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The Battle of Crécy on 26 August 1346 CE saw an English army defeat a much larger French force in the first great battle of the Hundred Years’ War (1337-1453 CE). Edward III of England (r. 1327-1377 CE) and his son Edward the Black Prince (1330-1376 CE) led their professional army to victory thanks to a good choice of terrain, troop discipline in the heat of battle, use of the devastating weapon the longbow, and the general incompetence of the French leadership under King Philip VI of France (r. 1328-1350 CE). Crécy would be followed up by an even more impressive victory at the Battle of Poitiers in 1356 CE as England got off to a flier in a conflict that would rumble on for 116 years.
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The French, although they had some archers, relied more on crossbowmen as firing a crossbow required less training to use. The main contingent in Philip’s army was composed of Genoese crossbowmen. The crossbow, though, had a seriously slower firing rate than the longbow, about one bolt to five arrows in terms of speed of delivery.
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