Crossing of the Somme

Crossing of the Somme
Part of the Thirty Years' War and the Franco-Spanish War (1635–59)
Crossing of the Somme, 1636. Oil on canvas by Peter Snayers.
Date 5 August 1636 Location Bray-sur-Somme, Picardy, France Result Imperial-Spanish victory
Belligerents
France	Spain  Holy Roman Empire
Commanders and leaders
Louis, Count of Soissons	Cardinal-Infante Ferdinand Prince of Carignano Ottavio Piccolomini
Strength
14,000[1]	18,000[2]–25,000[3]
Casualties and losses
700-800 soldiers killed + 13 captains 14 lieutenants 16 corporals	35 killed and 50 wounded (reported)[4]

The Crossing of the Somme took place on 5 August 1636 during the Thirty Years' War and the Franco-Spanish War when units of the Spanish Army of Flanders and the Imperial Army under Thomas Francis, Prince of Carignano, lieutenant of the Cardinal-Infante Ferdinand of Austria, crossed the Somme river near Bray-sur-Somme during its offensive in French territory. Despite the fierce resistance of the French army led by Louis de Bourbon, Count of Soissons, the allied troops successfully crossed the river and drove off the French troops along the Oise river, proceeding over the following weeks to invest the important fortress of Corbie, located two leagues upriver of Amiens, which caused a spread of panic among the population of Paris.