The terrain favoured Henrys army and disadvantaged its opponent, as it reduced the numerical advantage of the French army by narrowing the front. [54] To disperse the enemy archers, a cavalry force of 8001,200 picked men-at-arms,[55] led by Clignet de Brban and Louis de Bosredon, was distributed evenly between both flanks of the vanguard (standing slightly forward, like horns). They had been weakened by the siege at Harfleur and had marched over 200 miles (more than 320 km), and many among them were suffering from dysentery. 030223 - Musings From Leroy Rogers, Mortimer[117] and Sumption[41] all give more or less 10,000 men-at-arms for the French, using as a source the herald of the Duke of Berry, an eyewitness. Agincourt came on the back of half a century of military failure and gave the English a success that repeated victories such as Crcy and Poitiers. The English numbered roughly 5,000 knights, men-at-arms, and archers. The French knights were unable to outflank the longbowmen (because of the encroaching woodland) and unable to charge through the array of sharpened stakes that protected the archers. . The field that the French had to cross to meet their enemy was muddy after a week of rain and slowed their progress, during which time they endured casualties from English arrows. One popular "origin story" for the middle finger has to do with the Battle of Agincourt in 1415. The origins of the sign aren't confirmed, but popular folklore suggests that its original meaning, packed with insult and ridicule, first appeared in the 20th century in the battle of Agincourt. The 'middle finger salute' is derived from the defiant gestures of English archers whose fingers had been severed by the French at the Battle of Agincourt. Certainly, d'Azincourt was a local knight but he might have been chosen to lead the attack because of his local knowledge and the lack of availability of a more senior soldier. After the initial wave, the French would have had to fight over and on the bodies of those who had fallen before them. The play focuses on the pressures of kingship, the tensions between how a king should appear chivalric, honest, and just and how a king must sometimes act Machiavellian and ruthless. When the English won the battle the soldiers waved their middle fingers at the French in defiance, thus flipping the bird was born The English were not in an ideal condition to fight a battle. [81] In any case, to protect themselves as much as possible from the arrows, the French had to lower their visors and bend their helmeted heads to avoid being shot in the face, as the eye- and air-holes in their helmets were among the weakest points in the armour. One of the most renowned. The Gesta Henrici places this after the English had overcome the onslaught of the French men-at-arms and the weary English troops were eyeing the French rearguard ("in incomparable number and still fresh"). Recent heavy rain made the battle field very muddy, proving very tiring to walk through in full plate armour. Before the Battle of Agincourt in 1415, the French, anticipating victory over the English, proposed to cut off the middle finger of all captured English soldiers. This material may not be reproduced without permission. [8] These included the Duke of York, the young Earl of Suffolk and the Welsh esquire Dafydd ("Davy") Gam. Legend says that the British archers were so formidable that the ones captured by the French had their index and middle fingers cut off so that they . According to contemporary English accounts, Henry fought hand to hand. Shakespeare's portrayal of the casualty loss is ahistorical in that the French are stated to have lost 10,000 and the English 'less than' thirty men, prompting Henry's remark, "O God, thy arm was here". 1.3M views 4 months ago Medieval Battles - In chronological order The year 1415 was the first occasion since 1359 that an English king had invaded France in person. A list of English archers killed at Agincourt, as recorded in the village's museum, The story of the battle has been retold many times in English, from the 15th-century, Dates in the fifteenth century are difficult to reconcile with modern calendars: see, The first known use of angled stakes to thwart a mounted charge was at the Battle of Nicopolis, an engagement between European states and Turkish forces in 1396, twenty years before Agincourt. The English army, led by King Henry V, famously achieved victory in spite of the numerical superiority of its opponent. [25] The siege took longer than expected. The idea being that you need two fingers to draw a bow, which makes more sense, and thus links up a national custom with a triumphant moment in national history! This would prevent maneuvers that might overwhelm the English ranks. [135] The battle also forms a central component of the 2019 Netflix film The King. [126], Shakespeare's depiction of the battle also plays on the theme of modernity. The fact that Winston Churchill sometimes