1.3M views 4 months ago Medieval Battles - In chronological order The year 1415 was the first occasion since 1359 that an English king had invaded France in person. The Battle of Agincourt forms a key part of Shakespeare's Henry V. Photo by Nick Ansell / POOL / AFP) Myth: During the Hundred Years War, the French cut off the first and second fingers of any. The English King Henry V and his troops were marching to Calais to embark for England when he was intercepted by forces which outnumbered his. The fighting lasted about three hours, but eventually the leaders of the second line were killed or captured, as those of the first line had been. The English had very little food, had marched 260 miles (420km) in two and a half weeks, were suffering from sickness such as dysentery, and were greatly outnumbered by well-equipped French men-at-arms. This moment of the battle is portrayed both as a break with the traditions of chivalry and as a key example of the paradox of kingship. Certainly, d'Azincourt was a local knight but he might have been chosen to lead the attack because of his local knowledge and the lack of availability of a more senior soldier. Do you return these prisoners to your opponents in exchange for nothing, thereby providing them with trained soldiers who can fight against you another day? Why is the missionary position called that?
Agincourt 1415: The Triumph of the Longbow (Video 1993) - IMDb [109] Juliet Barker, Jonathan Sumption and Clifford J. Rogers criticized Curry's reliance on administrative records, arguing that they are incomplete and that several of the available primary sources already offer a credible assessment of the numbers involved.
Idiom Origins - Middle finger - History of Middle finger The English army, led by King Henry V, famously achieved victory in spite of the numerical superiority of its opponent. Contemporary accounts [ edit] The French hoped to raise 9,000 troops, but the army was not ready in time to relieve Harfleur. Without the middle finger it would be impossible to draw the renowned English longbow and therefore be incapable of fighting in the future. It is also because of the pheasant feathers on the arrows that the symbolic gesture is known as "giving the bird". Although the victory had been militarily decisive, its impact was complex. [31] This entailed abandoning his chosen position and pulling out, advancing, and then re-installing the long sharpened wooden stakes pointed outwards toward the enemy, which helped protect the longbowmen from cavalry charges. The French could not cope with the thousands of lightly armoured longbowmen assailants (who were much less hindered by the mud and weight of their armour) combined with the English men-at-arms. Early in the morning on October 25 (the feast day of St. Crispin), 1415, Henry positioned his army for battle on a recently plowed field bounded by woods. Axtell, Roger E. Gestures: The Do's and Taboos of Body Language Around the World. [19], Henry V invaded France following the failure of negotiations with the French. Maybe it means five and was a symbol of support for Henry V? Humble English archers defeated the armoured elite of French chivalry, enshrining both the longbow and the battle in English national legend. 78-116). Barker, following the Gesta Henrici, believed to have been written by an English chaplain who was actually in the baggage train, concluded that the attack happened at the start of the battle. [53] A further 600 dismounted men-at-arms stood in each wing, with the left under the Count of Vendme and the right under the Count of Richemont. The field that the French had to cross to meet their enemy was muddy after a week of rain and slowed their progress, during which time they endured casualties from English arrows. The impact of thousands of arrows, combined with the slog in heavy armour through the mud, the heat and difficulty breathing in plate armour with the visor down,[83] and the crush of their numbers, meant the French men-at-arms could "scarcely lift their weapons" when they finally engaged the English line. T he battle of Agincourt, whose 600th anniversary falls on St Crispin's Day, 25 October, is still tabloid gold, Gotcha! Fighting commenced at 11:00 am, as the English brought their longbows within killing range and the first line of French knights advanced, led by cavalry. By most contemporary accounts, the French army was also significantly larger than the English, though the exact degree of their numerical superiority is disputed. The campaign season was coming to an end, and the English army had suffered many casualties through disease. When the archers ran out of arrows, they dropped their bows and, using hatchets, swords, and the mallets they had used to drive their stakes in, attacked the now disordered, fatigued and wounded French men-at-arms