Bataille de Cocherel, 16 mai 1364

This painting depicts an episode from the Battle of Cocherel, fought on 16 May 1364, in which Jean de Grailly, Captal de Buch, surrenders to Bertrand du Guesclin. The victory was an important success for the French royal cause at the troubled beginning of Charles V’s reign and within the wider context of the Hundred Years’ War. Bertrand du Guesclin, who distinguished himself there, became one of the great military figures of the kingdom of France in the 14th century. Painted in the 19th century for the Galerie des Batailles at Versailles, the work reflects the way the July Monarchy staged the major episodes of French military history.