Before Crécy 1337
1337, Picardy. When Philip VI confiscated Gascony, Edward III of England declared himself the rightful king of France. You are the master of the estate closest to England across the sea.
Historical background
When the direct Capetian line died out in 1328, the French nobility made Philip VI of the house of Valois king. Edward III of England, a Capetian through his mother, accepted it at first, but quarrels over his duchy of Gascony (Aquitaine) and over Scotland deepened. When Philip confiscated Gascony in May 1337, Edward claimed the French throne, and in 1340 at Ghent he took the title King of France. The Flemish towns, dependent on English wool, sided with England under Jacob van Artevelde.
In June 1340 the French fleet was destroyed at the naval battle of Sluys, and in August 1346 Edward forded the Somme at Blanchetaque and shattered the French knights with his longbowmen at Crécy. After a siege of nearly a year Calais surrendered, and the story of the six burghers who came out with the keys of the town has come down to us. The Black Death struck in 1348, King John II of France was captured at Poitiers in 1356, and in 1358 the peasant rising of the Jacquerie broke out in northern France. The Treaty of Brétigny in 1360 set the king's ransom and the hostages.
Who you are
You begin as a 30-year-old French lord with an estate in Picardy, close to the Somme and the Channel and right in the path of the war. Enguerrand, your old castellan, Marguerite of Ghent, Jean de Payen, a neighbouring lord, and Colin, a tenant, are the people of this life.
The current of history: Hundred Years' War
An invitation called "The war of two crowns" arrives, and through the stages that follow — the naval battle of Sluys and the burghers of Calais — you decide which king to serve.
Sides you can take
- English side Recognise Edward III as the rightful king of France and make common cause with Flanders.
- French side Stay loyal to Philip VI of Valois. You defend your land, but it becomes a battlefield.
Tips
Questions and answers
How close is this scenario to real history?
The Valois accession in 1328, the confiscation of Gascony in 1337, Edward III's claim, van Artevelde's Ghent, Sluys in 1340, Blanchetaque and Crécy in 1346, the siege of Calais, the Black Death, the Jacquerie and the Treaty of Brétigny in 1360 are historical. The starting map, realms, real historical figures and the major events of the current of history follow actual history. You and the companions, rivals and loves around you are fictional people who could have lived then, and once you start, history may diverge according to your choices and those of the AI rulers.
What station do I start in?
You start as a 30-year-old lord with an estate in Picardy. You are a vassal of the Kingdom of France and have inherited your father's land.
Is it free? Can I play right away?
Yes. Crown & Plough is a free browser game with no account and nothing to install. The "Start in this scene" button on this page opens the scenario's intro screen directly, and progress is saved automatically in your browser. It works on phones too.