The Battle of the Spurs or (Second) Battle of Guinegate took place on 16 August 1513. It formed a part of the War of the League of Cambrai of 1508 to 1516, during the Italian Wars . King Henry VIII of England and Emperor Maximilian I were besieging the French town of Thérouanne in Artois (now Pas-de-Calais ). Henry's camp was at Guinegate (present-day Enguinegatte ). A large body of French heavy cavalry under Jacques de La Palice was covering an attempt by light cavalry to bring supplies to the besieged garrison. English and Imperial troops surprised and routed the French cavalry. The battle resulted in the precipitate flight and extensive pursuit of the French. During the pursuit, a number of notable French leaders and knights were captured. After the fall of Thérouanne, Henry VIII besieged and took Tournai .
184-584: The Battle of Flodden , Flodden Field , or occasionally Branxton or Brainston Moor was fought on 9 September 1513 during the War of the League of Cambrai between the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland and resulted in an English victory. The battle was fought near Branxton , in the county of Northumberland , in northern England, between an invading Scots army under King James IV and an English army commanded by
368-548: A battery and dug mines towards the town's walls, but made little progress against the defending garrison of French and German soldiers in July. The town was held for France by Antoine de Créquy, sieur de Pont-Remy who returned fire until the town surrendered, and the English called one distinctive regular cannon shot the "whistle." Reports of setbacks and inefficiency reached Venice. On the way to Thérouanne two English cannon called "John
552-633: A French army of about 40,000 soldiers and moved rapidly into Venetian territory. To oppose him, Venice had hired a condottiere army under the command of the Orsini cousins—Bartolomeo d'Alviano and Niccolò di Pitigliano —but had failed to account for their disagreement on how best to stop the French advance. On 14 May, Alviano confronted the French at the Battle of Agnadello ; outnumbered, he sent requests for reinforcements to his cousin, who replied with orders to break off
736-549: A Holy League against France. The new alliance included not only Spain and the Holy Roman Empire (which abandoned any pretense of adhering to the League of Cambrai in hopes of seizing Navarre from Queen Catherine and Lombardy from Louis), but also Henry VIII of England who, having decided to use the occasion as an excuse to expand his holdings in northern France, concluded the Treaty of Westminster—a pledge of mutual aid against
920-493: A King". This put Surrey in a difficult position; the choice was to make a frontal attack on Flodden Edge, uphill in the face of the Scottish guns in their prepared position and in all probability be defeated, or to refuse battle, earning disgrace and the anger of King Henry. Waiting for James to make a move was not an option because his 20,000-26,000 strong army desperately needed resupply, the convoy of wagons bringing food and beer for
1104-455: A banqueting house at Greenwich Palace showed the siege of Therouanne with the "very manner of every man's camp". Henry VIII insisted that his guests, the French ambassadors, should turn to look at the picture. Maximilian's tomb at the Hofkirche, Innsbruck , constructed in 1553 to designs by Florian Abel includes a marble relief of the meeting by Alexander Colyn following Dürer's woodcut. In
1288-485: A circuitous march to position themselves in the rear of the Scottish camp. The Scots countered that by abandoning their camp and occupying the adjacent Branxton Hill and denying it to the English. The battle began with an artillery duel followed by a downhill advance by Scottish infantry armed with pikes. Unknown to the Scots, an area of marshy land lay in their path, which had the effect of breaking up their formations. That gave
1472-564: A coin at the Cross to appeal against this summons and survived the battle. Branxton Church was the site of some burials from the Battle of Flodden. War of the League of Cambrai Franco-Venetian victory In the Holy Land (1095–1291) Later Crusades (1291–1717) Northern (1147–1410) Against Christians (1209–1588) Popular (1096–1320) The War of
1656-700: A combined Franco-Imperial army, but Louis, frustrated by Maximilian's failure to appear in person and distracted by the death of his advisor, the Cardinal d'Amboise , abandoned his plans for a siege. Julius, meanwhile, had become increasingly concerned by the growing French presence in Italy; more significantly, alienated from Alfonso d'Este by friction over a licence for a salt monopoly in the Papal States and Alfonso's continued forays against Venetian forces to secure his recently reacquired Polesine, he had formulated plans to seize
1840-468: A company of French horse armed with spears who were stationed at the Tower of Guinegate. The French infantry were left at Blangy, while the heavy cavalry were divided into two companies, one under the command of La Palice and Louis, Duke of Longueville , the other under Charles IV, Duke of Alençon . Alençon's smaller force attacked the besieging positions commanded by Lord Shrewsbury , the larger force against
2024-479: A council or parliament at Twiselhaugh and made a proclamation for the benefit of the heirs of anyone killed during this invasion. By 29 August after a siege of six days, Bishop Thomas Ruthall 's Norham Castle was taken and partly demolished after the Scottish heavy artillery had breached the recently refurbished outer walls. The Scots then moved south, capturing the castles of Etal and Ford . A later Scottish chronicle writer, Robert Lindsay of Pitscottie , tells
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#17328447586252208-454: A damp night on short rations and having to drink water from streams because the beer had run out, Surrey's men set off westwards to complete their manoeuvre. Their objective was Branxton Hill, lying less than 2 miles (3.2 km) north of James's camp at Flodden. To re-cross the River Till, the English army split into two; one force under Surrey crossed several fords near Heaton Castle , while
2392-553: A grandson of James II of Scotland as Regent to rule Scotland instead of Margaret and her son. Albany, who lived in France, came to Scotland on 26 May 1515. By that date Margaret had given birth to James's posthumous son Alexander and married the Earl of Angus . A later sixteenth-century Scottish attitude to the futility of the battle was given by Robert Lindsay of Pitscottie, in words that he attributed to Patrick Lord Lindsay at council before
2576-531: A larger vanguard numbering some 15,000 commanded by the Lord Admiral and including the artillery train, crossed at Twizell Bridge downstream. Pitscottie says the vanguard crossed the bridge at 11 am and that James would not allow the Scots artillery to fire on the vulnerable English during this manoeuvre. This is not credible, since the bridge is some 6 miles (9.7 km) distant from Flodden, but James's scouts must have reported their approach. James quickly saw
2760-465: A market for the unused building materials there, and sent stones by boat via Antwerp to Calais, some carved with English insignia, along with the machinery of two watermills. The construction work at Tournai has been characterized as retrogressive, lacking the input of a professional military engineer , and an "essentially medieval" conception out of step with Italian innovations. Henry and Maximilian jointly published an account of their victories, under
2944-607: A number of other cities by the end of 1503. Julius II, having secured his own control of the Papal armies by arresting and imprisoning Cesare, first in Bologna and later in Ravenna, quickly moved to re-establish Papal control over the Romagna by demanding that Venice return the cities she had seized. The Republic of Venice, although willing to acknowledge Papal sovereignty over these port cities along
3128-415: A powder flask belonging to James IV and gave it to Henry VIII. A cross with rubies and sapphires with a gold chain worn by James and a hexagonal table salt with the figure of St Andrews on the lid were given to Henry by James Stanley , Bishop of Ely . Lord Dacre discovered the body of James IV on the battlefield. He later wrote that the Scots "love me worst of any Englishman living, by reason that I fande
3312-455: A range of 2,000 yards (1,800 m). However, the heaviest of these required a team of 36 oxen to move each one and were only able to fire once every twenty minutes at the most. They were commanded by the king's secretary, Patrick Paniter , an able diplomat, but who had no artillery experience. Upon Surrey's arrival, he deployed his troops on the forward slope of Piper Hill to match the Scottish dispositions. On his right, facing Hume and Huntly,
3496-514: A room at the top of a tower is called 'Queen Margaret's bower'. Ten days after the Battle of Flodden, the Lords of Council met at Stirling on 19 September, and set up a General Council of the Realm "to sit upon the daily council for all matters occurring in the realm" of thirty-five lords including clergymen, lords of parliament, and two of the minor barons, the lairds of The Bass and Inverrugy. This committee
3680-403: A royal duke and the French commander, La Palice, himself. Meanwhile, the smaller French force had been driven off, Sir Rhys ap Thomas capturing four of their standards. The initial cavalry clash took place between the village of Bomy and Henry's camp at Guinegate. According to Reinhold Pauli and others, Maximilian recommended that parts of the troops should be sent to the flank and rear of
3864-564: A scene of the mounted rulers joining hands in the Triumphal Arch . Henry commissioned commemorative paintings of the meeting and of the battle which showed him involved in the centre of the action, though Hall pointed out he took advice to stay with the foot soldiers. In Henry's inventory , one painting was noted as "A Table wherein is conteined the Seginge of Torney and Turwyn". A painting made by "Master Hans", perhaps Hans Holbein in 1527 for
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#17328447586254048-581: A set of tapestries woven with scenes from the Book of the City of Ladies by Christine de Pizan . Tournai remained in English hands, with William Blount, 4th Baron Mountjoy as Governor. The fortifications and a new citadel were reconstructed between August 1515 and January 1518, costing around £40,000. Work ceased because Henry VIII planned to restore the town to France. Tournai was returned by treaty on 4 October 1518 . The surveyor of Berwick , Thomas Pawne, could not find
