The Hundred Years War

Probably the most misnamed war in history (it was actually 116 years long).
"Conflict between England and France. The two main causes of friction between England and France were Flemish trade, which was dependant on English wool, and Gascony, held by the kings of England as vassals of the kings of France. The exact nature of that relationship had caused conflict before, but the Hundred Years War was intensified by Edward III's claim to the French throne. The war had been triggered by the confiscation of Gascony by Philip VI, although that had been done before as a diplomatic ploy, and had not led to long drawn out conflicts. This time, there were other causes of friction between the two nations, not least of which was French support for the Scots, which culminated in the movement of a large French fleet from Marseilles to Normandy, possibly in prepartion to aid the Scots."
Hundred Years War

 

That was about the size of it!

 

Someone obviously knew their history.
One of the big problems in that war was the hiring of mercenaries at the start of the campaigning season, then firing them at the end. They then had no option but to ravage the country to survive the winter, which had a knock-on effect for everyone the following year.

 

They say this marked the end of the Middle ages and Chivarly warfare with the advent of the Long bow and the disaster at the battles of Crecy and Auberoche and the first use of gun powder and cannons. I still think Europeans are greedy war hungry people not now but back then the good'ol days.

 

He was in another period film Flesh & Blood of the same type, for some reason the most memorable part of it was Lea Thompson spent much of it in her birthday suit.

 

Mark-
There wasn't really much on the way of diplomacy in that war; the king of England reverted to being a vassal of the king of France when he crossed the Channel. There was no 'meeting of equals'.

 

You know, for all the times Henry V has been on tv, I've never actually seen it.

 

Sorry-it was the Olivier version I was referring to.
Don't like Branagh.

 

I'd certainly hope a war lasting 100+ years would see some sort of 'changing of the guard' from one age to another. Must have been 4 or 5 successive Kings who never saw a time of peace during the length of the war!

 

I heard a story at one point (so it may be completely apocraphal) of a Frenchman (a minor baron or such I think) who hired up all the merc's in the area and launched a winter campaign against a local German baron. The attack failed and took disasterous losses which apparently pleased the King of France enough that he elevated said Frenchman. Apparently considering it a elegant solution to the bandit/mercenary problem. Which I knew if it were true and who the parties involved were.

But didn't the English kings have a pretty good claim on the French throne?

 

Was it this war do you think that lead to fighting the French becoming a way of life for the English rather than just a wartime occupation?
A brief outline of the war
http://www.french-at-a-touch.com/French_History/hundred_years_war_1337-1453.htm

 

Actually, that was Jennifer Jason Leigh before she became a "serious actress" in the '90's.

 

I wouldn't be surprised!

Well, yes. Edward IIIs mother Isabella was Philip IV of France's daughter, and she claimed the French throne should be his as she was her father's successor. The request was refused though, and another reason for launching the war in the first place. Edward later renounced his right to the throne in exchange for Acquitaine, but that fell through and it was back to square one.
Richard II's second wife Isabella of Valois was daughter of Charles VI of France, but Richard tried to end the war.
Henry IV asserted his grandfather's claim to the French throne and married Catherine, Isabella of Valois' younger sister.
Their son was Henry VI who had himself crowned king of France and then married Margaret of Anjou, Charles VIIs niece. His kingship of France was always disputed, since Charles VII had already been crowned French king a few months earlier.
It was all kinda messy....

 

One thing I always wondered, what were causality rates, birth rates and gender population rates among the French and English? England's two million against France's 13? I still wonder how they beat them.

I must also enjoy the irony that a Father might see his children go up to fight and then even his grandchildren, and perhaps even farther if he lived long enough!