The Battle of Poitiers

On September 19th, 1356, the battle of Poitiers was fought between the forces of the Black Prince and the French king, John II. Despite being greatly outnumbered, the Black Prince won the victory and John was captured. He was treated far better than another captive king, Richard I; taken to England, he was allowed to travel and lived in a regal style, as the records show his expenditures for horses, hawks, dogs, etc. His ransom was set at a vast three million crowns and after leaving his son, Louis, as a hostage in his place, he was allowed to return to France to raise the ransom in 1360. But when he subsequently learned that Louis had escaped, he was disturbed, feeling that his honor had been damaged by this action. Despite the heated protests of his lords, he insisted upon returning voluntarily to England to be held as a hostage until the ransom was paid. He said it was a matter of honor and good faith, while his enemies claimed that he’d really done it because he enjoyed a comfortable life style in England and was weary of dealing with his contentious French barons. Whatever his reasons for this dramatic action, he fell suddenly ill a few months after his return to England and died in April 1364, at age 45. His body was returned to France and he was buried at St Denis. Poitiers is, of course, one of the famous battles of the One Hundred Years War.