In the year of our Lord, 1415, the young King Henry V had been campaigning in France to establish his right to large chunks of that country.

The campaign had been hard and bitter and in October the winter was approaching. Henry’s men had fought many hard battles and now all he wanted was to fall back on the safe haven of the port of Calais where his tired, hungry and dysentery riddled soldiers could rest though the winter.

The French, however, had other ideas and wished to completely destroy the English army once and for all. Henry sent emissaries to the commander of the French, the Constable of France to ask for parley, or safe passage to Calais but to no avail …

The French had mustered a huge army of some 20,000 to 30,000 men including the flower of their aristocracy against the English army’s 6,000 to 8,000. It seemed a certain victory for the enemy.

As on many occasions before and since, the foe completely underestimated the will and skill of an English army to their catastrophic cost.

On Thursday, 24th October 1415, the two armies camped in close proximity for the battle that followed on the morrow, Saint Crispin’s Day, 25th October. The place was to go down in history and give its name to one of the most decisive victories for any army: Agincourt.

It can be argued that the ultimate weapon of today is the thermonuclear bomb. But at Agincourt that ultimate weapon was the Long Bow. Most of Henry’s archers were Welshmen; big, strapping lads who could draw a 6 foot bow with a draw weight of 160 pounds and loose a 36 inch long arrow to a range of 200 yards plus. A good bowman could fire seven arrows per minute, which meant that the French were showered with at least 35,000 arrows every minute.

This could bring down a fully armoured French knight or his armoured horse and they could do this all day long if needs be. The carnage in the heavy mud and stacked bodies at Agincourt was horrific.

At the end of the day the English had lost fewer than 500 men whereas the French losses were probably in excess of 15,000.

Do not ever do anything to enrage an Englishman! Mr Straw, et al, take heed.

Another chance to raise your glasses with the toast, ”My Country.”

Recommended viewing: DVD Agincourt 1415

On 25^th October 1415, as the pale dawn of an early autumn day broke over Agincourt, a mighty French army numbering 30,000 men surveyed the small English force that stood before them ready to battle. The French expected a swift and comprehensive victory, but as a day of great savagery unfolded, it was the English led by their charismatic King, Henry V, who would utterly destroy their enemy.

This DVD features a superb and accurate reconstruction of the great battle, plus dramatised “eyewitness” accounts taken from contemporary records. State-of-the-art mapping techniques, period imagery and expert comment and analysis from Dr David Chandler provide an informative and entertaining account of this savage battle. 55 minutes.

£7.50 plus p&p. Click here to order.