In the second half of the 15th century. Duke of Burgundy Charles the Bold decided to bring together his lands through the annexation of Lorraine and some other lands. The territorial claims of Lorraine, France and the Burgundian state eventually let the country down in 1474-1477. to the war called Burgundy. The main force against the Burgundians was the Swiss. They were allies of the French king, or rather, mercenaries. Louis XI later signed peace with Charles the Bold, but Duke René of Lorraine continued to fight after the loss of a strong ally. He managed to win over the Swiss, whose army at that time was very powerful, which kept all neighbors in fear.
"Battle of Nancy". Eugene Delacroix. Of course, I understand that this is art, but there is very little snow …
Civil strife and wars on the territory of other states, which had no end, formed and subsequently strengthened the Swiss Union. Swiss mercenaries were in demand in Europe. Quite a few military leaders would like to get them into their service. A decree was adopted, according to which every inhabitant of the canton is obliged to have excellent weapons and to march on the first order. The requirements were extremely strict: all male residents were considered liable for military service, first from the age of sixteen, and later from the age of fourteen. The dwelling of the evader was to be destroyed. Usually this was not brought to this, since there were always more people willing to fight than was required. Therefore, those who did not fall under the "conscription" for military service were considered a reserve. Communities were charged with supplying the army with provisions and beasts of burden. In addition, each warrior was required to have excellent possession of the pike and halberd, as well as the ability to throw stones and shoot accurately with a crossbow. In the communities there was a kind of commission that was obliged to check the availability of weapons and their quality, as well as the ability to handle weapons.
The infantry went on the attack, closely closing ranks and putting sharply sharpened pikes in all directions. This form of formation was called "battle", the Swiss called it "hedgehog". Military exercises were held to the sound of a drum. The soldiers were taught to walk in ranks, without losing their place and walking strictly behind the one in front, and focusing on the detachment's banner. During the battle, the banners were always at the center of the battle. The insignia of the soldiers were white crosses depicted on uniforms. The Swiss army was closer to the infantry in terms of the type of troops. Moreover, it was very heterogeneous, there were halberdists, pikemen, crossbowmen, and arquebusiers. The breakdown of the Swiss troops into battles made it possible to diversify military operations, both when deploying into battle formation from a marching one, as well as for conducting a battle. The tactical novelty was the introduction of several elements of an oncoming engagement. In addition, in the tactics of combat, a kind of symbiosis of three types of troops was used: cavalry, infantry and artillery, at that time the youngest type of troops.
"Karl the Bold". Portrait by Rogier van der Weyden, 1460. That is, he wrote it from nature, which is very important!
This is how a contemporary who witnessed the performance of the marching Swiss column recalled that time. “At the head of the marching column are 12 mounted crossbowmen, followed by two horsemen, several workers with axes, drummers and a company of soldiers armed with long pikes, numbering over 500. The commanders walk three in a row. The second detachment consists of 200 arquebusiers and 200 halberdists, followed by a banner accompanied by two officials of the state court. The main force of the column consists of 400 superbly armed halberdiers, 400 crossbowmen and a large number of pikemen. The main forces are closed by two trumpeters, followed by the commander of the entire detachment, the captain. The trailing squad includes pikemen and crossbowmen, led by a knight who oversees order during the battle. A wagon train, consisting of 30 wagons with ammunition and four bombards, moves next. In total, the marching column included about 4,000 people."
The Swiss army was quite large. As an example, the Swiss Union fielded 70,000 people at the start of the Burgundian War. In addition, the Swiss were well prepared for the fighting. However, one cannot fail to note the inhuman cruelty of the Swiss soldiers. During the hostilities, they did not take prisoners, but only captured them for public execution in the square during a folk festival. This was done for a reason, but in order to suppress the enemy's fighting spirit and demoralize him.
