Qualla: Siege of Montargis

Siege of Montargis: Introduction

Sat, 14 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit AnonymousUnknown author, Public domain. The defenders of Montargis opened the sluice gates, and the Loire campaign of the Hundred Years' War began to turn before Joan of Arc ever lifted a sword. It was September 1427, and a French garrison perched on high ground between the Loing and Vernisson rivers had endured nearly two months of English bombardment. What happened next was not a feat of arms in the traditional sense but an act of hydraulic warfare, a calculated unleashing of water that swept away a bridge, divided an army, and handed France one of its first significant victories in a conflict that had been going badly for decades.

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Siege of Montargis: The Stronghold Between Rivers

Sat, 14 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit AnonymousUnknown author, Public domain. Montargis occupied a natural defensive position that any medieval commander would envy. The town sat on elevated ground, flanked by the Loing and Vernisson rivers and threaded with canals that turned the surrounding terrain into a web of waterways. In June 1427, John of Lancaster...

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Siege of Montargis: Water as a Weapon

Sat, 14 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit AnonymousUnknown author, Public domain. By early September, the English had made little progress, and Dauphin Charles saw an opportunity. He dispatched a relief force of 1,600 men under two commanders who would soon become famous: Jean de Dunois, the Bastard of Orleans, and the fearsome captain known as La Hire. Dunois...

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Siege of Montargis: A Third of an Army Lost

Sat, 14 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit AnonymousUnknown author, Public domain. The result was devastating for the English. Warwick lost a full third of his troops in the rout, along with all of his artillery and baggage. The survivors fled in disorder. For an army that had dominated northern France for years, the defeat at Montargis was a shock. The victory...

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