Bouvines, Battle of

Decisive victory for Philip II (Philip Augustus) of France on 27 July 1214, near the village of Bouvines in Flanders, over the Holy Roman Emperor Otto IV and his allies, including King John of England. The battle, one of the most decisive in medieval Europe, so weakened Otto that it ensured the succession of Frederick II as Holy Roman Emperor and confirmed Philip as ruler of the whole of northern France and Flanders; it led to the renunciation of all English claims to the region.

Otto was to invade France from the Netherlands, where he had allies, while John invaded from the southwest. However, Otto was late starting and John refused to wait for him, marching his army back to Bordeaux. The French, meanwhile, marched toward Flanders, Otto finally marched south, and the two armies met at Bouvines, a village between Lille and Tournai in northern France. Otto's army, with a small English contingent, numbered perhaps 30,000 while the French strength was about the same; each massed their foot soldiers in the centre and placed their cavalry on the flanks, with reserves behind. The French gradually gained the upper hand and the Allies were routed with many troops taken prisoner.