Dunkirk 1383 AD

[Erpingham]

Name of the Battle and Date : Dunkirk, 25th May 1383

Protagonists English crusaders led by Bishop Henry Dispenser and Sir Hugh Calverley v. Franco-Flemish led by Louis de Hase, Bastard of Flanders.

Numbers if known  or a reasonable estimate English approx 5,000 v. Franco-Flemish 12,000-20,000

Source 1 :James G. Clark (ed), David Preest (trans): The Chronica Maiora of Thomas Walsingham, 1376-1422, Boydell Press, 781843831440, ISBN Pp200-203
During the few days they spent at the town of Gravelines the bishop of Norwich and Sir Hugh Calveley fortified the town and established a garrison there. The bishop then took his own soldiers with him and set off for Dunkirk, a fine town surrounded by wide ditches and strengthened by bolted gates. He had, in fact, heard that the towns¬men of Dunkirk had one night recently killed as many as thirty-seven of our sailors. Stung by their action, he determined to take his revenge on them for the deaths of his countrymen. He took the town without much trouble, and in the town he rendered appropriate punishment upon those he wished, but spared others. He then led his whole army into Dunkirk.
In the mean time the Flemings and the French, the Bretons and other mercenaries, had mustered a huge army under the leadership of the Bastard of Flanders - called in their own language 'Hasa' - and that of the lord of Dixemude, and a certain John Mytteneye who had a short time before been in England and had promised loyal aid to the bishop when he came; but he violated the pledge, having told a pack of lies.
After collecting an army of more than thirty thousand crossbow¬men and fighting men, albeit secretly, they decided to make a surprise assault upon the bishop and utterly destroy him and the whole of his army. However, the Lord, strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle, opposed these endeavours, taking command in the war, and revealed to the bishop their stratagem on this occasion. In fact servants had left on the swiftest horses of their masters to forage, and it was they who unexpectedly caught sight of a very large, strong army, its arms gleaming, and filling almost the whole of the horizon. Concluding, rightly, that these were enemy forces, they spurred on their horses, and made great haste back. They informed the bishop, who was dining in the town of Dunkirk, of everything they had seen. Without any delay the bishop left his meal and, taking up arms, went out of the town, intending to fight there and then, even though some advised him to wait for the large force of allies to come from England. Sir Hugh Calveley, seeing the bishop's resolute spirit, and realizing that the enemy were all but on them, urged his comrades to act manfully even in these circumstances, and not to lose faith in the help of God, who had given them a more prosperous beginning than they could scarcely have hoped for, before finally showering upon them the whole fullness of his grace: `Which of you', he asked, `could have believed that so strong a town, defended by so strong a force, where there was no lack of military equipment, and no lack of soldiers, could have been subdued by so few, unless God had helped us, unless the hand of God had done all these things? Just consider', he said, `you will not now be fighting against stone walls, or against rampart and ditch at Gravelines, but will be attempting an easier conflict against feeble forces of Flemings, schismatics, and enemies of the Cross; and because they have had no experience of fighting Englishmen before this, they will be more easily defeated.'
After addressing his troops he drew up the battleline, positioned archers at particular points, and instructed the inexperienced in the manner of fighting the battle. The enemy, seeing our men now advancing to meet them, counteracted with a warcry. But to prevent them getting too close, the archers drove them back until our soldiers were ready to clash with them. So, when the soldiers engaged in close combat, a difficult conflict could be seen, the enemy fighting with swords, lances, and with hammers bound with chains, and the English, with their sharp steel axes, striking those down who stood against them, like animals. There, rectors and vicars, whom the benefit of release from office had enticed, now exposed to danger, appreciated how sweet their own homes were; monks and canons learned how good obedience was, and Mendicant Friars realized how much easier it was to beg for alms in their own country amongst those they knew. For, to tell the truth, on our side there was only a small force of men numbering five thousand, more or less, being opposed by thirty thousand soldiers. So, men who were inexperienced in warfare, leisurely educated, nurtured in peace and quiet, could have lost heart, had not the Spirit of the Lord, the Spirit of wisdom and fortitude been with them, and filled them with boldness. However, it happened at that time that, with divine assistance, men whose lives had lain fallow, to use a well-used expression, showed by their strength and their valiant deeds that their long rest had been of great advantage to them. Indeed, it was discovered that some of the religious had killed sixteen men in that very battle, and it was agreed that the longer such men had spent in the quiet of the cloister, the more did they surpass others in bravery. As the poet once wrote,
