Cor! Well, didn’t we all do well at Agincourt!
‘King Henry marched his men from Harfleur towards Calais!
But, it was at tiny Agincourt village where he had his most victorious day!’
The march to Calais.
On October 6th Henry left Harfleur with an army of around 7,000 men to travel to Calais. There he would formulate plans for the recovery of the French lands that he considered to be rightfully his. One problem was that the French would find it quite easy to intercept Henry as he travelled. Another, was that he would have to find a way to transport his army across the great river Somme.
The French had rather un- sportingly destroyed all of the bridges, which created something of an inconvenience. The journey to Calais was meant to take eight days, but it was two weeks before he was able to cross the river. Henry must have been tempted to chant:
‘Good Lord, I want to get across to the other side! Yes, Lord, across to the other side!
Gracious Lord, please be my guide! To the other side, good Lord, be my guide!’
The other side.
Eventually, the English managed to navigate the river by wading across it. The army had packed only eight days of rations, and the soldiers were now desperately hungry and growing weaker by the day. Many of the soldiers were severely weakened by the terrible effects of dysentery. Foul weather added to their misery, constant heavy rain left them cold and sodden.
‘The rain! The rain! Oh, it is our most bitter foe!
It has drenched our bodies and rendered our spirits low!
The battle of Agincourt.
On October 24th, a huge French army of some 36,000 men strong, approached the English army that numbered less than a quarter of its size. However, there was no chance of the English avoiding battle with the French. There was no alternative, but for Henry to prepare his men for battle on the morrow. Henry ordered his men to remain silent and spend the night resting. This was in contrast with the noise of nocturnal merrymaking coming from the French lines.
‘As the French army is many times greater in size!
Surely it is they, who this day will seize the prize!’
The battle itself.
Henry took the view that his best hope lay in conducting a defensive contest in a location that was most inconvenient for an attacking force. On October 25th, the feast of St Crispin, he placed his men in a large field which was flanked by woodland on both sides. The king had attended three masses that morning, before mounting his horse and exhorting his men to fight bravely for a just cause. Henry then had his men perform a rather unusual ritual. A surviving English veteran might have recalled:
‘Imploring the aid of Almighty God and St George, the king called for us to prostrate ourselves upon the earth. He then ordered us to place some soil in our mouths to remind ourselves that we were mortal, and that our bodies would one day be but dust!’
The English defensive position was reminiscent of the Anglo-Saxon shield wall of old. The French were commanded by Charles d’Albret, Constable of France. The French were reportedly in high spirits, after all, the English were few in number and were weakened with hunger and dysentery. Some of the French soldiers were enjoying a leisurely breakfast, whilst others made a point of reconciling with those whom they had once quarrelled.
Charles d’Albret, Constable of France.
The two armies met in the morning, but did not engage each other until close to midday. At this point, Henry ordered his archers forward to within range of the French lines. They hammered sharpened stakes into the ground to protect themselves against the coming cavalry charge. The English archers then released a volley of arrows into the French ranks. The French cavalry then charged, but their horses…….
The two armies meet: the French on the left and the English to the right.
…….began to flounder in the wet soil. This slowed their advance, making them easy targets for the English bowmen. The deadly aim of the archers caused a great slaughter amongst the French.
‘The rain! The rain! Once our bitter foe has now proven to be this day, our saviour!
It has turned the field into a marsh, bogging down the French cavalry and turning the tide of battle in our favour!’
The French men-at-arms were at a disadvantage when they engaged the English, because if knocked over, the weight of their armour made it difficult for them to rise. Many of them would be crushed, drowned or suffocated on the water-logged earth as the battle continued. In fact, more French soldiers died in this way than were killed directly by the English.
King Henry fought in the thick of the battle. He made no attempt to hide his identity from the French. On the contrary, he wore a crown atop his helmet. At one point his helmet was struck by a blow. When his younger brother, Prince Humphrey was felled, the king fought over him, almost certainly saving his life.
Henry V protects his wounded brother, Humphrey from French soldiers.
After the initial stage of the battle, the bowmen joined in the hand to hand fighting. Picking up discarded weapons, they fell upon the French with the fury of a pack of wolves. The rest of the French army, having lost heart, turned tail and fled the field.
The slaughter of the French prisoners.
In medieval times, there was a thriving business in the ransoming of rich prisoners of war. So a wealthy knight, if captured, could expect to be well treated and released after a ransom was paid. This was a much sought after perk of warfare in France and many a fortune was made through such transactions. However, there was very little ransoming done at Agincourt. This was because Henry, suspecting attack from the rear, ordered the French prisoners to be killed lest they aid their compatriots. In fact this was a needless act, as the English easily fought off any French assault.
Henry had achieved an important victory. It is difficult to determine exactly the number of casualties at Agincourt, but the French came off far worse. The French losses were perhaps in the region of 12,000, whereas the English dead were numbered in the hundreds.