4232-651: A show of English banners organized by the Clarenceux Herald, Thomas Benolt . Hall mentions that Maximilian advised Henry to deploy some artillery on another hill "for out-scourers" but does not mention any effect on the outcome. Although Henry wished to ride into the battle, he stayed with the Emperor's foot soldiers on the advice of his council. After a three-mile chase, amongst the French prisoners were Jacques de la Palice , Pierre Terrail, seigneur de Bayard and Louis d'Orléans, Duke of Longueville. Although reports mention
4416-526: A show of captured colours, but the French and German garrison were drawn into negotiation with Shrewsbury by their lack of supplies. Shrewsbury welcomed Henry to the town and gave him the keys. Eight or nine hundred soldiers were set to work demolishing the walls of the town and three large bastions which were pushed into the deep defensive ditches. The dry ditches contained deeper pits which were designed for fires to create smoke to choke assailants. The Milanese ambassador to Maximilian, Paolo Da Laude, heard that it
4600-463: A tent with a gallery of cloth-of-gold at his camp over the weekend beginning 13 August. According to the chronicles, the weather on the day of the meeting was the "foulest ever." News of Henry's meeting with Maximilian in person delighted Catherine of Aragon, who wrote to Wolsey that it was an honour for Henry and would raise Maximilian's reputation; he would be "taken for a nother man that he was befor thought". Louis XII of France determined to break
4784-630: A treaty pledging to divide all of northern Italy between France and the Republic was signed at Blois . Pope Julius II, meanwhile, had died in February, and Cardinal Giovanni di Lorenzo de' Medici, second son of Lorenzo the Magnificent and elder brother of the new ruler of Florence, was elected Pope Leo X . In late May 1513, a French army commanded by Louis de la Trémoille crossed the Alps and advanced on Milan; at
4968-498: A truce with Venice. In the spring of 1508, the Republic provoked Julius by appointing her own candidate to the vacant bishopric of Vicenza ; in response, the Pope called for all Christian nations to join him in an expedition to subdue Venice. On 10 December 1508, representatives of the Papacy, France, the Holy Roman Empire, and Ferdinand II of Aragon concluded the League of Cambrai against
5152-444: A type of French light cavalry called " stradiotes " (stradiots), equipped with short stirrups, beaver hats, light lances, and Turkish swords . These may have been Albanian units. In response to the new threat, English military engineers had built five bridges overnight over the river Lys to allow their army free passage to the other side and Henry moved his camp to Guinegate (now called Enguinegatte ), on 14 August, after displacing
5336-425: Is said to have urged the Earl of Essex to charge. The English men-at-arms and other heavy cavalry charged just as the French were moving off, throwing them into disorder. To complete the French disarray, the stradiots crashed in confusion into the flank of the French heavy cavalry, having been driven off from approaching the town by cannon fire. At much the same time, a body of Imperial cavalry also arrived to menace
5520-557: Is unknown. On 18 August, five cannons brought down from Edinburgh Castle to the Netherbow Port at St Mary's Wynd for the invasion set off towards England dragged by borrowed oxen. On 19 August two gross culverins , four culverins pickmoyance and six (mid-sized) culverins moyane followed with the gunner Robert Borthwick and master carpenter John Drummond . The king himself set off that night with two hastily prepared standards of St Margaret and St Andrew. Catherine of Aragon
5704-475: The British Isles . Home, Huntly and his troops were the only formation to escape intact; others escaped in small groups, closely pursued by the English. Soon after the battle, the council of Scotland decided to send for help from Christian II of Denmark . The Scottish ambassador, Andrew Brounhill, was given instructions to explain "how this cais is hapnit." Brounhill's instructions blame James IV for moving down
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5888-563: The British Isles ; another candidate is the Battle of Bosworth Field in 1485. Centuries of intermittent warfare between England and Scotland had been formally brought to an end by the Treaty of Perpetual Peace which was signed in 1502. However, relations were soon soured by repeated cross-border raids, rivalry at sea leading to the death of the Scottish privateer Andrew Barton and the capture of his ships in 1511, and increasingly bellicose rhetoric by King Henry VIII of England in claiming to be
6072-573: The College of Arms with a sword, a dagger and a turquoise ring in 1681. The family tradition was either that these items belonged to James IV or were arms carried by Thomas Howard at Flodden. The sword blade is signed by the maker Maestre Domingo of Toledo . There is some doubt whether the weapons are of the correct period. The Earl of Arundel was painted by Philip Fruytiers , following Anthony van Dyck 's 1639 composition, with his ancestor's sword, gauntlet and helm from Flodden. Thomas Lord Darcy retrieved
6256-764: The Duchy for his family. The French garrisons abandoned the Romagna (where the Duke of Urbino quickly captured Bologna and Parma ) and retreated to Lombardy, attempting to intercept the invasion. By August, the Swiss had combined with the Venetian army and forced Trivulzio out of Milan, allowing Sforza to be proclaimed Duke with their support; La Palice was then forced to withdraw across the Alps. In 1512 Thomas Grey, 2nd Marquess of Dorset led an unsuccessful English military expedition to France to reconquer Aquitaine , which England had lost during
6440-456: The Duchy of Ferrara , a French ally, and to add its territory to the Papal States. His own forces being inadequate for the venture, the Pope hired an army of Swiss mercenaries , ordering them to attack the French in Milan; he also invited Venice to ally with him against Louis. The Republic, facing a renewed French onslaught, readily accepted the offer. By July 1510, the new Veneto-Papal alliance
6624-708: The Duke of Ferrara . In return, Leo received guarantees of French noninterference in his proposed attack on the Duchy of Urbino . Finally, the Treaty of Noyon, signed by Francis and Charles V in August 1516, recognized French claims to Milan and Spanish claims to Naples, removing Spain from the war. Maximilian held out, making another attempt to invade Lombardy; his army failed to reach Milan before turning back, and by December 1516, he had entered into negotiations with Francis. The resulting Treaty of Brussels not only accepted French occupation of Milan, but also confirmed Venetian claims to
6808-584: The Duke of Longueville . Longueville had been captured at Thérouanne by John Clerke of North Weston , sent to Catherine, and lodged in the Tower of London . The idea of an exchange was reported to Alfonso d'Este Duke of Ferrara in Italy, that Catherine had promised, as Henry "sent her a captive duke, she should soon send him a king". Tournai fell to Henry VIII on 23 September. The defenders of Tournai had demolished houses in front of their gates on 11 September, and burnt their suburbs on 13 September. On 15 September
6992-401: The Earl of Surrey . In terms of troop numbers, it was the largest battle ever fought between the two kingdoms. After besieging and capturing several English border castles, James encamped his invading army on a commanding hilltop position at Flodden, awaited the English force that had been sent against him and declined a challenge to fight in an open field. Surrey's army, therefore, carried out
7176-745: The Holy Roman Empire , England , the Duchy of Milan , the Republic of Florence , the Duchy of Ferrara , and the Swiss . The war started with the Italienzug of Maximilian I, King of the Romans , crossing into Venetian territory in February 1508 with his army on the way to be crowned Holy Roman Emperor by the Pope in Rome. Meanwhile, Pope Julius II , intending to curb Venetian influence in northern Italy , brought together
7360-523: The Hundred Years' War . Ferdinand of Aragon gave none of the support he had promised. While Ferdinand delayed and tried to persuade Dorset to help him to attack Navarre instead of Aquitaine, the English army's food, beer, and pay ran out, many took to wine and became ill, and the army mutinied. Back in England, Dorset had to face a trial. In late August, the members of the League met at Mantua to discuss
7544-511: The Italian Wars . Pope Leo X , already a signatory to the anti-French Treaty of Mechlin , sent a letter to James threatening him with ecclesiastical censure for breaking his peace treaties with England on 28 June 1513, and subsequently James was excommunicated by Cardinal Christopher Bainbridge . James also summoned sailors and sent the Scottish navy, including the Great Michael , to join
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7728-459: The Italian Wars of 1499–1504 , became a 'dead letter'), but not before Venice had been induced to abandon several of the cities, except for the three key towns of Rimini, Faenza and Cervia. Julius, although unsatisfied with his gains, did not himself possess sufficient forces to fight the Republic; for the next two years he instead occupied himself with the reconquest of Bologna and Perugia , which, located between Papal and Venetian territory, had in
7912-533: The Kingdom of Navarre , though undersupplied and in poor morale. Maximilian joined the league in November. Louis XII of France hoped that Scotland would aid France against England. In May 1513 English soldiers began to arrive in number at Calais to join an army commanded by George Talbot, Earl of Shrewsbury , Lord Steward of the Household . Shrewsbury was appointed Lieutenant-General on 12 May, John Hopton commanded
8096-499: The League of Cambrai —an anti-Venetian alliance consisting of him, Maximilian I, Louis XII of France , and Ferdinand II of Aragon —which was formally concluded in December 1508. Although the League was initially successful, friction between Julius and Louis caused it to collapse by 1510; Julius then allied himself with Venice against France. The Veneto–Papal alliance eventually expanded into
