Henry V

One of Shakespeare’s most enduringly popular plays is Henry V. Indeed Henry appears as a main character in three plays, although in the first two his star is undoubtedly eclipsed by the fat knight, Falstaff. Despite the fact that Shakespeare was writing some 180 years after the death of his subject, Henry’s story had never been allowed to fade from...

The Long March with the Battle of Agincourt through the eyes of key participants. The English army set out for Calais. No doubt there was much grumbling in the ranks. Thousands had been invalided home through the effects of dysentery and the expedition would have to survive on the rations it could carry with it and those that they could...

The Battle of Agincourt through the eyes of key participants - September 1415. The days were hurrying past and Harfleur showed no sign of losing its will to fight. An action that was supposed to last for days had now turned into a siege, a slogging match. The determination of the defenders to slug it out increased the chance that...

The Battle of Agincourt campaign through the eyes of key participants - August 1415. The armada sailed across the English Channel at last. The preparations were over, the die was cast and even a last minute plot to depose Henry V could not stop the invasion. The crossing was no doubt nerve-wracking but the weather behaved itself. Then came the...

Henry V was now ready for war as July 1415 began. The last ditch attempts of the French to stall through more peace negotiations having failed, he moved off to Portchester on the shores of Portsmouth Harbour where his great armada was assembled. En route he spent some time at the monastic house at Titchfield where he fortified himself spiritually...

The Battle of Agincourt through the eyes of key participants - June 1415. The plans were all in place, the invasion army was assembling, the ports of southern England were full of ships and sailors. Vast amounts of supplies had been collected, as the fleet looked south across the English Channel towards the beaches of Normandy. Everyone hoped that the...

The recent reburial of Richard III at Leicester has perhaps reminded us of the great clear out of English nobility that took place at the Battle of Bosworth Field where Richard met his death, and at the preceding battles of the so-called Wars of the Roses. The winner at Bosworth, Henry Tudor, was the last remaining Lancastrian candidate for the...