Henry V

Henry V ruled England from 1413 until his death in 1422. His reign saw the greatest period of English military success in the Hundred Years War. His victory at Agincourt, the conquest of much of Normandy and the Treaty of Troyes brought England closer than ever to achieving its claim to the French crown.

Henry’s campaigns combined military conquest, siege warfare, control of ports and communications, and diplomacy. His early death left an unfinished settlement which his son Henry VI inherited.

Henry V and the Hundred Years War

Accession and the Renewal of War

Henry’s accession brought a renewed attempt to resolve the English claim to the French crown. The consolidation of Henry’s position in England preceded the invasion of France in 1415.

• The Southampton Plot and the execution of Richard, Earl of Cambridge
• Edmund Mortimer, Earl of March

Agincourt and the 1415 Campaign

Henry’s first campaign culminated in the Battle of Agincourt. The victory established Henry’s military reputation but did not end the war.

• Battle of Agincourt

The Conquest of Normandy

From 1417 Henry pursued the systematic conquest of Normandy. The campaigns involved the capture and occupation of towns and fortifications, culminating in the fall of Rouen in 1419.

• Caen
• Rouen
• Naval warfare, ports and communications

France Divided

Henry’s success was aided by the continuing political divisions within France. The rivalry between the Armagnacs and Burgundians, and the murder of John the Fearless in 1419, helped create the circumstances for the Treaty of Troyes.

• Domestic Politics During the Hundred Years War
• John the Fearless

The Treaty of Troyes

The Treaty of Troyes in 1420 recognised Henry as heir to Charles VI and Regent of France. His marriage to Catherine of Valois formed part of the proposed dynastic settlement.

• Catherine of Valois

The War Continues

Troyes did not end the conflict. The Dauphin rejected the settlement and continued the war. English forces therefore remained engaged in campaigns to maintain and extend the position created by Henry’s victories.

• Battle of Baugé
• Siege of Meaux

Henry V’s Death

Henry died in 1422 before he could become King of France. Charles VI died only weeks later, leaving Henry’s infant son, Henry VI, as claimant to the French succession.

• John, Duke of Bedford
• Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester
• Death of Henry V, accession of Henry VI

Further Reading

• Anne Curry, Agincourt 1415–2015, The Historian, 127 (2015).
• Anne Curry, After Agincourt, what next? Henry V and the campaign of 1416.
• Anne Curry, The Norman Rolls of Henry V as a source for military history, 1417–1422.
• Anne Curry, Battle of Agincourt, Oxford Bibliographies in Military History.
• Ian Mortimer, What Hundred Years War?, History Today (2009).