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battle of Crecy

battle of Crecy

1 9.2
A major fight in 1346 when English soldiers beat the French army
  • proper noun
: batalla de Crecy
  • The battle of Crecy was a turning point in medieval warfare.

Examples

  • Historians debate the tactics employed by Edward III at the battle of Crecy.

  • Many French knights fell during the battle of Crecy, a defeat that shocked Europe.

  • The battle of Crecy marked a turning point in medieval warfare with the use of the longbow.

  • Did the battle of Crecy really change the course of history?

  • The battle of Crecy, fought in 1346, marked a turning point in the Hundred Years' War, showcasing the effectiveness of the English longbow.

  • Edward III's victory at the battle of Crecy established English dominance over the French forces during the Hundred Years' War.

  • Historians regard the battle of Crecy as a pivotal moment when the English army, led by Edward III, triumphed against overwhelming odds.

Synonyms

Crecy
vsbattle of Crecy
1 9.9

A place in northern France where English soldiers defeated the French in 1346

refers to the actual 1346 military event rather than the physical location

Surface Forms

Morphology

battle + of + Crecy

This is a straightforward compositional place-name construction: 'battle' + 'of' + a place denotes the battle that took place at Crecy. A B1 learner who knows 'battle' and the place-name will infer it refers to the battle at Crecy (no idiomatic or metaphorical shift), so the meaning is directly derivable from the constituents.

Etymology

Battle of Crecy was a famous fight in 1346 where English archers with longbows stopped charging French knights, so you can picture a rain of arrows breaking the horse attack. That's why the battle of Crecy is remembered as a 'turning point' in the Middle Ages, when new weapons changed how wars were fought.