Featured Article Summary #223

The siege of Brest in 1342 happened during the Breton Civil War after John III, Duke of Brittany, died without children in 1341. His title was claimed by Charles of Blois, backed by the French king Philip VI, and by John of Montfort, supported by Joanna of Flanders. Charles invaded Brittany, made early advances, and even took John prisoner, while Joanna continued fighting for the Montfort cause. She appealed to Edward III of England for help, and an English fleet eventually arrived in July 1342, when Charles besieged Joanna in Brest, the last Montfort stronghold. The town was blockaded by sea using Genoese galleys, but on 18 August a large English fleet defeated them, creating fear among the French that a massive attack was coming. Charles abandoned the siege and withdrew, and the English reinforced their position, holding Brest until 1362, while the wider conflicts continued for many years after. Brittany was part of France but its dukes ruled with significant independence. When the Hundred Years’ War began, Duke John III of Brittany supported the French king, Philip VI, but after John died in 1341 without children, two rivals claimed the duchy: Joan of Penthièvre’s husband, Charles of Blois (supported by Philip), and John of Montfort (supported by prompt action in Brittany). Joanna of Flanders led the Montfort faction in western Brittany, while Edward III made a treaty in February 1342 to back Montfort, though English help arrived slowly, and Charles’s stronger forces captured Rennes and pressed westward. England’s planned major landing was delayed due to problems finding ships and bad winds. Charles received strong reinforcements in July and kept advancing. Joanna was then besieged at Brest in western Brittany, the last fortified Montfortist stronghold there, with Brest important mainly for its castle and its position by the sheltered Brest Roads near a narrow route to the sea. In late July an English force of 110 men landed in western Brittany, and its leader Hugh Despenser stayed to help bolster Brest’s garrison as the cause seemed near collapse. Charles used his new troops to bring his galleys back into action, sending foreign galleys to blockade Brest by anchoring near the castle, and also sent French ships to prevent the English fleet from leaving. Mediterranean powers, and especially the French, used galley warships that were low in the water and fast with oars, able to raid, fight in ship-to-ship battles, and even enter shallow harbours. They could carry some fighters but limited fighting capacity, and France also hired additional galleys from Genoa and Monaco, which required specialist, highly trained crews. The English did not have a purpose-built navy. Instead, Edward used a few of his own ships and relied mainly on converting merchant cogs into warships by adding protective fighting platforms, which let them carry many soldiers and fight effectively at close range, though they were slower and harder to manoeuvre than galleys. William of Northampton was meant to sail from Portsmouth on 8 July with 1,350 men, but no ships were ready. After Morley used threats and confiscations, a large fleet of transports and escorts was assembled and sailed to Brest on 14–15 August, only to find the French had attacked Portsmouth and the area around Southampton instead. The English quickly reached western Brittany, outmaneuvered the Genoese galleys in the Goulet, and landed a small but well-placed force that convinced the French the English had brought far more troops than they actually did, so Charles abandoned the siege and withdrew to Guingamp.