Edward Woodville the last Knight Errant, Breton Guerre Folle - Mad War

 The Last Knight Errant Edward Woodville 

Possibly the last great knight errant, Edward Woodville fought all over Europe and England, he was a leader in the War of the Roses, the invasion of Scotland, and France, fought as a mercenary captain in Castille War of Succession and crusaded against the Moors of Spain. 

I have written a summary of his last days leading up to the battle of Saint Aubin du Cormier where he died with his whole contingent except a young squire who returned to the Isle of Wight. Again Perry Miniatures based for Impetus.

Edward Woodville Lord scales

English Billmen lead by Edward Woodville

Rear English Billmen

Edward Woodville, known as Lord Scales by both the French and Spanish but he never held the title, tenth child of Richard Woodville 1st Earl Rivers. The Family initially supported the Lancastrians the changed allegiances to the house of York when his sister Elizabeth Woodville married King Edward IV. 

Edward Woodville fought in the war of the roses at Barnet in 1471 in the Duke of Gloucester's division, was in Brittany in 1472 with a army to support Brittany, in 1475 landed in Calais with the Duke of Gloucester invasion force and was made a knight of the order of Bath by the King Edward IV after the treaty of Picquigny. 

Edward Woodville departs France for Aragon in 1479 and serves as a mercenary captain for Isabella of Aragon in the war of Castilian Succession leading a mixed mercenary force of English, German and Gascon mercenaries against Isabella's nieces claim to Castille.

In 1480 received the income from the port and city of Portsmouth and the castle and estates of Portchester castle. In 1482 Edward joins the Invasion of Scotland with the Duke of Gloucester, taking part in a number of skirmishes and at the siege of Berwick and made a knight Banneret in 1482 by the duke after the siege. 

In 1483 made Admiral of the fleet, leading successful raids against the French merchant shipping. His brother Anthony Woodville II Earl Rivers and nephew Richard Grey were executed for trying to crown the young 12 year old Prince Edward V. Anthony Woodville was a co-protector and the uncle of the two princes who also later die in the tower after they were declared illegitimate.  Edward flees to Brittany to his aunts Catherine of Luxemburg (former duchess of Brittany) household in Nantes to seek asylum when the Duke of Gloucester seizes power and declared himself Richard IIIrd. 

Edward Woodville along with English nobles including Jasper and Henry Tudor and a number of Lancastrians who are also in exile in Brittany. In 1485 Henry Tudor is betrothed to his niece Elizabeth Woodville in Rennes where he stands as the family member at the cathedral of Rennes as proxy for the engagement. The Lancastrians prepare to leave Brittany returning to England with a small Breton and gascon mercenary force, but the conspiracy goes wrong when the Breton Prime minister informs Richard III spies of the intentions and they flee to France, seeking asylum with the French Crown. The French King supports the invasion with cash and they depart with Jasper Tudor, and John de Vere, and a number of Lancastrian nobles and sail to england with a mercenary group of Burgundians, Gascons, Bretons, French and Scots and then fight at Bosworth, Edward leads the valiant vanguard. After Henry VIII becomes king he inherits his brothers estates which are confirmed in 1485 including the captaincy of the Isle of Wight and his castles at Portchester and Carisbrooke, and governor of the portsmouth. 

Edward, departs with a mercenary army and crusaders in 1486 to support the Catholic Kings of Spain Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella of Castille against the Moors, taking part in the siege of Loja, where he loses several front teeth from a stone hurled from the ramparts.

In 1487 he is back in England to take part in the defeat of the Lambert Simnel rebellion, where he lead the light cavalry to harass the advancing rebels, he fights at the battle of Stoke Field, afterward for his exploits he is awarded a knight of the Order of the Garter. 

On April 23rd 1488 two ambassadors of Francois II of Brittany arrive in England to plead with Henry VII, also partaking in the investiture of Sir Edward into the order of the garter due to his prowess at the battle of Bosworth. Henry VII is unconvinced by the Ambassadors and he explicitly orders on the pain of death that no one from England was to get involved in the war in Brittany.

