Battle of Cadsand
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Cadzand was a minor battle of the Hundred Years War fought in 1337. It consisted of a raid on the Flemish
island of Cadzand
, designed to provoke a reaction and battle from the local garrison and so improve morale in England
and amongst King Edward III's continental allies by providing his army with an easy victory.
For Edward, the war had not progressed as well as had been hoped at the start of the year as vacillation by allies in the Low Countries and Germany had prevented an invasion of France
from progressing as intended and setbacks in the Gascon theatre had prevented any advance there either. Edward's fleet was unprepared for the crossing with the main body of his army and his finances were in a parlous state owing to his having been forced to pay large stipends to European forces. Thus he required some symbol of his intentions against the French and a demonstration of what his forces could achieve. To this end he ordered Sir Walter Manny, leader of his vanguard which was already stationed in Hainaut
to take a small fleet and raid the island of Cadzand, now part of the mainland Netherlands
and then part of Flanders
, a semi-autonomous region of France.
.
The garrison of Sluys, led by Sir Guy, Bastard of Flanders, the bastard son of Louis, Count of Nevers
, could not let such acts occur so close to them without responding and so crossed the channel between Sluys and the island a few days later and attempted to confront Manny. The English commander was prepared for this and had his men formed up on the island in an ideal defensive position which allowed him to attack and destroy the Flemish force in a short, sharp action probably enabled by use of the longbow
although no accounts of the fighting survive. Only a handful of the Flemish force were able to retreat across the channel, Guy of Flanders being captured with the other noblemen whilst the rank and file were all put to the sword. English losses were minimal.
in 1340.
County of Flanders
The County of Flanders was one of the territories constituting the Low Countries. The county existed from 862 to 1795. It was one of the original secular fiefs of France and for centuries was one of the most affluent regions in Europe....
island of Cadzand
Cadzand
Cadzand is a town in the Dutch province of Zeeland. It is located in the municipality of Sluis, about 8 km northwest of Oostburg. The village contains 804 inhabitants . Better known to many visitors is the nearby beach at Cadzand-Bad....
, designed to provoke a reaction and battle from the local garrison and so improve morale in England
Kingdom of England
The Kingdom of England was, from 927 to 1707, a sovereign state to the northwest of continental Europe. At its height, the Kingdom of England spanned the southern two-thirds of the island of Great Britain and several smaller outlying islands; what today comprises the legal jurisdiction of England...
and amongst King Edward III's continental allies by providing his army with an easy victory.
For Edward, the war had not progressed as well as had been hoped at the start of the year as vacillation by allies in the Low Countries and Germany had prevented an invasion of France
Kingdom of France
The Kingdom of France was one of the most powerful states to exist in Europe during the second millennium.It originated from the Western portion of the Frankish empire, and consolidated significant power and influence over the next thousand years. Louis XIV, also known as the Sun King, developed a...
from progressing as intended and setbacks in the Gascon theatre had prevented any advance there either. Edward's fleet was unprepared for the crossing with the main body of his army and his finances were in a parlous state owing to his having been forced to pay large stipends to European forces. Thus he required some symbol of his intentions against the French and a demonstration of what his forces could achieve. To this end he ordered Sir Walter Manny, leader of his vanguard which was already stationed in Hainaut
County of Hainaut
The County of Hainaut was a historical region in the Low Countries with its capital at Mons . In English sources it is often given the archaic spelling Hainault....
to take a small fleet and raid the island of Cadzand, now part of the mainland Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
and then part of Flanders
County of Flanders
The County of Flanders was one of the territories constituting the Low Countries. The county existed from 862 to 1795. It was one of the original secular fiefs of France and for centuries was one of the most affluent regions in Europe....
, a semi-autonomous region of France.
Cadzand
Cadzand was a poor, marshy island populated by fishing villages with little in the way of plunder or importance except that it was close to the wealthy Flemish port of Sluys and thus could be used as bait for the garrison of that town. Manny understood this well, and after an initial probe against the town failed on the 9 November, he retired his 3,700 sailors and soldiers to Cadzand and unleashed them on the local population resulting in several days of feverish looting, raping and pillaging of the isolated villages in the manner of a miniature chevauchéeChevauchée
A chevauchée was a raiding method of medieval warfare for weakening the enemy, focusing mainly on wreaking havoc, burning and pillaging enemy territory, in order to reduce the productivity of a region; as opposed to siege warfare or wars of conquest...
.
The garrison of Sluys, led by Sir Guy, Bastard of Flanders, the bastard son of Louis, Count of Nevers
Louis I of Flanders
Louis I was Count of Flanders, Nevers and Rethel.-History:He was the son of Louis I, Count of Nevers, and Joan, Countess of Rethel, and grandson of Robert III of Flanders. He succeeded his father as count of Nevers and his grandfather as count of Flanders in 1322...
, could not let such acts occur so close to them without responding and so crossed the channel between Sluys and the island a few days later and attempted to confront Manny. The English commander was prepared for this and had his men formed up on the island in an ideal defensive position which allowed him to attack and destroy the Flemish force in a short, sharp action probably enabled by use of the longbow
Longbow
A longbow is a type of bow that is tall ; this will allow its user a fairly long draw, at least to the jaw....
although no accounts of the fighting survive. Only a handful of the Flemish force were able to retreat across the channel, Guy of Flanders being captured with the other noblemen whilst the rank and file were all put to the sword. English losses were minimal.
Aftermath
The battle had few longer-lasting effects, as Manny abandoned the island to its surviving inhabitants shortly after the victory. The allies were suitably impressed by the show of strength and the border regions of Flanders were intimidated. King Philip VI was also greatly affected by this development, assuming that traitors amongst the Flemings had caused the defeat and responding by a wave of terror and executions which continued for the remainder of his reign and served to alienate many of his allies and supporters. Ten years after the battle, when England and Flanders had become allies following an uprising in the latter, Edward III was forced to apologize and make symbolic reparations for ordering this action. Sluys was later the scene of a highly significant naval battleBattle of Sluys
The decisive naval Battle of Sluys , also called Battle of l'Ecluse was fought on 24 June 1340 as one of the opening conflicts of the Hundred Years' War...
in 1340.