The Eagle of Eastern Europe

After crossing the Somme, the British army was not far from Paris. France quickly gathered 12,000 troops and went to Gerul, northwest of Paris, to resist the enemy.

They chose a position in the open field that was very conducive to defense. Behind it is a relatively flat rural open area. But the terrain dropped sharply before the plateau on which they stood, and the woodland surrounding the two villages protected the French flank. If England hopes to continue their march towards Paris, they have no choice but to mount their horses and face off again.

The French felt very confident in their superiority in fighting power and numbers. They believed this would be enough to deter the enemy from launching an attack. Therefore, they broke up their fighting formation and began to find a place to spend the night in a nearby village. The British were still worried about a surprise attack by their opponents. During the night they still maintained their fighting formation. They were fully armed until it became dark and the enemy in the distance could no longer be seen. Only then were they allowed to break up and find a place to spend the night. The distance between these two armies is too close. As the English prepared to camp for the night, they could distinctly hear the voices of the French: "Every Frenchman was shouting as usual, calling to his companions, attendants, and comrades."

Seeing the man across from him so relaxed, some in England thought they could do the same thing. At this point, the king quickly stood up, put an end to the lack of discipline, and ordered the entire army to remain silent. Those who violate this order will be punished.

This time Stefan led 25,000 people to fight towards Paris, and he only needed to deal with the few in front of him.

Stefan was up before dawn. Before organizing his army to face the enemy, he had to prepare himself mentally. Except for the helmet, he wore all the other armor on his body. Unlike the rusty armor of his men, his armor "gleams". A gorgeous sleeveless robe was also worn over the armor, with the joint coat of arms of England and France on it. Thus he prepared himself for the war which would determine his claim to the French throne.

Every man in England, including the king himself, would fight on foot. All the horses, baggage, soldiers who were too young to fight, and the sick and wounded who could not take up arms to defend themselves were placed behind the lines, and their safety was entrusted to a man commanding a detachment of ten heavy men. Armor soldiers and a team of 20 archers were in charge. Anyone who could hold a sword or draw a bow was put into combat position according to the king's battle plan.

There were so many flags in the French army that some had to be taken down because they were in the way. Unlike the French army, the English army had only a few flags, and they were easily identifiable.

Just as he had done the afternoon before the battle broke out, Stefan mounted his horse and paraded up and down his line, admonishing and encouraging his warriors to do their best.

"You must remember that you were born in England, where your fathers and mothers, wives and children lived and awaited their return. For the sake of these, all efforts should be made to triumph in glory and praise. . The former kings of England have defeated the French many times in the past; today everyone should do their part to defend the honor of the King and the Crown."

This inspiring speech had the desired effect. A loud cry broke out from the ranks: "Your Majesty, we pray to God that He will bless you with a long life, defeat our enemies and achieve victory!"

The contrast between the military appearance of the two armies could not be more obvious. On one side were row after row of unmoved French heavy armored soldiers. They were covered from head to toe in polished armor, equipped with swords and lances shortened for foot combat, and brightly colored pennants, swallowtail flags and military flags flew above their heads. The archers and crossbowmen who had been hired for service stood behind the armored troops and on the flanks of the army, waiting to fire upon the enemy, as did the firearms, trebuchets, and other instruments of war brought from nearby towns.

On the other side is London, England, with neat uniforms and a large number of English longbowmen, musketeers, and heavy artillery waiting in formation for orders to attack.

Stefan ordered the baggage, horses, royal chaplain and surrounding personnel to advance to the rear of the army. This way, when the battle begins, they will not be left alone and will not be robbed. After most of the baggage carriages were in place, the king ordered all the chaplains in the army to pray for the war.

Just as the words of the priest's prayer were still echoing in the king's ears, Stefan gave the army the order to prepare for the attack. He shouted loudly: "In the name of Almighty God and Saint George, raise the flag and move forward! God will help us this day!"

The soldiers shouted loudly, the musicians blew the trumpets and beat the drums, and the entire army advanced towards the French front in battle formation. Incredible as it may seem, the British did take new positions without encountering any resistance. The French were now within range of the enemy's longbows.

The French cavalry, although disorganized and outnumbered, charged the British ranged positions. It was a disastrous attempt, as the French knights were unable to flank them. Nonetheless, the armored warriors' full plate armor allowed them to advance to within a thousand yards or so of the British lines amid "a terrible hail of arrows." A single plate of steel was considered such good protection at the time that armored warriors generally did not use shields.

In order to protect themselves as much as possible from arrows, the French had to cover their visors to avoid being shot, as the eye holes and air holes in their helmets were one of the weakest points in the entire armor. This head-down position limits their breathing and vision. Then they had to wear very heavy armor and march on the clay all the way to the British position. Eventually, the formation of the French armored warriors fell into chaos, and some knights had to step over their fallen comrades.

The exhausted French soldiers were knocked to the ground by the British and could not get up. As the melee developed, the French second-line troops also joined the attack. As the French armored soldiers behind the battle line entered the battlefield, the already small battlefield became more and more crowded, and the French army's mobility and combat capabilities became worse and worse.

Thousands of French armored warriors were captured or killed. The battle lasted about three hours, but in the end the commanders of the French second line were killed or captured, just like the commanders of the first line.