8280-560: The Lyon King on 11 August at his tent at the siege was recorded. The Herald declared that Henry should abandon his efforts against the town and go home. Angered, Henry said that James had no right to summon him, and ought to be England's ally, as James was married to his (Henry's) sister, Margaret . He declared: And now, for a conclusion, recommend me to your master and tell him if he be so hardy to invade my realm or cause to enter one foot of my ground I shall make him as weary of his part as ever
8464-499: The River Till . From there, the English picked up the old Roman road known as the Devil's Causeway and headed north, making camp at Barmoor, near Lowick . James may have assumed that Surrey was heading for Berwick-upon-Tweed for resupply, but he was actually intending to outflank the Scots and either attack or blockade them from the rear. At 5 am on the morning of Friday, 9 September, after
8648-556: The Romagna . Cesare Borgia , acting as Gonfalonier of the Papal armies , had expelled the Bentivoglio family from Bologna , which they had ruled as a fief , and was well on his way towards establishing a permanent Borgia state in the region when Alexander died on 18 August 1503. Although Cesare managed to seize the remnants of the Papal treasury for his own use, he was unable to secure Rome itself, as French and Spanish armies converged on
8832-561: The Rouge Croix Pursuivant . Surrey complained that James had sent his Islay Herald , agreeing that they would join in battle on Friday between 12 noon and 3 pm, and asked that James would face him on the plain at Milfield as appointed. James had no intention of leaving his carefully prepared position, perhaps recalling the fate of the Ill Raid on the same plain; he replied to Surrey that it was "not fitting for an Earl to seek to command
9016-509: The "Grand Esquire" and the Almoner Wolsey. Henry camped to the east of Thérouanne at a heavily defended position, described by English chronicles as environed with artillery, such as " falcons , serpentines , cast hagbushes , tryde harowes , and spine trestles (bolt firing tarasnice )", with Henry's field accommodation consisting of a wooden cabin with an iron chimney, with large tents of blue water-work, yellow, and white fabric, topped by
9200-453: The Adriatic coast and willing to pay Julius II an annual tribute, refused to surrender the cities themselves. In response, Julius concluded an alliance with France and the Holy Roman Empire against Venice; the death of Isabella I of Castile (26 November 1504) and the resulting collapse of relations between the parties soon dissolved the alliance (the Treaty of Blois (1504) , which had ended
9384-532: The Dukes of Norfolk still carry an augmentation of honour awarded on account of their ancestor's victory at Flodden, a modified version of the Royal coat of arms of Scotland with the lower half of the lion removed and an arrow through the lion's mouth. At Framlingham Castle the Duke kept two silver-gilt cups engraved with the arms of James IV, which he bequeathed to Cardinal Wolsey in 1524. The Duke's descendants presented
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#17328447586259568-615: The Earl burst into tears and left, leaving his two sons, the Master of Angus and Glenbervie , with most of the Douglas kindred to fight. In the meantime, Surrey was reluctant to commit his army too early, since once in the field they had to be paid and fed at enormous expense. From his encampment at Pontefract , he issued an order for forces raised in the northern counties to assemble at Newcastle on Tyne on 1 September. Surrey had 500 soldiers with him and
9752-576: The Emperor saw that no more harm could be done them, and they were near their camp wherein were yet 20,000 foot, he retired all the men in good order and marched to the camp, remaining all night in the field. In this skirmish the English used no other cry than Burgundia. An Italian poem, La Rotta de Francciosi a Terroana on the fall of Therouanne was printed in Rome in September 1513. Maximilian also commissioned woodcut images of his meeting with Henry from Leonhard Beck , and from Albrecht Dürer who included
9936-485: The Emperor's decision for his troops to serve under Henry's standard, Hall's account suggests friction between the English and Imperial forces, during the day and over prisoners taken by the Empire, who were "not brought to sight" and released. Henry returned to his camp at Enguinegatte and heard reports of the day's actions. During the fighting the garrison of Thérouanne had come out and attacked Herbert's position. According to
10120-549: The Emperor's horsemen, but all went too high and did no hurt. Thus the Burgundians and certain English struck [them], and as they turned and the Emperor saw the Burgundians hard pressed, he at once ordered the German horsemen to attack on the flank; but before they struck the French had turned about and fled. Our horsemen pursued them until within a short mile of their camp and brought back the prisoners and banners hereafter indicated. When
10304-538: The Emperor, with 2,000 only, kept them at bay until four in the afternoon, when they were put to flight. A hundred men of arms were left upon the field, and more than a hundred taken prisoners, of the best men in France; as the Sieur de Piennes, the Marquis de Rotelin, and others. Henry sent his account to Margaret of Savoy on the following day. He mentioned that the French cavalry had first attacked Shrewsbury's position blockading
10488-548: The English at 5,000. Brian Tuke, the English Clerk of the Signet, sent a newsletter stating 10,000 Scots killed and 10,000 escaped the field. Tuke reckoned the total Scottish invasion force to have been 60,000 and the English army at 40,000. George Buchanan wrote in his History of Scotland (published in 1582) that, according to the lists that were compiled throughout the counties of Scotland, there were about 5,000 killed. A plaque on
10672-418: The English forces. Raphael Holinshed 's story is that a part of the Scottish army returned to Scotland, and the rest stayed at Ford waiting for Norham to surrender and debating their next move. James IV wanted to fight and considered moving to assault Berwick-upon-Tweed , but the Earl of Angus spoke against this and said that Scotland had done enough for France. James sent Angus home, and according to Holinshed,
10856-453: The English may have mistaken Elphinstone's body for the king. A legend arose that James had been warned against invading England by supernatural powers. While he was praying in St Michael's Kirk at Linlithgow , a man strangely dressed in blue had approached his desk saying his mother had told him to say James should not go to war or take the advice of women. Then before the king could reply,
11040-503: The English troops the chance to bring about a close-quarter battle for which they were better equipped. James IV was killed in the fighting and became the last monarch from Great Britain to die in battle. That and the loss of a large proportion of the nobility led to a political crisis in Scotland. British historians sometimes use the Battle of Flodden to mark the end of the Middle Ages in
11224-504: The English, one month in advance, of his intent to invade. This gave the English time to gather an army. After a muster on the Burgh Muir of Edinburgh, the Scottish host moved to Ellemford, to the north of Duns, Scottish Borders , and camped to wait for Angus and Home . The Scottish army, numbering some 42,000 men, crossed the River Tweed into England near Coldstream ; the exact date of
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#173284475862511408-472: The Evangelist" and the "Red Gun" had been abandoned, and French skirmishing hampered their recovery with loss of life. Edward Hall, the chronicle author, mentions the role of Henry Bourchier, Earl of Essex in this operation and the advice given by Rhys ap Thomas . An Imperial agent of Margaret of Savoy wrote that two "obstinate men" govern everything, these were Charles Brandon, Viscount Lisle who he called
11592-453: The French army would be diverted to deal with the impending English invasion, Foix and Alfonso d'Este besieged Ravenna, the last Papal stronghold in the Romagna, in hopes of forcing the Holy League into a decisive engagement. Cardona marched to relieve the city in early April 1512, and was decisively beaten in the resulting Battle of Ravenna , fought on Easter Sunday; the death of Foix during
11776-488: The French—with Ferdinand on 17 November. Louis now appointed his nephew, Gaston de Foix , to command the French forces in Italy. Foix proved more energetic than d'Amboise and Trivulzio had been; having checked the advance of Ramón de Cardona 's Spanish troops on Bologna, he returned to Lombardy to sack Brescia , which had rebelled against the French and garrisoned itself with Venetian troops. Aware that much of
11960-638: The Holy League, as the League of Cambrai was also known, on 13 October 1511 with Venice and Spain to defend the Papacy from its enemies and France with military force. Henry promised to attack France at Guyenne , landing 10,000 men at Hondarribia in the Basque Country in June 1512. This army was conveyed by the admiral Edward Howard , and commanded by Thomas Grey, 2nd Marquess of Dorset . It remained at Bayonne till October supporting Ferdinand II of Aragon 's action in
12144-405: The Holy League, which drove the French from Italy in 1512; disagreements about the division of the spoils, however, led Venice to abandon the coalition in favor of an alliance with France. Under the leadership of Francis I , who had succeeded Louis on the throne of France, the French and Venetians would regain the territory they had lost in a campaign culminating in the Battle of Marignano in 1515;
12328-507: The King's beasts, the Lion, Dragon , Greyhound , Antelope, and Dun Cow . The Emperor Maximilian came to Aire-sur-la-Lys in August, with a small force (either a small escort that cannot be called an army or about 1,000 to 4,000 horsemen, depending on the sources). Henry donned light armour and dressed his entourage in cloth-of gold and came to Aire on 11 August, where Maximilian's followers were still dressed in black in mourning for his wife Bianca Maria Sforza . Henry hosted Maximilian at
