Despenser Crusade

The Despenser Crusade of 1383 was an English military expedition into Flanders led by Henry Despenser, Bishop of Norwich. It was presented as a crusade against supporters of Clement VII during the Western Schism, but it also served English political, military and economic interests in Flanders. The expedition captured several towns and defeated a Franco-Flemish force near Dunkirk before becoming bogged down at the siege of Ypres. The arrival of a large French army forced the English to withdraw, and the failure of the campaign led to Despenser being called before Parliament.

Siege of Ypres of 1383 from Froissart's Chronicles. — Siège d’Ypres de 1383 (France, Besançon. Bibliothèque municipale, Ms.865 f. 151v) [Source]

The Despenser Crusade, 1383

The Crusade Against Clement VII

In 1379 Henry Despenser, Bishop of Norwich, began promoting a crusade authorised by Pope Urban VI. The expedition was not intended for the Holy Land. Its stated purpose was to fight supporters of Clement VII, the rival pope whose court was based at Avignon. The campaign therefore needs to be understood within the wider religious conflict of the Western Schism, as well as the continuing Anglo-French struggle.

Flanders became the focus of the proposed expedition. The region was strategically important to England, both because of its position on the coast opposite England and because of its close economic connections with the English wool trade. The conflict also formed part of the wider struggle between England and France. French support for Clement VII brought the divisions of the Western Schism directly into the Anglo-French conflict.

Further papal bulls were issued in 1380 and 1381. One issued in May 1381 gave Despenser authority to preach the crusade throughout the English archdioceses. Contributions were raised from across England, while men were encouraged to take the cross.

The English Council Intervenes

By late 1382 the English government had become concerned about the nature of the force being assembled by Despenser. Many people had responded to the preaching of the crusade, but the resulting army was not necessarily composed of experienced soldiers. The Council wanted the expedition to be placed under a more conventional military command.

On 12 December 1382 the Council decided that King Richard II should lead the expedition against the Clementists. The plan was developed further at a Council meeting in January 1383, with arrangements made for cooperation with English allies in Flanders and for the deployment and transportation of forces.

The plan depended upon parliamentary funding. The grant that Parliament provided was insufficient for the large army envisaged by the Council, while Richard II did not take an active role in leading the expedition. Despenser therefore continued to organise the campaign under the authority granted to him.

Parliament and the Command of the Crusade

Parliament debated the proposed expedition during February and March 1383. The campaign was supported both as a religious undertaking against the supporters of Clement VII and as a military intervention in Flanders.

The arrangements placed significant obligations upon Despenser. He undertook to provide a substantial force for the King’s service, with men-at-arms and archers properly equipped and mounted. The expedition was also expected to operate under appropriate military leadership.

The question of command remained a problem. Experienced secular commanders were expected to accompany the bishop, and the King ordered that the expedition should await the arrival of William Beauchamp before beginning offensive operations. Despenser did not wait for the complete command structure to be established.

The Army Crosses the Channel

The crusading army gathered on the English coast during April and May 1383. Despenser crossed to Calais in May with a force that included experienced soldiers such as Sir Hugh Calveley, Sir Thomas Trivet, Sir William Elmham and Sir William Farringdon.

The contemporary accounts differ over the size of the army and the number of men who subsequently crossed the Channel. The enthusiasm generated by the early successes also encouraged additional people to join the expedition, including men with little or no military experience.

Despenser’s first objective was Gravelines. Rather than undertake a prolonged siege, he chose to assault the town. After fierce fighting, the English captured it and established a garrison.

Schematic campaign map of the Despenser Crusade.

Gravelines and Dunkirk

The capture of Gravelines was followed by the English advance towards Dunkirk. The town was taken, after which a large Franco-Flemish force gathered nearby. The English were initially unaware of the approaching army while many of their men were resting in Dunkirk.

The opposing army included Flemish troops together with French, Breton and other mercenary forces. The English commanders were warned of its approach and prepared for battle.

The fighting took place on 25 May 1383. The English and their archers defeated the Franco-Flemish force, which suffered heavy losses according to the contemporary accounts. Walsingham presents the victory as evidence of divine favour, while other chronicles give different figures for the armies and casualties.

The victory opened much of the surrounding region to the English. Towns including Bourbourg, Bergues, Poperinghe and Nieuport surrendered, allowing Despenser to extend English control across a substantial part of the Flemish coast and interior.

The earlier French victory at the Battle of Roosebeke in 1382 provides important context for the political and military situation in Flanders before the English expedition.

The Advance Through Flanders

The early successes created a difficult choice for Despenser and his commanders. Despenser favoured an advance towards Artois, where the religious justification for attacking supporters of Clement VII could be applied more directly.

His experienced captains recognised the military importance of Ypres. The city, however, presented a problem for the religious justification of the expedition. Ypres followed Pope Urban VI rather than Clement VII.

Despite this, the strategic importance of the city led to the decision to besiege it. The choice changed the character of the campaign. Instead of continuing the advance or concentrating on the stated religious objective, the English became committed to a major siege operation.

The Siege of Ypres

The English and their Flemish allies from Ghent began the siege of Ypres in June 1383. The city was well defended and the besieging army lacked the equipment and organisation required for a rapid capture. The siege forms part of the wider history of battles and sieges during the Hundred Years War.

The siege continued for several weeks. Disease and shortages affected the English force, while the defenders strengthened their position. The contemporary accounts also contain accusations of disunity and alleged dealings between some of the English commanders and the defenders.

By August the siege had become unsustainable. Despenser wanted his commanders to make an assault before the army became weaker through disease and desertion. The eventual assault failed and the siege was abandoned.

