By History And Culture Media

9/8/2024

The Hundred Years’ War: Causes, Major Battles, and Lasting Impact on Medieval Europe

The Hundred Years’ War was one of the most important and devastating conflicts in medieval European history. Fought between the kingdoms of England and France from 1337 to 1453, the war reshaped politics, military tactics, monarchy, and national identity across Europe. Despite its name, the conflict was not continuous and actually lasted 116 years through a series of campaigns, truces, and renewed invasions.

The Hundred Years’ War involved legendary figures such as Edward III, Henry V, Joan of Arc, and Charles VII. It produced famous battles like Crécy, Poitiers, and Agincourt, while introducing military innovations that weakened the dominance of medieval knights and transformed warfare forever.

This article explores the causes, key events, major battles, important leaders, and lasting consequences of the Hundred Years’ War, while also examining important primary sources from the period.

What Was the Hundred Years’ War?

The Hundred Years’ War was a prolonged dynastic and territorial conflict between England and France over claims to the French throne and control of French lands. By convention, the war began in 1337 when French King Philip VI confiscated the English-controlled duchy of Guyenne. (Encyclopedia Britannica)

The conflict is traditionally divided into three major phases:

1. The Edwardian War (1337–1360)

2. The Caroline War (1369–1389)

3. The Lancastrian War (1415–1453)

The war ended in 1453 with the French victory at the Battle of Castillon, which effectively expelled England from most of its territories in France. (Encyclopedia Britannica)

Causes of the Hundred Years’ War

Dynastic Claims to the French Throne

The primary cause of the Hundred Years’ War was a succession crisis in France.

When French King Charles IV died in 1328 without a male heir, the French nobility selected Philip VI of Valois as king. However, England’s King Edward III believed he had a stronger claim through his mother, Isabella, who was the sister of Charles IV. (Encyclopedia Britannica)

The French rejected Edward’s claim because of the principle later associated with Salic Law, which barred inheritance through the female line.

Edward III initially accepted Philip VI as king, but tensions continued to grow.

Territorial Disputes

England still possessed territories in France, especially the duchy of Aquitaine (Guyenne). English kings technically held these lands as vassals to the French king, creating ongoing friction.

French monarchs repeatedly attempted to weaken English authority in these regions. In 1337 Philip VI confiscated Guyenne, triggering open war. (Encyclopedia Britannica)

Economic Rivalry

Economic competition also intensified the conflict. England depended heavily on wool exports to Flanders, while France sought influence over the region.

Control of trade routes, ports, and wealthy territories became central to the struggle.

Edward III and the Opening of the War

King Edward III launched the English war effort with remarkable military success.

English armies employed highly disciplined infantry and the devastating English longbow, which revolutionized medieval warfare. Unlike traditional feudal armies dominated by armored knights, English tactics relied on coordinated defensive positions and massed archery.

The early English victories shocked Europe.

The Battle of Sluys (1340)

The Battle of Sluys was the first major battle of the war and secured English naval dominance in the English Channel. (Encyclopedia Britannica)

English forces destroyed much of the French fleet, preventing a French invasion of England.

Primary Source: Jean Froissart’s Chronicles

The medieval chronicler Jean Froissart described the battle in vivid detail and emphasized the chaos and brutality of medieval naval warfare.

Froissart’s writings remain among the most important primary sources for the Hundred Years’ War. (Encyclopedia Britannica)

The Battle of Crécy (1346)

The Battle of Crécy became one of the most famous English victories of the Middle Ages.

Edward III’s smaller army defeated a much larger French force through superior tactics and disciplined use of longbowmen. French cavalry repeatedly charged uphill into devastating arrow fire.

The battle demonstrated that armored knights were no longer invincible.

The English victory at Crécy was followed by the capture of Calais, which became England’s most important continental possession for over two centuries.

The Black Death and the War

In the late 1340s, the Black Death devastated Europe. The plague killed millions and temporarily slowed military campaigns.

However, the war resumed after the initial outbreaks subsided.

The social and economic effects of the plague intensified political instability across both kingdoms. Labor shortages, taxation, and military destruction created widespread unrest.

The Battle of Poitiers (1356)

Another catastrophic French defeat occurred at the Battle of Poitiers in 1356.

The English army under Edward, the Black Prince, captured French King John II during the battle.

Primary Source: Jean Froissart’s Chronicles

Froissart described the English archers and defensive formations as decisive factors in the victory. His account helped shape later understanding of medieval chivalry and warfare. (Encyclopedia Britannica)

The capture of the French king created political chaos in France.

The Treaty of Brétigny (1360)

The Treaty of Brétigny temporarily halted the conflict in 1360.

Under the treaty:

• England gained expanded territories in France

• Edward III renounced his formal claim to the French crown

• France agreed to pay an enormous ransom for King John II

Despite the agreement, tensions soon returned.

Charles V and the French Recovery

French King Charles V reorganized the French war effort and gradually recovered lost territory.

Unlike earlier French kings, Charles avoided large open battles against the English. Instead, French commanders used guerrilla tactics, sieges, and attrition to weaken English control.

By the end of Charles V’s reign, much of the territory gained by England had been reclaimed. (Encyclopedia Britannica)

Henry V and the Renewal of War

The conflict entered a new phase when Henry V became king of England in 1413.

Henry revived England’s claim to the French throne and invaded France in 1415.

