Siege of Saint-Martin-de-Ré
| Siege of Saint-Martin-de-Ré (Siège de Saint-Martin-de-Ré) | |||||||
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| Part of the Anglo-French War (1627–1629) | |||||||
Top: Full map of the landing, siege and retreat by the English forces of Buckingham. Bottom: The fortress of Saint-Martin. Military mock-up, 1702. Musée des Plans-Reliefs. | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
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Kingdom of England Kingdom of Scotland La Rochelle (Volunteers) | Kingdom of France | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
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Charles I Duke of Buckingham (commander) |
Louis XIII Toiras (commander) | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
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Initially: 100 ships 6,000 English soldiers 1,000 horses 4 cannons La Rochelle volunteers: 800 Reinforcements: 2,000 Irish soldiers 400 raw troops |
Initially: 1,200 men 200 horsemen Reinforcements: 4,000 men (October) | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| Around 5,000 | Around 500 | ||||||
The siege of Saint-Martin-de-Ré, or siege of St. Martin's (French: siège de Saint-Martin-de-Ré), was an attempt by English forces under George Villiers, the Duke of Buckingham, to capture the French fortress-city of Saint-Martin-de-Ré, on the isle of Ré (near La Rochelle), in 1627. After three months of siege, the Marquis de Toiras and a relief force of French ships and troops managed to repel the Duke, who was forced to withdraw in defeat. The encounter followed another defeat for Buckingham, the 1625 Cádiz expedition, and is considered to be the opening conflict of the Anglo-French War of 1627–1629.