What was the greatest battle in French history?

There is no single answer: Tours in 732 is long credited with saving Western Europe, Rocroi in 1643 confirmed France's rise as a leading power of Europe, and Austerlitz in 1805 was Napoleon's masterpiece.

What was France's worst defeat?

Among the most famous are Crécy in 1346 and Agincourt in 1415 in the Hundred Years War, and Waterloo in 1815, which ended Napoleon's empire.

Why was the Battle of Tours important?

In 732 Charles Martel's Franks halted an Umayyad army near Tours, long seen as the check that stopped the Muslim advance into Western Europe.

What was Napoleon's greatest victory?

Austerlitz in 1805, where he destroyed a combined Austrian and Russian army, is usually reckoned his masterpiece.

What ended Napoleon's empire?

The defeat at Leipzig in 1813 broke his hold on Germany, and Waterloo in 1815 ended his brief return and his reign for good.

Where can I read about the commanders?

Each battle links to its full story, and the greatest commanders of France collects the leaders, from Charles Martel to Napoleon.

The Greatest Battles of France

For thirteen centuries the fate of France was decided on the battlefield, in victories that made it a great power of Europe and defeats it barely survived. These are the battles that made and shook France, triumphs and disasters alike, each linked to its full story.

Tours, 732. Charles Martel's Franks halted the Umayyad advance and checked the invasion of Western Europe.

Romantic painting of Charles Martel on horseback swinging an axe in a melee — Charles Martel at the battle of Tours (Poitiers) in 732, painted by Charles de Steuben in 1837 for the Galerie des Batailles at Versailles. Public domain

Crécy, 1346. English longbows cut down the French chivalry, an early disaster of the Hundred Years War.

Agincourt, 1415. Trapped in the mud, a French army was destroyed by the English longbow.

Medieval miniature of two armies of archers and armoured knights facing each other — The battle of Agincourt, 1415, with English archers facing the French men at arms, in a manuscript of Enguerrand de Monstrelet's chronicle illuminated around 1470 to 1480 (BnF, Français 2680). Public domain

Rocroi, 1643. The young Duke of Enghien broke the Spanish tercios and announced France's rise as a leading power of Europe.

Austerlitz, 1805. Napoleon's masterpiece, which shattered the Austrians and Russians in a single day.

Military map of the Austerlitz battlefield with French units in blue and Allied units in red — Austerlitz at 9 a.m. on 2 December 1805: the Allied columns attack Napoleon's right while French troops prepare to strike the Pratzen Heights in the centre. US Military Academy atlas. Public domain

Jena, 1806. Napoleon smashed the Prussian army and opened the road to Berlin.

Leipzig, 1813. The Battle of the Nations, where the converging armies of Europe defeated Napoleon.

Panoramic painting of cavalry and infantry before the town of Leipzig — The Battle of Leipzig in October 1813, painted by Alexander von Sauerweid in 1844. Public domain

Waterloo, 1815. Napoleon's last gamble failed, ending his empire for good.

Triumphs and disasters that made France

Not every battle here was a French victory, and the guide tells them straight. Crécy and Agincourt were catastrophes of the Hundred Years War, and Waterloo ended an empire, yet they shaped France as surely as its triumphs. From Tours and Rocroi to Austerlitz, the story of France was written on the battlefield.

Meet the commanders who led them in the greatest commanders of France, or test yourself with the French battles quiz.

The Greatest Battles of France

Triumphs and disasters that made France

Frequently asked questions

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