Qualla: Battle of Meung-sur-Loire

Battle of Meung-sur-Loire: Introduction

Sat, 14 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Jean Pichore, Public domain. By the end of 1428, virtually all of France north of the Loire had fallen to English occupation. The river itself had become a front line, and every bridge crossing was a strategic prize. On 15 June 1429, barely five weeks after the miraculous relief of Orleans, Joan of Arc and the Duke of Alencon led a French army to the small town of Meung-sur-Loire and made a decision that revealed a new kind of French confidence: rather than assault the heavily defended town and its imposing castle, they ignored both entirely and struck straight at the bridge.

Image: Jean Pichore | Public domain

Battle of Meung-sur-Loire: The River That Divided France

Sat, 14 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Jean Pichore, Public domain. Meung-sur-Loire sat on the northern bank of the Loire in the Loiret, slightly west of Orleans. Its bridge was one of several river crossings the English controlled as staging points for their planned conquest of southern France. The bridge at Orleans had been destroyed during the...

Image: Jean Pichore | Public domain

Battle of Meung-sur-Loire: A Roll Call of Warriors

Sat, 14 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Jean Pichore, Public domain. The French force that arrived at Meung-sur-Loire was commanded by Joan of Arc and Duke John II of Alencon, but its roster of captains reads like a who's who of late medieval French warfare. Jean d'Orleans, the Bastard of Orleans who had helped defend the city during its siege, wa...

Image: Jean Pichore | Public domain

Battle of Meung-sur-Loire: Bypassing the Stronghold

Sat, 14 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Jean Pichore, Public domain. English defenses at Meung-sur-Loire comprised three elements: the walled town, a large walled castle just outside it that served as Talbot's headquarters, and the fortification guarding the bridge itself. A conventional approach would have meant besieging all three in sequence, a...

Image: Jean Pichore | Public domain

Battle of Meung-sur-Loire: The Campaign That Broke England's Back

Sat, 14 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Jean Pichore, Public domain. The seizure of the bridge at Meung-sur-Loire hampered English movement south of the Loire at a critical moment. Combined with the storming of Jargeau three days earlier and the subsequent siege of Beaugency, it stripped the English of their river crossing network in central Franc...

Image: Jean Pichore | Public domain