Siege of Calais (1346–47)

Siege of Calais
Part of the Hundred Years' War
Date 4 September 1346 –3 August 1347 Location Calais, France 50°57′29″N 1°51′11″E / 50.9580°N 1.8530°E / 50.9580; 1.8530Coordinates: 50°57′29″N 1°51′11″E / 50.9580°N 1.8530°E / 50.9580; 1.8530 Result English victory
Belligerents
Kingdom of England	Kingdom of France
Commanders and leaders
Edward III	Jean de Vienne
Strength
52,500: 5,300 men-at-arms 6,600 infantry 20,000 longbowmen 5,000 mounted archers 600 hobelars 20 ribaldequin 15,000 sailors 736 ships	7 - 8,000 citizens

52,500:

The Siege of Calais was an important engagement early in the Edwardian phase of the Hundred Years' War.

Edward III of England had asserted his claim to the throne of France in 1337, triggering war between the two nations. Edward decisively defeated the French fleet at the Battle of Sluys in 1340. His army then undertook several devastating chevauchée raids throughout Normandy, plundering its vast wealth, including the ancestral seat of Caen. This campaign climaxed with the Battle of Crécy in 1346, in which the French army of Philip VI of France was defeated.

By this time, Edward's army required supplies and reinforcements, so they withdrew to the north. Edward needed a defensible port where his army could regroup and be resupplied from the sea. The Channel port of Calais suited this purpose ideally. Calais was highly defensible; it boasted a double moat, substantial city walls, and its citadel in the northwest corner had its own moat and additional fortifications. The port could be resupplied and defended easily by sea and land.

Edward's army laid siege on 4 September, 1346. Philip VI failed to deliver relief to the city, and the starving defenders surrendered after nearly a year of siege. The Kingdom of England would hold Calais until 1558. In that time, it was an important staging area for English attacks into France and the Low Countries. The fall of Calais in 1558 marked the capture of England's last possession in mainland France.

Edward's men approached Calais in September 1346. The city's substantial walls and moats could not be easily breached or crossed. Edward received aid from England and Flanders. King Philip of France failed to interfere with the English army and their supply lines. Edward likewise failed to interfere with aid to the people of Calais by sailors loyal to France. The English accomplished little for over two months.

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