The Hundred Years War, Part...
Transcript of The Hundred Years War, Part...
The Hundred Years War, Part II
1. Exit Plantagenets, Enter Lancasters 2. Henry V & the Battle of Agincourt
1. Exit Plantagenets, Enter Lancasters
• Edward, the Black Prince, was next in line to the English throne after his father, King Edward III
• However, in 1376, at the age of 45, he died one year before his father from an illness that historians still can’t agree upon
• Upon Edward III’s death in 1377, the Black Prince’s son became King Richard II
• Richard II was an extremely unpopular king because he abused his power
• In 1399, Richard was deposed by his cousin, who became King Henry IV
• Henry IV kept Richard prisoner and starved him to death
• Henry IV’s usurpation of the English throne marked the end of the rule by the House of Plantagenet and marked the beginning of the rule of the House of Lancaster
• In 1413, Henry IV died and his son became King Henry V at the age of only 26
• Henry V immediately renewed the conflict with France
• Henry V is one of the great heroes of English history
• His legend was strengthened thanks to Shakespeare’s play “Henry V”
2. Henry V and the Battle of Agincourt
• After a month long siege, Henry’s forces captured the town of Harfleur
• However, Henry’s army had been seriously reduced in strength from both the fighting at Harfleur and illness
“Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more!”
• Remember...the English controlled Calais • Henry attempted to march to Calais to
regroup and allow his troops to recover • All the while, however, he was being
hemmed in by French forces
• By October 1415, Henry’s forces were surrounded and he had no choice but to stop his march and prepare for battle
• His army was in seriously bad shape by this time, again due to illness
• Henry’s army numbered around 5,000 and continued to suffer from illness as well as terribly low morale
• To make matters worse, cold autumn rains pounded the tattered army
• French forces numbered somewhere around 30,000 strong
“We lucky few, we band of brothers”
• The Battle of Agincourt took place on 25 October 1415, the Feast of St. Crispin
• Henry V won one of the more unlikely victories of the entire war by decisively defeating the French army
• Henry’s victory was due in large part to the English longbows (again) and...
• The heavy rains, which turned the field into a mud bog
• It is said that the French king, Charles VI, went mad after the defeat at Agincourt
• In 1420, Henry V and Charles VI signed the Treaty of Troyes, which proclaimed Henry the heir to the French throne upon Charles’ death
• Henry sealed the treaty by marrying Charles’ daughter, Catherine of Valois
• But would it be enough to earn him the French crown?...