Sorry for the volume of text, but this battle is the symbol for our Flemish nation.
End of the 13th century, Flanders was the most important fief of the French kingdom with the Count of Flanders as a vassal of the King of France. At the start of the 14th century, Flanders, through trade and manufacturing, had become the richest and most urbanized region of western Europe. 3 of the five biggest cities in Western Europe were located in Flanders, Ghent being the second of the five after Paris.
The cities had also become an important political factor. But in the cities was also a social struggle: the wealthy families, in power, the aristocrates, came into conflict with the guildes, crafts. Another conflict was between the count , Guy de Dampierre and the families in power of the cities.
When Philip IV (Le bel) came to power, he wanted centralize the power, which brought him in direct conflict with his most important vazal. Also the wealth of Flanders was an insentive.
The count, after a conference with his allies, one of which was King Edward I (in war with France), ended this feodal obligations. The Philip IV responed by conficating the county and adding it to the crown estates.
A battle in Bulskamp in 1297 between the knights of Flanders and the amry of the French king, receiving help from the Flemish city aristoractes, ended into a defeat for the Flemish count and his knights
Edward hadn't come to help the count of Flanders, as he himselve was in a heavy struggle with the Scots.
Flanders was occupied by the French army, heavy taxes installed. Which were turend on the lower classes of guildes and crafts (nothing has changed) . This created an alliance between the Flemish count and nobility and the guilds. The rebelion started in Bruges, the French occupation army in the city and the aristocrates as supporters of the French, were slaughtered.
The furious King Philip did send a mighty army to end the rebelion.
The Flemish army consited of knights and city / craftsmen militia.
These militia shouldn't be seen as an armed mob. They were well equiped , seen the richness of the cities, and had a level of training. They had crossbow units, had pikes and the famous "goedendag" : a heavy 1.5m wooden club with a the end a spike fixed with a heavy iron ring. Easy to fabicate, easy in use : hit and stab.
The Flemish were able to take control over most of the cities in Flanders.
In Kortrijk, only the citadel was still occupied by French soldiers, and was besieged by the Flemish army.
When the French army closed in on Kortrijk, the Flemish took in a good position, behind brooks, deminishing the possiblity for the French knights to make a charge in full speed.
Also the ground was very muddy so even worse for horsemen.
On the other hand, The Flemish army, due to have the Leie river in its back, had no possibility to escape. A French victory would lead to a complete distruction of the Flemish amry.
Despite the negative adice of his subordinate commanders, the French upper commander Robert d'Artois was eager to give battle and destroy the Flemish. It was also arrogance. It was unthinkable for him, milita could defeat the best knight army of Europe.
Another factor: it was custom captured nobility on the battlefield would be ransomed. Common prisoners were a cost, and could again take up arms after release, so better to execute them.
This means the militiamen had to win or die, and with no mercy to expect, the militiamen were ordered not to give any.
On the French left wing:
Steven : 1 bataille of 3 knight units and one of 2 knight units, each with their general (2 command dice) + one unit of bowmen, one of crossbowmen with pavis.
Steven has also controle over the Kortrijk garrison : 2 units of infantry
Siegfried: 1 bataille of 3 knight units and one of 2 knight units, each with their general (2 command dice) one unit of crossbowmen with pavis.
French centre:
Patrcik : 2 batailles of 2 knight units each with their general (2 command dice)
french right wing:
Adrien 3 batailles of 2 knight units each with their general (2 command dice) and 2 units of bowmen.
French reserve:
Peter: 1 bataille of 5 units of knights, one unit is elite. Alle other knight units on the field are veteran.
Flemish left wing:
Alberik : 6 units of infantry with pike and goedendag, 2 bowmen units
Flemish left centre:
Alberik : 4 units of infantry with pike and goedendag, 1 bowmen unit
Flemish right centre:
Dirk: 2 units of infantry with pike and goedendag
Flemish right part 1:
Dirk: 4 units of infantry with pike and goedendag, 1 bowmen unit
Dirk has also controle over the Flemish reserve of knights on foot including Jan Van Renesse, commander in chief. These knight units are the only veteran units on the Flemish side.
Flemish right part 2, extreme right:
Ronny: 8 units of infantry with pike and goedendag, 1 bowmen unit with pavis.
Ronny has also controle over 3 units of infantry facing the Kortijk garrison.
All Flemish militia are pike units: without disorder (stands turned) pikes give a minus of 2 dice to the oponent. Knights are heavy: minus one die for the oponent. veterans ignore one flag.
More and more knights fell. Patrick lost both his bataille commanders while being attached to a unit in close combat, Redering his other knight units almost useless.
