Henry V Triumphs at Agincourt: Longbows Win the Day
Henry V's exhausted, starving English army of roughly 6,000 men faced a French force of 12,000 to 36,000 at Agincourt on October 25, 1415. Rain had turned the recently plowed field into a quagmire. French knights in heavy armor charged through the mud and were cut down by English longbowmen firing 70,000 arrows per minute. The mud was so deep that fallen knights couldn't rise and drowned under the weight of subsequent charges. Henry ordered prisoners executed when a counterattack threatened his baggage train, a controversial decision even by medieval standards. French casualties exceeded 6,000 killed, including three dukes, five counts, and 90 barons. English losses were roughly 400. The victory gave Henry the leverage to negotiate the Treaty of Troyes, which named him heir to the French throne.
October 25, 1415
611 years ago
Key Figures & Places
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