Poitiers

The roads, vineyards and river crossings around Poitiers help explain the military decisions at the centre of Hilaire Belloc’s account of the 1356 battle. Published in 1913, this historical study places the Black Prince’s campaign within the Hundred Years’ War and the disputed authority of the English crown in southwestern France. Belloc connects feudal loyalties with the wine trade of Bordeaux, then considers the commander’s character and the northward raid that led to the confrontation.

Close attention to terrain gives the narrative its particular shape. Hedges, sunken lanes and the bridge at Nouaillé become practical factors in arranging archers, men-at-arms and baggage wagons. Belloc compares conflicting accounts and proposes explanations for movements that earlier reports describe differently. With plans and sections devoted to the campaign, preparations, ground and action, the book suits readers interested in how a historian reconstructs a medieval battle from written testimony and the physical landscape.