massed in front of them. The Battle of Agincourt is one of England's most celebrated victories and was one of the most important English triumphs in the Hundred Years' War, along with the Battle of Crcy (1346) and Battle of Poitiers (1356). Although the French initially pushed the English back, they became so closely packed that they were described as having trouble using their weapons properly. Moreover, if archers could be ransomed, then cutting off their middle fingers would be a senseless move. . The English account in the Gesta Henrici says: "For when some of them, killed when battle was first joined, fall at the front, so great was the undisciplined violence and pressure of the mass of men behind them that the living fell on top of the dead, and others falling on top of the living were killed as well."[62]. While the precise number of casualties is unknown, it is estimated that English losses amounted to about 400 and French losses to about 6,000, many of whom were noblemen. [23] Thomas Morstede, Henry V's royal surgeon,[24] had previously been contracted by the king to supply a team of surgeons and makers of surgical instruments to take part in the Agincourt campaign. Since the French had many more men-at-arms than the English, they would accordingly be accompanied by a far greater number of servants. All quotes delayed a minimum of 15 minutes. In pursuit of his claim to the French throne, Henry V invaded Normandy with an army of 11,000 men in August 1415. [33], Early on the 25th, Henry deployed his army (approximately 1,500 men-at-arms and 7,000 longbowmen) across a 750-yard (690m) part of the defile. [25] The siege took longer than expected.
The Most Famous, Bloodiest Medieval Battle - AGINCOURT - Full - YouTube Without the middle finger it would be impossible to draw the renowned English longbow and therefore [soldiers would] be incapable of fighting in the future. The English and Welsh archers on the flanks drove pointed wooden stakes, or palings, into the ground at an angle to force cavalry to veer off. [46] Many lords and gentlemen demanded and got places in the front lines, where they would have a higher chance to acquire glory and valuable ransoms; this resulted in the bulk of the men-at-arms being massed in the front lines and the other troops, for which there was no remaining space, to be placed behind. Very quickly after the battle, the fragile truce between the Armagnac and Burgundian factions broke down. He considered a knight in the best-quality steel armour invulnerable to an arrow on the breastplate or top of the helmet, but vulnerable to shots hitting the limbs, particularly at close range. This article was produced by the Reuters Fact Check team. One popular "origin story" for the middle finger has to do with the Battle of Agincourt in 1415. [citation needed], In any event, Henry ordered the slaughter of what were perhaps several thousand French prisoners, sparing only the highest ranked (presumably those most likely to fetch a large ransom under the chivalric system of warfare). because when a spectator started to hiss, he called the attention of the whole audience to him with an obscene movement of his middle finger. Morris also claims that the mad emperor Caligula, as an insult, would extend his middle finger for supplicants to kiss. False. Over the years some 'folk etymologies' have grown up around this symbolic gesture. (Storyline based on the play by William Shakespeare "The Cronicle History of King Henry the Fift with His Batt. This suggests that the French could have outnumbered the English 5 to 1. Some notable examples are listed below. [86], The only French success was an attack on the lightly protected English baggage train, with Ysembart d'Azincourt (leading a small number of men-at-arms and varlets plus about 600 peasants) seizing some of Henry's personal treasures, including a crown. Medieval warriors didn't take prisoners because by doing so they were observing a moral code that dictated opponents who had laid down their arms and ceased fighting must be treated humanely, but because they knew high-ranking captives were valuable property that could be ransomed for money. 78-116). According to contemporary English accounts, Henry fought hand to hand. With Toby Merrell, Ian Brooker, Philip Rosch, Brian Blessed. People who killed their social betters from a distance werent very well liked, and would likely have paid with their lives as did all the French prisoners, archers or otherwise, whom Henry V had executed at Agincourt, in what some historians consider a war crime. This battle concluded with King Harold of England dying at the hands of the Norman King William, which marked the beginning of a new era in England. It goes on to state thatafter an unexpected victory, the English soldiersmocked thedefeatedFrenchtroopsbywavingtheir middle fingers( here ). 