made his V-for-victory gesture rudely suggests that it is of much more recent vintage. The English King Henry V and his troops were marching to Calais to embark for England when he was intercepted by forces which outnumbered his. See here for a complete list of exchanges and delays. Didn't it originate at Agincourt? Fixed formatting. - 78-116). "[67] On top of this, the French were expecting thousands of men to join them if they waited. Rogers says each of the 10,000 men-at-arms would be accompanied by a gros valet (an armed, armoured and mounted military servant) and a noncombatant page, counts the former as fighting men, and concludes thus that the French in fact numbered 24,000. It goes on to state thatafter an unexpected victory, the English soldiersmocked thedefeatedFrenchtroopsbywavingtheir middle fingers( here ). Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. Read more about our work to fact-check social media posts here . In March 2010, a mock trial of Henry V for the crimes associated with the slaughter of the prisoners was held in Washington, D.C., drawing from both the historical record and Shakespeare's play. The Battle of Agincourt is one of England's most celebrated victories and was one of the most important English triumphs in the Hundred Years' War, along with the Battle of Crcy (1346) and Battle of Poitiers (1356). Without the middle finger, it would be impossible to draw the renowned English longbow; and therefore, they would be incapable of fighting in the future. The Battle of Agincourt - The European Middle Ages Maybe it means five and was a symbol of support for Henry V? Idiom Origins - Middle finger - History of Middle finger Although the French initially pushed the English back, they became so closely packed that they were described as having trouble using their weapons properly. Shakespeare's version of the battle of Agincourt has been turned into several minor and two major films. [109] Juliet Barker, Jonathan Sumption and Clifford J. Rogers criticized Curry's reliance on administrative records, arguing that they are incomplete and that several of the available primary sources already offer a credible assessment of the numbers involved. It continued as a series of battles, sieges, and disputes throughout the 14th century, with both the French and the English variously taking advantage. But lets not quibble. Agincourt was a battle like no other but how do the French remember Sumption, thus, concludes that the French had 14,000 men, basing himself on the monk of St. Denis;[119] Mortimer gives 14 or 15 thousand fighting men. The military aspects of this account are similarly specious. Agincourt 1415: The Triumph of the Longbow (Video 1993) - IMDb People who killed their social betters from a distance werent very well liked, and would likely have paid with their lives as did all the French prisoners, archers or otherwise, whom Henry V had executed at Agincourt, in what some historians consider a war crime. This famous weapon was made of the native English yew tree, and the act of drawing the longbow was known as "plucking the yew." In pursuit of his claim to the French throne, Henry V invaded Normandy with an army of 11,000 men in August 1415. [127], Shakespeare's play presented Henry as leading a truly English force into battle, playing on the importance of the link between the monarch and the common soldiers in the fight. French chroniclers agree that when the mounted charge did come, it did not contain as many men as it should have; Gilles le Bouvier states that some had wandered off to warm themselves and others were walking or feeding their horses. [105] Other benefits to the English were longer term. The Battle of Agincourt was immortalized by William Shakespeare in his play Henry V. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. [21] On 19 April 1415, Henry again asked the Great Council to sanction war with France, and this time they agreed. The situation in England, coupled with the fact that France was weakened by its own political crisisthe insanity of Charles VI had resulted in a fight for power among the nobilitymade it an ideal moment for Henry to press his claims. Bowman were not valuable prisoners, though: they stood outside the chivalric system and were considered the social inferiors of men-at-arms. The Battle of Agincourt (October 25, 1415) was a pivotal battle in the Hundred Years' War (1337-1453), resulting in an English victory over the French. (Storyline based on the play by William Shakespeare "The Cronicle History of King Henry the Fift with His Batt. Whether this was true is open to question and continues to be debated to this day; however, it seems likely that death was the normal fate of any soldier who could not be ransomed. For three hours after sunrise there was no fighting. This battle is notable for the use of the English longbow in very large numbers, with the English and Welsh archers comprising nearly 80 percent of Henry's