Bataille de Mauron
14 August 1352
Marshal Nesle (Franco-Breton) v 
Walter Bentley (Anglo-Breton)War of Breton Succession
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Charles of Blois (1345-64)
What happened is clear from the
record. Where it happened is
less clear to me. The sources I find offer three conflicting sites for
the battle. Two are close to each other and the third is some distance
away. Let’s look at the where question first. Where? Map
5 shows the region for le Bois de la Roche. This village is on the Yvel (traced
out in green). There is a chateau in the village (currently called the Chateau
de Bois de la Roche). The topography lends itself to a strong defensive
position on the east side of the river. The description of the site on the Wikipedia
Bataille de Mauron site matches this topography “Les terrains sur
lesquels va se dérouler la bataille se présentent en forme de colline disposée
en quadrilatère de 1 à 1,5 km de côté, descendant vers la rivière à l’ouest et
au nord, et vers la foret de Broceliande a l’est et au sud.” The hills across
from le Bois de la Roche are bounded by the Yvel on the west and north, and the
forest is much closer to the east and south, based on the current IGN carte de
randonnee (1019E). The red + mark the two high points that fit this
description. The closeness of these two high points and the sharp slopes between
them are consistent with the description of the battle presented below. Also
underlined in blue is Les Landes de la Chapelle. There are two places underlined
in blue named La Saudraie, all closer to le Bois de la Roche than to Mauron
itself. The whole region, down to Neant sur Yvel several miles to the south is
called the pas de Mauron. Therefore, from Ploermel “going to Mauron” implies a
broader area than just going to the village of Mauron. The Battle “With exception of seven
hundred cavalry under General Hangest, which were posted on the left of the French
line, Nesle dismounted all his troops before the engagement began, even
himself descending from his favourite charger. It was growing late in the
afternoon when the French advanced to the attack. The Allied (Anglo-Breton) force being
greatly outnumbered, its centre was slowly driven back by sheer weight of numbers
into the long coppice near the top of the hill. Here they were able again for a
time to maintain their ground, the Marshal's dismounted men being impeded in
their advance by the furze and scrubby woodland as they forced their way up the
ascending hillside.” Today
these fields are all cleared. This is the view the French would have
had from the bottom of the hill at the start of their attack. The dark
line towards the top of the hill shows the approximate English line. “While the unequal conflict
was being waged in the centre of the battle area, Hangest's mounted troops, at
the blast of a trumpet, suddenly charged home with great élan on the Anglo- Breton
right, and rode down and completely cut up the English bowmen opposed to them
on that flank. "Several hundred were killed,
and the rest gave way and fled, unhappily for them, headlong in terror. As the dust
cleared away all now seemed lost for the British — their centre had been driven
in with heavy loss, and while rallying some of his men in the thick of the combat
Sir Walter Bentley, their leader, was very dangerously wounded, and the Allied
right wing was broken up and was flying in disorder. M. de Nesle's tactics
promised speedily to result in a complete victory for King John (Jean le Bel)!” This constituted a major
English victory in both the War of Breton Succession and within the larger
context of the Hundred Years War. It was a victory based on strong leadership
choosing a good defensive position. The English withstood the successful attack
on their archers and held their line in the face of impending disaster. A note on the sources for the battle. Since sources disagreed with the location of the battle, I looked at
their references to see if I could get some clarity or resolution on
the location. Here is what I find. The Institut Culturel de Bretagne
(ICB) cites Arthur de la Borderie
as a source. He says about the battle “Guy de Nesle, informe de la
venue de
Bentley, n’hesite pas et marche droit a Mauron. Peu de distance de
cette ville
it trouve l’ennemi, pres d’un chateau ou manoir appele Brenbili (5), La
se
donna bataille dans l’apres-midi de 14 aout 1352” Borderie’s footnote
(5) refers to
the Chronique Francoise which is cited in Dom Morice, Preuves I, 155.