1995 - 2023 by Snopes Media Group Inc. [62] On February 1, 1328, King Charles IV of France died without an heir. Winston Churchhill can be seen using the V as a rallying call. The Battle of Agincourt is well documented by at least seven contemporary accounts, three from eyewitnesses. [74], The plate armour of the French men-at-arms allowed them to close the 1,000 yards or so to the English lines while being under what the French monk of Saint Denis described as "a terrifying hail of arrow shot". [36] Henry, worried about the enemy launching surprise raids, and wanting his troops to remain focused, ordered all his men to spend the night before the battle in silence, on pain of having an ear cut off. With 4,800 men-at-arms in the vanguard, 3,000 in the main battle, and 1,200 in the infantry wings. Without the middle finger it would be impossible to draw the renowned English longbow and therefore they would be incapable of fighting in the future. The recently ploughed land hemmed in by dense woodland favoured the English, both because of its narrowness, and because of the thick mud through which the French knights had to walk. [114][115] Curry and Mortimer questioned the reliability of the Gesta, as there have been doubts as to how much it was written as propaganda for Henry V. Both note that the Gesta vastly overestimates the number of French in the battle; its proportions of English archers to men-at-arms at the battle are also different from those of the English army before the siege of Harfleur. French knights, charging uphill, were unseated from their horses, either because their mounts were injured on the stakes or because they dismounted to uproot the obstacles, and were overpowered. Materials characterization, 29(2), 111117. The battle probably lasted no longer than three hours and was perhaps as short as half an hour, according to some estimates. In March 2010, a mock trial of Henry V for the crimes associated with the slaughter of the prisoners was held in Washington, D.C., drawing from both the historical record and Shakespeare's play. [127], Shakespeare's play presented Henry as leading a truly English force into battle, playing on the importance of the link between the monarch and the common soldiers in the fight. A Dictionary of Superstitions.Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1992 ISBN 0-19-282916-5 (p. 454). One final observation: any time some appeal begins with heres something that intelligent people will find edifying you should be suspicious. This famous weapon was made of the native English yew tree, and the act of drawing the longbow was known as "plucking the yew." It supposedly describes the origin of the middle-finger hand gesture and, by implication, the insult "fuck you".
The cavalry force, which could have devastated the English line if it had attacked while they moved their stakes, charged only after the initial volley of arrows from the English. This symbol of rocking out is formed by tucking the middle and index finger and holding them in place with the thumb. [citation needed], Immediately after the battle, Henry summoned the heralds of the two armies who had watched the battle together with principal French herald Montjoie, and they settled on the name of the battle as Azincourt, after the nearest fortified place. The . So they were already overcome with fatigue even before they advanced against the enemy". Rather than retire directly to England for the winter, with his costly expedition resulting in the capture of only one town, Henry decided to march most of his army (roughly 9,000) through Normandy to the port of Calais, the English stronghold in northern France, to demonstrate by his presence in the territory at the head of an army that his right to rule in the duchy was more than a mere abstract legal and historical claim. The one-finger salute, or at any rate sexual gestures involving the middle finger, are thousands of years old. In such a "press" of thousands of men, Rogers suggested that many could have suffocated in their armour, as was described by several sources, and which was also known to have happened in other battles. There is a modern museum in Agincourt village dedicated to the battle. [89] A slaughter of the French prisoners ensued. [34] The rearguard, leaderless, would serve as a "dumping ground" for the surplus troops. Despite the lack of motion pictures and television way back in the 15th century, the details of medieval battles such as the one at Agincourt in 1415 did not go unrecorded. Wikipedia. The battle repeated other English successes in the Hundred Years War, such as the Battle of Crcy (1346) and the Battle of Poitiers (1356), and made possible Englands subsequent conquest of Normandy and the Treaty of Troyes (1420), which named Henry V heir to the French crown.
