Titterton, James/Turner, Graham (Illustr.) Bouvines 1214. Philippe Augustus and the Battle for France

In early 1214, a coalition of forces led by Holy Roman Emperor Otto IV and financed by King John Ohneland of England was assembled to challenge France's King Philip II. August. The aim was to regain the kingdom that John Ohneland had lost to Philip over the previous ten years. A campaign was planned on two fronts: John's army in Poitou and Otto's army in northern France. In July 1214, the Battle of Bouvines took place in Flanders - and it was a crushing defeat for the coalition armies. The French knights were superior to them in every respect. Here, medieval historian James Titterton examines how Philip's victory changed European history - not only did the coalition lose the lands they wanted to recapture, but Otto was deposed as Holy Roman Emperor and John's position was so weakened that he was forced to issue the Magna Carta in 1215. The Flemish leaders were captured and imprisoned, and Philip set about extending his authority unopposed. The Battle of Bouvines was one of the most significant battles in European history, helping to establish the nation of France in its present form, and in which the leaders of the coalition suffered a brutal defeat. With artwork, detailed maps and contemporary images, this book traces the clash of European chivalry and two crowned kings on the battlefield.