The Hundred Years War
I will be able to:• Describe the significance of the Hundred
Years War• Explain the causes of the war, the effects
of the long bow, and the impact of the war
The Hundred Years War
• 1337-1453, 100 Years War?• Causes
– King of England married to first daughter of the King of France, who also has sons.
– King of France dies.– Who gets the land?
French Lands Belonging to English Kings
• A longer standing issue was the status of lands within France that belonged to English kings.
• Edward was actually a vassal of Philip VI, holding sizable French territories as fiefs from the king of France [it went back to the Norman conquest].
Military Characteristics
• The War was a series of short raids and expeditions punctuated by a few major battles, marked off by truces or ineffective treaties.
French Advantages
• Population of about 16,000,000.
• Far richer and more populous than England.
• At one point, the French fielded an army of over 50,000 at most, Britain mustered only 32,000.
English Advantages
• Weapons Technologies.
• In almost every engagement, the English were outnumbered.– England’s most successful strategies:
/ Avoid pitched battles./ Engage in quick, profitable raids
– Steal what you can. Destroy everything else.– Capture enemy knights to hold for ransom.
Stage One of the War (1337-1360)
• King Edward III of England invades France and captures King John II of France.
• He is ransomed.
• Result of stage one: England captures ½ of France.
• The use of the English defensive position was the use of the longbow.
• Its arrows had more penetrating power than a bolt from a crossbow.– Could pierce an inch of wood
or the armor of a knight at 200 yards!
• A longbow could be fired more rapidly.– 6 arrows per minute.
The Longbow as a Weapon
The Longbow as a Weapon
Early English VictoriesEarly English Victories
The British Longbow:The Battle of Poitiers, 1356
The British Longbow:The Battle of Poitiers, 1356
The Effective Use of the Cannon at Poitiers, 1356The Effective Use of the Cannon at Poitiers, 1356
Stage Two 1361 - 1396
• King Charles V of France retakes all of the French lands from the English.
French Flag
Richard II
Stage Three (1397-1420)
• King Henry V of England invades France and forces King Charles VII of France to sign a treaty giving him his daughter.
• Meaning?• King Charles VII of France agrees, but
King Henry V of England dies before Charles, so his son, Henry VI takes over.
• Fighting Continues…..why?• Result? England takes over 2/3 of France.
King Henry V (r. 1412-1422)
• At Agincourt in 1415, the English, led by Henry himself, goaded a larger French army into attacking a fortified English position.– With the aid of the dukes
of Burgundy, Henry gained control over Normandy, Paris, and much of northern France!
Stage Three 1397 - 1420
• English nationalistic feelings soared when they heard of the stunting victory of King Henry V at the Battle of Agincourt
• Henry V’s 8,000 soldiers defeated Charles VI’s 50,000 French troops
The Treaty of Troyes is signed after the Battle of Agincourt
• Charles VI who suffered
from periods of insanity gave his daughter Katherine in marriage to Henry V
• Henry V would inherit France after the death of Charles VI
• Charles VI cut his son Charles (VII) the dauphin (French heir to the throne) out of inheriting France
Charles VI
Stage Four 1421 - 1453• Henry V and Charles VI both die in 1422
• Henry VI of England is only 9 months old
• A young French girl, Joan of Arc, felt moved by God to rescue France from the English
• The Dukes of Burgundy frequently sided with the English
Joan of Arc (1412-1432)• The daughter of
prosperous peasants from an area of Burgundy that had suffered under the English.
• Like many medieval mystics, she reported regular visions of divine revelation.
• She dressed like a man and was Charles’ most charismatic and feared military leader!
Joan of Arc brings a spirit of nationalism to the French
• The “voices” Joan heard told her to go to Charles the dauphin and aid him in driving the English from France
• She helps end the English siege of Orleans
• With Joan’s aid, Charles was crowned king at Reims in 1429
• Joan, referred to as “the Maid”
Cannons Used at Orleans
Cannons Used at Orleans
Joan is captured and tried• In 1430 Joan is captured and
turned over to English church authorities
• She is charged with heresy and witchcraft because of her “unnatural dress” and claim to divine guidance, she was condemned and burned at the stake as a heretic in 1431.
• Charles VII does nothing to save her but he does win the Hundred Years War
• In 1920, Joan is declared a saint as the church retracts its judgment
Results of the 100 Years War
• New Style of Warfare– Paid soldiers– Heavy armor– Canons
• Nationalism – fighting to defend/protect your country.
Additional facts
• Nationalism – a feeling of loyalty and patriotism to one’s own land and people
• Nationalism will continue in France after Joan’s death
• Calais is the only territory in France that the French will not be able to win back
• New weapons such as the longbow & cannons lessened the importance of armored knights & castles
Weapons
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