Agincourt 1415: The Archers' Story

‘Attempts to see the conflict from the perspectives of those who fought.’ – History Today

The Battle of Agincourt still rings down through the centuries as a quite incredible victory by the outnumbered, happy few of England, enfeebled by disease and exhaustion, against the might of French chivalry. For many commentators then and now, it was the English archers who won the day for Henry V. This history re-tells the story of the battle and Henry V’s Normandy campaign from the perspective of the reputed commander of the English archers, Sir Thomas Erpingham.

Sir Thomas, an experienced warrior from Norfolk with military experience dating back 40 years, is known for his brief but pivotal appearances in Shakespeare’s Henry V, where he is correctly portrayed as an elderly, white-haired veteran. At 57 he was one of the oldest there and a close personal confident of the King. But what was his background? How did he command his archers to such a place in history? And what role did the longbow and battlefield tactics play in the final analysis of victory?

Copiously illustrated with reproductions of original muster rolls and other material, Agincourt 1415: The Archers’ Story steers the reader through the history of the most important battle of the Hundred Years War from an entirely fresh perspective.