12512-406: The King, but was not made Regent of Scotland . The French soldier Antoine d'Arces arrived at Dumbarton Castle in November with a shipload of armaments which were transported to Stirling. The English already knew the details of this planned shipment from a paper found in a bag at Flodden field. Now that James IV was dead, Antoine d'Arces promoted the appointment of John Stewart, Duke of Albany ,
12696-431: The League of Cambrai , sometimes known as the War of the Holy League and several other names, was fought from February 1508 to December 1516 as part of the Italian Wars of 1494–1559. The main participants of the war, who fought for its entire duration, were France , the Papal States , and the Republic of Venice ; they were joined at various times by nearly every significant power in Western Europe , including Spain ,
12880-399: The Pope traveled to Bologna, so as to be nearby when Ferrara was taken. The French army, however, had been left unopposed by the Swiss (who, having arrived in Lombardy, had been bribed into leaving by Louis) and was free to march south into the heart of Italy. In early October, Charles II d'Amboise advanced on Bologna, splitting the Papal forces; by 18 October, he was only a few miles from
13064-411: The Republic when the Venetian ships anchored in the Po River were sunk by Ferrarese artillery. Faced with a shortage of both funds and men, the Senate decided to send an embassy to Julius in order to negotiate a settlement. The terms insisted on by the Pope were harsh: the Republic lost her traditional power to appoint clergy in her territory, as well as all jurisdiction over Papal subjects in Venice,
13248-477: The Republic. The agreement provided for the complete dismemberment of Venice's territory in Italy and for its partition among the signatories: Maximilian, in addition to regaining Gorizia , Trieste , Merania , and eastern Istria , would receive Verona , Vicenza, Padua , and the Friuli ; France would annex Brescia , Crema , Bergamo , and Cremona to its Milanese possessions; Ferdinand would seize Otranto ; and
13432-599: The Romagnan cities that had prompted the war were to be returned to Julius, and reparations were to be paid to cover his expenses in capturing them. The Senate argued over the terms for two months, but finally accepted them in February 1510; even before the Venetian ambassadors had presented themselves to Julius for absolution , however, the Council of Ten had privately resolved that the terms had been accepted under duress and were therefore invalid, and that Venice should violate them at
13616-486: The Royal Postmaster of England, in the immediate aftermath of the battle, states that about 10,000 Scots were killed, a claim repeated by Henry VIII on 16 September while he was still uncertain of the death of James IV. William Knight sent the news from Lille to Rome on 20 September, claiming 12,000 Scots had died, with fewer than 500 English casualties. Italian newsletters put the Scottish losses at 18,000 or 20,000 and
13800-511: The Scots with a sudden volley of arrows, the English killed as many as 600 of the Scots before they were able to escape, leaving their booty and the Home family banner behind them. Although the "Ill Raid" had little effect on the forthcoming campaign, it may have influenced James's decision not to fight an open battle against Surrey on the same ground. Whether the raid was undertaken solely on Lord Home's initiative, or whether it had been authorised by James
13984-495: The Scots. The pike was an effective weapon only in a battle of movement, especially to withstand a cavalry charge. The Scottish pikes were described by the author of the Trewe Encounter as "keen and sharp spears 5 yards long". Although the pike had become a Swiss weapon of choice and represented modern warfare, the hilly terrain of Northumberland, the nature of the combat, and the slippery footing did not allow it to be employed to
14168-611: The Scottish border had been sent to France. A northern army was maintained with artillery and its expense account started on 21 July. The first captains were recruited in Lambeth. Many of these soldiers wore green and white Tudor colours. Surrey marched to Doncaster in July and then Pontefract, where he assembled more troops from northern England. On 5 August, a force estimated at up to 7,000 Scottish border reivers commanded by Lord Home , crossed into Northumberland and began to pillage farms and villages, taking anything of value before burning
14352-420: The Scottish borders) were out and they detected the movement of the larger of the two bodies of French cavalry. Henry VIII drew up a field force from the siege lines sending out a vanguard of 1,100 cavalry, following this with 10,000–12,000 infantry. La Palice's force encountered English scouts at the village of Bomy , 5 miles from Thérouanne; the French, realising that the English were alert, checked themselves on
14536-413: The Scottish guns were destroyed by return fire, when in fact they were captured undamaged after the battle. The apparent silence of the Scottish artillery allowed the light English guns to turn a rapid fire on the massed ranks of infantry, although the effectiveness of this bombardment is difficult to assess. The next phase started when Home and Huntly's battle on the Scottish left advanced downhill towards
14720-411: The Scottish naval officer Sir Andrew Barton . A version of Howard's declaration to James IV that he would lead the vanguard and take no prisoners was included in later English chronicle accounts of the battle. Howard claimed his presence in "proper person" at the front was his trial by combat for Barton's death. Flodden was essentially a victory of the bill used by the English over the pike used by
14904-471: The Swiss army pursued the fleeing French over the Alps and had reached Dijon before being bribed into withdrawing. The rout at Novara inaugurated a period of defeats for the French alliance. English troops under Henry VIII besieged Thérouanne , defeated La Palice at the Battle of the Spurs , and captured Tournai . In Navarre, resistance to Ferdinand's invasion collapsed; he rapidly consolidated his hold over
15088-461: The Swiss pikemen at the Battle of Marignano , using a combination of heavy cavalry and artillery, ushering in a new era in the history of war. An official English diplomatic report issued by Brian Tuke noted the Scots' iron spears and their initial "very good order after the German fashion", but concluded that "the English halberdiers decided the whole affair, so that in the battle the bows and ordnance were of little use." Despite Tuke's comment (he
15272-474: The Venetian nobility, pursued Cardona and confronted him outside Vicenza on 7 October; in the resulting Battle of La Motta , the Venetian army was decisively defeated, with many prominent noblemen cut down outside the city walls as they attempted to flee. Cardona and Alviano continued to skirmish in the Friuli for the remainder of 1513 and through 1514. The death of Louis XII on 1 January 1515 brought Francis I to
15456-647: The Veneto, pursued closely by the Spanish army under Cardona; while the Spanish were unable to capture Padua in the face of determined Venetian resistance, they penetrated deep into Venetian territory and by late September were in sight of Venice itself. Cardona attempted a bombardment of the city that proved largely ineffective; then, having no boats with which to cross the Venetian Lagoon , turned back for Lombardy. Alviano, having been reinforced by hundreds of volunteers from
15640-446: The Veneto. Because of a lack of horses, as well as general disorganization, Maximilian's forces were slow to begin the siege of Padua , giving Pitigliano the time to concentrate such troops as were still available to him in the city. Although French and Imperial artillery successfully breached Padua's walls, the defenders managed to hold the city until Maximilian, growing impatient, lifted the siege on 1 October and withdrew to Tyrol with
15824-489: The Veneto. Julius, having in the meantime issued an interdict against Venice that excommunicated every citizen of the Republic, invaded the Romagna and captured Ravenna with the assistance of Alfonso d'Este, Duke of Ferrara . D'Este, having joined the League and been appointed Gonfalonier on 19 April, seized the Polesine for himself. The newly arrived Imperial governors, however, quickly proved to be unpopular. In mid-July,
16008-479: The archers. After suffering heavy casualties the Highlanders scattered. The fierce fighting continued, centred on the contest between Surrey and James. As other English formations overcame the Scottish forces they had initially engaged, they moved to reinforce their leader. An instruction to English troops that no prisoners were to be taken explains the exceptional mortality amongst the Scottish nobility. James himself
16192-424: The armoured front line was mostly unaffected; this is confirmed by the ballads which note that some few Scots were wounded in the scalp and, wrote Hall, James IV sustained a significant arrow wound. Many of the archers were recruited from Lancashire and Cheshire . Sir Richard Assheton raised one such company from Middleton , near Manchester . He rebuilt his parish church St. Leonard's, Middleton , which contains
16376-408: The battle and continued on his way. Alviano, disregarding the new orders, continued the engagement; his army was eventually surrounded and destroyed. Pitigliano managed to avoid encountering Louis; but his mercenary troops, hearing of Alviano's defeat, had deserted in large numbers by the next morning, forcing him to retreat to Treviso with the remnants of the Venetian army. The Venetian collapse
16560-425: The battle with an artillery duel, but his big guns did not perform as well as he had hoped. Contemporary accounts put this down to the difficulty for the Scots of shooting downhill, but another factor must have been that their guns had been poorly sited instead of being carefully emplaced, which was usually required for such heavy weapons, further slowing their ponderous rate of fire. This may explain English claims that
16744-465: The battle, there were legends that James IV had survived. A Scottish merchant at Tournai in October claimed to have spoken with him, and Lindsay of Pitscottie records two myths: "thair cam four great men upon hors, and every ane of thame had ane wisp upoun thair spear headis, quhairby they might know one another and brought the king furth of the feild, upoun ane dun hackney," and also that the king escaped from
