The Hundred Years' War Begins: Edward III and the Battle of Sluys

In 1340, a massive naval battle off the coast of Flanders changed the course of the Hundred Years' War. Edward III, a young king with a claim to the French throne, had been struggling to fund his campaign and secure allies in the Low Countries. The French fleet, commanded by the Genoese admiral Pietro Barbavera, lay anchored in the Zwin estuary near Sluys, blocking Edward's invasion route. What followed was a brutal close-quarters fight that the chronicler Jean Froissart described as 'so murderous and so terrible.' Lucas and Luna unpack the strategic context, the innovative English tactics of tying ships together in line of battle, and the devastating aftermath that left thousands of French sailors dead. They explore how this victory gave England naval superiority for a generation, but also how the cost of war forced Edward into financial schemes that alienated his allies. The episode touches on the role of the Flemish cities, the wool trade that funded English campaigns, and the propaganda value of Edward's claim to be the true king of France. A decisive, bloody opening act in the longest war in European history. #HundredYearsWar #BattleOfSluys #EdwardIII #PhilipVI #JeanFroissart #PietroBarbavera #NavalWarfare #MedievalHistory #EnglishHistory #FrenchHistory #Flanders #ZwinEstuary #WoolTrade #Propaganda #1340 #Sluys #History #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo