Battle of Grandson
The battles of Grandson is a Bataille which opposed the French (Bourguignon S) to the Suisse S with Grandson in Suisse the March 2nd 1476. This battle was gained by the Swiss ones.
Preamble
In 1475, the Suisse S had seized the place of Grandson. In January 1476, Charles Bold the which has just taken Nancy turns his army towards Grandson. Subjected to powerful the Burgundian Artillery, the Swiss ones capitulate, but the morning of the February 28th the duke of Burgundy in makes hang and drown more than 400. This act causes the anger of Swiss which, with the cries of “Grandson! , Grandson! ”, gather 20 000 men under the command of Nicolas de Scharnachtahl (Bern), Hans Waldmann (Zurich) and Heinrich Hassfurter (Lucerne).
Unfolding
Charles launches his men since Grandson to the castle of Vaumarcus by a rocky way, where snow hardly has just melted.In the morning of the March 2nd, Swiss scouts attack a Burgundian advanced camp starting the battle.
Artillery and the Burgundian archers answer the Couleuvrine S of Bern. When the Burgundian cavalry charges, the Swiss ones are laid out in square with some 6 m length spades that the lances of 4 m their adversaries cannot reach.
After 3 hours of engagements, whereas the Swiss ones weaken, Charles the Bold one decides to make move back his troops to attract the Swiss ones in plain. However the Burgundian ones mistaking on the choices of their command, believe in the retirement and panic. At the same time of new Swiss forces arrive while taking at reverse. The wild mooings of the horns of the Alps, the “Cow of Unterwald”, the “Bull of Uri” fill the Burgundian ones of an unreasoned terror.
The victims were approximately the 300 Burgundian ones and 200 Confédérés, with many casualties in particular by the arrows and squares.
The Swiss ones will find then a rich person spoils in the camp given up by the Burgundian ones, being filled with wonder at its house of red velvet, its weapons enriched by jewels, and will take 400 pieces of artillery. Ingenuously, the hard mountain dwellers sell for some grounds diamonds of Bold which they received in spoils with Jewish second-hand dealers or lombards. They also discovered in the spoils the tapestry with the thousand flowers: tapestry celebrates manufactured by Jean de Haze in 1466, made up of eight parts of verdures.
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