16928-400: The battle. When James was in council at the camp at Flodden Edge, a hare ran out of his tent and escaped the weapons of his knights; it was found that mice had gnawed away the strings and buckle of the king's helmet; and in the morning his tent was spreckled with a bloody dew. The wife of James IV, Queen Margaret Tudor, is said to have awaited news of her husband at Linlithgow Palace , where
17112-656: The battlefield. In the summer of 1518 the English ambassador in Spain, Lord Berners , joked that the French had learned to ride fast at the "jurney of Spurres." The same evening the Imperial Master of the Posts, Baptiste de Tassis sent news of the battle to Margaret of Savoy from Aire-sur-la-Lys in Artois ; Early in the day the Emperor and the King of England encountered 8,000 French horse;
17296-511: The best effect. Bishop Ruthall reported to Thomas Wolsey , 'the bills disappointed the Scots of their long spears, on which they relied.' The infantrymen at Flodden, both Scots and English, had fought essentially like their ancestors, and Flodden has been described as the last great medieval battle in the British Isles. This was the last time that bill and pike would come together as equals in battle. Two years later Francis I of France defeated
17480-400: The body of the King of Scots." The chronicle writer John Stow gave a location for the king's death; "Pipard's Hill," now unknown, which may have been the small hill on Branxton Ridge overlooking Branxton church. Dacre took the body to Berwick-upon-Tweed, where according to Hall's Chronicle , it was viewed by the captured Scottish courtiers William Scott and John Forman who acknowledged it was
17664-481: The body too, as Henry had sent her the Duke of Longueville , his prisoner from Thérouanne, but "Englishmen's hearts would not suffer it." In addition to these relics, the gold crucifix worn by James IV on the field of battle, set with three balas rubies and three sapphires and containing a fragment of the True Cross, was listed in the jewel book inventory of Henry VIII in the chapel of the Tower of London . Soon after
17848-468: The citizens of Padua, aided by detachments of Venetian cavalry under the command of the proveditor Andrea Gritti , revolted. The landsknechts garrisoning the city were too few in number to mount effective resistance, and Padua was restored to Venetian control on 17 July. The success of the revolt finally pushed Maximilian into action. In early August, a massive Imperial army, accompanied by bodies of French and Spanish troops, set out from Trento into
18032-569: The city in an attempt to influence the Papal conclave ; the election of Pius III (who soon died, to be replaced by Julius II ) stripped Cesare of his titles and relegated him to commanding a company of men-at-arms. Sensing Cesare's weakness, the dispossessed lords of the Romagna offered to submit to the Republic of Venice in exchange for aid in regaining their dominions; the Venetian Senate accepted and had taken possession of Rimini , Faenza , and
18216-505: The city. Julius now realized that the Bolognese were openly hostile to the Papacy and would not offer any resistance to the French; left with only a detachment of Venetian cavalry, he resorted to excommunicating d'Amboise, who had in the meantime been convinced by the English ambassador to avoid attacking the person of the Pope and had thus withdrawn to Ferrara. In December 1510, a newly assembled Papal army conquered Concordia and besieged
18400-505: The city. On the subject of territory, however, fundamental disagreements quickly arose. Julius and the Venetians insisted that Maximilian Sforza be permitted to keep the Duchy of Milan, while Emperor Maximilian and Ferdinand maneuvered to have one of their relatives installed as duke. The Pope demanded the annexation of Ferrara to the Papal States; Ferdinand objected to this arrangement, desiring
18584-498: The close-quarter fighting that developed. It is unclear whether James had seen the difficulty encountered by the battle of the three earls, but he followed them down the slope regardless, making for Surrey's formation. James has been criticised for placing himself in the front line, thereby putting himself in personal danger and losing his overview of the field. He was, however, well-known for taking risks in battle and it would have been out of character for him to stay back. Encountering
18768-449: The completion of the muster and the arrival of the Lord Admiral whose ships had been delayed by storms. On Sunday 4 September, James and the Scottish army had taken up a position at Flodden Edge, a hill to the south of Branxton. This was an immensely strong natural feature since the flanks were protected by marshes on one side and steep slopes on the other, leaving only a direct approach. The amount of fortification which James constructed on
18952-472: The crossing is not recorded, but is generally accepted to have been 22 August. The Scottish troops were unpaid and were only required by feudal obligation to serve for forty days. Once across the border, a detachment turned south to attack Wark on Tweed Castle , while the bulk of the army followed the course of the Tweed downstream to the northeast to invest the remaining border castles. On 24 August, James IV held
19136-495: The defense of the city, was no better liked by the Bolognese than Julius himself had been; and when, in May 1511, a French army commanded by Gian Giacomo Trivulzio approached, the citizens of Bologna revolted, expelled Alidosi, and opened their gates to the French. Julius blamed this defeat on the Duke of Urbino, who, finding this quite unfair, proceeded to murder Alidosi in full view of the Papal guard. In October 1511, Julius proclaimed
19320-576: The earliest opportunity. This apparent reconciliation between Venice and the Pope did not stop multiple French, Ferrarese, and Imperial armies from invading Venetian territory in May 1510. Gianpaolo Baglioni and Andrea Gritti, left in command of the Venetian forces by Pitigliano's death in January, withdrew to Padua; by 24 May, the League's armies had taken Vicenza and the Polesine, and were advancing on Legnago . Gritti fortified Padua for an expected attack by
19504-437: The edge of a hillside. The stradiots then began their rather forlorn attempt to contact the garrison, riding in a wide arc towards the town. Historical accounts derived from English and Imperial sources differ slightly. According to Sir Charles Oman , whose narrative is largely based on the mid-16th century English Chronicle of Edward Hall , La Palice made a mistake in staying in his exposed position too long, presumably he
19688-426: The enemy and lighter cannons should be put on the ridge of the neighbouring hill. He then commanded 2,000 vanguard cavalry troops himself. Marchal reports that the emperor had prepared the battle plan in mind even before arriving at the English headquarters. Henry had wanted to lead the cavalry charge but was advised against this by his allies; so the task fell upon the 53-year-old emperor (he had won two battles in
19872-441: The engagement. Lord Lindsay advised the King to withdraw, comparing their situation to an honest merchant playing dice with a trickster, and wagering a gold rose-noble against a bent halfpenny. Their King was the gold piece, England the trickster, and Thomas Howard the halfpenny. Surrey's army lost 1,500 men killed in battle. There were various conflicting accounts of the Scottish loss. A contemporary account produced in French for
20056-475: The entire region and moved to support another English offensive in the Guyenne . James IV of Scotland invaded England at the behest of Louis; but he failed to draw Henry's attention from France, and his death—and the Scots' catastrophic defeat—at the Battle of Flodden on 9 September 1513, ended Scotland 's brief involvement in the war. Meanwhile, Alviano, unexpectedly left without French support, retreated into
20240-416: The existence of an independent Ferrara to counter growing Papal power. The Emperor refused to relinquish any Imperial territory, which in his eyes included most of the Veneto, and signed an agreement with the Pope to exclude Venice entirely from the final partition; when the Republic objected, Julius threatened to reform the League of Cambrai against her. In response, Venice turned to Louis; on 23 March 1513,
20424-450: The field but was killed between Duns and Kelso. Similarly, John Lesley adds that the body taken to England was "my lord Bonhard" and James was seen in Kelso after the battle and then went secretly on pilgrimage in far nations. George Buchanan reported a rumour that James IV had escaped the field, leaving his Squire of Attendance, Alexander Elphinstone, 1st Lord Elphinstone to fight on, and that
20608-433: The fighting, however, left the French under the command of Jacques de la Palice , who, unwilling to continue the campaign without direct orders from Louis, contented himself with thoroughly sacking Ravenna. By May 1512, the French position had deteriorated considerably. Julius had hired another army of Swiss mercenaries; they descended on Milan, bringing with them Maximilian Sforza , who was determined to regain control of
20792-565: The fleet was so badly delayed that it played no part in the war; unfortunately, James had sent most of his experienced artillerymen with the expedition, a decision which was to have unforeseen consequences for his land campaign. Henry was in France with the Emperor Maximilian at the siege of Thérouanne . The Scottish Lyon King of Arms brought James IV's letter of 26 July to him. James asked him to desist from attacking France in breach of their treaty. Henry's exchange with Islay Herald or
20976-527: The fortress of Mirandola ; d'Amboise, marching to relieve the latter, fell ill and died, briefly leaving the French in disarray; the pope took personal command of the siege, and Mirandola fell in January 1511. Alfonso d'Este, meanwhile, confronted and destroyed the Venetian forces on the Po River, leaving Bologna isolated once more; Julius, afraid of being trapped by the French, departed the city for Ravenna. Cardinal Francesco Alidosi , whom he left behind to command
