Today in History: 1346 – Battle of Crecy
During the Hundred Years War, King Edward III’s English army annihilates a French force under King Philip VI at the Battle of Crecy in Normandy. The battle, which saw an early use of the deadly longbow by the English, is regarded as one of the most decisive in history.
On July 12, 1346, Edward landed an invasion force of about 14,000 men on the coast of Normandy. From there, the English army marched northward, plundering the French countryside. Learning of the Englishmen’s arrival, King Philip rallied an army of 12,000 men, made up of approximately 8,000 mounted knights and 4,000 hired Genoese crossbowmen. At Crecy, Edward halted his army and prepared for the French assault. Late in the afternoon of August 26, Philip’s army attacked.
The Genoese crossbowmen led the assault, but they were soon overwhelmed by Edward’s 10,000 longbowmen, who could reload faster and fire much further. The crossbowmen then retreated and the French mounted knights attempted to penetrate the English infantry lines. In charge after charge, the horses and riders were cut down in the merciless shower of arrows. At nightfall, the French finally withdrew. Nearly a third of their army lay slain on the field, including Philip’s brother, Charles II of Alencon; his allies King John of Bohemia and Louis II of Nevers; and 1,500 other knights and esquires. Philip himself escaped with a wound. English losses were less than a hundred.
The battle marked the decline of the mounted knight in European warfare and the rise of England as a world power. From Crecy, Edward marched on to Calais, which surrendered to him in 1347.
Read more here
Also on this day:
2016 San Francisco 49ers Colin Kaepernick kneels in protest during the US national anthem at San Diego’s Qualcomm Stadium, objecting to racial injustice and police brutality in the US
1959 British Motor Corporation introduces the Morris Mini-Minor, better known as the Mini
1895 Electric generator at Niagara Falls produces first power
Births On This Day
1980 Chris Pine - American actor (Star Trek)
1980 Macaulay Culkin - American actor (Home Alone)
1970 Melissa McCarthy - American comedian and actress (Mike and Molly, Spy)
1966 Shirley Manson - Scottish singer-songwriter (Garbage), actress
1910 Mother Teresa - Macedonian/Indian missionary, Nobel Prize laureate
Deaths On This Day
2018 Neil Simon - American playwright and author (The Odd Couple
1980 Frederick Bean “Tex” Avery - American animator
1974 Charles Lindbergh - American aviator who was 1st to fly solo across the Atlantic
1972 Sir Francis Chichester - English aviator and sailor (Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire). First person to sail single handed around the world.
1930 Leonidas “Lon” Chaney - American actor nicknamed “the man of a 1000 faces” (The Hunchback Of Notre Dame, The Phantom of the Opera)
The Funnies:
On the Menu Today – Skillet Chicken Cacciatore
This looks like a very straightforward meal to make, and looks pretty delicious too, although obviously I’d leave the mushrooms out!
Ingredients
- 8 skin-on chicken thighs
- kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 onion, chopped
- 2 carrots, sliced
- 8 oz. sliced mushrooms
- 4 thyme sprigs
- 1/2 c. dry white wine
- 2 c. low-sodium chicken broth
- 2 c. diced tomatoes
- 3 tbsp. drained capers
- 1/4 c. chopped fresh parsley
Method
- Preheat a large, cast-iron skillet over high heat. Rinse chicken and pat dry thoroughly, then season with salt and pepper. Add a drizzle of olive oil and cook chicken skin side down in two batches until skin is crisp and golden brown, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer to a dish skin side up and set aside.
- Reduce skillet heat to medium-high. Drizzle with olive oil and add garlic, onion, carrots, mushrooms, and thyme, and cook, 3 to 4 minutes. Add white wine, chicken broth, tomatoes, and capers, and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil while scraping bottom of pan. Place chicken in the skillet skin side up in a single layer. Cover with lid and simmer on medium-low, 15 minutes.
- Garnish with parsley and serve in skillet immediately.
Quote of the Day:
“Professor Milligan will now play his tree! The composition is in A Minor, the tree is in A garden.”
― Spike Milligan, Where Have All the Bullets Gone?
Comic of the Day:
Mouseover: “I’m just worried that we’ll all leave and you won’t get to come along!”
Image Credit:
xkcd: Exoplanets
Explain XKCD:
786: Exoplanets - explain xkcd
Inspirobot Always Controversial, Occasionally Inspirational Quote of the Day:
Read @rthelpdesk1 's nutty Spark! from yesterday here
