Battle of Champtoceaux
Encyclopedia
The battle of Champtoceaux, often called the battle of l'Humeau, was the opening action of the 23-year-long Breton War of Succession
, a dynastic conflict in Brittany
which became inevitably embroiled in the Hundred Years War between England and France. The battle should have decided the war at a stroke, as the leader of one faction John de Montfort was made prisoner but English support and the escape of his wife Joanna of Flanders
and son young John
allowed continued resistance to flourish and eventually turn the tide.
on the 30 April 1341. His inheritance was claimed by both his half brother John de Montfort and his niece Joanna of Dreux whose husband Charles of Blois was the nephew of King Philip VI of France. The French king was bound to support his nephews claim by the politic of family dynastics in medieval Europe. He was not prepared to endure an expanded war on the distant and foreign Breton peninsula where travel was fraught with difficulties and the language alien unless he had to, and encouraged John and Charles to come to terms on the issue. At this stage, Edward III stepped into the conflict offering troops and financial support to John de Montfort in exchange for homage from John for the ownership of Brittany and thus confirming Edward's claim to be the rightful ruler of France. Ironically, in supporting John whose claim to the ducal throne rested on salic law
, Edward was jeopardising his own claim to the throne of France which deliberately ignored the same laws. The idea of English troops rampaging through Brittany and from there into Normandy
and other parts of Northern France terrified Philip and he resolved to win the war before Edward's troops could arrive. John too was not idle, fleeing Paris days before his arrest for treason with Edward and arriving in Nantes
to raise an army from his supporters.
in the Loire Valley
. Overall command of the force was given to John, Duke of Normandy
advised by the veteran Duke of Burgundy
, although Blois wielded the real authority within the army. By the time he was ready to move at the start of October, Montfort had captured and garrisoned most of the castles and towns in Eastern Brittany including Rennes
, Dinan
and numerous others including the strong castle which guarded the Loire Valley at Champtoceaux. This stronghold was the first objective on the march of The French army, which was aimed at Nantes, the regional capital and centre of power. Charles of Blois arrived off the castle on the 10 October and laid a siege whilst he waited for the remainder of the force, which contained almost all the significant French generals of the day (spared from the English war by a truce until summer 1342). This army was moving more slowly but its presence was already causing a number of John's supporter’s alarm, and mindful of the speed with which supporters disappeared in medieval dynastic struggles, John was forced to act, scraping together a band of followers and riding to the relief of Champtoceaux.
and imprisoned.
in the hands of Joanna of Flanders and a few English adventurers led by Walter Manny. It was at Brest in the battle there
in July 1342 that the promised English reinforcements finally arrived and the tide of war turned yet again and not for the last time. John de Montfort eventually escaped French custody in January 1345, dying a few months later. His infant son, raised in England, was still free and continued the war once he reached adulthood and would eventually defeat Charles at the battle of Auray
in 1364, ending the war.
Breton War of Succession
The Breton War of Succession was a conflict between the Houses of Blois and Montfort for control of the Duchy of Brittany. It was fought between 1341 and 1364. It formed an integral part of the early Hundred Years War due to the involvement of the French and English governments in the conflict; the...
, a dynastic conflict in Brittany
Brittany
Brittany is a cultural and administrative region in the north-west of France. Previously a kingdom and then a duchy, Brittany was united to the Kingdom of France in 1532 as a province. Brittany has also been referred to as Less, Lesser or Little Britain...
which became inevitably embroiled in the Hundred Years War between England and France. The battle should have decided the war at a stroke, as the leader of one faction John de Montfort was made prisoner but English support and the escape of his wife Joanna of Flanders
Joanna of Flanders
Joanna of Flanders , also known as, Countess Jeanne, Jehanne de Montfort, and Jeanne la Flamme, was consort Duchess of Brittany by her marriage to John IV, Duke of Brittany...
and son young John
John V, Duke of Brittany
John V the Conqueror KG was Duke of Brittany and Count of Montfort, from 1345 until his death.-Numbering:...
allowed continued resistance to flourish and eventually turn the tide.