Ypres deserves separate treatment because the siege itself involved a complex series of assaults, defensive measures, artillery operations and negotiations. Its failure, however, can be placed within the wider collapse of the crusade without reproducing the whole siege narrative here.

The French Counter-Offensive

The English successes had prompted a major French response. Charles VI began assembling a large army to intervene in Flanders. The delay at Ypres gave the French time to organise their counter-offensive.

Once the siege had been abandoned, Despenser considered advancing into Picardy and seeking a battle with the French king. His commanders refused to follow him into the path of the much larger French army.

The division between Despenser and his commanders left the English force in a difficult position. The bishop moved with a small force while other commanders withdrew towards Bourbourg.

Bourbourg and the End of the Crusade

Bourbourg became one of the last English positions in Flanders. Sir William Elmham and other commanders fortified the town as the French army approached.

The French attack on Bourbourg was unsuccessful. The English defenders were able to resist the assault, but their position remained untenable without substantial reinforcement. The approaching French army and the failure of the wider expedition left the English with little prospect of retaining their gains.

On 14 September 1383 Sir William Elmham surrendered Bourbourg for a payment of 2,000 francs. Gravelines subsequently followed. By October the surviving English forces had returned to England in stages, bringing the Despenser Crusade to an end.

The campaign had begun with the capture of Gravelines and Dunkirk and the defeat of a large Franco-Flemish force. It ended with the abandonment of Ypres, the loss of the captured towns and the withdrawal of the English army.

Despenser Before Parliament

The failure of the expedition led to a parliamentary inquiry. Parliament assembled on 26 October 1383, and Despenser was required to answer for his conduct of the campaign.

The charges centred on the terms under which he had undertaken to serve the King. He had been required to provide a substantial force, muster it at Calais and serve for a full year. Parliament also questioned his arrangements for military command and his failure to retain the expedition in the King’s service for the agreed period.

Despenser defended himself by arguing that the expedition had been undertaken to assist Ghent and that the men of Ghent and his own commanders had influenced the decision to besiege Ypres. The parliamentary record therefore provides an important counterpoint to the chronicles, which often concentrate upon individual commanders and the course of the fighting.

The proceedings also brought allegations against some of the military commanders concerning money received in connection with the surrender of English-held towns. The campaign consequently became a matter not only of military failure but also of royal finance, military contracts and parliamentary accountability.

Sources and Evidence

The surviving evidence for the Despenser Crusade combines English chronicles, French accounts and parliamentary records. The English chronicles provide the fullest continuous narratives of the expedition, while French material provides evidence for the opposing campaign and the response of Charles VI. The parliamentary proceedings record the formal arrangements made with Despenser and the case brought against him after the expedition.

Thomas Walsingham provides the most detailed English chronicle account, although his narrative gives considerable attention to providential interpretation. Henry Knighton records the expedition and its aftermath, while the Westminster Chronicle provides a different account of responsibility for the campaign’s failure. Froissart supplies an important French narrative, particularly for the fighting around Dunkirk and the later stages of the expedition.

The anonymous French chronicle preserved in Besançon, Bibliothèque municipale, MS 677, provides additional evidence from the French side. Its entries include the English fleet under Despenser, the French siege of Bourbourg and the siege of Ypres. The Chronique du curé de Saint-Eucaire, compiled in the fifteenth century, provides later French evidence for the French expedition to Bourbourg and the participation of Lorraine troops.

The chronicles differ most significantly in their treatment of the campaign’s leadership and its failure. Walsingham presents Despenser’s victories and subsequent difficulties within a strongly providential narrative, while the Westminster Chronicle places greater emphasis on the actions of the commanders around him. Froissart and the French chronicles provide evidence for the French response and the recovery of the towns captured by the English. The parliamentary proceedings add a different form of evidence, recording the obligations imposed upon Despenser and the defence he offered when his conduct of the expedition was challenged.

Source	Type	Contribution to the campaign narrative
Chronica Maiora of Thomas Walsingham View source	Contemporary English chronicle	Detailed account of the expedition, the capture of Gravelines and Dunkirk, the battle of 25 May, the advance through Flanders, the siege of Ypres and the withdrawal.
Chronicle of Henry Knighton View source	Contemporary English chronicle	Records the crusade, fundraising, the capture of towns, the siege of Ypres and the eventual withdrawal of the English force.
Westminster Chronicle View source	Contemporary English chronicle	Provides a contrasting account of the campaign, including the capture of the Flemish towns, the battle near Dunkirk, the siege of Ypres and accusations against Despenser’s commanders.
Jean Froissart, Chroniques View source	Contemporary French chronicle	Provides accounts of the battle near Dunkirk and the later stages of the expedition, including the English withdrawal from Flanders.
Anonymous French Chronicle, Besançon MS 677 View source	French chronicle	Records the English fleet under Bishop Despenser, the French siege of Bourbourg and the siege of Ypres. The chronicle continues to 1384 and provides an important French perspective on the campaign.
*Chronique du curé de Saint-Eucaire* View source	Later French chronicle	Provides evidence for the French expedition to Bourbourg and the participation of Lorraine troops in the 1383 campaign.
Parliament of February–March 1383 View source	Parliamentary record	Records the parliamentary consideration of the proposed expedition, its financing and the terms under which Despenser undertook military service.
Parliament of October–November 1383 View source	Parliamentary record	Records the proceedings against Despenser following the campaign, including the accusations concerning the size and organisation of his force, command arrangements and the conduct of the expedition.