21160-604: The garrison negotiated with Henry and Richard Foxe , Bishop of Winchester , on 20 September. The events within the town were misunderstood in English chronicles, Raphael Holinshed and Richard Grafton wrote that a disaffected "vaunt-parler" had set fire to the suburbs to hasten their surrender, while the Provost canvassed the townspeople's opinion. Henry attended mass in Tournai Cathedral on 2 October and knighted many of his captains. The town presented Margaret of Austria with
21344-445: The help of Thomas Wolsey , to whom he promised help in getting the bishopric of Tournai (Wolsey, who turned out to be the biggest winner in the aftermath according to Derek Wilson, did get the bishoprics of both Lincoln and Tournai. Later he relinquished the latter in exchange for a pension of 12,000 livres.). On the other hand, Henry VIII and his queen Catherine did feel genuine gratitude for Maximilian's assistance and later sent him
21528-459: The hill is disputed; several antiquaries had mapped supposed ramparts and bastions there over the centuries, but excavations conducted between 2009 and 2015 found no trace of 16th century work and concluded that James may have reused some features of an Iron Age hill fort . The Earl of Surrey, writing at Wooler Haugh on Wednesday 7 September, compared this position to a fortress in a challenge sent to James IV by his herald, Thomas Hawley ,
21712-435: The hill to attack the English on marshy ground from a favourable position, and credits the victory to Scottish inexperience rather than English valour. The letter also mentions that the Scots placed their officers in the front line in medieval style, where they were vulnerable, contrasting this loss of the nobility with the English great men who took their stand with the reserves and at the rear. The English generals stayed behind
21896-539: The honourable and sumptuous reception and friendly courtesy shown by the King of England to the Emperor Maximilian in Picardy; and of the attack and defeat which took place there before Thérouanne. Also what and how many people there were slain and captured. Also the siege of the town of Tournay and other strange histories. The book contains a woodcut of their meeting and one of Maximilian in battle. The battle at Guinegate
22080-404: The houses. Surrey had taken the precaution of sending Sir William Bulmer north with 200 mounted archers, which Bulmer augmented with locally levied men to create a force approaching 1,000 in strength. On 13 August, they prepared an ambush for the Scots as they returned north laden with the spoils of their looting, by hiding in the broom bushes that grew shoulder-high on Milfield Plain . Surprising
22264-476: The immediate aftermath of the battle, Maximilian objected to the use of his name in the battle report (even before that, he adopted the red rose and the Cross of Saint George, and declared that he would serve as Henry's soldier, to avoid the complaint that his force was too small in comparison with his position and his promises). According to Patrick Fraser Tytler , Howitt and others, Maximilian had an ulterior motive in his flattering behaviours towards Henry, which
22448-496: The intervention of Dacre's light horsemen, who were able to approach unobserved in the dead ground that had been exploited earlier by the vanguard. The eventual result was a stalemate in which both sides stood off from each other and played no further part in the battle. According to later accounts, when Huntly suggested that they rejoin the fighting, Home replied: "the man does well this day who saves himself: we fought those who were opposed to us and beat them; let our other companies do
22632-515: The king's. (Forman, the king's sergeant-porter, had been captured by Richard Assheton of Middleton.) The body was then embalmed and taken to Newcastle upon Tyne . From York , a city that James had promised to capture before Michaelmas , the body was brought to Sheen Priory near London. A payment of £12-9s-10d was made for the "sertying ledying and sawdryng of the ded course of the King of Scottes" and carrying it York and to Windsor. James's banner, sword and his cuisses (thigh-armour), were taken to
22816-500: The left wing was commanded by the Lord Home and the Earl of Huntly and consisted of a combination of Borderers and Highlanders . Next in the line was the battle commanded by the Earls of Erroll , Crawford and Montrose composed of men from the northeast of Scotland. The third was commanded by James himself together with his son Alexander and the Earls of Cassillis, Rothes and Caithness. On
23000-477: The lines in the Renaissance style. The loss of so many Scottish officers meant there was no one to coordinate a retreat. However, according to contemporary English reports, Thomas Howard marched on foot leading the English vanguard to the foot of the hill. Howard was moved to dismount and do this by taunts of cowardice sent by James IV's heralds, apparently based on his role at sea and the death two years earlier of
23184-559: The lute, harp, lyre, flute, and horn, and danced with "Madame the Bastard" till nearly dawn, "like a stag", according to the Milanese ambassador. The same day the army began the siege of Tournai, and Maximilian and Henry visited on 13 September. At this time Henry VIII was troubled by Scottish preparations for the invasion of England in support of France and had exchanged angry words with a Scottish herald at Thérouanne on 11 August. The Scots army
23368-411: The main part of his army. In mid-November, Pitigliano returned to the offensive, recapturing Vicenza , Este , Feltre , and Belluno ; an attack on Verona failed, but Pitigliano destroyed a Papal army under Francesco II of Gonzaga in the process. Angelo Trevisan organized a river attack on Ferrara by the Venetian galley fleet, but the resulting Battle of Polesella ended in another defeat for
23552-505: The man vanished. David Lindsay of the Mount and John Inglis could find no trace of him. The historian R. L. Mackie wondered if the incident really happened as a masquerade orchestrated by an anti-war party: Norman Macdougall doubts if there was a significant anti-war faction. Three other portents of disaster were described by Paolo Giovio in 1549 and repeated in John Polemon's 1578 account of
23736-500: The meantime assumed a status of quasi-independence. In 1507, Julius returned to the question of the cities in Venetian hands; once again rebuffed by the Senate, he encouraged Emperor Maximilian I to attack the Republic. Maximilian, using his journey to Rome for the Imperial coronation as a pretext, entered Venetian territory with a large army in February 1508 and advanced on Vicenza , but
23920-427: The monument to the 2nd Duke of Norfolk (as the Earl of Surrey became in 1514) at Thetford put the figure at 17,000. Edward Hall, thirty years after, wrote in his Chronicle that "12,000 at the least of the best gentlemen and flower of Scotland" were slain. As the nineteenth-century antiquarian John Riddell supposed, nearly every noble family in Scotland would have lost a member at Flodden. The dead are remembered by
24104-407: The morning of 14 September, led to a decisive victory for Francis and the Venetians. After the victory at Marignano, Francis advanced on Milan, capturing the city on 4 October and removing Sforza from the throne. In December, he met with Leo at Bologna; the pope, who had in the meantime been deserted by the remainder of his Swiss mercenaries, surrendered Parma and Piacenza to Francis and Modena to
24288-704: The names and arrivals of Henry's aristocratic military entourage from 6 June onwards. At the end of the month the army set out for Thérouanne . Shrewsbury commanded the vanguard of 8,000, and Charles Somerset, Lord Herbert the rearward of 6,000. Henry VIII sailed from Dover, and arrived at Calais on 30 June, with the main grouping of 11,000 men. The army was provided by Cardinal Thomas Wolsey as Almoner , and comprised several different types of martial forces including cavalry , artillery , infantry , and longbowmen using arrows with hardened steel heads, designed to penetrate armour more effectively. Eight hundred German mercenaries marched in front of Henry. Shrewsbury set up
24472-402: The new Scottish position which was obscured by smoke from burning rubbish; when he finally caught sight of the Scottish army arrayed on Branxton Hill, he sent a messenger to his father urging him to hurry and also sending his Agnus Dei pendant to underline the gravity of his situation. In the meantime, he positioned his troops on the dead ground from where he hoped that the Scots could not assess
24656-501: The north of England to counter the expected invasion. Some of the guns had been returned to use against the Scots by Margaret of Austria, Duchess of Savoy . A year earlier, Thomas Howard, Earl of Surrey , had been appointed Lieutenant-General of the army of the north and was issued with banners of the Cross of St George and the Red Dragon of Wales . Only a small number of the light horsemen of
24840-471: The opposite troops commanded by Edmund Howard. They advanced, according to the English, "in good order, after the Alamayns [i.e. German] manner, without speaking a word". The Scots had placed their most heavily armoured men in the front rank so that the English archers had little impact. The outnumbered English battle was forced back and elements of it began to run off. Surrey saved his son from disaster by ordering
25024-453: The other flank of the French horsemen. Panic now seized the French cavalry, whose retreat became a rout. La Palice tried to rally them but to no effect. In order to flee more quickly the French gendarmes threw away their lances and standards, some even cut away the heavy armour of their horses. The chase went on for many miles until the French reached their infantry at Blangy. During the pursuit many notable French knights were captured, along with
25208-504: The overlord of Scotland. Conflict began when James IV, King of Scots , declared war on England to honour the Auld Alliance with France by diverting Henry's English troops from their campaign against the French king, Louis XII . At this time, England was involved as a member of the " Catholic League " in the War of the League of Cambrai , defending Italy and the Pope from the French, a part of
25392-532: The rear. The English infantry was equipped with traditional polearms , mostly bills which were their favoured weapon. There was also a large contingent of well-trained archers armed with the English longbow . The English artillery consisted of light field guns of rather old-fashioned design, typically firing a ball of only about 1 pound (0.45 kg), but they were easily handled and capable of rapid fire. At about 4 pm on Friday in wet and windy weather, James began