Dynastic Conflict
The dynastic conflict over the Duchy of Brittany was highly political and revolved around conflicting claims following the death of John III, Duke of BrittanyJohn III, Duke of Brittany
John III the Good was duke of Brittany, from 1312 to his death. He was son of Duke Arthur II and Mary of Limoges, his first wife...
on the 30 April 1341. His inheritance was claimed by both his half brother John de Montfort and his niece Joanna of Dreux whose husband Charles of Blois was the nephew of King Philip VI of France. The French king was bound to support his nephews claim by the politic of family dynastics in medieval Europe. He was not prepared to endure an expanded war on the distant and foreign Breton peninsula where travel was fraught with difficulties and the language alien unless he had to, and encouraged John and Charles to come to terms on the issue. At this stage, Edward III stepped into the conflict offering troops and financial support to John de Montfort in exchange for homage from John for the ownership of Brittany and thus confirming Edward's claim to be the rightful ruler of France. Ironically, in supporting John whose claim to the ducal throne rested on salic law
Salic law
Salic law was a body of traditional law codified for governing the Salian Franks in the early Middle Ages during the reign of King Clovis I in the 6th century...
, Edward was jeopardising his own claim to the throne of France which deliberately ignored the same laws. The idea of English troops rampaging through Brittany and from there into Normandy
Normandy
Normandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is in France.The continental territory covers 30,627 km² and forms the preponderant part of Normandy and roughly 5% of the territory of France. It is divided for administrative purposes into two régions:...
and other parts of Northern France terrified Philip and he resolved to win the war before Edward's troops could arrive. John too was not idle, fleeing Paris days before his arrest for treason with Edward and arriving in Nantes
Nantes
Nantes is a city in western France, located on the Loire River, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the 6th largest in France, while its metropolitan area ranks 8th with over 800,000 inhabitants....
to raise an army from his supporters.
Charles' advance
By the end of September 1341, Charles of Blois had 5,000 French soldiers, 2,000 Genoese mercenaries and an unknown but large number of Breton soldiers in his army which was camped at AngersAngers
Angers is the main city in the Maine-et-Loire department in western France about south-west of Paris. Angers is located in the French region known by its pre-revolutionary, provincial name, Anjou, and its inhabitants are called Angevins....
in the Loire Valley
Loire Valley
The Loire Valley , spanning , is located in the middle stretch of the Loire River in central France. Its area comprises approximately . It is referred to as the Cradle of the French Language, and the Garden of France due to the abundance of vineyards, fruit orchards, and artichoke, asparagus, and...
. Overall command of the force was given to John, Duke of Normandy
John II of France
John II , called John the Good , was the King of France from 1350 until his death. He was the second sovereign of the House of Valois and is perhaps best remembered as the king who was vanquished at the Battle of Poitiers and taken as a captive to England.The son of Philip VI and Joan the Lame,...
advised by the veteran Duke of Burgundy
Duke of Burgundy
Duke of Burgundy was a title borne by the rulers of the Duchy of Burgundy, a small portion of traditional lands of Burgundians west of river Saône which in 843 was allotted to Charles the Bald's kingdom of West Franks...
, although Blois wielded the real authority within the army. By the time he was ready to move at the start of October, Montfort had captured and garrisoned most of the castles and towns in Eastern Brittany including Rennes
Rennes
Rennes is a city in the east of Brittany in northwestern France. Rennes is the capital of the region of Brittany, as well as the Ille-et-Vilaine department.-History:...
