Battle of St. Quentin | |||||||
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Part of the Italian War of 1551–1559 | |||||||
![]() Map of Emmanuel Philibert, Duke of Savoy's Dutch campaign | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
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Commanders and leaders | |||||||
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Strength | |||||||
60,000 [1] –80,000 [1] 7,000 English troops [2] | 26,000 [3] | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
1,000 | 10,000 casualties (3,000 killed and 7,000 captured) [1] or 14,000 [3] |
The Battle of Saint-Quentin of 1557, was a decisive engagement, during the Italian War of 1551–1559, between the Kingdom of France and the Habsburg empire at Saint-Quentin in Picardy. A Habsburg Spanish force under Duke Emmanuel Philibert of Savoy defeated a French army under the command of Duke Louis Gonzaga and Duke Anne de Montmorency.
The battle took place on the Feast Day of St. Lawrence 10 August. [2] Philibert, with his English allies, [lower-alpha 1] [lower-alpha 2] had placed St. Quentin under siege. Montmorency with a force of around 26,000 men marched to St. Quentin to relieve the city. [2] Facing a force twice their size, Montmorency attempted to gain access to St. Quentin through a marsh, but a delayed French withdrawal allowed the Spanish to defeat the French and capture Montmorency. [2]
During the battle the Saint-Quentin collegiate church was badly damaged by fire. [7]
After the victory over the French at St. Quentin, "the sight of the battlefield gave Philip a permanent distaste for war"; he declined to pursue his advantage, withdrawing to the Spanish Netherlands to the north, [2] where he had been the Governor since 1555. The Treaty of Cateau-Cambresis ended the war two years later. [8]
Being of a grave religious bent, Philip II was aware that 10 August is the Feast of St Lawrence, a Roman deacon who was roasted on a gridiron for his Christian beliefs. Hence, in commemoration of the great victory on St Lawrence’s Day, Philip sent orders to Spain that a great palace in the shape of a gridiron should be built in the Guadarrama Mountains northwest of Madrid. Known as El Escorial, it was finally completed in 1584.[ citation needed ]
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Coordinates: 49°50′55″N3°17′11″E / 49.8486°N 3.2864°E