Hundred Years' War

The Hundred Years' War is the name modern historians give to what was actually a series of related conflicts fought over a 116-year period between the Kingdom of England and France, beginning in 1337 and ending in 1453. Historians group these conflicts under the same label for convenience. The war was primarily fought in France, and though in retrospect it has the feeling of a French civil war as much as an international conflict, the historian Philippe de Vries suggested that it had "taken place at a more or less provincial level." Fernand Braudel, quoting him, adds that "England acted as a province (or a group of provinces) within the Anglo-French unit" that was both battlefield and prize (Braudel 1984 p. 353).

English victories under Henry V: 1400–1422

Henry IV made plans for campaigns in France, but was unable to complete them due to his short reign. In the meantime, though, the French King Charles VI was descending into madness, and an open conflict for power began between his cousin, John of Burgundy, and his brother, Louis of Orléans. After Louis's assassination, the Armagnac family took political power in opposition to John. By 1410, both sides were bidding for the help of English forces in a civil war.

Related Topics:
Charles VI - John of Burgundy - Louis of Orléans - Armagnac - 1410

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The new English king, Henry V, turned down an Armagnac offer in 1414 to restore the 1369 frontiers in return for support, demanding a return to the full territories of Henry II. In August 1415 he landed with an army at Harfleur in Normandy, taking the city. Although tempted to march on Paris directly, he elected to make a raiding expedition across France toward English-occupied Calais. In a campaign reminiscent of Crecy, he found himself outmaneuvered and low on supplies, and had to make a stand against a much larger French army at the Battle of Agincourt north of the Somme. In spite of his disadvantages, his victory was near-total, and the French defeat was catastrophic, losing many of the Armagnac leaders.

Related Topics:
Henry V - 1414 - Henry II - 1415 - Harfleur - Normandy - Battle of Agincourt - Somme

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In subsequent campaigns, Henry took much of Normandy, including Caen in 1417 and Rouen on January 19, 1419, placing Normandy under English rule after over 200 years of French control. He made formal alliance with the Burgundians, who had taken Paris, after the Armagnac execution of John of Burgundy in 1419. In 1420, Henry met with the mad king Charles VI, who signed the Treaty of Troyes, by which Henry would marry Charles' daughter Catherine of Valois and Henry's heirs would inherit the throne of France. The Dauphin, Charles VII, was declared illegitimate. Henry formally entered Paris later that year and the agreement was ratified by the French Estates-General.

Related Topics:
Caen - 1417 - Rouen - January 19 - 1419 - Normandy - 1420 - Charles VI - Treaty of Troyes - Catherine of Valois - Charles VII - French Estates-General

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

After Henry's early death in 1422, almost simultaneously with that of his father-in-law, his baby son was crowned King Henry VI of England and also King of France, but the Armagnacs remained loyal to Charles VI's son, the dauphin Charles, and the war continued in central France.

Related Topics:
1422 - Henry VI of England - Dauphin

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~