Edward departs for the Isle of wight with the two Breton Ambassadors and offers his services as a mercenary Captain as he had done previously for the Bretons in 1472 and the Spanish in 1475. The exact size of the company is unknown, some contemporary Breton accounts say 300 others as large as 800. I am leaning toward a mid range numbers due to the claim in the Breton financial accounts of 660 men. It is thought 400 archers, 40 knights and squires depart the Isle of Wight. Armed with pikes bows and arrows and dressed in white tunics with a red cross.

On May 20th 1488 Edward departed the Isle of wight with his company and arrived in Saint Malo a few days later(although accounts have him landing at Honfleur also, but that could be more english mercenaries ?). Edward and his company fight a small skirmish at Dinan against the comte de D'Aunay, losing 20 odd men (French accounts inflate this to 240). A further 200 odd english mercenaries arrive from Portsmouth on a Breton salt ship and a French ship captured in Portsmouth harbour along with an Ambassador of the Scots and his son, all of the 200 english men were veterans and had previously fought with Edward in Spain in 1486-7.

Edward arrives in Rennes on the 5 of June, they are welcomed by a reception committee, in their honour two red Bordeaux wine barrels are opened in rue Haute, and two barrels of white in place Bout du Cohue (next to medieval great market hall which still remains). A group of musicians and play and a young boy is doing tumbling tricks. A banquet is held for the officers in the ducal palace, a menu still exists and it consisted of one and a half vealers, two and a half sheep, three kids (goats), two hares, twenty eight rabbits, eight goslings, thirty six chickens, twenty-eight pigeons, one barrel of Bordeaux wine, one barrel of white wine, and seven estamaux (cauldrons) of hypocras (mulled spicy wine). The company and was the only available force in arms to protect the Breton Capital as a ceasefire was in effect and the remainder of the Breton Army was in Nantes and the Rennes muster had returned to their homes for the summer harvest. 

On May 27th Henry VII letter of apology  arrives in Paris informing Charles VIII of the rouge Edward Woodville, and that he had also seized other ships and men who were to join him.  (Another knight and more 60 men at arms, adn 140 archers are seized in Portsmouth, however 46 mounted archers arrive in Saint Malo)

The French were in a strong position and capture of the key Breton marcher fortresses of Ancenis, Chateaubriant, La Guerche and Redon in May of 1487 and Vitré, Saint-Aubin-du-Cormier and Dol-de-Bretagne in September leaving Brittany split into north and South and the French on and within the interior lines of the Breton Duchy.

On June 12th Francois calls the muster, but many men do not return to arms as the harvest is not complete, finally a army musters in early July and marches north to Rennes.

On the 6th of July the ceasefire ended and the French immediately advanced from Mayenne, Laval and Vitré, with intent to siege the largest castle in France on the border marches Fougeres. The French army start arriving at the key northern Breton fortress of Fougeres on the 12th of July. 

The Breton Army departed Nantes on the 9th of July moving North gathering the compagnies d'ordonnance from the parishes as they advance North and arrived in Rennes on the 25th of July. A council is called in Rennes on the 25th of July between the leaders of the Breton army and the mercenary contingents. On the 27th the Bretons then march to Andouillé-Neuville to gather the muster and join with the men coming from south western Brittany via Dinan, they are then inspected by Francois II and and Princess Anne. The army now numbering 7000 bretons and 4500 mercenaries marches towards Saint Aubin du Cormier on the 28th of July. The Bretons felt they needed a phycological edge over the French and clothed two Breton mixed compagnie d'ordonnance divisions with white tunics with the red cross badge of the English some 1700 men in total, giving the French impression that a large contingent of English were now with the army.

Fougeres, the greatest castle of Brittany had falls after a six day siege on the 17th of July, the great French artillery train had breached the walls in three places and the garrison had surrendered with full honours so the city was saved from a pillage. 

The French army departed Fougeres on the route towards Rennes, the Breton capital, clashing with the Bretons on route in a field south of Ville Saint-Aubin-du-Cormier. 

to be continued......

Cheers

Matt