The Battle Of Agincourt: What Really Happened? | HistoryExtra Departing from Harfleur on October 8, Henry marched northward toward the English-held port of Calais, where he would disembark for England, with a force of 1,000 knights and men-at-arms and 5,000 archers. Send questions to Cecil via cecil@straightdope.com. See here for a complete list of exchanges and delays. There had even been a suggestion that the English would run away rather than give battle when they saw that they would be fighting so many French princes. Jean de Wavrin, a knight on the French side wrote that English fatalities were 1,600 men of all ranks. The French army blocked Henry's way to the safety of Calais, and delaying battle would only further weaken his tired army and allow more French troops to arrive. It took place on 25 October 1415 (Saint Crispin's Day) near Azincourt, in northern France. before a defensive battle was possible.
- [69] (The use of stakes was an innovation for the English: during the Battle of Crcy, for example, the archers had been instead protected by pits and other obstacles. [73] The mounted charge and subsequent retreat churned up the already muddy terrain between the French and the English. But lets not quibble. And for a variety of reasons, it made no military sense whatsoever for the French to capture English archers, then mutilate them by cutting off their fingers. He claimed the title of King of France through his great-grandfather Edward III of England, although in practice the English kings were generally prepared to renounce this claim if the French would acknowledge the English claim on Aquitaine and other French lands (the terms of the Treaty of Brtigny). Before the battle of Agincourt in 1415, the French proposed cutting the middle finger off of captured English soldiers rendering them incapable of shooting longbows. They were successful for a time, forcing Henry to move south, away from Calais, to find a ford.
French history myths: The 'two fingers' insult comes from the Battle of [91] Such an event would have posed a risk to the still-outnumbered English and could have easily turned a stunning victory into a mutually destructive defeat, as the English forces were now largely intermingled with the French and would have suffered grievously from the arrows of their own longbowmen had they needed to resume shooting. I thought the French threatened to cut off the primary finger of the English longbowmen (the middle finger was neeed the most to pull the bowstring). It established the legitimacy of the Lancastrian monarchy and the future campaigns of Henry to pursue his "rights and privileges" in France.
Agincourt was a battle like no other but how do the French remember Didn't it originate at Agincourt?
The body part which the French proposed to cut off of the English after defeating them was, of course, the middle finger, without which it is impossible to draw the renowned English longbow. He told his men that he would rather die in the coming battle than be captured and ransomed. Dear Cecil: Can you confirm the following? I suppose that the two-fingered salute could still come from medieval archery, even if it didnt come specifically from the Battle of Agincourt, although the example that Wikipedia links to (the fourteenth-century Luttrell Psalter) is ambiguous. Since pluck yew is rather difficult to say, like pheasant mother plucker, which is who you had to go to for the feathers used on the arrows for the longbow, the difficult consonant cluster at the beginning has gradually changed to a labiodental fricative f, and thus the words often used in conjunction with the one-finger salute are mistakenly thought to have something to do with an intimate encounter. [56] Some 200 mounted men-at-arms would attack the English rear. In December 1414, the English parliament was persuaded to grant Henry a "double subsidy", a tax at twice the traditional rate, to recover his inheritance from the French. He contrasts the modern, English king and his army with the medieval, chivalric, older model of the French. A widely shared image on social media purportedly explains the historic origins of the middle finger, considered an offensive gesture in Western culture. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. The ransoming of prisoners was the only way for medieval soldiers to make a quick fortune, and so they seized every available opportunity to capture opponents who could be exchanged for handsome prices. Unable to cross the Somme River because of French defenses, he was forced to take a detour inland and cross farther upstream. Turning to our vast classical library, we quickly turn up three references. The Battle of Agincourt took place on October 25, 1415. The basic premise that the origins of the one-finger gesture and its association with the profane word "fuck" were an outgrowth of the 1415 battle between French and English forces at Agincourt is simple enough to debunk. The French, who were overwhelmingly favored to win the battle, Continue Reading 41 2 7 Alexander L