Allow her to rest, for a field that is rested well repays its trust.
So it was that those men, suddenly taken from rest to toil, produced fruit nobly from their peace and leisure.
Among all the combatants, our archers surpassed all others and deserved praise and glory on that occasion, for they so struck the enemy with their flying arrows that no more of them remained who were protected by their armour than would have done if the very arrows had struck them when unprotected by armour. Indeed, such was the hail of arrows in the air that the sky was darkened, as if by a black cloud and so dense was the flight of arrows shot at the enemy, that they did not dare raise their faces. For anyone who tried to look into the air soon suffered an arrow through the eye, or one through the head. Many protected their heads with their shields, but the arrows coming at them soon pierced both their shields and their heads. Despite breastplates, bodies were pierced and men were wounded in their breasts, for the mail could not withstand the arrows; men were shot through the head, their helmets being of no avail, and hands holding lances or stakes were fastened to these very weapons by arrows, gloves being no protection. To be brief, the difference in the men fighting there was so great that on the one side you could see men ready to kill, on the other side they were like cattle ready to be slaughtered
Therefore, when the French and the Bretons who were there, numbering as many as one thousand nine hundred, saw such a slaughter of the Flemings, they were horror-stricken. They had put the Flemings in the front line of the battle for two reasons: one was that they did not trust their loyalty, and so they exposed them to the first dangers to prevent them fleeing from the battle when a difficult situation faced them; the other reason was that if it turned out that the English were victorious, they themselves would have the greater chance to flee. The French, then, contemplating such a calamity, as we have said, were all petrified with fear, and speedily turned tail. Straightway all the rest of their large army fled behind them. When the English saw this, they made haste immediately to pursue the enemy, and cut down those they caught in flight in front of them, as well as those fleeing on their left and their right, and the slain fell in huge numbers. So that none should be in doubt that this victory was gained by divine help, there was a dreadful thunderstorm at the time of this battle, with frightening peals of thunder, which came to the service of the English, but occurred to the ruin of the enemy. For both during the battle and during their flight the enemy were blinded by the frequent flashes of lightning, and they were cut down and butchered. But the English, feeling that this was a blessing from God, were encouraged and buoyed up, so that they could with good reason consider this verse of Claudian applicable to any one of their number:
On your behalf, the North Wind from the frozen hills has overwhelmed the enemy's battle-lines, and turned the whirling missiles against those who threw them, and with his whirlwind has repelled their spears, O most beloved of God, when Aeolus lets his hostile storms pour out from his cave, when the elements assist you in battle, and the allied winds come at the call of our trumpets.
Twelve thousand of the enemy were killed on the battlefield and in flight, but only seven of our men fell. This was so that it might be made manifest for all time that this victory had been granted us by Heaven.
This battle took place on 25 May, the day on which the Holy Church commemorates St Urban, pope and martyr. So all things combined to prevent anyone doubting that the bishop's expedition was pleasing to God. After the battle he returned with his men to the town of Dunkirk.
Source 2 Thomas Johnes (trans): Sir John Froissart Chronicles of England, France and Spain and the Surrounding Countries,  London: William Smith, 1848. Book II, ch. 134.
The English were now advanced near to Dunkirk, when, on looking towards the rising grounds on the right, in the direction of Bourbourg, and near the sea-shore, they saw the Flemings formed in a large and well-arranged battalion. On this they halted, for they thought, from the manner in which the Flemings had drawn themselves up, that they had an intention of fighting.
The principal captains assembled to consider how they should now act, and many words passed, for some, and especially the bishop, wished to march instantly to the combat; but other, such as the lord de Beaumont and Sir Hugh Calverley, were of a contrary opinion, and assigned as their reason, that the Flemings had never done them any wrong; and that, in truth, they had never sent any declaration of war to the earl of Flanders, though they had entered his country.