Dom Morice was
a Benedictine monk who wrote a Histoire de Bretagne (2 volumes) and
three tomes
of ‘Preuves’ (proofs) in 1752. The Chronique Francoise is essentially a
chronology and about the battle it says (as cited in Morice) “L’an
MCCCLII fut la Bataille de Mauron
au Chateau de Brembily & la gagnerent les Angloys” I suspect that
this is
the origin of referring to Brembili as the battle site. The ICB web page also cites Dom Lobineau, Histoire de Bretagne, 1707, t.
I, p. 345 Plan de la bataille but I have not been able to find this map (yet).
Sources
La Borderie, Arthur Le Moyne de (1827-1901),
"Histoire de Bretagne : de l'an 995 après J.-C. à l'an 1364 / Arthur Le
Moyne de La Borderie," 1899, p531, in Bibliothèque numérique - Université
de Rennes 2, Item #341, http://bibnum.univ-rennes2.fr/items/show/341 (accessed
January 21, 2011). Burne, Alfred, The Crecy War, Wordsworth Editions, UK, 1999 Insitut Culturel de Bretagne, Les Batailles de l’Histoire de
Bretagne. http://www.skoluhelarvro.org/culture-bretagne/batailles/index.php Wikipedia, Bataille de Mauron http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bataille_de_Mauron
France was supporting Charles de Blois
while England was backing Jean de Montfort. The Monfortists were heavily
reliant on English support. In 1352 Sir Walter Bentley commanded an English
force that had seized several Breton towns, including Ploermel. In response to their
presence, the French organized an army to enter Brittany and recapture several
seized towns and suppress Bentley’s attacks. The French were led by Guy II de
Nestle, Marshall de France.
As a result of having to garrison several captured towns,
Bentley confronted the prospect of facing the French with a numerically inferior
force. Bentley had about 2000 troops, to a 5000 man French force. When the two
forces were about to meet in combat, Nesle apparently offered Bentley the
opportunity to withdraw if he would leave Brittany and return to England.
Bentley declined and sought a strong position from which to repel the imminent
French attack.
**
Map 1, covering Mauron, shows some of these places. There
is a Brambily (underlined in blue and marked '1' on the outskirts of Mauron) but the
IGN carte de randonnee 1018 E does not show a chateau/manor at this location today. A footnote
in a Wikipedia battle of Mauron web site
says
‘le château de Brambily a disparu depuis. Il était situé à 1,5 km du
centre de Mauron.’ Back to the Communaute de Communes site, the site
goes on to say “Au matin du 14 août 1352, les monfortistes (parmi
lesquels
Tanguy du Châtel, Guillaume de Cadoudal et l’anglais Gauthier de
Bentley ),
massés en secret durant la nuit en forêt de Lanouée
arrivant à Mauron. La bataille va opposer près de
Brambily ou, pour certains,
sur la Lande de La Chapelle près de La Saudraie." Here we run
into a location
problem. There are no current places named La Land de La Chapel or La
Saudraie
across
from the Brambily on Map 1. There are two such places south of Mauron
but they
are not on the Doueff. In fact, they are equidistant between Mauron and
the third candidate for the battle's location, le Bois de la Roche.
However, Map 2, which covers this area does show a previously existing
chapel to the right of l'Orme. The red
line on
Map 1 traces out the line close to the top of the high ground in the
area (and a likely English position). The term 'La
Saudraie' is confusing to me. It is a place name as well as, I think a
particular activity name. There are several places called la Saudraie
on these IGN maps, often fairly close to each other. I am unable (as
yet) to find a translation for the term. The foret de Lanouee is about 20 km west of Mauron.
T.F. Tout (1905), cited by Richard Bentley in fact does not clearly support Bentley's location: “On 14 Aug. 1352 Bentley and Nesle met at Brenbili, a manor
near the little town of Mauron, a few miles north of Ploermel, the local base
of operations of the party of John de Montfort. The French were advancing southwards, while the English, who had come out of Ploermel, were marshaled
facing the north.”
