Battle of Crécy Memorial

Crécy-en-Ponthieu, France

Memorial of the battle of Crécy (26 August 1346) was built in the place of a windmill where the king of England waited for the attack of the king of France. The battle of Crécy was one of the most important battles of the Hundred Years' War because of the combination of new weapons and tactics used. The English knights knew the importance of being willing to fight dismounted elbow to elbow with the pikeman and archers, a procedure which was learned from the earlier Saxons and also by their battles with the Scots from whom they learned tactical flexibility and the adaptation to difficult terrain. All of these factors made Edward III's army powerful, even when outnumbered by the French forces.

The size of the forces are not known exactly. Some historians have agreed on estimates of around 10,000–15,000 on the English side and 20,000–25,000 on the French side. The battle ended to the decisive English victory. At least 2,000 French knights and unknown number of common soldiers died. The English army lost only 100-300 men. Due the victory Calais became an exclave of England. It shook France to the core and established an English presence in France that was to last for over one hundred years.

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