25576-589: The remainder of the Imperial possessions in Lombardy (except for Cremona), effectively ending the war with a return to the status quo of 1508. The peace, however, would last only four years; the growing rivalry between the House of Valois and the House of Habsburg , and the election of Charles V as Holy Roman Emperor in 1519, would soon lead to the Italian War of 1521–26 . Battle of Guinegate (1513) Henry VIII joined
25760-601: The remainder, including Rimini and Ravenna , would be added to the Papal States. The danger to the Republic of Venice was imminent, so in April 1509 the Venetian Senate immediately ordered to assemble an army of about 50,000 soldiers in Pontevico , along the Oglio river , while the main Venetian generals assembled in its Castle . On 9 May 1509, Louis crossed the Adda River at the head of
25944-400: The report, three English soldiers of note were killed, with 3,000 French casualties. Nine French standards were captured, with 21 noble prisoners dressed in cloth-of-gold. On 20 August, now unthreatened by French counter-attacks, Henry moved his camp from Guinegate to the south of the town. Thérouanne fell on 22 August, according to diplomatic reports the garrison were initially unimpressed by
26128-856: The right, the Earls of Argyll and Lennox commanded a force drawn from the Highlands and Islands . Some sources state that there was a fifth battle acting as a reserve, perhaps commanded by the Earl of Bothwell . The Scottish infantry had been equipped with 18 feet (5.5 m) long pikes by their French allies; a new weapon which had proved devastating in continental Europe, but required training, discipline and suitable terrain to use effectively. The Scottish artillery, consisting mainly of heavy siege guns , included five great curtals and two great culverins (known as "the Seven Sisters"), together with four sakers , and six great serpentines. These modern weapons fired an iron ball weighing up to 66 pounds (30 kg) to
26312-473: The same area, including the First Guinegate where he was a young leader supported by veterans), who in battle acted as commander-in-chief of the allied forces and directed the military operations in person. He charged with the cavalry against the French as soon as contact was made. The French cavalry initially charged back strongly, but quickly gave way and retreated. According to Howitt, the French retreat
26496-525: The same difficulties as the previous attack, James's men nevertheless fought their way to Surrey's bodyguard but no further. The final uncommitted Scottish formation, Argyll and Lennox's Highlanders held back, perhaps awaiting orders. The last English formation to engage was Stanley's force which, after following a circuitous route from Barmoor, finally arrived on the right of the Scottish line. They loosed volleys of arrows into Argyll and Lennox's battle, whose men lacked armour or any other effective defence against
26680-534: The same time, Bartolomeo d'Alviano and the Venetian army marched west from Padua. The unpopularity of Maximilian Sforza, who was seen by the Milanese as a puppet of his Swiss mercenaries, enabled the French to move through Lombardy with little resistance; Trémoille, having seized Milan, besieged the remaining Swiss in Novara . On 6 June, the French were attacked by a Swiss relief army at the Battle of Novara , and were routed despite having superior numbers. Detachments of
26864-403: The same!". In the meantime, James had observed Home and Huntly's initial success and ordered the advance of the next battle in line, commanded by Errol, Crawford and Montrose. At the foot of Branxton Hill, they encountered an unforeseen obstacle, an area of marshy ground, identified by modern hydrologists as a groundwater seepage zone, made worse by days of heavy rain. As they struggled to cross
27048-627: The ships of Louis XII of France. The fleet of twenty-two vessels commanded by James Hamilton, 1st Earl of Arran , departed from the Firth of Forth on 25 July accompanied by James as far as the Isle of May , intending to pass around the north of Scotland and create a diversion in Ireland before joining the French at Brest , from where it might cut the English line of communication across the English Channel . However,
27232-497: The shrine of Saint Cuthbert at Durham Cathedral. Much of the armour of the Scottish casualties was sold on the field, and 350 suits of armour were taken to Nottingham Castle . A list of horses taken at the field runs to 24 pages. Thomas Hawley, the Rouge Croix pursuivant, was first with news of the victory. He brought the "rent surcoat of the King of Scots stained with blood" to Catherine of Aragon at Woburn Abbey . She sent news of
27416-463: The siege. In July a force of 800 Albanians commanded by Captain Fonterailles pushed through the besieger's lines and successfully delivered gunpowder and supplies including bacon to the gates of the town, leaving 80 soldiers as reinforcements. Fonterailles was helped by covering artillery fire from the town. Reports sent to Venice mentioned 300 English casualties or more, and Fonterailles' statement that
27600-472: The situation in Italy and the partition of territory acquired from the French. They quickly came to an agreement regarding Florence , which had angered Julius by allowing Louis to convene the Council of Pisa in its territory; at the Pope's request, Ramon de Cardona marched into Tuscany , smashed Florentine resistance, overthrew the Florentine Republic , and installed Giuliano de' Medici as ruler of
27784-441: The size of his force. James declined to attack the vulnerable vanguard, reportedly saying that he was "determined to have them all in front of me on one plain field and see what all of them can do against me". James' army, somewhat reduced from the original 42,000 by sickness and desertion, still amounted to about 34,000, outnumbering the English force by 8,000. The Scottish army was organised into four divisions or battles . That on
27968-653: The song (and pipe tune) " Flowers of the Forest ": Contemporary English ballads also recalled the significance of the Scottish losses: A legend grew that while the artillery was being prepared in Edinburgh before the battle, a demon called Plotcock had read out the names of those who would be killed at the Mercat Cross on the Royal Mile . According to Pitscottie, a former Provost of Edinburgh , Richard Lawson, who lived nearby, threw
28152-422: The south of the besieging lines where Lord Herbert commanded. Both attacks were designed to act as diversions in order that the stradiots be able to reach Thérouanne with supplies. Each stradiot had a side of bacon at his saddlebow and a sack of gunpowder behind him. The French had hoped to catch the besieging army unprepared by moving out before dawn; however, the English 'border prickers' ( light cavalry from
28336-583: The story that James wasted valuable time at Ford enjoying the company of Elizabeth, Lady Heron and her daughter. Edward Hall says that Lady Heron was a prisoner (in Scotland), and negotiated with James IV and the Earl of Surrey her own release and that Ford Castle would not be demolished for an exchange of prisoners. The English herald, Rouge Croix , came to Ford to appoint a place for battle on 4 September, with extra instructions that any Scottish heralds who were sent to Surrey were to be met where they could not view
28520-407: The threat and ordered his army to break camp and move to Branxton Hill, a commanding position which would deny the feature to the English and still give his pike formations the advantage of a downhill attack if the opportunity arose. The disadvantage was that the Scots were moving onto ground that had not been reconnoitred. The Lord Admiral, arriving with his vanguard at Branxton village, was unaware of
28704-500: The throne; having assumed the title of Duke of Milan at his coronation, Francis immediately moved to reclaim his holdings in Italy. By July, Francis had assembled an army in the Dauphiné ; a combined Swiss and Papal force moved north from Milan to block the Alpine passes against him, but Francis, following the advice of Gian Giacomo Trivulzio, avoided the main passes and marched instead through
28888-485: The title; Copia von der erlichen und kostlichen enpfahung ouch früntliche erbietung desz Küngs von Engelland Keyser Maximilian in Bickardy ( Picardy ) gethon, Unnd von dem angryff und nyderlegung do selbs vor Terbona (Thérouanne) geschähen. Ouch was un wy vyl volck do gewäsen, erschlagen, und gefangen. Ouch die Belägerung der stat Bornay (sic: Tournai) und ander seltzam geschichten , (1513), which can be translated as; Of
29072-536: The town could hold out till the feast day of the Nativity of the Virgin , on 8 September. The Venetians were aware that their French sources might have been misrepresenting the situation to gain their support. A second French attempt was organized for 16 August, with a force assembled at Blangy to the south. This French army was made up of companies of gendarmes and pikemen , with some other troops as well. These included
29256-407: The town, capturing 44 men and wounding 22. An Imperial cavalry manoeuvre brought the French horse within range of the guns, and the French cavalry fled. The chronicle writer Edward Hall gave a somewhat different account. Hall, who says the French called it the "battle of the Spurs", centres the action around a hill, with English archers at the village of "Bomye." He has the French cavalry break after
29440-483: The treaties of Noyon (August 1516) and Brussels (December 1516), which ended the war the next year, would essentially return the map of Italy to the status quo of 1508. This is an overview of notable events including battles during the war. In the aftermath of the First Italian War (1494–1498), Pope Alexander VI had, with French assistance, moved to consolidate Papal control over central Italy by seizing
29624-476: The troop ships. On 17 May Henry announced to the Cinque Ports and Edward Poynings , Constable of Dover Castle , that he would join the invasion in person, and had appointed commissioners to requisition all shipping. In Henry's absence across the sea ( ad partes transmarinas ), Catherine of Aragon would rule England and Wales as Rector and Governor ( Rectrix et Gubernatrix ). The Chronicle of Calais recorded