"We do not make war in a gallant manner, but like a mob, that whoever can, may pillage. The whole country where we are is Urbanist, and follows the same opinion as ourselves: now, consider what just cause have we for attacking them."
The bishop answered, "How do we know whether they are Urbanist or not?"
"In God's name," said Sir Hugh Calverley, "let us send a herald to them to know why they are thus drawn up in battle-array, and what they want; and let them be asked which pope they obey. If they answer pope Urban, you will require of them, by virtue of the bull we have with us, that they accompany us to St. Omer, Aire, Arras, or whithersoever we may wish to lead them. When they shall have had these questions put to them, we shall know their intentions, and may then call a council."
This proposal was adopted, and a herald called, whose name was Montfort, and attached to the duke of Brittany. He was ordered by these lords to ride to the Flemings, and told what he was to say, and how to act when among them. He obeyed their commands, and, clothed in his proper coat of arms, without suspecting any accident, made for the Flemings, who were drawn up in handsome order of battle. He wished to address himself to some knights; but he could not, for as soon as the Flemings saw him, without ever asking what was his business, or making any inquiries, they surrounded him and slew him like ignorant people, nor could those gentlemen who were there save him.
The English, on seeing this action, for they kept their eyes on them, were mad: as were also the citizens of Ghent who accompanied them, and were eager to urge them on, hoping that by these means new troubles would fall on Flanders.
The English said, -- "This mob has murdered our herald; they shall dearly pay for it, or we will all die on the spot." The archers were ordered to advance on the Flemings. A citizen of Bruges or Ghent was made a knight, and shortly the battle began briskly; for, to say the truth, the Flemings defended themselves very well, but the archers wounded or beat down many, when the men at arms broke through them, and with their pointed spears killed multitudes on their first charge.
In short, the English won the day, and the Flemings were defeated. They thought to keep together in a body and enter Dunkirk; but the English followed them closely and kept up the engagement so warmly that they entered the town with them. Numbers were slain in the streets or on the shore, though they gained some advantage, for the English lost four hundred at least. As the English pursued, the Flemings retired: many detached parties fought, in which several knights and squires from Flanders were slain; scarcely any escaped death or captivity.
Thus did this affair end: there were full nine thousand Flemings killed at this battle of Dunkirk.
Source 3 : : L.C. Hector and Barbara F. Harvey (ed & trans):The Westminster Chronicle: 1381-1394,Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1982.
The bishop of Norwich landed at Calais with his commanders on Trinity Sunday [17 May]; after waiting there throughout the Monday and until noon on Tuesday to rest themselves they rode on to Gravelines.  On the Wednesday they made their dispositions and at the end of a spirited assault had gained possession of the town, going on to bring under their control the towns of Dunkirk, Nieuport, Bourbourg, Poperinghe and Lombartzyde with their satellite forces.  On the afternoon of 25 May, while the bishop and his troops, stripped of their arms, were resting in the town of Dunkirk, a numerous body of Flemings and Frenchmen, efficiently drawn up in armed squadrons and their ranks everywhere crammed with banners and lances, appeared at a distance of barely a mile from the town; their total reached at least 28,000 men.  In the English army bugles and trumpets blared and amid hubbub and shouting there was a rush to arms; and company after company sallied out of the town and swept into battle.  As the opposing lines met with a clash of lances, helmets were shivered and lancings burst; the whole field echoed with the screams of the fallen and cavalry pressed the pursuit of the fleeing enemies.  The victims of the slaughter, scattered in ditch, cornfield, and plain over the entire countryside, numbered at least 10,000.  When the battle was over, there was a general rally to the standards by the English who humbly knelt and sang a Te Deum in thanks to the Most High for the victory vouchsafed to them from Heaven.  As the hymn ended a miracle took place: over the regions for which the fleeing enemies were making, thunder pealed deafeningly and appalling lightning and murky cloud appeared, while above the English army the Lord provided tranquil weather and a gentle breeze.  In all this fighting few or none of the English lost their lives.


