Anglo-French War (1202–14)

The Anglo-French War was a war between the Kingdom of France and the Kingdom of England. The war was mainly fought in Normandy, where John, King of England fought King Philip II of France for domination. The end of the war came at the decisive Battle of Bouvines, where Philip defeated England and its allies.

Normandy, once a site of conflict between Richard I of England and Philip II of France, grew to be one of the hot spots of the wars as the king of England as duke of Normandy had to defend his territory close to Paris. When John of England rose to the throne he fought to expand his empire, launching the campaign in Normandy to rival Philip in national territory. He lost so much territory, leading up to the major battle at Château Gaillard from 1203 to 1204.

The Anglo-Norman army retreated to the castle, holding their position. Though all of their relief attempts failed, they held out for years. Soon, Philip ordered his men to climb up garderobes, or toilet chutes. The sneak attacks resulted in the fall of the castle.

In 1214, when Pope Innocent III assembled an alliance of states against France, John registered in. The allies met Philip near Bouvines. The Battle of Bouvines saw Philip win with the smaller amount of troops due to using couched lances. The victory for France ended in the conquest of Flanders and the defeat of any attempt from John to regain his lost territories.