In comparison with the Swiss army, the army of Charles the Bold was not small and weak, but it was backward in terms of military science. It was an ordinary medieval army, its main strength was the knightly cavalry. The main division of the army of Burgundy is the knightly "spear", of which the company consisted, which later became an organizational and tactical unit. The Duke of Burgundy in 1471, using the innovation of the French army, organized Ordinance companies (or troops, which were recruited by ordinance). The same troops did not disband in peacetime. The duke's talent as a military organizer was unsurpassed: thanks to him, the company, as a structure in a military unit, became more organized and perfect.
Karl the Bold introduced into the Ordinance companies such a structure as a unit, which included 10 "copies" of 10 people, then the company began to include 25 "copies", which were divided into 4 "squadrons" of six "copies" each; The 25th "spear" was considered a "personal spear" for the company commander. The "spear" consisted of eight warriors: a gendarme - a knight, a "kutilier" (an infantryman armed with a spear with a hook), a page, a crossbowman, three horse archers, a kulevriner (an arrow from a kulevrin rifle). Each company relied on its own banner of a strictly defined color with its own number on the panel.
Typical knight of the Ordinance company 1475-1485 Wallace Collection, London.
When lining up for the order of battle, the ordinance company lined up in four ranks: first the knights, then the "revelry", the third and fourth were the horse-drawn riflemen. The knights were the main force of the company. Horse-drawn archers and "revelry" served as cover and protection for the knight. Karl the Bold streamlined life in the army, regularly paid salaries to soldiers, ensured an uninterrupted supply of food, in addition, vacations were also provided. But the soldiers were required to strictly adhere to military discipline.
Breastplate of a knight of an ordinance company with a characteristic lance hook - a forehead. It is the presence of the foreskin that most often determines the belonging of the armor. There is - combat or tournament for a spear duel, but the tournament must have a reinforcement on the left (grand guard) and a corresponding helmet. If there is no foreskin, then it is, as a rule, ceremonial armor, or for a foot duel, but then they must have an appropriate "skirt". Philadelphia Museum of Art. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
The military leader also took care of the "body festival" for the servicemen: in each company, no more than 30 women were allowed to be present (and therefore follow in the campaign). The condition was strict: a woman cannot belong to only one warrior. In addition to the division into "spears", the Burgundian duke introduced distinctions according to the types of troops, which was required by the tactics of warfare. Special regulations were spelled out, which contained certain rules for conducting military maneuvers (which in itself was nonsense!). The tasks were set quite specific: heavy horsemen with spears at the ready must learn to attack in a dense formation, be able to separate and again assemble into combat units. Horse archers were trained in proper dismounting from a horse, accurate archery and, in addition, the ability to fight together with pikemen.
Unconditional obedience to the "regulations" of military service and training became that very solid foundation, which later entered the canons of the regular army. And so it happened that the Ordonance companies from the army of Charles the Bold became the basis of the regular army in Western Europe. From the very beginning of the war, the obvious superiority of the Swiss army over the Burgundian army became noticeable. October 1474 turned out to be fatal for Charles: the Swiss, together with the militia from the Alsatian allied cities, having begun a military campaign against the duke, entered his domain. In the very first battle of Guericourt, the Burgundians suffered a crushing defeat.
Coat of arms of Duke Charles of Burgundy (1433 - 1477), Count de Charolais.
Throughout the next year, the Swiss Union acted as energetically and decisively, continuing to capture more and more territories. Karl tried in vain to regain lost ground, failure after failure pursued him. It all ended in 1476 on March 2 with the loss of Lorraine at the Battle of Grandson and another defeat.
Battle of Murten 1476 Bern, City Library.
The summer of the same year brought a new misfortune - the defeat of the troops at Murten. The situation became hopeless, but the Duke remained cool. Organizational talent once again did not disappoint the duke. Collecting into a single whole all that remained of the army, and pulling up reinforcements, he laid siege to the city of Nancy. The twenty thousandth army of the Duke of Lorraine Rene, which consisted of the French, Austrians, Alsatians, Lorraine and Swiss, urgently moved to rescue the inhabitants of the besieged city. The main striking force of this multinational army was the Swiss infantry, for which the Duke of Lorraine paid a very large sum. The Duke of Burgundy did not intend to abandon Nancy, although due to the outbreak of famine in the besieged city, the situation became more and more tragic, and it was going to surrender the city.