Commentary follows in next post

[Erpingham]

Commentary

Background
The Battle of Dunkirk was the main field action of the Bishop's Crusade (aka Despenser's Crusade).  The background to this is that, at the time, there were rival Popes, Urban VI and Clement VII.  The English supported Urban and the French Clement.  The warlike Bishop of Norwich, Henry Despenser,  obtained papal bulls allowing him to lead a crusade offering full spiritual privileges against Clement's adherents.  This allowed Despenser to offer Richard II's government a cheap campaign, because a crusade would provide donations and volunteers towards it.  The two potential targets were Spain and Flanders and after fierce parliamentary debate, Flanders was chosen. Flanders was a controversial choice as most Flemings were Urbanists.  However, politically, the Count of Flanders was aligned with the French and Franco-Breton forces were engaged in a long running campaign to subdue all of Flanders.  In theory, the crusade would get the Flemings to rally behind the papal banner, eject the French and then advance jointly into Clementist France.

Henry Despenser was determined to lead the military campaign against the government's wishes but was forced to take military advisors, the most prominent of whom was veteran Sir Hugh Calverley.

The armies
The size and composition of the English force is confused by the ragged start to the campaign.  Despenser launched his advance from Calais before his whole force had shipped from England.  At that point, the army had 5,000 professional troops but at least another 3,000 volunteers and more still moving to embarkation ports.  The indentured men-at-arms and archers were split evenly but volunteers were, according to Walsingham in another chapter, mainly archers but included armed monks and clergy.  Despenser left Calais hurriedly, leaving Sir Thomas Trivet to bring up the stragglers.  Trivet caught up with Despenser at Dunkirk but it is unclear whether it was before or after the battle.  There were also a small number of allies from Ghent, possibly connected to their fleet, under Franz Ackermann.  Walsingham's 5,000 seems a good estimate, but it may have been less (James Clark estimates 3,000).
The Franco-Flemish army contain 1,900 French and Breton professional soldiers but the majority were Flemish, including local men-at-arms and militia from Bruges, Ypres and other territories of the Count of Flanders.  The militia horde was clearly large but estimates suffer from the inability of medieval armies to accurately count the enemy in large numbers.  Froissart in another passage estimates 12,000, Walsingham 30,000, the Westminster chronicler 28,000.  Whatever the actual figure, the English were seriously outnumbered but they had the advantage in professional troops.

The Battle
The outline of the battle is quite easy to describe but important details are elusive.  The English are taken by surprise by the approach of the Franco-Flemish army but succeed in forming up before Dunkirk.  Attempts at negotiation fail when the Flemings kill the English herald (a serious breach of the Laws of War).  The English form up and attack, with the archers delivering a hail of arrows on the Flemish militia who form the first battalion, followed by an attack by the men-at-arms and hangers on on foot.  The Flemings break and the professional troops behind can't stem the rout.  The English men-at-arms mount up and pursue the fugitives, the battle finishing in a thunderstorm.  The English suffer relatively light casualties but the Flemings suffer heavily.

Points of interest
Although the English are initially surprised, it them who take the offensive.  There is no mention of the usual careful choice of ground or the tactical defensive.  Archers are used offensively, clearly in front of the men-at-arms.  There is no mention of flanking archers, though they are not excluded either.

Both Walsingham and Froissart highlight the role of the archers and Walsingham in particular is keen to show that the Flemings armour was ineffective against archery.

It is unclear how the men-at-arms fought.  If it weren't for Walsingham's description of the use of axes, we might draw the conclusion from Froissart and Westminster that a mounted charge was their only role.  It does seem that a mounted attack finally scatters the enemy, though.

Finally, note the disparity in casualties.  This is one of those "miraculous" victories, where divine favour is shown by almost no casualties on one side and thousands on the other   George Wrong's account of the Crusade collects casualty figures for this battle from reports and two other English ones use this formula; Chron. Angliae says that 17,000 of the enemy were killed, and only
7 English out of a host of 5,000, the Monk of Evesham at from 10,000 to 11,000, and that of the
English at 15.  It is tempting to see Froissart as giving a more realistic number, but as a percentage of his starting figure for the English it seems on the high side.  The Franco Flemish casualties were clearly very high – they vary in the examples quoted by Wrong from 5,000 to 17000.

[aligern]

Brilliant stuff Anthony,
It is highly instructive to have all three sources together because it shows how the same battle might be described with quite different emphases. It appears to be the perfect victory for the English system with the French being foolish enough to allow the mass of indifferently armoured Flemings to take the brunt, with the archers driving them back and the English men at arms being veterans. who were far more successful in hand to hand to hand contact than their opponents. This latter point often being missed by commentators busily debating the effect of the longbow which is only 50% of the secret of their success.