army. Longbowmen and "The Finger" - (on 'TheBeckoning') By 24 October, both armies faced each other for battle, but the French declined, hoping for the arrival of more troops. It seems clear, however, that the English were at a decided numerical disadvantage. Legendinc.com Giving the Finger History It is also because of the pheasant feathers on the arrows that the symbolic gesture is known as "giving the bird". The English won in a major upset and waved the body part in question at the French in defiance. The English Gesta Henrici described three great heaps of the slain around the three main English standards. In December 1414, the English parliament was persuaded to grant Henry a "double subsidy", a tax at twice the traditional rate, to recover his inheritance from the French. All quotes delayed a minimum of 15 minutes. [139] The museum lists the names of combatants of both sides who died in the battle. King Charles VI of France did not command the French army as he suffered from psychotic illnesses and associated mental incapacity. England had been fraught with political discord since Henry IV of the house of Lancaster (father of Henry V) had usurped the throne from Richard II in 1399. The Battle of Agincourt took place on October 25, 1415. John Keegan argues that the longbows' main influence on the battle at this point was injuries to horses: armoured only on the head, many horses would have become dangerously out of control when struck in the back or flank from the high-elevation, long-range shots used as the charge started. Without the middle finger it would be impossible to draw the renowned English longbow and therefore [soldiers would] be incapable of fighting in the future. What's the origin of "the finger"? - The Straight Dope The battle remains an important symbol in popular culture. On February 1, 1328, King Charles IV of France died without an heir. Rogers suggested that the French at the back of their deep formation would have been attempting to literally add their weight to the advance, without realising that they were hindering the ability of those at the front to manoeuvre and fight by pushing them into the English formation of lancepoints. It may be in the narrow strip of open land formed between the woods of Tramecourt and Azincourt (close to the modern village of Azincourt). He considered a knight in the best-quality steel armour invulnerable to an arrow on the breastplate or top of the helmet, but vulnerable to shots hitting the limbs, particularly at close range. Image source [c], The English made their confessions before the battle, as was customary. [73] The mounted charge and subsequent retreat churned up the already muddy terrain between the French and the English. I thought the French threatened to cut off the primary finger of the English longbowmen (the middle finger was neeed the most to pull the bowstring). In Nature Embodied: Gesture in Ancient Rome, Anthony Corbeill, Professor of Classics at the University of Kansas wrote: The most familiar example of the coexistence of a human and transhuman elementis the extended middle finger. This moment of the battle is portrayed both as a break with the traditions of chivalry and as a key example of the paradox of kingship. The English account in the Gesta Henrici says: "For when some of them, killed when battle was first joined, fall at the front, so great was the undisciplined violence and pressure of the mass of men behind them that the living fell on top of the dead, and others falling on top of the living were killed as well."[62]. Snopes and the Snopes.com logo are registered service marks of Snopes.com. Common estimates place the English army at about 6,000, while the French army probably consisted of 20,000 to 30,000 men. [62] Le Fvre and Wavrin similarly say that it was signs of the French rearguard regrouping and "marching forward in battle order" which made the English think they were still in danger. The town surrendered on 22 September, and the English army did not leave until 8 October. The metallography and relative effectiveness of arrowheads and armor during the Middle Ages. Several heralds, both French and English, were present at the battle of Agincourt, and not one of them (or any later chroniclers of Agincourt) mentioned anything about the French having cut off the fingers of captured English bowman. The decorative use of the image of Priapusmatched the Roman use ofimages of male genitalia for warding off evil. And I aint kidding yew. [citation needed], In any event, Henry ordered the slaughter of what were perhaps several thousand French prisoners, sparing only the highest ranked (presumably those most likely to fetch a large ransom under the chivalric system of warfare). [51] Albret, Boucicaut and almost all the leading noblemen were assigned stations in the vanguard. Poitiers 1356: The capture of a king (Vol. In a book on the battle of Agincourt, Anne Curry, Professor Emeritus of Medieval History at the