In spite of different suggestions,
all descriptions of the battle are similar in terms of force alignment,
nature of the attack, the initial French success due to a mounted
attack on the flank, the ultimate English success in turning the attack
and retreat of the French. Using Burne's term of 'inherent
military probability' and having visited the terrains, I am inclined to
believe the battle was fought on the 'prairie de l'Orme.'
Assuming the battle occurred on the
prairie de l'Orme, this is the view Walter Bentley had down his hill
towards the French position. Today the land is agricultural, in grain
and maize. Bentley's position (red line in Map 1) has a crest in the
middle which would allow him to see both his flanks. The second picture
is from his left flank, looking towards the crest.
"The fight turned into a rout
as the French were pushed back. The French forces scattered and were hunted
down by the Anglo-Breton army. … The English line now steadily advanced along its entire length and
swept all before it as the Allied forces pressed down the slope. The slaughter
of the retreating foe was very great … The
retiring French, who had now reached the opposite slope of the valley
which rose up behind them, still fought on desperately in the twilight, but in
isolated groups only, and, unable to reform their ranks, were driven pele-mele
off the field or cut to pieces. Uphill
ground again hindered the movements of the enemy (Franco-Breton), and it was steeper
behind them than
it was in front at the outset of the battle."
This view is from behind the
initial French position (just beyond the trees) and shows not only the
hill up which they attacked but also the hill up which they
subsequently retreated. This terrain is steeper than that found on
Burne's proposed battle site.
The French forces scattered and were hunted
down by the Anglo-Breton army. The Anglo-Breton army lost 600 – 700 men out of
its 2000 man army while the Franco-Breton force lost 800 – 900 out of its 5000
person army. The French lost a number of victors of the Combat of the 30 as
well as other nobles, either killed or captured.
The topography for Burne's proposed site near Mauron does not
match this description of the French retreat up a steep hill
immediately adjacent to their assault on the Anglo-Breton position on
top of a hill. However, the topographical description matches both the prairie de l'Orme site and that near le Bois de la Roche.
All descriptions, in French and
English, describe the same action, to a point. All have a successful
attack on the English archers, pressure on the Anglo-Breton center,
this center rallying, and the French retreating with the Anglo-Breton
force in pursuit. Only Bentley describes the final stages of the
retreat. To repeat:
The fly in the ointment that this
very detailed description is at variance with Sir Walter Bentley's own
words, recorded by Robert Avesbury in his Historia Mirabilibus Gestis
Edward III, about 1356. He quotes a correspondence of Walter Bentley.
This was originally in French but here is a translation by EM Thompson
(1899).
"Reverend Father
in God, please you to know that, since my coming into Brittany, the
people that were appointed unto me and I, before that we entered into
any stronghold, have ridden abroad on this side and have so much
accomplished, praised be God therefor, that the town and castle of
Ploermel and of Fougere have been right well comforted and victualled,
and there hath been taken by assault a stronghold which had been made
by the enemy before Fougres. And, this done, my comrades and I rode
through the land against the enemy, until the marshal of France, with
all his power of France, Normandy, Anjou, Maine, Poitou, Touraine,
Saintogne, and Brittany, with a mighty great number of men of arms and
of other folk without number, came against us, near to a town called
Mauron, between Rennes and Ploermel, upon the open fields, without
woods, ditches, or other defences; and there we fought with them (in
Bentley's French: sur les plaines, saunz boys, saunz forrez, ou aultre
forteresee, et illesqes nous combatoms ouesqe eaux). And it was on
the eve of the Assumption of our Lady, between the hour of vespers and
sunset; and, by the grace of God and the righteous cause which He
upholdeth, the enemy were sore discomfited and with scarcely loss of
men on our side, praised be God therefor. And there were slain there
the seneschal of Anjou, the seneschal of Benavent, the viscount of
Rohan, my lord John Frere, the lord of Quintin, the lord of Tinteniac,
the lord of Rochemont, the lord of Montauban, my lord Reginald of
Montauban, my lord Robert Raguenel, my lord William of Launay, my lord
Aufray of Montbouohier, my lord William of Yielcastel, my lord William
of La Marche, and other knights slain to the number of eight score,
with squires which amount unto five hundred dead upon the field, all
bearing coat armour, and common folk without number. And there were
taken there the lord of Briquebecq, son of the marshal Bertrand, my
lord Tristram of Maignelais, the lord of Malestroit, the viscount of
Coetmen, my lord Greoffrey of Coeyghem, my lord John of Laval, the lord
Incher, my lord Charles of Argeville, my lord John of La Muce, and many
other knights and squires, up to eight score, of whom, as well slain as
taken, are full five and forty knights of rank."
