Battle of Brignais
Free Companies / Hundred Years' War (post-Poitiers context) · Brignais, near Lyon (France)
Summary
The royal army attempts to surprise the Free Companies established near Lyon. But the latter, well informed, lay an ambush. The French army is crushed. The Count of La Marche and many nobles are killed.
Historical context
After the capture of the king at Poitiers (1356), France is in crisis. The Free Companies, bands of idle mercenaries, ravage the country. This royal attempt at repression fails heavily at Brignais.
Tactics
According to Froissart, Seguin de Badefol concealed part of his routiers on the heights of the Barolles; the royal army, without effective scouts, was caught in a pincer between the ambush and a sortie from Brignais garrison.
Consequences
Royal defeat killed Constable Jacques de Bourbon and his son Pierre, along with about 1,600 combatants; the crown's prestige collapsed and the Grandes Compagnies freely pillaged the kingdom's southeast.