Edward III's claim to France, the longbow's triumph at Crécy, the plague that changed everything, and Henry V's immortal victory at Agincourt
♦ ♦ ♦Two lessons we need to hold in mind before we enter this new era. Let's see what surfaces.
Think back to William the Conqueror and the Battle of Hastings. Do you remember:
Where did the Saxons come from? Who were Hengist and Horsa? And when did Christianity arrive?
The Normans who conquered England in 1066 were themselves descendants of those same Vikings and North Europeans. Their ancestors had invaded northern France (Normandy) just as the Saxons had invaded Britain five centuries earlier. Now, in 1337, nearly 300 years after the Norman Conquest, the Norman Kings of England—now thoroughly English—turned their eyes to France.
A young king named Edward III decided he had a claim to be King of France as well as King of England. And for the next 116 years, the two kingdoms would bleed fighting over that claim. This is the Hundred Years' War.
H.E. Marshall tells it with her characteristic clarity:
Whether Edward's claim was just or not, it drove him to France with an army to fight for it. And what he found there changed the nature of warfare itself.
On August 26, 1346, the armies met. The French outnumbered the English six to one. But Edward had something the French did not: the English longbow.
The English longbow was not a new weapon, but it had never been used in such numbers with such deadly effect. Made of yew wood, six feet tall, it could pierce armour at distance. A skilled archer could loose six arrows per minute. When thousands of archers fired together, the sky literally darkened with arrows.
The result was catastrophic for the French knights in their heavy plate armour on horseback. They could not advance; they could not retreat. They died by thousands.
Marshall vividly describes Edward's command of the battle:
The Black Prince fought with such courage that King Edward, watching his son's part of the battle, refused to send him reinforcements. "Let the boy win his spurs," Edward said. And the boy did. The Black Prince, only seventeen, proved himself a warrior prince that day.
Ten years later, the Black Prince would achieve an even more spectacular victory. At Poitiers, he faced a French army again, and again won against the odds. This time, he captured the French king himself.
For two decades, the Black Prince seemed invincible. But glory does not last forever. He would die in 1376, just a year before his father, having never become king.
Just as Edward's armies were winning their great victories, a shadow swept across Europe far more terrible than any army. In 1348, the Black Death arrived in England.
The Black Death was bubonic plague, carried by rats and fleas. It killed perhaps one-third to one-half of England's population. In some villages, every single person died. Mass graves were dug. Priests died faster than they could bury the dead. Entire families were wiped out in days.
The social fabric of England tore apart. With so many dead, there were not enough workers. Peasants, suddenly valuable, demanded higher wages and more freedom. The rigid feudal system that had lasted for centuries began to crack.
Sixty-seven years after the Black Death, a new king arose who would revive England's claim to France with stunning force. His name was Henry V, and he was only 17 when he became king. By the time he was 27, he had won the greatest English victory of the entire war.
In October 1415, his army of about 8,000 men—tired, sick, and hungry—came face to face with a French army of perhaps 30,000 near the village of Agincourt.
Once again, the longbow proved decisive. Once again, English discipline and courage defeated French numbers. In one afternoon, perhaps 10,000 Frenchmen lay dead on a muddy field. English losses were fewer than 2,000.
Marshall describes a moment that captures Henry's character. When he had ridden all along the lines encouraging his soldiers, he dismounted his horse. He took his place among his soldiers, not apart from them. With the royal standard waving above him, the young king fought as a common soldier fights. This kind of leadership—the leader who shares danger with the led—is the stuff of legend.
Yet Agincourt did not end the war. The French, humbled and nearly broken, found new hope in an unexpected form: a peasant girl from Domrémy who said she heard voices from heaven telling her to save France.
Joan of Arc was perhaps 17 years old when she claimed to have had divine visions. She convinced the French Dauphin (the uncrowned king) to let her fight. Dressed in armour, she led French forces to victory after victory. English and French alike were astounded. But after about a year, she was captured, tried by English and French clergy alike, and burned at the stake for heresy in 1431.
Yet her brief life changed everything. The French, inspired by her sacrifice, found the will to continue. Slowly, over the next 20 years, they pushed the English out of France.
By 1453, it was over. England, which had held vast territories in France, was left with only Calais. And even Calais would be lost within a century.