In placing the battle on the
prairie de l'Orme, I am assuming that Walter Bentley's phrase 'sur les
plaines' and the prairie are the same place.
Richard Bentley's description leaves me
puzzled. His detailed description of the fight would lead
me to believe he has identified the correct location. However Walter
Bentley's description is not consistent with the later Bentley and I am
unable to find a source that Richard Bentley uses to assert le Bois de
la Roche as the battle site. Given Walter Bentley's description and the
overwhelming support of French sources I am inclined at the moment to
believe the site outside Mauron is the correct site. However, my search
for supporting material for Richard Bentley's position continues.
The Wikipedia sites on Mauron and the Bataille de Mauron do not include
references and place the battle in different places (le Bois de la
Roche and Mauron respectively).
Another commonly cited source is Auguste Molinier's Chronique Normande
(1882) who vaguely
described the site as 'pres de Mauron.' He describes the setting:
'En cele place avoit grans herbes, qui greverent moult les
Francois.' Other sources also talk about the vegetation that impeded
the French climb on foot to engage the Anglo-Bretons. For example,
Tout, citing Molinier says the English "took up a position with archers
on both flanks in front of a hedge." The French, says Tout, "were much
inconvenienced by their march up hill through long grass." Today
the IGN
carte randonnees show greater woods cover near le Bois de la Roche than
near Mauron, suggestive but hardly conclusive. (It is interesting how
many champ de mars have similar ground cover today as when the battle
occurred. Pontlevoy (1016) and Agincourt are just two.)
Richard Bentley's references
include The Official Report on the Battle
of Mauron from the Record Office, which I haven't seen. Correspondence
with a Records Office medievalist indicates there is no Official Record
of this (or related) name. Bentley also
indicates he consulted with T.F. Tout. In addition, his references
include Borderie, Ogee, Morice and Lobineau so he was aware of what
they had to say about the battle's location. He also references le Abbe
F.G.P.B Manet's Histoire de la Petit Bretagne who places the fight near
'du chateau de
Brembili, en Mauron.' Bentley is clearly drawing on another source for
his location.
One of the earliest reference to the battle I've seen so far is Geoffrey de
Baker's Chronicon, written about 1400 and in Latin. While I can't
follow all of it, I don't see a reference to a place name for the
location. However, he does report that Bentley apparently decapitated a
number of archers who fled from the Franco-Breton attack on their
flank. Here is the text, for those with a better grasp of Latin than my
two years in high school too many decades ago.
