Battle of Bonchurch - Aftermath

Aftermath

The casualties for both sides were heavy. The battle resulted in the French invasion of the Isle of Wight being stopped. Another skirmish took place at Bonchurch several days after the battle, when English forces engaged with French men who had disembarked from French ships retreating from Portsmouth looking for water. A senior French commander, Chevalier D'Aux, was killed as a result of the engagement. The English victory at Bonchurch only had a marginal impact on the course of the Italian War of 1542-1546, because the battle only involved a very small number of men relative to the numbers of men that were engaged throughout the entirety of the war. The fact that it only had a marginal impact is also because, if the French had captured the Isle of Wight, it is unlikely that that capture would have drastically affected the course of the war, because there were more significant territories that were being contested. The Isle of Wight could have been used to support French operations against England had it been captured; Claude d'Annebault, commander of the French armada, recorded that “having it under our control, we could then dominate Portsmouth... and so put the enemy to extraordinary expense in maintaining a standing army and navy to contain us.” Although some sources do state that the victory at Bonchurch was responsible for the French withdrawal from the Isle of Wight, the source of information which states that the French won the battle says that fighting at Bembridge was what drove the French from the island.