Trial by Battle: The Hundred Years War, Vol. 1

Before Jonathan Sumption came out as a lock-down sceptic he was a distinguished historian and jurist who produced a magisterial history of the Hundred Years War between England and France. This book is volume I of that four-part history. It was published in 1990 and seems to be still regarded as the most accurate and detailed account of the war so far written – on this side of the Channel at any rate. I have to say, it is compelling stuff, but first, a few niggles. The author consistently uses the word “Scotch” rather than “Scottish” to refer to the people of Scotland and things associated with them. I’m not sure if he is being deliberately archaic or just trying to be different. He also talks about the “German Empire” rather than the Holy Roman Empire, which is misleading because although the HRE was predominantly German over much of its one-thousand-year history, it was in no way comparable to the modern state of Germany as it included territories in what are now Italy, Austria, the Czech Republic etc. Confusingly, the author also refers to “Germany” as a political entity five hundred years before Germany became a unified state. It’s odd because in other respects the author is very careful to show how different the political entities of the fourteenth century are from modern nation states. Fourteenth century France is very different from the France of today. Large parts of what we think of as France today, such as Provence and Brittany, were either semi-independent or part of other states. Even within the core territories, there were endless disputes over who was in charge – was it the king or the local duke or count? England was much more homogeneous than France but was still subject to various conflicts and tensions. Nearly three hundred years after the Battle of Hastings, England is still ruled by kings who speak French and regard themselves as French. Below them are a bunch of French-speaking toffs who own large chunks of land in France. Similarly, many French nobles own estates in England (and Ireland). There is a similar situation in Scotland (which had a strong alliance with France), with English toffs owning estates over the border. It’s fascinating to learn that there were many English expats living in France at the start of the war, including a couple of blokes operating a brewery. At the start of the war English expats were subjected to an extortionate tax on the value of their property. However, instead of persuading them to return to England, it encouraged many of them to apply for French citizenship – after all, if they owned land, they couldn’t take it with them. It is noteworthy how little patriotism there is among ordinary people. It is perhaps not surprising that for peasants and townspeople, their main concern is to protect their community without giving any thought to the state as a whole or to distant parts of it that they themselves would never see. Thus we get French towns in bribing the marauding English army to leave them in peace and suggesting they go and sack the next town on their route. And when the French sack Southampton, the citizens of Winchester, just up the road, shrug their shoulders: “Not my problem!” The author is also very good at showing how difficult it was for medieval kings to raise taxes. In England taxes were almost always used to fund wars and whether the nobles would pay up or not depended on whether they expected to gain or lose by those wars. There is no sense of patriotism or national interest. It’s all self-interest, at least among the ruling class. The same applies in France and in other states. I was surprised that even a strong king like Edward I frequently found his requests for cash greeted by an “on your bike” from his nobles. The result was that his subjugation of Wales, and the construction of those wonderful castles like Harlech and Caernarvon were largely financed by Italian bankers. It’s sobering to see how England struggled to do any kind of amphibious operations – like getting troops across to the Continent – before the Royal Navy. English shipping was generally poor quality and many vessels were “the wrong kind of ship” for transporting men and horses or for naval battles. Ship owners could only be induced to make their vessels available for naval operations by upfront payments. The more unscrupulous would then pocket the cash and take their ships overseas to trade elsewhere until the dust settled. They would then return to port without any apparent penalty. The author points out – to my surprise – that at this stage the definition of treason was pretty flaky, with many nobles claiming that refusing to serve a king, or even outright rebellion, could be justified, depending on the circumstances. Another interesting fact, is that, having lost most of their possessions in France in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, kings of England were still dukes of Aquitaine in south-west France. As such they owed homage to the French king as their feudal overlord. The form in which that homage was acted out was a frequent cause of conflict between men who were often related by blood or marriage. At one point we have a king of France ordering a king of England to demonstrate his allegiance by serving in the French army! Other complications arose over the role and power of the Pope and the Catholic Church. Many of the civil servants employed by kings were churchmen who owed a dual allegiance to their king and, through the Church hierarchy, to the Pope. And in those days Popes did have political as well as spiritual power and frequently meddled in the affairs of the states that made up Christendom. The author has given us a general account of the war that covers all aspects of the war: political, religious, social, economic and military. It is also presented as a chronological narrative rather than in a thematic way. And like all the best historians, the author interweaves fascinating vignettes about what life was like for the humble peasant and foot soldier. This first volume gives us a detailed overview of the origins of the war, going back to the reigns of the first two Edwards. It then takes us through the early years up to England’s dramatic victory at Crecy in 1346. I had always thought that England’s victory at Crecy was solely due to the English longbowmen. Now I know that although they did a brilliant job, victory was also secured by French impatience and incompetence. You end this first volume thinking that victory is just over the horizon….. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn more about English history and about our relationships with our neighbours north and south.