The Battle of Agincourt (1415)

The Battle of Agincourt became the most legendary English victory of the war.

Despite being heavily outnumbered, Henry V’s exhausted army defeated the French nobility on muddy terrain. English longbowmen devastated French knights trapped in narrow conditions. (Encyclopedia Britannica)

The battle became a symbol of military discipline overcoming aristocratic arrogance.

Primary Source: Shakespeare’s Henry V

Although written centuries later, William Shakespeare immortalized Agincourt in the famous “Saint Crispin’s Day” speech:

“We few, we happy few, we band of brothers.”

The speech remains one of the most famous literary portrayals of the Hundred Years’ War. (Encyclopedia Britannica)

The Treaty of Troyes (1420)

Following Agincourt and subsequent victories, Henry V forced France to sign the Treaty of Troyes in 1420.

The treaty declared Henry V heir to the French throne and disinherited the Dauphin Charles, the future Charles VII.

For a moment, it appeared England might permanently unite the crowns of England and France.

However, both Henry V and French King Charles VI died in 1422, leaving the infant Henry VI as claimant to both kingdoms.

Joan of Arc and the French Revival

The turning point of the war came with the emergence of Joan of Arc.

Joan, a peasant girl from Domrémy, claimed divine visions instructed her to support Charles VII and liberate France from English domination.

In 1429 she inspired French forces during the Siege of Orléans, one of the war’s decisive moments. The French victory revitalized national morale and reversed years of defeat.

Joan then escorted Charles VII to Reims for his coronation as king of France.

Primary Source: The Trial of Joan of Arc

The records of Joan’s trial remain among the most important surviving documents of the medieval period.

During questioning, Joan defended her visions and mission with extraordinary confidence despite intense pressure from her judges.

She was eventually convicted of heresy and burned at the stake in 1431.

Her execution transformed her into a martyr and symbol of French resistance.

The Decline of English Power

After Joan’s death, France steadily regained momentum.

Charles VII reformed the French military by creating more permanent royal armies and improving artillery.

French cannon became increasingly effective in siege warfare, reducing the military advantages previously enjoyed by England.

The Battle of Castillon (1453)

The final major battle of the war occurred at Castillon in 1453.

French artillery devastated the English forces and killed the English commander John Talbot.

The defeat effectively ended English ambitions in France. England retained only the port of Calais. (Encyclopedia Britannica)

Military Innovations of the Hundred Years’ War

The Hundred Years’ War transformed medieval warfare.

Key developments included:

• The rise of professional armies

• Greater use of infantry

• Decline of mounted knights

• Expansion of artillery and gunpowder weapons

• Importance of disciplined archers

The English longbow became legendary for its effectiveness at Crécy, Poitiers, and Agincourt.

At the same time, artillery increasingly dominated late medieval battlefields by the war’s conclusion.

National Identity and Political Change

The war helped strengthen national identity in both England and France.

Before the conflict, loyalties were often feudal rather than national. Over time, however, populations increasingly identified themselves as English or French.

The war also strengthened royal authority, especially in France, where the monarchy expanded centralized control after victory.

Economic and Social Consequences

The Hundred Years’ War devastated large parts of France.

Repeated invasions, raids, and taxation caused widespread suffering among peasants and townspeople.

The war contributed to:

• Economic disruption

• Famine and depopulation

• Peasant uprisings

• Heavy taxation

• Political instability

England also suffered financially. The enormous costs of the war contributed to domestic unrest and later conflicts such as the Wars of the Roses.

Jean Froissart and Medieval Historiography

No discussion of the Hundred Years’ War is complete without Jean Froissart.

Froissart’s Chronicles remain one of the most important narrative sources for the conflict. He described battles, noble courts, tournaments, and political events in vivid detail. (Encyclopedia Britannica)

Modern historians recognize that Froissart sometimes exaggerated or romanticized events, but his writings provide unmatched insight into medieval chivalry and warfare.

Legacy of the Hundred Years’ War

The Hundred Years’ War permanently transformed Europe.

Its legacy included:

• The rise of centralized monarchies

• Decline of feudal warfare

• Growth of national identity

• Expansion of military technology

• Strengthening of royal bureaucracies

The conflict also marked the gradual transition from the medieval world to the early modern era.

For France, victory established the Valois monarchy as dominant. For England, defeat contributed to political instability and internal civil war.

The war’s memory endured for centuries through literature, chronicles, national myths, and historical scholarship.

Conclusion

The Hundred Years’ War was far more than a dynastic dispute between England and France. It was a transformative conflict that reshaped medieval Europe politically, militarily, and socially.

From the victories of Edward III and Henry V to the inspiration of Joan of Arc and the final French triumph at Castillon, the war created legends that continue to influence historical memory today.

Its innovations in warfare weakened the old feudal order, strengthened monarchies, and accelerated the development of national identity. Few medieval conflicts had a greater impact on European history.

Sources

Primary Sources

• Jean Froissart, Chronicles

• Trial Records of Joan of Arc

• Treaty of Troyes (1420)

• William Shakespeare, Henry V

Secondary Sources

• Encyclopaedia Britannica: Hundred Years’ War

• Britannica: Battle of Agincourt

• Britannica: Jean Froissart

• Wikipedia: Hundred Years’ War

• Wikipedia: Froissart’s Chronicles

• Britannica: Battle of Sluys

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