their siege implements, the English hastily withdrew when Prince Louis marched to relieve Roche-au-Moine although they enjoyed a significant numerical superiority. That was not without reason, however, as King John distrusted his Poitevin allies and was afraid of not being supported in case of confrontation. His rearguard suffered severely at the hands of Louis' army during the retreat. The prince pursued him as far as Thouars before turning back to Anjou. King John's efforts were ultimately fruitless, as Philip inflicted a crushing defeat on his allies at the Battle of Bouvines.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Siege of La Roche-aux-Moines (revision 1370742720), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; formatting and citations removed. No text added.
Nearby battles
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- Siege of Angers 1793 · 12 km
- Battle of Chemillé (April 11, 1793) 1793 · 20 km
- Battle of Vihiers 1793 · 28 km
- Battle of Coron (1793) 1793 · 28 km
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Other battles of the Anglo-French War of 1213–14
- Battle of Damme 1213
- Battle of Bouvines 1214
All 3 battles of the Anglo-French War of 1213–14 →
Browse more: battles in France · Europe · Medieval battles