Grandes companies

The grandes compagnies were mercenary companies recruited between the 12th and 14th centuries by private employers during wars. During peacetime, these mercenaries formed bands called grandes compagnies (big companies) and lived by plunder and ransom in the countryside.

Grandes compagnies first appeared in the 12th century, when they participated in the Anarchy (a conflict of succession between King Stephen and the Empress Matilda between 1137 and 1153). They were integrated into the army of King Henry II of England in 1159. In the 1180s, grandes compagnies were integrated into the armies of the King of France, under Philip Auguste.

These units were important elements of the armies of Henry II of England, his son Richard I of England, and King John. These troops of seasoned mercenaries were organized and mobile, a valuable advantage during battles of the time. King Philip Augustus of France also hired them to overcome Plantagenêts.

King John used them at the beginning of his reign, when he was richer and more powerful than the King of France. However, in 1204, he did not pay the mercenaries.

The grandes compagnies lead the free world to hell in the 14th century, under the reigns of John II and Charles V.

In 1356, men at arms, companies and brigands spread throughout the country between the Seine and the Loire, committing various excesses. They had especially infested the roads from Paris to Orleans, Chartres, Vendôme, and Montargis.

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