There was only one way out: to start a battle, and it took place in 1477 on January 5. The army of Charles the Bold numbered about 14,000 people, of whom 4,000 soldiers were left in the rear to prevent possible sorties from the besieged Nancy. Karl the Bold planned to replenish the shortage of infantry with a large amount of artillery and an equally large number of hand-held firearms. Choosing a place for battle, Karl gave the order to the infantry to gain a foothold between the Mertha River and the forest, the front to the south, leaving a narrow passage. The cavalry took place on the right and left sides of the infantry. The rear of the infantry was covered by a fast stream. Charles's plan was that the intense fire of artillery and riflemen broke the enemy's infantry, thereby stopping his advance, and then, pushing the knights into the attack, throw him back. Karl the Bold, unfortunately, miscalculated about the rear cover. The allies formed three columns, of which the rearguard displayed false activity in the center. Meanwhile, the main forces in two columns, on the left and on the right, took in pincers both flanks of the Burgundian army.
Field armor of Duke Ulrich von Württemberg 1507 Philadelphia Museum of Art. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
The strong blizzard that broke out that day was only in their hands. Making their way through a dense forest and crossing a stream on icy water, the Swiss were very exhausted, but it was worth it: the road was cut significantly, and the troops of Rene of Lorraine came out just in time for the flank of the Burgundians.
The decisive attack made by the Burgundian knights was at first successful, but the Swiss infantry stepped in and pushed the knights far back. The Burgundians tried to bring artillery into battle, but the attempt failed. Bombards, firing in poor visibility conditions, failed to break the dense ranks of the Swiss. Swept away the Burgundians, the main force of the allies, which was advancing in a column forward. An equally strong column of the vanguard approached them from the other side. Walking in close formation along the river bank, she was out of reach of the Burgundian guns. The Burgundians were caught in the pincers and did not have the opportunity to repel the superior forces of the infantry, which led to the shameful flight and to their complete defeat. Most of the Burgundian troops were killed, and Charles the Bold himself was killed. According to legend, trying to wade the stream, the wounded duke fell from his horse and … froze to death. His corpse, disfigured by the inflicted wounds, was identified only by a luxurious fur coat. It is said that part of his body was eaten by wolves. Duke Rene II ordered to bury the ashes of Charles the Bold in the Church of Saint-Georges in the same place in Nancy. Much later, the coffin with the body was transported to Bruges, to the Church of Our Lady.
Arme 1500 Italy. Weight 3350 g. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.
The Battle of Nancy had a very serious political significance. The long-term enmity of the French kings and the Burgundian dukes, who really did not want the unification of the French lands and, consequently, the strengthening of the power of the already united France, was completed. After the announcement of the death of Charles the Bold, Louis XI annexed part of his lands to his lands. At the same time, he took revenge on Karl with someone else's hands for his humiliation and actual capture during the uprising in the city of Liege (events well described in the novel "Quentin Dorward"). The rights of Charles' daughter, Mary of Burgundy, were infringed upon. The main achievement of this war was the acquisition of the Duchy of Burgundy and some part of Picardy.
Barbut 1460 Weight 3285 Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.
It seems like a good helmet was made for Quentin Dorward by the directors of the film "The Adventures of Quantin Dorward - Shooter of the Royal Guard" - a real barbut! But … why did they stick thorns at him? None of the barbutes that have come down to us have such thorns! Although in other scenes, both armor and weapons are quite realistic. Oh, this is our movie …
The warriors of Louis XI from the movie "The Adventures of Quantin Dorward - Archer of the Royal Guard" is a very realistic picture.