"Walterus
de Benteleye, capitaneus, Robertus Knollis et alii regis fideles in
marchia Britannic hostibus egregie obviarunt, ubi in certamine diu
periculoso fuerant occisi marescallus Francie principalis, item domini
de Quintin, de Curtunoke, de Richemont D, de Mountalban, de Lagenel,
de Launey, de Mountboche, de Vilechastel u, de la Marche, et alii
milites numero centum quadraginta, atque domicelli ad summam
quingentorum, quorum toge armature fuerunt reportate, numero popularium
non taxato. Ibidem capti fuerunt dominus de Brusebeke, filius
marescalli Bertram, Tristram de Maleis, dominus de Maletret le
vicecomes de Comayn, item Galfridus de Goanes, Willelmus de la Val,
Carolus Darchefil, Johannes de Bause et alii milites cum domicellis
amplius quam centum et triginta. Iste Francorum exercitus sub ducatu
predict! marescalli ex proposito ductoris fuerat a tergo declivo
cuiusdam mentis vallatus, quod non poterat fugam inire, ut ex fuge
desperacione crescereteiis
audacia pugnandi, sicud solet animosis. Fuerunt eciam ibidem plures de
comitiva militum Stelle, qui in sua professione coniurarunt se nunquam
Anglico terga territa versuros, de quibus fuerunt inter captos et
occisos numerati quadraginta quinque. Ab illo discrimine pauci non
wlnerati evaserunt, in quo ipsorum 20 capitaneus prefatus Walterus
horribiliter vvlneratus iussit triginta sagittarios decapitari
(decapitated), qui in maximo belli fervore teriti a Gallicorum
immensitate fugam inierunt.
EM Thompson also edited Robert de Avesbury's (d. 1359) Historia
Miralibisa Gestis Edwardi III and summarizes his report of the battle
without being specific about the location. We've already seen
Avesbury's recounting of Walter Bentley's correspondence.
Avesbury's text is also in Latin and just offers a general location.
"Non
est praetermittendum quod dominus Walterus de Byntele, miles,
capitaneus in Britannia ac locis ibidem domino regi Anglorum subjectis
praefuens, circiter festum sancti Petri quod dicitur Ad vincula, anno
Domini millesimo ccclii, in partibus Anglicanis exsistens, sibi de
ccclii hominibus armorum et totidem sagittariis vel circiter, de dicti
domini regis voluntate et assensu, providit, et cum eisdem in
Britanniam reversus est; et post adventum ipsius ibidem, infra paucos
dies, quasi prseordinatum fuisset, mareschallus Francise, oum ingenti
exercitu Francorum, juxta villam quse dicitur Maurone, dicto
domino Waltero loco campestri veniens in occursum, vidensque paucitatem
Anglicorum respectu sui exercitus, fecit eidem per nuncios suaderi quod
se cum sua turma redderet, cum non posset secum rationabiliter
proeliare. Dictus vero dominus Waltenis et ceteri Anglici suae partis,
viri utique animosi, spem suam non in multitudine sed in adjutorio Dei
et pietate ponentes, hujusmodi nunciorum suasiones omnino spreverunt,
et coniligentes cum Francigenis, prsefato marescallo Francigenorum duce
multisque aliis interfectis ac pluribus captivatis."
de Avery, Robert, Historia Mirabilbis Gestis Edwardi III, edited by EM
Thompson, 1889.
http://www.archive.org/stream/admurimuthconti00robegoog#page/n61/mode/2up
de Baker, Geoffrey, Chronicon, edited by EM Thompson, 1889
http://www.archive.org/stream/chronicongalfrid00bakeuoft/chronicongalfrid00bakeuoft_djvu.txt
Bentley,
Richard, "A brief note upon the
battles of Saintes and Mauron, 1351 and 1352
," 1918, http://www.archive.org/stream/briefnoteuponbat00bentuoft/briefnoteuponbat00bentuoft_djvu.txt
Communaute de Communes: Mauron en Broceliande: http://www.cc-mauron-broceliande.com/sitecc/?page_id=538
Molinier, August et Emile, Chronique Normande, Paris 1882. http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k206452r/f184.image.pagination
Morice, Historie de Bretagne (abrreviaited title), Paris, 1752
http://books.google.fr/books?id=xMe5uUVzAXwC&printsec=frontcover&dq=Morice+Histoire+de+Bretagne+preuves
&source=bl&ots=GL36ovFVbQ&sig=hnzasmukgwnKYanQi9fuU-qLD7Q&hl=fr&ei=8Bo6TYmAG8P_lgeru-j1
Bg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6&ved=0CDMQ6AEwBTgK#v=onepage&q&f=false