, Dinan
Dinan
Dinan is a walled Breton town and a commune in the Côtes-d'Armor department in northwestern France.-Geography:Its geographical setting is exceptional. Instead of nestling on the valley floor like Morlaix, most urban development has been on the hillside, overlooking the river Rance...
and numerous others including the strong castle which guarded the Loire Valley at Champtoceaux. This stronghold was the first objective on the march of The French army, which was aimed at Nantes, the regional capital and centre of power. Charles of Blois arrived off the castle on the 10 October and laid a siege whilst he waited for the remainder of the force, which contained almost all the significant French generals of the day (spared from the English war by a truce until summer 1342). This army was moving more slowly but its presence was already causing a number of John's supporter’s alarm, and mindful of the speed with which supporters disappeared in medieval dynastic struggles, John was forced to act, scraping together a band of followers and riding to the relief of Champtoceaux.
Battle of Champtoceaux
The effort was a disaster for John. His forces were strung out in a dozen garrisons and thus he cold only scrape a handful of men from Nantes to join his "army". This force was not big enough to challenge Charles' vanguard and was dwarfed by the large French army behind him and English reinforcements could not be expected in Brittany before the New Year. John halted at a small farmstead named l'Humeau, three miles from Champtoceaux, expecting it to be garrisoned by a small body of his supporters who could inform him of Charles' positions. To their mutual shock, he found Charles instead and almost overwhelmed his rival's bodyguard, Charles barricading himself in the farmhouse's tower and defeating all efforts by John's men to break in. For two days the two rivals engaged each other in the surreal circumstances; repeated efforts to gain access by John were driven off by Charles' defensive position whilst the French army crawled ever closer. Supporters of John came to aid him and a series of bloody and confused skirmishes occurred around the head of the French column although they failed to blunt its steady progress towards Nantes.Siege of Nantes
Eventually John conceded defeat and rode as fast as he could for Nantes, pursued by French cavalry which had finally caught up with the action at l'Humeau. Arriving in the city with many of his supporters and mercenaries lost around Champtoceaux (which fell on the 26 October when John's flight became known), he received a hostile reception from the townsmen who only agreed to support him further if he promised them that he would surrender should no relief arrive for the city within a month. What followed was a series of sallies by the Montfortists and assaults on outlying forts by the French. Captured defenders were executed within sight of the city walls and discontent grew within the city to such a degree that John was having difficulty finding men to accompany his attacks on the French lines. Finally at the end of October a sally ended in disaster when John's mercenaries deserted at the height of battle and left the contingent of townsmen to be annihilated by a superior French force and their heads thrown into the town with a catapult. John was forced to surrender on the 2 November by the irate city council and he was taken to the LouvreLouvre
The Musée du Louvre – in English, the Louvre Museum or simply the Louvre – is one of the world's largest museums, the most visited art museum in the world and a historic monument. A central landmark of Paris, it is located on the Right Bank of the Seine in the 1st arrondissement...
and imprisoned.
Aftermath
In quick succession, John's allies and holdings in Brittany disappeared either through desertion or direct assault by the French army . During the winter, Charles captured all of Eastern and then in the spring most of Western Brittany, leaving only the tiny port of BrestBrest, France
Brest is a city in the Finistère department in Brittany in northwestern France. Located in a sheltered position not far from the western tip of the Breton peninsula, and the western extremity of metropolitan France, Brest is an important harbour and the second French military port after Toulon...
in the hands of Joanna of Flanders and a few English adventurers led by Walter Manny. It was at Brest in the battle there
Battle of Brest (1342)
The battle of Brest, sometimes called the battle of the River Penfeld was an action in 1342 between an English squadron of converted merchant ships and that of a mercenary galley force from Genoa fighting for the Franco-Breton faction of Charles of Blois during the Breton War of Succession, a side...
in July 1342 that the promised English reinforcements finally arrived and the tide of war turned yet again and not for the last time. John de Montfort eventually escaped French custody in January 1345, dying a few months later. His infant son, raised in England, was still free and continued the war once he reached adulthood and would eventually defeat Charles at the battle of Auray
Battle of Auray
The Battle of Auray took place on 29 September 1364 at the French town of Auray. This battle was the decisive confrontation of the Breton War of Succession, a part of the Hundred Years' War....
in 1364, ending the war.