The Count of Harcourt brother of Godfrey, called all Normandy to arms.

Every feudal lord and vassal answered to the summons, and before Edward reached the banks of the Seine a formidable army had assembled.
The whole of the vassals of France were gathering by the orders of the king at St.Denis.The English fleet had now left the coast, and Edward had only the choice of retreating through Normandy into Brittany or of attempting to force the passage of the Seine, and to fight his way through France to Flanders.

He chose the latter alternative, and marched along the left bank of the river towards Paris, seeking in vain to find a passage.

The enemy followed him step by step on the opposite bank, and all the bridges were broken down and the fords destroyed.
Edward marched on, burning the towns and ravaging the country until he reached Poissy.

The bridge was as usual destroyed, but the piles on which it stood were still standing, and he determined to endeavour to cross here.