FORMIGNY, BATTLE OF (1450). The battle of For migny, fought on April 15, 1450, was the last but one waged by the English during the Hundred Years' War. Its special interest lies in the use of field artillery, and its influence on bow and lance tactics. The Duke of Somerset was at Caen threatened by an overwhelming French army under King Charles. To open a way to this city, Sir Thomas Kyriel and 4,500 men were despatched from England. At Formigny this force was confronted by the Count of Clermont at the head of some 3,000 lances, a body of local infantry and two small cannons. Kyriel should have at once attacked the French, seeing that his object was to relieve the duke who was hard pressed, but so wedded were the English to defen sive tactics that he fell back behind Formigny to a brook lined by orchards, and there drew up his men in a convex line, the archers covering their front by a trench and the usual palisade of stakes. The French, having by now learnt the folly of assaults on un shaken bowmen, skirmished for a while. Then Clermont ordered Giraud, "master of the royal ordnance" to bring up his two guns to enfilade the English line. This proved so effective that the archers left their defences and charged forward capturing the pieces. Kyriel, in place of advancing the whole line and so taking advantage of the melee, persisted in the defensive, with the result that the archers who had captured the two guns were attacked in flank, and not being able to make use of their bows were thrown back in disorder onto the men at arms. A clinch now took place, and the battle was decided by a fresh body of French knights under the Counts of Richemont and Laval appearing on the field. This force charged the English in flank, surrounded them and an nihilated Kyriel and his main battle. The English losses amounted to no less than 3,75o, those of the French were probably about 1,200. This battle marks one of the great turning-points in tac tics, for before the century ended cannon played an increas ingly important part at every siege, and on every field.
See Blondel, Reductio Normanniae; C. Oman, The Art of War in the Middle Ages (1924). (J. F. C. F.)