Three dates hold this lesson together. Encode them using your PAO system.
Encode "13" and "46" from your PAO. Link to a storm of arrows falling from the sky, darkening the sun, piercing French knights on horseback, a young Black Prince in ebony armour.
Encode "13" and "48" from your PAO. Link to plague doctor masks with long beaks, villages empty and silent, mass graves, entire families dead within days.
Encode "14" and "15" from your PAO. Link to Henry V with crown on his helmet, standing in the mud with thousands of dead Frenchmen around him, exhausted soldiers, the impossible victory.
Cover the dates above. Can you recall all three?
1. The Battle of Crécy (Crécy, longbow triumph):
2. The Black Death arrives:
3. The Battle of Agincourt (Henry V):
You are now at the room of war, plague, and glory. This room spans 116 years (1337–1453) of nearly constant warfare, and the terrible years (1348–1350) when plague killed millions.
1. English longbowmen at Crécy, raining arrows — Thousands of archers in formation, arrows darkening the sky, piercing French knights and horses. The sky literally black with feathered shafts. Death from above.
2. The Black Prince in black armour at seventeen — A young warrior in ebony plate armour on horseback, the three feathers of Bohemia on his chest, winning his spurs in blood and glory.
3. A plague doctor in a beaked mask — In long dark robes and a long-beaked mask filled with herbs, walking through a village where every house is marked with a red cross. Death itself walking.
4. Henry V with a crown on his helmet — Standing in mud at Agincourt, surrounded by thousands of dead Frenchmen, the royal banner above him, a young king who led from the front.
5. Joan of Arc in armour on horseback — A girl soldier, voices from heaven in her head, leading French forces to victory, flames rising around her at the stake, the martyr-saint who turned the tide.
Be specific. Where in your palace do you place each image?
Choose 2–3 of these questions to reflect on.
The longbow was not a new invention, but at Crécy and Agincourt it changed everything. Why is a weapon that is just a stick and string so much more powerful than armoured knights on horseback? What does this tell us about strategy and technology?
The plague killed a third of Europe. Yet it led to higher wages for workers, more freedom, and the eventual end of feudalism. How can a catastrophe ever be beneficial? Is there any good that comes from mass death?
The Black Prince and Henry V both fought from horseback in the thick of battle, not from a safe position. Is this brave leadership or reckless? What do soldiers need from their leaders?
A peasant girl says she hears the voice of God telling her to save France. Everyone thinks she's mad. Yet she wins battles and becomes a hero. How do we distinguish between madness and genuine faith or vision?
England won nearly every battle in the Hundred Years' War but ended up losing almost all of France. If you win the battles but lose the war, did you really win? What's the difference between tactical and strategic success?
Marshall tells the story of Crécy and Agincourt as tales of English courage against odds. A French historian would tell a different story. Whose version is true? Does every war have multiple truths?
Start the timer, then write everything you can remember from this lesson — without looking back.
Don't look back. Retrieve from memory.
1346 — Battle of Crécy: The Black Prince and the longbow triumph
1348 — The Black Death arrives in England; one-third to one-half of the population dies
1415 — Battle of Agincourt: Henry V defeats a French army ten times larger
Name and describe three warriors from this lesson:
The Black Prince (Edward): Son of Edward III. Only seventeen at Crécy, he fought in black armour and proved himself a warrior prince. He took the three feathers crest of the King of Bohemia.
Henry V: Young king who revived England's war in France. At Agincourt, he led exhausted, sick, outnumbered soldiers to an impossible victory. He fought from the front lines, not from safety.
Joan of Arc: Peasant girl who claimed to hear voices from God. She led French forces to victory, rallied their spirits, and was burned at the stake. Her sacrifice inspired France to continue the fight and eventually win.
Walk through Room 11. List the 5 images and where you placed them:
Which moment from this lesson will stay with you longest—Crécy, the plague, Agincourt, or Joan of Arc? Why?
The Hundred Years' War is over, but England's troubles are far from finished. At home, two branches of the royal family—the Houses of York and Lancaster—will soon tear the kingdom apart. We enter the Wars of the Roses.
This lesson's content should reappear in: Lesson 14 (+3), Lesson 18 (+7).