The Hundred Years War
When the last Capetian King died without a successor, the English King Edward III
claimed the right of the French throne as the grandson of Philip IV. The war that resulted would
continue on and off from 1337 to 1453 for 116 years, however it was called the Hundred Years
War. It was fought in France, a place already suffering from the Black Death.
During the war, the English won three important battles in France. The first and most
important was at the Battle of Crecy in 1346. Many who fought were knights who practiced a
code of Chivalry or the knight’s code of honor. They wore heavy armor, fought with old tactics
and looked down upon the poor common foot soldiers and archers. Often the French knights
outnumbered the English. The French knights on horseback thought they were invincible against
the English, however the English had a new weapon, the Long Bow, which was powerful enough
to pierce through the knights armor at long range. The slow, heavy French knights were killed
long before they came anywhere close to the English. This battle is considered the end of the age
of Chivalry as commoners would win the battles, not knights.
Ten years later, the English would win again at the Battle of Poitiers, again with the
longbow. This time the French King John and his son Philip (John and Philip were common
family names) were captured and held for ransom. The last English victory would be at the
Battle of Agincourt in 1415. Again the English were outnumbered but the English archers shot
the French knights. Soon military leaders realized that knights would spend their entire lives
learning to fight, would have to be paid a lot to equip themselves with armor, weapons and
horses but a long bowman would be trained in a few weeks and paid very little. For the price of
one knight, a king could equip and pay 20 archers. At the same time a knight needed to be close
to attack but archers could attack from a safe distance and in large groups could decimate the
enemy. This would be the end of the age of knights.
Five years after this battle, the French and English signed a treaty that said Henry V
would inherit the French crown after the French King Charles VI died. In 1429, a 17 year old
French girl named Joan of Arc convinced King Charles that God spoke to her telling her to lead
the French to victory. Without any other options, the King gave her an army. Joan led the French
army into battle against the English at the city of Orleans. The French were out of food and were
dying. Many French soldiers retreated but Joan led a handful of soldiers back into the fort
capturing it almost alone. Joan went on to win a few more battles and helped Charles become
king of France. A year later, Joan was captured by the English and turned over to Church
officials who accused her of being a heretic. They didn’t want people to see her as a hero
because she was a girl and the Church was having problems of its own. They called her a witch
because she heard voices and condemned her to death. King Charles did nothing to help her and
Joan was burned at the stake. Years later the Church would officially apologize and make her a
martyr.
Angry over the death of Joan, the French fought back and pushed the English out of
France ending the war in 1453. However, France was in ruins after over 100 years of fighting.
Most of France was destroyed, millions were dead and their country was completely broke.
However the French were being ruled by a French king. Both countries left the war with a sense
of nationalism. People started thinking of the king as a national leader. They had pride in their
country. England would go on to fight a civil war called the War of the Roses as two noble
houses fought for the English throne. Parliament would gain power as war was expensive and
Parliament had to be called for the King to raise taxes, eventually this would lead to the spread of
Democracy.
Questions
1. Why did the French believe they had an advantage over the English?
2. How were the English able to defeat the French at Crecy?
3. Why would military leaders move away from using knights in battle?
4. Who was Joan of Arc and what happened to her?
5. What were some good and bad things that came out of the 100 years war?