Philip VI gathered his invasion force in the Low Countries because winds, tides, currents, and port geography favored a crossing toward England. Belgium in 1914 and serious Operation Sea Lion routes from the Dutch coast provide later examples of why British strategy feared an enemy-held shoreline there. Dover Castle shows the defensive logic ashore: an invader either had to reduce the fortress or leave a dangerous garrison behind the advance on London. The same geography shaped medieval sailing and much later invasion planning.
Chapter · 32:52-35:49
Why invasion fleets gathered in the Low Countries
Tides, currents, and nearby ports made the Low Countries a recurring launch point for invasion plans against England.