29808-418: The troops from Newcastle having been ambushed and looted by local Englishmen. During a council of war on Wednesday evening, an ingenious alternative plan was devised, advised by "the Bastard" Heron, who had intimate local knowledge and had recently arrived at the English camp. On Thursday, 8 September, Surrey moved his army from Wooler Haugh and instead of heading northwest towards Flodden, he turned east across
29992-576: The unique "Flodden Window." It depicts and names the archers and their priest in stained glass. The window has been called the oldest known war memorial in the UK. The success of the Cheshire yeomanry, under the command of Richard Cholmeley , led to his later appointment as Lieutenant of the Tower of London . As a reward for his victory, Thomas Howard was subsequently restored to the title of Duke of Norfolk , lost by his father's support for Richard III . The arms of
30176-496: The valley of the Stura . The French vanguard surprised the Milanese cavalry at Villafranca , capturing Prospero Colonna ; meanwhile, Francis and the main body of the French confronted the Swiss at the Battle of Marignano on 13 September. The Swiss advance initially made headway; however, Francis's superiority in cavalry and artillery, together with the timely arrival of Alviano (who had successfully avoided Cardona's army at Verona) on
30360-411: The victory to Henry VIII at Tournai with Hawley, and then sent John Glyn on 16 September with James's coat (and iron gauntlets ) and a detailed account of the battle written by Lord Howard. Brian Tuke mentioned in his letter to Cardinal Bainbridge that the coat was lacerated and chequered with blood. Catherine suggested Henry should use the coat as his battle-banner, and wrote she had thought to send him
30544-412: The waterlogged ground, the Scots lost the cohesion and momentum on which pike formations depended for success. Once the line was disrupted, the long pikes became an unwieldy encumbrance, and the Scots began to drop them "so that it seemed as if a wood were falling down" according to a later English poem. Reaching for their side-arms of swords and axes, they found themselves outreached by the English bills in
30728-428: The wives and children of the townspeople were ordered to repair damage to the walls caused by the besieger's cannon. On the same day the town council proposed a vote on whether the town should declare for France or the Empire. The vote was suspended ( mis en surseance ) and the people appointed deputies to treat with Henry VIII. Charles Brandon captured one of the gatehouses and took away two of its statues as trophies, and
30912-454: Was a battle composed of men from Cheshire, Lancashire and Yorkshire, commanded by Surrey's third son, Lord Edmund Howard . Of the central battles, one was commanded by the Lord Admiral and the other by Surrey himself. Sir Edward Stanley 's force of cavalry and archers had been the last to leave Barmoor and would not arrive on the left flank until later in the day. A reserve of mounted Borderers commanded by Thomas, Baron Dacre were positioned to
31096-505: Was complete. Louis proceeded to occupy Venetian territory as far east as Brescia without encountering any significant resistance; the Venetians lost all the territory that they had accumulated in northern Italy during the previous century. The major cities that had not been occupied by the French—Padua, Verona, and Vicenza—were left undefended by Pitigliano's withdrawal, and quickly surrendered to Maximilian when Imperial emissaries arrived in
31280-454: Was defeated at the battle of Flodden on 9 September. Before Tournai fell Catherine of Aragon sent John Glyn to Henry with the blood-stained coat and gauntlets of James IV of Scotland . Catherine suggested Henry should use the coat as his battle-banner, and wrote that she had thought to send him the body too, but "Englishmen's hearts would not suffer it." It was suggested that James' body would be her exchange with Henry for his French prisoner,
31464-418: Was defeated by a Venetian army under Bartolomeo d'Alviano ( Battle of Cadore , 2 March 1508). A second assault by a Tyrolean force several weeks later was an even greater failure; Alviano not only routed the Imperial army but also seized the entire County of Gorizia , Austrian Istria (county of Pazin ), as well as Trieste , Fiume , and the westernmost portions of Carniola , forcing Maximilian to conclude
31648-526: Was described in this manner; About twelve o'clock the French in three divisions appeared upon another hill (for here and there are little hills and valleys); and as soon as the Emperor knew it he got up and sent for the German horsemen, numbering scarcely 1,050, and the Burgundians, about 1,000 (or 2,000), and commanded to muster the troops and to keep the Germans by him. The French united in one division amounting to 10,000 (or 7,000) cavalry in array and fired guns at
31832-461: Was doing so in order to allow the stradiots the greatest possibility of success. The English heavy cavalry of the vanguard drew up opposite Palice's front, while the mounted archers dismounted and shot at the French from a flanking hedgerow. Now aware of the approach of the English infantry in overwhelming numbers, La Palice tardily ordered his force to retreat. At this point the Clarenceux Herald
32016-467: Was intended as a distraction that would allow Duke of Alençon to provide the city with supplies (but the Duke was repelled by Lord Herbert before reaching the gates of the city), but soon turned into a disastrous flight that the French commanders could not control. The day was soon called the "Battle of the Spurs" (in French: La Journée d'Esperons ) because of the haste of the French horse to leave
32200-524: Was intended to rule in the name of Margaret Tudor and her son James V of Scotland . The full Parliament of Scotland met at Stirling Castle on 21 October, where the 17-month-old King was crowned in the Chapel Royal. The General Council of Lords made special provisions for the heirs of those killed at Flodden, following a declaration made by James IV at Twiselhaugh, and protection for their widows and daughters. Margaret Tudor remained guardian or 'tutrix' of
32384-570: Was killed in the final stage of the battle; his body was found surrounded by the corpses of his bodyguard of the Archers' Guard, recruited from the Forest of Ettrick and known as "the Flowers of the Forest". Despite having the finest armour available, the king's corpse was found to have two arrow wounds, one in the jaw, and wounds from bladed weapons to the neck and wrist. He was the last monarch to die in battle in
32568-403: Was later understood by some historians (such as Comyn ) as Maximilian acting like a mercenary soldier, as Henry was the side who footed the bill for the whole campaign. Additionally, Maximilian wanted to destroy the city walls of Tournai (which usually served as a foothold for French intervention and threatened his grandson Charles's Burgundian territories). He accomplished this with his counsel and
32752-558: Was man that began any such business. And one thing I ensure him by the faith that I have to the Crown of England and by the word of a King, there shall never King nor Prince make peace with me that ever his part shall be in it. Moreover, fellow, I care for nothing but for misentreating of my sister, that would God she were in England on a condition she cost the Schottes King not a penny. Henry also replied by letter on 12 August, writing that James
32936-478: Was mistaken and that any of his attempts on England would be resisted. Using the pretext of revenge for the murder of Robert Kerr, a Warden of the Scottish East March who had been killed by John "The Bastard" Heron in 1508, James invaded England with an army of about 30,000 men. However, both sides had been making lengthy preparations for this conflict. Henry VIII had already organised an army and artillery in
33120-458: Was not present), this battle was one of the first major engagements in the British Isles where artillery was significantly deployed. John Lesley , writing sixty years later, noted that the Scottish bullets flew over the English heads while the English cannon was effective: the one army placed so high and the other so low. The Scots' advance down the hill was resisted by a hail of arrows, an incident celebrated in later English ballads. Hall says that
33304-433: Was on the offensive. An initial attack on French-occupied Genoa failed, but Venetian troops under Lucio Malvezzo finally drove the French from Vicenza in early August, and a joint force commanded by Francesco Maria della Rovere , the Duke of Urbino , captured Modena on 17 August. Julius now excommunicated Alfonso d'Este, thus justifying an attack on the Duchy of Ferrara itself; in anticipation of his coming victory,
33488-637: Was planned to burn the town after demolition was completed. On 5 September Pope Leo X was told of the English victories by the Florentine ambassador and his congratulations were conveyed to Cardinal Wolsey. While demolition continued at Thérouanne, after discussions on 4 September, allied attention moved to Tournai , though Henry would have preferred an attack on Boulogne . Maximilian and Henry went to St Pol , St Venan , Neve and Béthune , and on 10 September Henry entered Lille with great ceremony where Margaret of Savoy held court. That evening, Henry played on
33672-472: Was regent in England. On 27 August, she issued warrants for the property of all Scotsmen in England to be seized. On hearing of the invasion on 3 September, she ordered Thomas Lovell to raise an army in the Midland counties . She prepared banners for an army, including her heraldry, in case she herself was called north. In keeping with his understanding of the medieval code of chivalry , King James sent notice to
33856-497: Was to be joined at Newcastle by 1,000 experienced soldiers and sailors with their artillery, who would arrive by sea under the command of Surrey's son, also called Thomas Howard , the Lord High Admiral of England . By 28 August, Surrey had arrived at Durham Cathedral where he was presented with the banner of Saint Cuthbert , which had been carried by the English in victories against the Scots in 1138 and 1346. On 3 September, Surrey moved his advanced guard to Alnwick while he awaited
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