University of Southampton, addressed a similar claim prescribed to the V-sign, also considered an offensive gesture: No chronicle or sixteenth-centuryhistory says that English archers made any gesture to the French after the battle in order to show they still had their fingers. Corrections? Battle of Agincourt - HISTORY [17] Two of the most frequently cited accounts come from Burgundian sources, one from Jean Le Fvre de Saint-Remy who was present at the battle, and the other from Enguerrand de Monstrelet. The two candidates with the strongest claims were Edward III of England, who was the son of Charles's sister, and Philip, Charles's paternal . The Battle of Agincourt (Pt 1) - YouTube [125] Shakespeare illustrates these tensions by depicting Henry's decision to kill some of the French prisoners, whilst attempting to justify it and distance himself from the event. Without the middle finger it would be impossible for the English soldiers to draw the renowned English longbow and therefore incapable of fighting in the future. The French, who were overwhelmingly favored to win the battle, threatened to cut a certain body part off of all captured English soldiers so that they could never fight again. Bloomsbury Publishing. The king received an axe blow to the head, which knocked off a piece of the crown that formed part of his helmet. Dear Cecil: Can you confirm the following? The two armies spent the night of 24 October on open ground. [97] According to the heralds, 3,069 knights and squires were killed,[e] while at least 2,600 more corpses were found without coats of arms to identify them. ), And even if killing prisoners of war did not violate the moral code of the times, what would be the purpose of taking archers captive, cutting off their fingers, and then executing them? Without the middle finger it would be impossible to draw the renowned English longbow and therefore be incapable of fighting in the future. Battle of Agincourt, (October 25, 1415), decisive battle in the Hundred Years' War (1337-1453) that resulted in the victory of the English over the French. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. As the English were collecting prisoners, a band of French peasants led by local noblemen began plundering Henrys baggage behind the lines. [86], The only French success was an attack on the lightly protected English baggage train, with Ysembart d'Azincourt (leading a small number of men-at-arms and varlets plus about 600 peasants) seizing some of Henry's personal treasures, including a crown. Agincourt. This claim is false. This article was. Contents. First of all, the word pluck begins with the blend pl, which would logically become fl if the voiceless bilabial plosive p has actually transformed into the labiodentalfricative f, which is by no means certain. [20] He initially called a Great Council in the spring of 1414 to discuss going to war with France, but the lords insisted that he should negotiate further and moderate his claims. [49], The French vanguard and main battle numbered respectively 4,800 and 3,000 men-at-arms. Originally representing the erect phallus, the gesture conveyssimultaneously a sexual threat to the person to whom it is directed andapotropaicmeans of warding off unwanted elements of the more-than-human. ( here ). How different cultures perceive emojis in workplace communication And for a variety of reasons, it made no military sense whatsoever for the French to capture English archers, then mutilate them by cutting off their fingers. Battle of Agincourt and the origin of Fu#K | Origin story of middle Henry would marry Catherine, Charles VI's young daughter, and receive a dowry of 2million crowns. Opie, Iona and Moira Tatem. The archers were commanded by Sir Thomas Erpingham, another elderly veteran. The brunt of the battle had fallen on the Armagnacs and it was they who suffered the majority of senior casualties and carried the blame for the defeat. Kill them outright and violate the medieval moral code of civilized warfare? Your membership is the foundation of our sustainability and resilience. In such a "press" of thousands of men, Rogers suggested that many could have suffocated in their armour, as was described by several sources, and which was also known to have happened in other battles. Although it could be intended as humorous, the image on social media is historically inaccurate. Subject: Truth About the Finger In the film Titanic the character Rose is shown giving the finger to Jack, another character. It may be difficult to pinpoint exactly when the middle finger gesture originated, but some historians trace its roots to ancient Rome. 33-35). With 4,800 men-at-arms in the vanguard, 3,000 in the main battle, and 1,200 in the infantry wings. The Battle Of Agincourt: What Really Happened? | HistoryExtra Some historians trace its origins to ancient Rome. On October 25, 1415, during the Hundred Years' War (1337-1453) between England and France, Henry V (1386-1422), the young king of England, led his forces to victory at the Battle of . Keegan, John. [101] The bailiffs of nine major northern towns were killed, often along with their sons, relatives and supporters. Modern test and contemporary accounts conclude that arrows could not penetrate the better quality steel armour, which became available to knights and men-at-arms of fairly modest means by the middle of the 14th century, but could penetrate the poorer quality wrought iron armour. As the story goes, the French were fighting with the English and had a diabolical (and greatly advertised) plan of cutting off the middle fingers of any captured English archers so they could never taunt the French with arrows plucked in their . [31], The precise location of the battle is not known. PLUCK YEW!". [citation needed]. [114][115] Curry and Mortimer questioned the reliability of the Gesta, as there have been doubts as to how much it was written as propaganda for Henry V. Both note that the Gesta vastly overestimates the number of French in the battle; its proportions of English archers to men-at-arms at the battle are also different from those of the English army before the siege of Harfleur. I admit that I bring this story up when I talk about the Hundred Years War only to debunk it. with chivalry. The History of the Middle Finger & "Fuck You" - Blogger The ransoming of prisoners was the only way for medieval soldiers to make a quick fortune, and so they seized every available opportunity to capture opponents who could be exchanged for handsome prices. Agincourt, Henry V's famous victory over the French on 25 October 1415, is a fascinating battle not just because of what happened but also because of how its myth has developed ever since. 1995 - 2023 by Snopes Media Group Inc. What is Mudra, ancient times to modern classic and controversial In the words of Juliet Barker, the battle "cut a great swath through the natural leaders of French society in Artois, Ponthieu, Normandy, Picardy. On 25 October 1415, an army of English raiders under Henry V faced the French outside an obscure village on the road to Calais. 138). Theodore Beck also suggests that among Henry's army was "the king's physician and a little band of surgeons". The impact of thousands of arrows, combined with the slog in heavy armour through the mud, the heat and difficulty breathing in plate armour with the visor down,[83] and the crush of their numbers, meant the French men-at-arms could "scarcely lift their weapons" when they finally engaged the English line. The legend that the "two-fingered salute" stems from the Battle of Agincourt is apocryphal Although scholars and historians continue to debate its origins, according to legend it was first. Some notable examples are listed below. When the French rejected Henrys substantial territorial demands, he arrived in Normandy in August 1415 with a force of about 12,000 men and laid siege to the city of Harfleur. The Battle of Agincourt forms a key part of Shakespeare's Henry V. Photo by Nick Ansell / POOL / AFP) Myth: During the Hundred Years War, the French cut off the first and second fingers of any. The key word for describing the battle of Agincourt is mud . The traditional view of the years 131821 is one of domination by It seems to me that the single upturned middle finger clearly represents an erect penis and is the gestural equivalent of saying f*ck you! As such, it is probably ancient Wikipedia certainly thinks so, although apparently it became popular in the United States in the late nineteenth century under the influence of Italian immigration, replacing other rude gestures like thumbing the nose or the fig sign. The French nobility, weakened by the defeat and divided among themselves, were unable to meet new attacks with effective resistance. Agincourt 1415: The Triumph of the Longbow: Directed by Graham Holloway. And where does the distinction between one and two fingers come from? [90] In his study of the battle John Keegan argued that the main aim was not to actually kill the French knights but rather to terrorise them into submission and quell any possibility they might resume the fight, which would probably have caused the uncommitted French reserve forces to join the fray, as well. And although the precise etymology of the English word fuck is still a matter of debate, it is linguistically nonsensical to maintain that that word entered the language because the "difficult consonant cluster at the beginning" of the phase 'pluck yew' has "gradually changed to a labiodental fricative 'f.'" During World War II the symbol was adopted as a V for victory. To meet and beat him was a triumph, the highest form which self-expression could take in the medieval nobleman's way of life." Before the Battle of Agincourt in 1415, the French, anticipating victory over the English, proposed to cut off the middle finger of all captured English soldiers.
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