On this day, July 27, in medieval history:
- 1214 – Battle of Bouvines: King Philip II of France defeated the forces of Otto IV (Holy Roman Emperor), the count of Flanders, and King John of England, in effect establishing a stronger position for the French monarchy
Read contemporary accounts of the Battle of Bouvines.
Most sources I’ve read mark the date of the battle as July 27. According to the account of the Minstrel of Reims written around 1260, he puts the date a couple of weeks earlier than that, around July 12.
“In this way the battle ended and the King with great rejoicing returned to Tournai with all his prisoners while the Flemings were in great mourning. This defeat occurred in the year of Our Lord 1214, in the month of July, on the second Sunday.”
The Marchiennes account of the Battle of Bouvines, most likely one of the first accounts of the battle written, mentions the month of August as the date of the battle.
“In the year of our Lord 1214, on the sixth calend of August, something worthy of remembrance occurred at the bridge of Bouvines, in the confines of the Tournaisis. In this place, on one side, Philip, the noble King of the Franks, had gathered a part of his kingdom.”