The Hundred Years War was a series of conflicts primarily between the English and the French but dragged in various kingdoms on the periphery such as Scotland (which was allied with Scotland) and the low counties (modern day Belgium and Holland) at various points in the conflict. The Hundred Years War was fought throughout all of France at various times during the course of the 14th and 15th centuries. The conflict was the culmination of events running for centuries before that, with its roots way back to the Norman invasion of England and the following vast empire of Henry II of England a century later, who at one point was lord of more of France the French Kings themselves (see the wonderful biography of Henry II by W.L Warren Henry II (Yale English Monarchs) for more detail) though his sons proceeded to lose the bulk of it until they were left with the small duchy of Aquitaine located in south west France in modern Gascony. This book, by Jonathan Sumption is the first of four novels which covers the War in great, complete detail. Starting with the funeral of the last of the direct male line of Capetian kings of France Charles IV, we look at the situation in France, economically, socially and politically. We then have the same treatment of England and then in the Duchy of Aquitaine, which was to be the cause of many conflicts between the two Kingdoms, until the start of the War. We then follow the course of events chronologically as they occurred up to and including the events of the battle of Crecy in 1347 which was a resounding victory for Edward III of England. This is an excellent book about the Hundred years war. Following a narrative chronological progression, we get to see every aspect of the period and all the kingdoms and people that were pulled into the conflict. Not a dumbed down history, but not too high brow, the author brings to live the period in great detail and shows the reader all the aspects of why and how the events of the conflict occurred and keeps the readers attention. The book has plenty of maps for the reader to look at, this truly an excellent work.

What this series shows is just how politically chaotic France was in the period covered by the Hundred Years War. Dukes were more powerful than the monarchy and the English claim to the throne of France was welcomed in some areas, despised in others. The English style of warfare was limited due to their lack of soldiers. They won battles but couldn’t occupy those areas afterwards. It reminded me of the American strategy during the Vietnam War, differing only in that, whereas the English did not have the resources to occupy and win, America had the resources but not the will or desire to win. Under Edward III and Henry V the English certainly had the will, but desire faded afterwards because of the logistical difficulties. I mainly read this book for its description of the Battle of Crecy. The battle covers a fraction of the book and seems to hide within a list of a series of more minor battles and skirmishes. The read can be heavy going at times and like Volume 4 which covers Agincourt, the book lacks a plate section which is why I docked a star. This is more like a text book, very good for reference. 4 Stars.

This is the first vol. of five which was written by a high court judge. It took 30 years to research and write all five volumes. I purchased these books for a gift to a friend who has always been keen on history and is a good reader. He tells me that vol. 1 has so much information and details that it has taken him the best part of a year to complete. He is very pleased with the book. The author is totally unbiased and just deals with the facts.

A very detailed book that allows to understand in details middle age geopolitic. Only for history lovers.

Not knowing a lot about this subject, I originally assumed that this was going to be a history of the 100 years war as seen through English eyes. Instead, I was pleasantly surprised the author has given a well researched, balanced and fascinating narrative on the origins and causes of the war through English, French, Flemish and even Scottish perspectives. Despite the complexity of the social, economic, political and historical origins of the conflict, the author’s ability to dissect and explain these issues in simple and concise language makes it a very readable and interesting book. Don’t stop at this volume as the next 3 are just as good!

I waited a long time to purchase these 5 volumes because they are expensive. But I am so happy that I did! Each book is very well written, easy to understand, and definitely not boring like many history books. They are full of exciting adventures and important comments from pages of bibliography. What a marvelous project from this well respected author! I look forward every day to reading more. You will be up late at night like I am -reading, reading, reading, and enjoying every minute.

Lecture

This narrative history of the 100 Years War is one of the best histories for the general audience I have ever come across. It is a great read. Well organized and superb in detail. Highly recommend it for those interested in this period.