The 1348 siege of Calais began before dawn on December 31, 1348 and ended later that morning. This siege was the result of a secret arrangement for Sir Geoffrey de Charney, a French knight, to purchase Calais from Sir Aymery de Pavia, the English-appointed Governor of Calais. Sir Geoffrey gathered a cavalry to take control of the town in December of that year, and King Edward III of England discovered the plot and brought an army from England and prevented the takeover.