The Battle of Crécy was the 1346 battle in which Edward III’s English army defeated a much larger French force.
Fought on 26 August 1346 in northern France, Crécy was a major English victory in the opening phase of the Hundred Years’ War. Edward’s army selected a defensive position and used dismounted men-at-arms supported by large numbers of English and Welsh longbowmen. The French launched repeated attacks, including charges by heavily armed cavalry.
The English position, terrain, and sustained missile fire disrupted those attacks. King Philip VI of France survived, but many prominent French nobles and knights were killed. The victory helped Edward capture Calais after a subsequent siege, giving England an important foothold on the continent.
Crécy is sometimes described as a simple triumph of longbows over armor. In reality, tactics, defensive ground, command decisions, weather, and the exhaustion of the attacking army also shaped the result.