Roy

[Erpingham]

One does have to feel sorry for the Flemings.  They are not not entirely inexperienced in war - the Bruges militia had lost two battles in the year prior to this but losing isn't the best practice.  As Walsingham has Calverley say, they hadn't fought the English before either.  Add to this that they were probably generally uneasy as Urbanists fighting an Urbanist crusade and they were  "like cattle ready to be slaughtered", as Walsingham gloats.

[Patrick Waterson]

Dunkirk is quite a significant battle, almost on a level with Verneuil, in terms of forces engaged and battlefield results obtained.  Like Verneuil, it is not well known, perhaps because it lacked an English king (or indeed any king) on the battlefield.

A very good treatment of the subject.

[aligern]

To me it reinforces the impression that the English are considerably advantaged and expectation of victory and that the effect of the. arrow storm is to  degrade enemy resolve and ability to resist. Is it Froissart who comments on the savage way that the English and Scots have at each other?
Thinking of another British army, this time  the one in India against the Sikhs, where, though  considerably outnumbered, the European regiments rush at the opposition after a volley and give them the bayonet....and against the odds it works. It is not that the opponents are not brave, rather that they are unbalanced by shouts, volleys, in later examples, artillery shots and then fiercely assaulted by confident men who have no inhibition about killing face to face.
Against that 'system' a lot of town militia are very likely to come off second best.
Might I also suggest that the advantage that a smaller force has is that it takes time, control and manoeuvrability to take advantage of superior numbers. In the time that elapses between contact and the bigger force enveloping them (if medieval town forces can make that sort of movement) the smaller force can, if good enough, beat the people opposite them and  bundle the opponent backwards causing a panic.

Roy

[Erpingham]

Might I also suggest that the advantage that a smaller force has is that it takes time, control and manoeuvrability to take advantage of superior numbers. In the time that elapses between contact and the bigger force enveloping them (if medieval town forces can make that sort of movement) the smaller force can, if good enough, beat the people opposite them and  bundle the opponent backwards causing a panic.

Roy

It might be instructive to have a look at the Battle of Beverhoutsveld, which took place almost exactly a year before.  A Ghent force of similar size to the English defeated the Bruges militia who outnumbered them 5 to 1.  The Bruges force is noted to have been particularly disorderly (many were drunk).  As they moved to attack, they were hit by the Ghent artillery and stopped in confusion.  The Ghentnaars charged and they routed, taking their supporting Flemish men-at-arms with them.  The Bruges militia had form when it came to being beaten by a better disciplined smaller force. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Beverhoutsveld

[Patrick Waterson]

The 'Ghent artillery' apparently consisted of "several hundred ribaldequins," which would have delivered a particularly deadly - or at least noisy, smoky and productive of much flying iron - volley.  It is perhaps noteworthy that the multi-barrel ribaldequins with their intense once-per-battle discharge were used in preference to handguns and/or larger artillery pieces.

The 'volley and charge' technique proved quite effective during the gunpowder era, most famously against the French in the Peninsular War.  The surprise is that so few commanders seem to have adopted the technique, and Philip van Artevelde appears to have been one of the few to have realised and exploited its potential.

[Duncan Head]

The Franco Flemish casualties were clearly very high – they vary in the examples quoted by Wrong from 5,000 to 17000.

Another source, Henry Knighton's Chronicon, cites 3,000. Not much of an account otherwise:

The bishop therefore first led his army in formation into Flanders, and when he arrived he attacked the towns of Gravelines, Bourbourg, with its castle, Bergues, Dunkerque, the castle of Dringham, the castle of Cassell Nieuport, Diksmuide, Poperinge, the fortified church of St George at Veurne, and many other places unfortified, and took them and held them. And when he was at Dunkerque, the men there gathered to fight him, and he beat there, and put them to flight, and took many prisoner, and killed some 3,000.

From here

[Erpingham]

Thanks Duncan - I had read Knighton but agreed with you he didn't really have much to add.  Don't know how I missed the casualty figure though.

It is a good example of the issues with casualty figures in battles in our period of interest.  Clearly, there was a big disparity but any attempts to talk percentages for winner & loser are on shaky ground.