The battle starts with 1D of turns with exchange of missiles by the bowmen/crossbowmen units.
After these number of turns, each knight unit facing directly enemy units (bowmen to not block line of sight) , will test if they initiate an attack.
The number of turn was 2.
The exchange of arrows didn't give much result and the first units of knight moved forward.
Some of the French players reacted by sending other knight units forward.
The Flemish players moved forward, to take controle over the banks of the brooks.
The first turns of close combat were favourable to the French, taking no cassualties and inflicting many.
Dirks bowmen unit was attacked by knights, didn't succeed to escape and broke in panick, the supporting units breaking too.
For a moment, it seemed it was going to be a walk over, as Artois expected.
But the advance of the knights stalled, and they started to take casulaties.
The Kortrijk garrison made a sortie, but could not force a breakthrough.
Siegfrieds' first bataille was broken. The other one on breaking point.
Then a bataille of Steven was broken too. his other bataille also had taken losses, had destroyed one Flemish unit, but not close to force the Flemish lines back.
On the French right, Adrien hadn't been able to gain a foothold on the other brook bank.
Alberik was starting to lose units, but still had his second row.
Peter had limited his actions to supporting Adrien, but hadn't moved units of his command towards Patrick, were the Flemish line was week.
The Flemish knights on foot plugged the gap, and with units of the Flemish right starting to move the left, The French had no possiblity of victory and admitted defeat.
In reality, the battle result was even wurse for the French, as so many knights had perished. In her book, "a distant mirror : calamitous 14th century" historian Barbara Buchman, states commoners had to be knighted to replace the French noblemen fallen in battle.
The Flemish rebelion ended a few years and battles later, Flanders needing peace. Flanders didn't become part of the French king crown estates, and kept it's independend status. But heavy fines had to be paid, which of course, the cities had to pay. In the decades to come, many rebelions followed, sometimes ending in civil war, some having a revolutionary character, turing against nobelty and church alike. Many times the city of Ghent being the centre.
more info : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Golden_Spurs
However!
1) In the article is mentioned, conceald pits and "ditches and steams were dug in the battlefield by the Flemish army". ???!!??
This is what was written in the Frenchaccounts afterwards to justify their defeat. But to make such features important enough, a lot of work would have been needed - certainly in marchy ground. So thousands of men working in the field should have rose suspicion, and couldn't have been unnoticed. Branches to conceal pits, it must have looked like a forest.
For the French, their undoing was their arrogance, ignoring the difficult marchy terrain, and enormously underestimating the infantry. If the ground was so worked, it makes the French knights even look more stupid (a) not to have noticed anything, or (b) seeing al these works done and still attack.
Afterwards, French knights would never again frontallycharge Flemish infantry again, pits or no pits.
2) In the article the last sentense : "As a result of that linguistic-based nationalism, the contribution of French-speaking soldiers and command of the battle by the Walloon noble Guy of Namur was neglected."
First of all, Guy of Namur was a son of the second wife of the Flemish count Guy de Dampierre. So he was present to defend his families interest and assume a command in the Flemish army, so making him a "Walloon" noble is shortsighted. For the French speeking soldiers: A part of Flanders that is now French territory was French speeking. So pissible there were French speeking solders of Flanders present. Also French was the language of nobility, so the knights in the Flemish army would have bene French speeking, yes. The sentense hinds with "Guy De Namur" there were Wallon soldiers present. Wel maybe Guy would have been accompanied by some knights, but a lage force, crossing the hostile territory of Hainaut or Brabant, is very unlikely. French speeking soldiers were added in the 19th century to make it a "Belgian" victory.
On the remark that often is made, cocerning the battle being the symbol of the current Flemish state/region (that comprises the larger parts of the historical dutchy of Brabant besides of the county of Flanders, and parts of the country of Loon, (now Limburg)), is that the Duchy of Brabant fought with the French:
It is true Godfrey of Brabant, Lord of Aarschot and Vierzon, was the leader of one of the batailles, but he wasn't the Duke of Brabant, he was the dukes brother. Godfrey however was Lord of Vierzon in France, and as such, a vazal of the French king. Godfrey and his only son didn't survive the battle.
One last remark: The miltiamen didn't come to battle for a "Flemish" cause, they did come for their city and the interest of their guilts. Nationalism and national identity were strange to them.
https://pmcd-mobilisatie.blogspot.com/2014/07/the-flemish-contribution-to-us.html
Dirk,
ReplyDeleteGood looking game! It's always fun to see 54mm in action!
Any chance we might see other at Crisis this November?